Speed Racer goes to McDonalds

Over the past month or so, the marketing for Warner Bro.'s next big flick Speed Racer has been everywhere. TV, teasers in movie theaters, posters, YouTube... it's endless. And it's about to get a lot worse.

I just saw the first commercial for Road Runner Hi-Speed Internet services combined with Speed Racer trailer cuts today. While most ads for the movie have been strictly about the the plot so far, I now have the viewing pleasure of watching the Road Runner and Speed Racer compete down a futuristic track. Let the product placement begin.

Not to derail sponsorship and partnership marketing practices, but it makes one wonder: can't we leave one thing sacred once in a while? Unfortunately, this is only the beginning. McDonalds is also signed on for some serious product placement. It's a wonder the same practice isn't integrated into children's books more often.

Obviously, I can't wait for the Olympics marketing to begin.

This blog was brought to you by Paul Matson. Love or hate it, please leave a comment or drop me an email at pauljmatson@gmail.com.

Why money smells

The human olfactory sense, or in other words our sense of smell, just doesn't get enough credit. Your nose accounts for up to 95% of what you taste, can alter your mood and hormone levels almost instantaneously, and is proven to be the most potent of all human stimulus receptors.

Having a big schnoz myself and given the joy that a good sense of smell can bring us, I find it appalling that 13% of the American population feels the need to get a rhinoplasty.

Not to mention that our ability to sniff is a marketer's best friend. When used correctly in supermarkets, clothing retailers and restaurants, there remains little doubt about the power of our Pinocchio's. Here's a few examples you may be able to relate:

Yum

1. The smell of a significant other's cologne/perfume. You'd recognize that scent anywhere.

2. Walking by or entering any Chipotle or Taco Bell (or fill in your favorite fast food joint). Some of you may disagree, but for those of you who don't, you know exactly what I'm talking about.

3. The smell of a new car's interior. Who cares what gas prices are - let's go for another drive!

4. Cookies while they're baking in the oven.

5. Gasoline. Believe it or not, some people enjoy filling up for more than one reason. And Exxon knows it.

Ugh

1. SBD. (Silent but deadly). He who smelt it, dealt it.

2. The waiting room at any oil change business.

3. Hospital hallways.

4. That guy who never showers two days in a row.

Here's a little test: think of any room or building you enter on a regular basis. Now mentally reconstruct it's smell when you enter that place. It's all part of creating your perception, yes?

So there's my (un)biased list. Time to wake up and smell the coffee. Or the roses.

Love or hate what you've read? Feel free to drop me an email at pauljmatson@gmail.com or subscribe by entering your email in the feed burner!

That guy on the sidewalk

I found myself getting engaged in several memorable conversations this weekend and wanted to take a moment to get them on record. Goes to show how much momentum conversations can carry. We are, after all, a complex compilation of the infinite human influences we've had throughout our lives.

Some insights from the people you walk by on the sidewalk...

1. NO ONE likes to hear people toot their own horn. Ever.

2. If you're a rookie at a new job, do you think your boss would rather pull you back or push you forward with new responsibility?

3. Sometimes, all the marketing in the world won't change someone's perception. Not everyone watches TV, reads the paper, has a cell phone, or uses the Internet.

4. The greatest plague of man is selfishness.

5. Want other people to take you seriously? You have to take yourself seriously first.

6. The greatest thing about Internet communication is that it serves as an equal playing field. People who comment on news articles online could be the CEO of UBS or a bum using a computer at the local Internet cafe. How would you know who's who? Honestly?

7. The key to keeping people's heads looking forward is to keep the ceiling busy.

8. How do you tell what's real and what's fake? That is, when it comes to people.

9. What does the contents of your wallet/purse reveal about you?

10. People aren't stupid.

And there you have it. Agree or disagree with something above? Become a subscriber or drop me an email at pauljmatson@gmail.com.

Why your cell phone can kill you

No, I'm not talking about the arthritis you're going to get from text messaging your friends 200 times a day.

Dozens of recent studies have alarmingly pointed to the devastating long-term effects of heavy cell phone usage... which includes just about everyone except my grandmother. The most recent study was conducted by Dr. Vini Khurana, and is the most alarming indictment published yet of the health risks associated with our beloved handsets. Read it here.

It draws on growing evidence - exclusively reported in the IoS in October - that using handsets for 10 years or more can double the risk of cancer. Cancers take at least a decade to develop, invalidating official safety assurances based on earlier studies which included few, if any, people who had used the phones for that long.

Naysayers are probably going to send me 100 emails with links to research that "proves" that cell phones area safe. Probably including the one conducted by the National Communication Association from the 1990s to show that cell phones are healthy and revolutionizing. Hm. I challenge someone to provide a document published after 2005 that disproves this claim.

Health risks and destruction theories aside, there are more implications to this growing crisis than meets the eyes. Mobile marketing is the next communication vehicle fad that businesses are utilizing to reach consumers. This is an industry projected to be worth more than $24 billion in the next five years. For those who are unfamiliar with this concept, the idea is to put advertising in your pocket via cell phones, text messaging, and digital promotion - essentially allowing consumers to be notified of sales promotions and receive branded messaging from companies anywhere in the world. Tantalizing opportunity for businesses, yes? Cell phone are obviously critical for this communication venture... I'll let you put two and two together.

Let's just hope our generation doesn't go down in history as the fools that held radioactive devices to our heads for 30 years before we finally realized that we were going to wipe ourselves off the face of the Earth.

Twitter

I finally joined the last social media/bookmarking site on my current horizon.

If you have a burning desire to know where I am during the day, click here and subscribe or check back regularly. Don't worry, I won't know who you are!

While social networking can be and is certainly misused on occasion, it is a fantastic tool when utilized for the purpose it was originally designed. I tend to be on the go more often than not (or all the time, rather). This is a simple way to reach me without having to text, call, or ask around.

http://twitter.com/pauljmatson

Enjoy.

Sometimes, we just can't help it

Everyone has a pet-peeve. Actually, make that peeve[s]. As much as people like to think that we have complete control over what we do (and don't) like, there are some things that just get under our skin.

Traffic, speeding tickets, Mondays, burnt toast, and toe nail clippings might be a few universal no-nos.

But what about the things that catch our attention in a good way? I'm talking about the ones that, even if we question our reasons for liking them, turn our heads so we can't turn them away? Things that make us crack a smile, even when we're facing a completely miserable day. Things that make you say, "Thank God for small favors."

Here's a few tools marketers use that have the potential to make us a little fuzzy inside.

1. Giveaways. Even when we are children, marketers had us chomping down eight boxes of our favorite cereal to get the proofs of purchase necessary for a couple free baseball cards. Today, everyone's favorite promotions involve some sort of free swag. Whether you're going to a trade show, spring break, or sitting in the bleachers of a baseball game, people will always open their arms wide for the free stuff. No matter if it's something of necessity. From free food samples, to fishing poles, to XXL t-shirts... we want it all, and we're not giving it back.

2. Green. If you've read one of my previous posts "Money Officially Grows on Trees," you already know my thoughts on eco-twisted marketing. Being pro-environment isn't just the right thing to do anymore. It's cool. How convenient that money is also the same color.

3. Convenience. A bank on every corner. Our entire music libraries crammed into an iPod. Green lights at intersections. Who can pass up an opportunity to get ahead? When you stop to ponder our society, our entire economy is built upon the marketing of convenience and efficiency. To illustrate my point, America has gone from using a telephone booth for making calls, record players for listening to music, over-size road maps for directions, black and white TVs, and the radio down to..... the iPhone. Oh, and it has the internet too.

4. Watching people embarrass themselves. Two words: Reality Television. Everyone loves to hate VH1 and MTVs latest reality disasters. Flavor Flav, Bret Michaels, The Real Housewives (just to name a few), have become pseudo celebrities. We have been sold out on the idea that their lives are far more interesting than our own. I argue that America loves these shows for one reason: We can talk about these people all day... and it will never come back to us.

5. Not being annoyed... but not being left alone. We want to be pursued, but on our own terms. Unfortunately, everyone has the same desire. Some say that being hated by the world is better than being entirely ignored. It's all about the drive for significance. If marketers can lead us to believe that a product will draw more attention to us (clothes, perfumes, cars, etc.), we're all over it. But don't forget, we want tinted windows on our new BMW. We're saying "Look me, but close your eyes!"

6. Babies and puppies. Enough said.

7. Lists. Come on, you knew this was coming. People are inherently pattern-seekers. We understand lists. Just like everyone understands the two most common excuses: Time & Money.

For example:

"I'm sorry, my schedule is just to hectic"
Our typical response: "Of course, I know how you feel!"

"I just don't have the funds."
Our first thought: "Come to think of it, I could use some extra cash."

What happens here stay here - unless you're talking about Las Vegas.

No one hates the term "spin doctor" more than the PR professionals, but here is a perfect example of the power that misusing public tactics can have.

Urban Casavant, a front-man for the Las Vegas-based CMKM Diamonds, and 13 of his colleagues were hit with a civil injunction alleging they illegally issued and sold up to 662 billion shares of unrestricted stock and collected at least $64.2 million from investors who bought their story... about the vast diamond fortune lying beneath the surface in far reaches of Saskatchewan, Canada.

According to the report, more than 40,000 individual investors are unknowingly involved.

Like all good cons, there was a grain of truth to the promotional puffery. The behemoth DeBeers corporation has explored the Forte a la Corne region of Saskatchewan, which is believed to contain one of the larger diamond fields on the planet.

Not that CMKM found any, or used the millions his promotion generated to develop his claims. But he wisely left such details out of his obnoxiously optimistic media statements.

Casavant's company is a testament to the power of public relations with press releases, hyperbolic Internet chat rooms, and race event promotions across the country.

His glittering press releases not only promoted his worthless stock, but they also helped calm the fears of skeptical investors as they downplayed the SEC's criticism. And that often meant investors eventually poured good money after bad as they chased their dream of riches glittering from the Great White North like some penny stock aurora borealis.

Casavant has supposedly returned to Canada... perhaps to be closer to his diamonds.

The squeaky wheel gets the grease: Being strategically obnoxious

Whether you pay attention to TV advertising or not, most people can't help but have a few commercials that they "absolutely can't stand" or " absolutely can't stop watching."

Today's best marketers remind us that the average consumer is bombarded with thousands of advertisements each day. The challenge is to keep your attention while competing with every other brand yelling "look at me!".

Most companies would pay top dollar to guarantee even five seconds of your undivided attention. Feel pretty special, huh?

However, some companies have decided to take a completely adverse course of action, forcing their way into your lives kicking and screaming for attention. Remarkably, the strategy has worked wonders in several cases. Take this Folgers Coffee TV ad - be sure to watch until the end to catch their key messaging.



However, any advertising of this nature could easily become borderline invasive, which has the opposite effect - turning consumers away. Sometimes taking the cute, sweet or serious route of advertising just doesn't pay. Each industry tends to have a certain attitude about their ads. Investment (particularly Wall Street - think UBS) companies will often appeal with a more serious, sophisticated tone. A pizza joint? Usually a more family-oriented, happy-go-lucky approach.

Obnoxious advertising, if done right, could potentially be utilized by any brand.

Here's one more to illustrate my point.



I believe I just got a headache.