Marc Brownstein of Philadelphia's Brownstein Group thinks this is a good time to buy an agency. That's right. One of the smartest strategies over the next 18 months will be to grow through acquisition. Seek out an agency that complements the strengths your shop has, both in skill sets, client roster, specialty and culture. Some shops are hurting now, so they may be inclined to want to sell; others may be doing well, …
Textin’ Turkey
Cooking the bird on Thanksgiving can be a nerve-wracking experience. Your family and friends are counting on you. There's little room for error. That's why Butterball instituted a help line, 1-800-BUTTERBALL (1-800-288-8372) back in 1981. Since then, the help line—one of the first ever created—has become an unparalleled marketing tool for the company, even playing a starring role in a Thanksgiving episode of NBC's …
Wayward Journalist Builds Storm Shelter, Invites Colleagues
MSNBC kicked Dan Abrams to the curb this fall. Now the lawyer, color commentator, show host and former MSNBC General Manager, is organizing a new PR firm that he plans to staff with journalists. According to The Wall Street Journal, Abrams Research will help business executives navigate public-relations challenges -- from major acquisitions to bothersome bloggers to outright scandals. The firm's chief selling point …
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Adweek Is 30. Will It Make It To 35?
I’ve been reading Adweek every week for 15 years, ever since I took advantage of its cheap student subscription rate. And back then, it was more valuable than any college class if you wanted to get a feel for the ins-and-outs and weekly machinations of the ad industry and all the agencies in it. Up until a few years ago, Adweek published 6 regional editions—so if you were in the Southeast, you had some national news …
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From Sweet Talker To Sweet Maker
Some marcom execs invent brands as intrapreneurs, others simply hang up their agency cleats and start fresh. Brian Pelletier, 41, a public relations executive at Fleishman-Hillard in St. Louis, is one of the latter. According to St. Louis Beacon, Pelletier left his PR job and is now the sole proprietor of Kakao Chocolate. He dons an apron and comfortable Crocs instead of a starched shirt and tie at his small …
Lee Clow Wins Again
The man surfs and wears flip flops and a long beard to meetings with the world's most loaded marketers. And he wins them over, time and again. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Pepsi account is leaving BBDO, where it's been for 40 plus years. The account will be placed in the hands of Lee Clow, chief creative officer TBWA Worldwide, who is known for the successful Apple ads, including the Mac vs. PC …
If You’re So Smart, Go Ahead And Invent Something
We know that some of the brightest bulbs in Adlandia like to invent their own products and bring them to market, when they're not busy polishing their reels. It's a healthy exercise and all that... According to Ad Age, London's Bartle Bogle has a unit called Zag dedicated to the practice. The idea is to identify "brand lag" -- areas where consumers are active but there are few brands. For instance, only 12% of people …
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Real Journalists Scraping By Online
I don't mind saying I'm fascinated by this story on startups in online journalism. At the center of the piece is VoiceofSanDiego.org, the creation of San Diego venture capitalist and entrepreneur, Buzz Woolley, and a rag tag crew of journalists swimming to shore from sinking print vehicles. “Information is now a public service as much as it’s a commodity,” Wolley says. “It should be thought of the same way as …
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