The Obama Thank You Note

Very nicely done. A well run marketing campaign, ended with a simple thank you. Wouldn't have expected less, but nice to see anyway.

Now, we've seen thank you's already in the form of emails, but there does seem to be something more genuine about receiving a physical note, whether or not it's really just a direct mailer. I'm not sure how or if that changes for someone who has spent their entire life without the need for tangible media. Tough to say, but for me, there's something about holding an object that makes it more personal.

CBS Gets Egg on Their Face

As has been widely reported, CBS has plans to launch what their copywriters have dubbed "egg-vertising."  My head is throbbing just thinking about it.

At first glance, CBS gets a subtle plus or two.  They're doing a couple things every marketer should.  (1) They've gone to a place where people are, but advertisers are not.  (2) They did something that got people talking, and got them a ton of free PR.

I'll leave the congratulations at that point. The president of CBS marketing was most pleased with the promotion's inability to be avoided.

Newspapers, magazines and Web sites are so crowded with ads for entertainment programming that CBS was ready to try something different, Mr. Schweitzer said. The best thing about the egg concept was its intrusiveness.

Empty space does not equal an open invitation to advertisers.  This is a sign of (a) irresponsibility with consumers' time (b) traditional-marketer reasoning run amok in a non-traditional space.  It is unabashed disrespect for the consumer.  Really, who the hell wants advertising on the food they eat?  Next, will they brand my steak with an A1 logo?

A few posts ago, I posed a decision we have to make as marketers.  Desperation or Revolution?

This is clearly DESPERATION.

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