Tuesday March 19, 2024

Political Marketing

The Trump campaign is relying on traditional door-knocking to get out the vote in November.  The Biden campaign isn’t.  Biden’s people are relying on phone banks, email and social media.  If Biden wins, he might change the course of political marketing.  If he doesn’t, campaigners may well return to tried-and-true methods.  It’s a risk for […]

Marketing Coup

Lysol is the first hard-surface cleaner to be EPA approved to kill the coronavirus.  That is a marketing coup for the brand, as if it needed it, and a PR success.  The challenge for Lysol since the beginning of the pandemic has been to stock shelves.  That is a hurdle that all household cleaner brands […]

Marketing Fraud

Cell phone carriers are engaged in marketing fraud as an industry.  Every company says it offers 5G speeds when they clearly don’t or are barely adequate.  Regulators so far are letting them get away with it.  Is it any wonder that consumers are wary of the claims?  It is caveat emptor for the next few […]

Marketing Misery

This airline offers no-frills, rock-bottom seat pricing and all the discomfort that implies.  For all that, it is making money.  There is a market for misery as long as it is cheap, and Spirit knows that.  The commentator praises its honesty and purity of positioning.  There is none of the multiple tiers of comfort and cost […]

Suspect Marketing

Amazon has formed partnerships with police departments to give them access to its Ring video doorbell recordings.  The company considers crime prevention a good marketing strategy.  The problem is that Amazon didn’t make it public that it was doing this, and it didn’t ask householders whether they are willing to cooperate although the police will […]

Intrusive Marketing

Restaurants are beginning to Google customers to learn more about them.  The claim is they can serve their patrons better.  On the other hand, it is intrusive marketing.  Do you want to know that your background is a factor in the attention you get in a fancy restaurant?  One would expect the same level of […]

Smart Marketing And PR

This is smart marketing and PR.  Even drivers with automatic toll payment in their cars would like to know what driving a road will cost.  In fact, they have more of an incentive than those who stop and pay a toll taker because automatic payments are deducted from one’s account without a receipt.  Waze is […]

Curious Marketing

Taco Bell is opening a hotel for a short time that will have its restaurant themes throughout it. While it is creative, it is curious marketing.  What does Taco Bell have to do with rooms?  It is a stretch to say that Mexican food has deep relationships to room service and overnight stays.  And how […]

Marketing Challenge

This photo-story demonstrates the marketing challenge Amtrak faces with long distance trains.  A trip by plane from Orlando to New York City would have been four hours at most.  By train, it was 23.  Even with fast engines and good tracks, the time would have still been more than twice as long than with a […]

Mob Marketing

A French grocery chain learned the hard way about marketing to a mob.  It started a mad rush for Nutella, the chocolate and hazelnut spread.  The riots were caused by a deep discount for the product. Frenchmen lined up at the doors of the grocer then rushed for the bottles.  There was fighting.  There was damage.  […]