It was the first time I've received such an award and I was really stoked! RPRS held a banquet at the RBC Center that turned out to be a great chance to get to meet some really talented folks. Erin and I had a blast.

A previous post, titled Advocacy Through Public Relations, highlights the release and the media attention it generated.

Another aspect of sales promotion that may not be considered as heavily is the support of a brand's complete 'supply chain' relative to sales promotional efforts. The manager would be mistaken to consider an aggressive price promotion without similar support or enticements to the retailer or wholesaler/distributor. Both of these segments are critical to helping the brand achieve in-store awareness and ready supply. As part of any sales promotion, I believe that the manager much consider the needs of these groups and provide integrative support in some manner. For example, if Frito Lay decided upon an aggressive promotion of chips, it needs to provide complimentary enticements within it distribution channels to get everyone to play along. Although any one of several tactics could be used, all would work to help entice the retailer and wholesaler to participate. I feel that while brands clearly position themselves in the minds of consumers, they are similarly situated among their trading partners as well. These 'team members' also influence what the consumer sees and experiences in-store. The manager must consider these factors and deliver promotional programs that provide integrated support. Doing so effects may increase the likelihood of preferential product placement or favorable consideration relative to slotting fees.

If conducted effectively, some types of sales promotions can be used to increase brand loyalty. A perfect example of this is with a new product introduction. Case in point is a scenario in which Proctor and Gamble introduces a new skin cream. To introduce the product to its target consumers, the brand manager could decide to run a sales promotion that offers a major price discount for a limited time. This would work to drive consumers to purchase the product on a trial basis and sample it. After sampling, if the consumer was satisfied with the product's performance, they may consider additional purchases, regardless of 'normal' price. By pursuing an activity that promoted trial on behalf of the consumer, the brand could increase its awareness and its loyalty within its target market.

A Brief Description of Nike
To get of very brief glimpse of Nike, I referenced their website. The organization was originally founded in 1962 as Blue Ribbon Sports. The company changed its name in 1972 to Nike, 'named for the Greek winged goddess of victory.' Today Nike directly employs some twenty-six thousand people, as well as approximately six hundred and fifty thousand in contracted factories worldwide. It is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. It possesses an extensive network of retail and manufacturing operations, distribution centers. Under the Nike corporate brand, its own numerous athletic apparel subsidiaries that include Cole Haan Holdings, Bauer Nike Hockey, Hurley International, Converse Inc., and Exeter Brands Group, LLC.

The Interviews
I conducted a series of three interviews over a course of two days. The interviews were conducted in a relaxed, face-to-face setting with individuals that I know both personally and professionally. The interviewees were comprised of two females and one male. The females' ages were 31 and 33 and both were held advanced educational degrees; one was a primary school teacher with a Masters Degree in education, the other an Attorney. Both were single and had no children and pursued similar lifestyle habits relative to exercise and fitness. The male was 41 years of age, also possessed an advanced degree and was married with two children. His lifestyle factors relative to his personal exercise and fitness habits were somewhat similar to the females, although the impetus for this was mainly as a result of his family demands and not necessarily reflective of his personal motivation.

During the brief interviews, I asked each a series of questions that were aimed at revealing key data in accordance to the Communications Strategy Development Form within IMC: The Next Generation (181-182) by Schultz. The questions ranged from the basic - do you buy Nike, to more subjective, such as 'what does Nike mean to you?'

Key Revelations
The interviews uncovered several key pieces of information about the perceptions of the Nike brand, technical considerations of Nike footwear and the methods in which each were exposed to the brand and its messages. From the attitudinal perspective, the women described somewhat different thoughts regarding what the Nike brand represented to them. While they both described the main meaning of the brand to be 'sportswear' or 'sneakers' or products related to 'sports', they also offered insights such as 'empowerment', 'achievement' and even contrary factors like 'slave labor'. The male echoed similar beliefs of the Nike brand relative to sports-related 'footwear', but appeared more focused on 'victory', 'winning' and 'professional athletes'.

Beyond these subjective views, what was most interesting was the point that both females made relative to Nike technical factors of their footwear (namely sneakers). Both commented how the brand appeared to be designed for individuals with narrow feet. While both women noted that they remained partial to the brand and sought it out over other brands when making purchases, they both appeared noted that other brands often were more comfortable. Their male counterpart noted none of these, yet said he was influenced mainly by pricing factors and promotions at his time of purchase. Aesthetics were an important factor for all participants, but seemed to be weighed more heavily by the females. Another interesting factor that all noted the status factors like 'coolness' also played a role. This was more apparent in the female teacher and the male father. Both noted that they were positively influenced by the children in their lives; the teacher's pupils and the father's children.

As far as their methods of brand messaging reception, the females both noted that advertising was an influential, especially relative to new styles. The teacher and the father were additionally influenced by their children in considering Nike. Of the three, the lawyer female was also observant and influenced by her peers at the local fitness center she frequents.

The Communications Platform
In determining a basic communications platform for Nike, I reflected on the data gathered during the surveys to establish three core concepts. These include message delivery contact points, message content and creative execution.

In terms of message delivery, the strategy is to deliver messaging that at the right place and at the right time, using media that reflects the mainstream lifestyle factors. Nike currently appears heavily dependent on print advertising. While this would not fundamentally change, the range of publications and vehicles used would be adjusted. The strategy would be to augment the brands core athletic consumer base with exposure to consumers that pursue more varied activities beyond sport. This includes placement in homestyle publications, beauty publication and niche publications centered on business, management and profession practice. The goal is to connect with consumers in different contexts who might not necessarily be athletics and fitness focuses. Additional outlets would also include varied forms of interactive media, outdoor media and possibly more reliance on public venue sponsorships and placement. The strategy is to shift exposure away from sporting-centric media into lifestyle media to increase exposure to the 'everyday fit folk'.

Consistent with this media placement shift would be to communicate new messages relative to the shoes technical factors. While this may force major adjustments to the company's product lines, it was clear and consistent from the female interviewees that Nike shoes were targeted for individuals with 'narrow feet'. To compensate, I would pursue tactics that communicated changes on this level. Doing so could re-introduce many past loyalists and spur re-introductions to many sneaker consumers. Fortunately, this change could be introduced to compliment the needs of 'everyday fit folks' and introduced by utilizing the mediums above. Consistency in message could be achieved through both tactics.

Finally, in terms of the creative execution of these messages, all of the interviewees noted (in varying degrees) that they struggled with identifying with the brand's current 'superstar athlete mantra'. The bottom line in that they respected the brand for its quality, agreed with it core philosophies, yet didn't identify with many of the images that the brand currently projected. To address this, the creative tactics would center on the use of 'everyday folk' using Nike brands in common lifestyle activities that touched upon core fitness themes, yet were in contexts that everyday consumers could identify with. This could help the brand re-connect to aging brand loyalists who may not be running a marathon, but still appreciate comfortable and cool looking sneakers. Additionally, tactics would also center on celebrating 'everyday champions' like fathers, grandfathers, teachers, professionals and the like in an attempt to reinforce Nike's winning philosophy. The underlying strategy would be to connect the technical with the lifestyle and be delivered through appropriate media.

Reflecting upon the information I received from these interviews, it is clearly apparent that the Nike brand is held in high regard with adults. This is due to the fact that the brand has been around for much of these people's lives. Many of the brands key messages are firmly ingrained within this group. Unfortunately, however, the brand may not necessarily reflect their lifestyles or be reasonable to their needs. Nike can leverage its brand equity with this group by making adjustments to their products and the methods they use to communicate its value. Doing so may enable them to recapture significant market share within this group and reestablish relationships with many of these consumers. Pursuing this will force Nike to reexamine their core messaging tactics, the main messages and their delivery vehicles.

The Customer Brand Value (CBV) formula by Targetbase seeks to measure the value of customer or customer group to a brand by combining four key factors. These include penetration, category-buying rate, share-of-purchases and contribution margin. As noted by Schultz in IMC: The Next Generation, this type of valuation method allows marcom managers ‘to build a basic platform for their marcom programs that encompasses what the program should be designed to achieve, how much they would or could be willing to invest, how returns could be measured, and – most importantly – how the firm should or could invest its finite financial resource among marketing communications target customers and communications alternatives’ (pg 114-115).

The first issue with this formula centers on the concept of context. Assuming for the moment that each of its elements can be trusted to be fairly accurate measures, all rely on historical measurements. This fails to take into account environmental changes. A core issue with current marketing communications practices is the nature of today’s marketplace and the opportunities it affords customers. Change today is a given, and as such, long-term anticipation of consumer habits nearly impossible to gauge. Due to the rapid development in technology – especially the Internet – this formula may overlook key threats or adaptations in the marketplace. While in certain instances (like consumer goods), this may be less of an issue, but in many commodity-based markets, democratization of buying and distribution channels needs to be considered. These changes can lead to quick buying behavior changes based on factors like convenience, cost and/or personalization. The formula anchors on the assumption of consistent, long-term buying and consumption behaviors that can change in an instant.

Somewhat related to overall context and seemingly imbedding into the equation is the concept of ‘corporate relevance’. This is the theory that the organization and its brand continue to maintain relevance in the eyes of the consumer and extrapolate this into quantifiable actions. Nowadays, relevance is especially challenging to maintain and cultivate long-term. Even the most established brands have periods where their relevance fluctuates. While it may be difficult to admit, it must be accounted for because it can have drastic effects on the behavior and consumption patterns of customers. If a brand loses luster or falls in this factor, it will certainly effect other factors. On the negative, drivers can be external (new advances, cost cutting), related to consumer shifts or even internal issues. On the positive side, if the organization is effective in addressing consumer desires and are able to increase their relevance, history becomes the baseline – not the true value.

These problems do not even consider the accuracy of the underlying data. While the formula’s ‘Contribution Margin’ can be seen as the most empirical, other measures like ‘Share of Purchases’, ‘Penetration’ and ‘Buying Rate’ are all somewhat subjective. Penetration assumes a symmetrical, easily identifiable marketplace. It might fail to quantify factors like complimentary products or the global marketplace. Share-of-Purchases and Buying Rate assumes an extremely in-depth knowledge of a customer segment – even in an age where it’s hard to even get someone’s email address. The point with all of these is simply: how accurate are these measures?

Another issue with this valuation method is it doesn’t address how the brand and its organization grows and adapts. As the company develops and introduced new products or services, consumers already participating with the brand may alter their behaviors in positive ways or negative ways. This can have effects on the entire brand family and their value. A perfect example would be the much-talked-about ‘halo’ effect that Apple is experiencing as a result of their iPod. More people are buying Macs, and more Mac loyalists have become re-invigorated with the brand. On the flip side, how many Ford buyers looking for a new car will buy Ford again? In both cases, contemporary developments at each brand effect a consumer’s brand value.

A final issue with this valuation method is that it fails to consider non-quantifiable factors of consumers in influencing those around them. There is an old saying that a happy customer tells no-one (not really true) and a dissatisfied one tells twenty. The point is that these behaviors – good and bad – aren’t measured in the formula. Goodwill and ‘badwill’ are huge. People influence other people; social networking and its derivatives are increasingly being valued today. The formula fails to take into account these ‘softer’ factors and only assumes that consumer behavior (in the form of purchases) contribute to value.

There are a number of ways for a brand to place a value on a consumer. Most rely on subjective ‘facts’ and measures in an effort to quantify behavior and map it to ROI. While this will continue to be a challenge regardless of the amount or quality of its underlying data, measures that factor in additional aspects can also be helpful.

Probably the first and foremost reason organizations have not implemented IMC is because the process in difficult to measure and quantify. As a result, management cannot obtain clear and convincing data that the process effects behavior and makes an impact. It is evident that many quantitative and qualitative factors that go into 'making a sale', retaining or acquiring a customer, enhancing a relationship or building a corporation's brand awareness. However, measurement of these factors in discrete and scientific ways is complicated and very costly. Organizational decision-makers find it difficult to assign monetary value to marketing communications expenditures and as such, fail to see the value in the process. They often look at marketing investments as they effect sales and/or revenue growth, and fail to consider the effects on their internal operations, goodwill or relationships throughout their value chains. Effective IMC impacts both external and internal behaviors and processes that is difficult to measure.

Most every organization also has it own style of decision making. More often than not, decisions are made in an effort to improve the situation of the company or to increase shareholder value. The perspective of the decision lies internally: it seeks to improve the organization. It represents a top-down approach. IMC, on the other hand, requires that the organization look to its customers needs first and to make decisions relative to this segment's needs. As a result, the process of determining direction and strategy begins on the outside, instead of internally. In all practical purposes, this is both confusing and threatening. The forces management to immediately question if they have accurate 'consumer' data and truly understand the wants and needs of their consumers. If there is hesitation regarding this - which is most likely common - why should they risk their better judgement?

Another key area relative to organizations is compensation. People are essentially paid for the functions they carry out. The IMC process promotes the concept of changing the ways people are compensated based upon addressing customer wants and needs, among other factors. Since this is so hard to identify and quantify, there is little incentive for employees to become active ‘integrators’. The bottom line with regards to compensation is that organizations need to place higher values on the critical aspects of customer behavior, relationships and media effectiveness ahead of concerns like sales volume, cost containment or reach/frequency. They will need to revamp their compensation to reflect this. In most cases, these value themselves are nearly impossible to measure and as such, not practical.

IMC also assumes a high degree of technological integration, as well as extensive information on customers. A large organization may possess customer and process data in hundreds, if not millions of places. The hope of one integrated data warehouse is a convenience only few can afford. And as far as customers are concerned, organizations also rarely will possess customer information beyond transactional history. While they can gather secondary data through many means, there's little evidence that this reflects the natures of their own customers. Obtaining the necessary customer information themselves is both costly and time consuming. All of these limit an organization and force them to seek other methods in making strategic decisions.

Finally, IMC may not be considered practical for many firms because it supports that management pursue changes in how it evaluates its own success. IMC places the most value on satisfying customer needs, wants and desires and considers changes in consumer behavior of paramount. It intermixes this philosophy into every process the organization carries out. While it can be argued that positive behavior changes also improve the organization, these may conflict with each other. Most organizations operate to increase shareholder value, not consumer satisfaction with the brand. IMC suggests that success metrics be based on factors that reflect the satisfaction of customers, not those of the organization. It suggests that organizational efforts and the status quo be changed in greater service to the consumer. Altruistic yes; but how practical?

Part of what makes the IMC process so unique is its reliance on a range to factors that must be 'linked up' and 'integrated' in order to be successful. Like anything complex, achieving this takes a lot of time and energy, and requires constant oversight and upkeep. The IMC process rarely shows instantaneous results; its effects are subtler and more gradual. It can take a significant time and money investment to achieve identifiable results. Organizations are looking for finite and measurable measures of their effectiveness. They pursue activities consistent with this goal and seek out ways and processes they achieve these. Although IMC has been clearly shown to work, there are still a number of practical considerations to be overcome. When this occurs, organizations of all types will be more open to experimenting with it.

Principle 1: Be Customer-Centric
This becomes much more than a mantra or feel-good saying. Historically, organizations but more importance and emphasis on their value chains (suppliers, distributors, retailers, etc.) Emphasis is shifted to the customer. This has effects on internal systems, like employee appraisals/compensation, most key day-to-day activities, planning and execution. Much easier said than done.

Principle 2: Outside-In Planning
IMC shifts the paradigm of strategic planning to more closely align the goals and objectives of the organization to customer wants, needs and desires. All strategies are vetted relative to the customer. Requires committment by top management or it won't work.

Principle 3: Focus on Customer Experience
Messaging and communications attempt to shape entire customer experience with the brand. This includes all brand touchpoints and all customer interactions with the organization. In summary: 'Anything and everything that sends a message, provides an experience, or relates to the product or service is something that must be considered, managed, and measured.'

Principle 4: Customer Goals / Corporate Goals Alignment
Essentially this reiterates the importance of Principle 2. In the practical sense, however, both are very challenging to institute due to a range of factors (markets, consumer pool, shareholder needs, etc). In any case, organizations need to strive to align their corporate goals with the goals of their consumers.

Principle 5: Shape Consumer Behavior
Organizations can measure the effectiveness of their marcom tools by their ability to effect consumer behavior. This includes sales, inquiries, store/site traffic, etc. Think customer acquisition, retention, lifetime purchases. Tradition marcom focused on attitudinal/impression factors that do not necessarily lead to action. This factor is the basis of all measurement/effectiveness/ROI of IMC programs.

Principle 6: Customers as Assets
Instead of treating/considering customers in-mass as has been traditionally done, customers are considered individually based on behavioral factors relative to the organization, and engaged accordingly. Attempts to define short- and long-term value to the company.

Principle 7: Simply Functional Activities
As more types of marcom tools are used, competing factors are introduced into the process that may not serve the customer. Customers simplify and aggregate info received by the company, regardless of the distinct nature of the channel. Organization's need to keep consumer goals top-of-mind and messages consistant across all types. Keep it simple.

Principle 8: Converge, Converge, Converge
Customers need to be seeing the same message, whether in print, online or via televsion, radio, etc. Managers in each area need to be on the 'same page'. This principle extends the previous one, Principle 7.

To understand the advantages of IMC, one first has to understand what IMC is all about and what it represents. Many of the concepts that the IMC process promotes differ from traditional marketing practices. In its most basic form, IMC places the customer at the center of an organization’s universe and focuses on developing messaging, communications, and even product and/or service features in relation to the needs, wants, desires and attributes of its consumers. IMC represents a holistic approach to communicating brand and product value that is rooted in the needs of the consumer, and one that is coordinated, targeted, consistent and measurable when successful.

In considering IMC relative to the traditional 4Ps, several advantages accrue to organizations that rely on it. These include understanding the customer at a greater level, enabling the ability to differentiate oneself from competitors offering similar products, more effective product and organizational planning and more quantifiable measurement and analysis on marketing communications investments.

The basis of IMC is in understanding the customer. This includes things like their wants, needs, desires, aspirations, as well as a countless number of demographic and physcographic attributes. Because of the fact that IMC forces an organization to understand and ‘feel’ many of these factors, management obtains a far greater level of understanding about the consumer. With this data and understanding, the organization is then able to create messaging and conduct activities that hold a greater degree of significance to that audience. Hopefully, this has a direct impact on the success of its product or service in the marketplace, as well as its success in creating greater shareholder value. It is also is able to make more educated decisions relative to product development, media spending, communications (internal/external) that works in support of its corporate mission.

Carrying this greater understanding of the consumer forward, organizations that practice IMC are also put in a more advantageous position relative to branding and differentiation. It is common knowledge nowadays that many of the advances in manufacturing and production over the last half-century has created an environment in which firms are finding it increasingly difficult to differentiate themselves. In the days previously, organizations may have relied on product features, manufacturing processes or other techniques to create barriers of entry into the marketplace and to position themselves. This is no longer an option. Plus, when these factors are combined with other emerging trends, like globalization and/or electronic communication, standing out in the marketplace is all the more difficult. Not ironic is the fact that many of these techniques closely paralleled marketing theory popular in the day: the traditional 4Ps.

IMC frees organizations to differentiate themselves in ways that are relevant to their core consumers. As such, it is an extension of consumer knowledge and another weapon in their arsenals. While branding and brand management is a gigantic and complex topic in its own right, organizations are able to obtain more value – in terms of bottom line impact - out of successful brand development comparable efforts in other areas. The reason for this is that when properly implemented, the brand actually becomes part of the consumer. It establishes an intimate relationship with the consumer that transcends product features, price, logistical issues or other ‘hard’ factors. In doing so, organizations and its products become positioned within ‘spaces’ that are ultimately defendable against any competitor utilizing any means. Basically, its marketing at a deeper level. The differentiation ‘answers’ are actually provided by the consumer; it becomes the organization’s charge to implement them.

This process is a stark contrast from traditional methods of separating oneself in the marketplace. Traditionally, organizations would offer the products and gauge the consumer’s reactions. Sort of a top down approach. IMC promotes the exact opposite, all in service to the consumer.

Further upstream in the organization – at the managerial level of strategic planning, etc - IMC enables organizations to develop more effective courses of action in much the same light as differentiation. Once again, the knowledge of the consumer gleaned from the IMC processes paints the picture and fills in the blanks. One hand washes the other. At worst, the organization makes decisions in the context of as much information and consumer understanding as possible. In contrast to traditional marketing approaches (top-down, centralized), IMC-enabled organizations become more effective planners, anticipator and reactors. They see change as it happens, are able to react faster when needed, and are in a better position to recognize areas of shortcomings and make corrections. When this is done effectively, the processes and decisions that are carried out have a greater chance of creating value than ones formulated in a less-than integrative fashion. This is largely due to the consumer-focused nature of the decisions, their relevance to the consumer and their integration with perceived consumer wants, needs and desires.

In pursuing planning, differentiation and consumer knowledge, organizations are also constantly seeking to improve their methodologies and processes. Doing so helps create greater shareholder value and, more importantly, enables the organization to serve the needs of their consumers in a greater way. Another advantage of IMC is the prospective wealth of quantifiable measurements that can be taken from this process. At present, it is well known that IMC measurement best practices continue to develop, but what’s more important from the discipline’s perspective is potential. IMC provides potential in measuring a greater number of factors, greater understanding of their relevance. Related to this measurement potential is the fact that the organization can then hold their processes and practices more accountable than has been the case when using traditional approaches. While the measurement systems within IMC continue to develop, they work in tandem with this concept. Compared to traditional approaches, IMC possesses a greater degree of potential in this area.

Organizations of all types continue to grapple with the current marketplace and are finding it harder to stand out, to communicate their value and to achieve relevance in the eyes of their consumers. While IMC is certainly no panacea and remains a challenging concept to implement, doing so provides a number of advantages. As marketers, we are only beginning to be understand the advantages of integrative approaches and groups that take the organizational risks to implement them stand to gain the greatest advantages.

What we do know at this point is that IMC is a process that takes time and effort to implement. We understand also the processes that successful organizations have taken to implement it. And, of course, we know what goals it seeks to achieve.

So while there is risk to change, unknowns to tackle while it is pursued, IMC has several advantages over traditional means that are warranted for today’s environment.

Beyond the strictly monetary (financial) concerns agencies have, IMC does effectively take the smoke and mirrors out of the whole process, at least from the organization's perspective. To counter this, agencies are being forced to truly understand the businesses and industries of their clients. Can they effectively and profitably do this? And as measurement becomes more and more critical, it puts agencies in an awkward position of not only having to 'know' but also to map their ideas to effective strategies. This is a good thing - both for agencies and for organizations.

As IMC grows into the norm at large and small companies alike, measuring the retuns and value it provides becomes increasingly critical. And with a greater portion of this process being driven by front-line managers, the role of external vendors and their impacts will be under the microscope.

From the agencies perspective, they are somewhat limited as to what they can do to carry out an IMC program. IMC represents a holistic, encompassing, and strategic process. As a result, it requires a long-term committment on the part of management and on the part of other key stakeholders in the process. It represents a process that changes the traditional marcom paradigm by looking for answers and solutions externally to customers, rather than internally to management.

Due to its nature, an external provider like an agency can be somewhat limited in delivering effective IMC. Since many of the tactical decisions in IMC need to be based on interpretation of data (qualitative/quantitative), there is also the issue of information access. The organization may be averse to this.

Another factor is this whole 'management buy-in' factor. I think an agency - regardless of how effective their last campaign was - will always be considered an outsider. As such, as their reconmmendations approach the more strategic level, there's less trust on the part of decision makers to implement their suggestions. What's important to realize about IMC is that it runs deeper than tactical executions that agencies are skilled at implementing. This requires a committment by managerial decision makers. This aspect would certainly limit an agency as far as planning a program.

Many would also consider the number of media forms and outlets a factor as well. Increasingly, however, I am having trouble with this. I think agencies are actually better positioned to understand how/when to use each particular media relative to the organization. Since all forms require functional skills and knowledge, I believe the agency is the better route. Communications production and execution is what they do. What's the most important in this process, however, is that the agency be given clear direction on what needs to be communicated. This comes from the client; the agency executes. Without clear guidance, organizations will rely on the agency and its judgements.

The text for the study is by Don Schultz, a preeminent thinker in the IMC field.

The core concept seems to be that a blog can be a handy means of expression. Although this is not a new concept by anymeans, its just more contemporary. As information and connectivity continued to pervade every aspect of organizational communication, there's a growing need to structure communications efforts that support an organization's mission, vision and advancement initiatives.

SEO companies love blogs because they enable organizations to publish easily. Overtime, this strengthens their content depth (obviously), but with a long-term plan, can be a very effective way to build 'semantic density' in a defined keyword sphere or space. And if done really effectively, blogs also promote the concept of community building. More and more, web users (and even the public at large) are shifting their attention away from push mechanisms like email, television, newspapers, and preferred pull-oriented communications.
This could account for the decline in newspaper readership, the rise in tools like TiVo, and the rapidly growing nature of RSS. Blogs effective morph into either type and are ideally situated for pull.

The bottom line with blogs seem to be that they appear to be just a new name on old style corporate publishing efforts. They needn't be personal rants or soapboxes, but planned communications channels that can be used to build brand. With foresight and strategy, they can be used as a powerful tool in the new network-centric world we live in.

The newMacPerson (NMP) is an individual that lives a fast, digitally savvy lifestyle. NMPs lives an active lifestyle, and constantly seems on the go with family or friends, or through their professional pursuits. They are aged 18-40, male, female, single, married, professional, highly educated and all create in some way-shape-or-form. They are Americas Creative Class and they use technology as a way to achieve their goals, add more convenience to their lives. They are '… doctors, lawyers, scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and computer programmers - almost everyone, in short, who is paid to think for a living' . Their work involves ' producing, applying, and distributing knowledge rather than things'

Additionally, NMPs work in the following creative segments, indentified by John Howkins in "The Creative Economy: How People Make Money from Ideas" (2001):
· Advertising
· Architecture
· Art
· Crafts
· Design
· Fashion
· Filmed entertainment (including videos and DVDs)
· Music
· Performing arts
· Publishing
· Research and development
· Software
· Toys and games (excluding video, PC games)
· Video games
· TV and radio

NMPs live in areas that allow them to express themselves in many types of ways. Although all places exhibit NMPs, certain areas have greater degrees of concentration. These markets, highlighted in the next section, will receive primary focus. Amoung these places, they share common characterisitcs:

· Provide many opportunities for life experiences
· Provide ample amounts of recreational activities/spaces
· Have a high degree of diversity, culture and entertainment

Direct Mail Target Audience
The following list provides key characteristics of the target audience that will receive direct mail.

· Males and Females Aged 18-40
· Highly educated
· Live in the following markets:
· Washington, D.C.
· Raleigh-Durham, NC
· Boston, MA
· Austin, TX
· San Francisco, CA
· Minneapolis, MN
· New York, NY
· Seattle, WA
· Average Income : $35K
· Single and/or married
· Computer users
· Own a cell phone
· Many interests:
· Photography
· Music
· Video
· Sports
· Entertainment.

Media Objectives and Strategy
The media strategy and objectives for Apple will be to define and communicate the concept of a comprehensive "digital lifestyle" and to reinforce the values they bring to creative consumers. Second, is to establish Apple as the premier provider of value-added digital components that complement and enhance this lifestyle. And lastly, that all Apple products are reliable, secure, platform-neutral and extensible for the future.

Defining the Digital Lifestyle
Creatives have come to acquire an extensive array of modern computer-based tools. They use these to work, play and enhance their lives. Apple must package and present this concept in an identifiable way consumer will remember. To do so, the following will be carried out:
· Develop image advertisements showing iPod usage at work, play and in life.
· Creation of a series of theme-based taglines that bundle complimentary technologies together.
· Develop Imagery and copy expressing convenience, speed, fashion, portability and ease-of-use.

The Power Value Added Components
Creatives must also be made aware of the current options available and what companies provide the best solutions. Services tied to the components add additional value and provide the basis for differentiation.
· Develop messaging coupling Apple iPod with key existing computer uses within work, play and the creation process.
· Develop messaging showcasing related value-added services.
· Create sense that Apple iPod is an entirely new 'platform' that enables a digital lifestyle like to other.

Apple: Reliable, Secure and Extensible for the Future
Because Creatives rely so much on technology in the daily existence, Apple must be equated with reliability, security and long-term relevance. Creatives are looking to combine all three when considering purchases and loyalty.
· Stress platform-interoperability
· Develop messaging focused on easy of use.

I completed a small survey on the issue and crafted a release titled "Family Physicians Outraged at Flu Shot Distribution".

I released the story later in the day (approx. 4:20 pm) to major daily newspapers and key television and radio outlets across North Carolina. I received a good response from media outlets state wide, and arranged television and radio interviews in Charlotte, Raleigh and Greenville.

I had a contact at the USAToday that I called on with the story. This lead to national coverage and an interview by CNN/Money.

Here's what I learned:

1) Timing is Everything - Very difficult to gauge. Almost relates to luck.

2) Mechanics/Workflow Can Always Be Improved - This is huge. Even though it got a fair amount of traction state-wide, I know that many dailies never even saw the release. We have been faxing. DAILIES WANT EMAILS DIRECTLY TO THE REPORTERS WHO COVER THE SUBJECT AREA. This is hard to gather. Similar concepts apply to radio, although they seem to be more forgiving.

3) Leave a 24/7 Contact Number - Everybody has a cell phone. Media is 24/7. Include your cell phone number as a contact option for reporters/media people. It makes it easier to contact you. The goal is to make things as simple as possible.

4) Bend Over Backwards for Reporters - Reporters will give some extra play to people who are quick and that go the extra mile. This makes their job easier; they like this.

5) Prepare 3 Key Talking Points & Pivot Around Them - If you write out three key points that you want to stress beforehand, you just pivot around them when you need to make a statement. Try to create a soundbite of one-sentence that captures the essence of the piece.

6) Press Releases To Newspapers / Media Advisories to TV & Radio - This helps. An advisory distills the facts even further and provides Who, What, When, Where information. A short release (>500 words) can be just as powerful (or more so) than a long one.

Flu Shot Distribution
- CNN/Money: (http://money.cnn.com/2005/10/28/news/midcaps/chiron/index.htm)

- Flu Shot Frustrations for Family Physicians (http://www.wsoctv.com/news/5187822/detail.html)

- Family doctors say flu vaccine going to retailers (http://www.wwaytv3.com/Global/story.asp?S=4040823&nav=menu70_2)

- Flu Shot Disparity Riles Docs (http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/13017536.htm)

- Doctors Bemoan Flu Shot Distribution - (http://www.fayettevillenc.com/story.php?Template=news&Story=7233250)

- Docs Complain They Can't Get Flu Vaccine (http://www.nbc17.com/health/5191582/detail.html)

- USATODAY: Holdups at Chiron lead to flu shot shortages (http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/health/drugs/2005-10-27-flu-usat_x.htm)

Within each of these categories, sub groups are starting to emerge. Where once you have only static web pages, now you have interactive data-driven applications, vector-based animation, direct-to-desktop communications, interactive gaming, peer-to-peer,

While most of these can be immediately construed as nodes on the information superhighway, there are quite a few other new media forms that run in parallel. These include electronic billboards, portable music players, and interactive kiosks. While these may or may not be 'connected', they still allow messages to be communicated to an audience - a fact they share in common with their network-enabled cousins.

I think that what all of these methods or media have in common is the continued growth and expansion of computer technology. Ever since the personal computers began to be utilized, marketers have recognized them to be able to effectively communicate messages. I see how this concept is being played out daily, both in my professional work and in my personal life.

Professionally, I consider myself to be a publisher and content creator. Having started out with a personal computer in the early 1990's, I quickly realized that tools could be purchased with relatively little money that could enable me to communicate via professional print, and subsequently, online. As such, I have experienced many new media technologies as a producer, a publisher/marketer and a consumer.

Overall, I see many of the new media types I have listed are just different adaptations on existing technologies. As gains are continually being made in the areas of processor speed, bandwidth, and telecommunications, this suggests that marketers and communicators revisit each new media from a different context. The advances provide them with opportunity relative to message delivery that didn't exist previously or suggest an adaptation that wouldn't of been possible otherwise. These concepts drive new adaptations and further growth.

This week's discussion and material regarding design and navigation of websites got me to thinking how important this topic is. Although the materials we were presented in class reviewed the topic from a higher level, specifics on what IMC practitioners can do to evaluate these characteristics was somewhat limited.

One of the most important factors that seems to be cropping up in my research is properly deciphering the 'mode' or experience context in which the user is in when online. After reading An Improved Way to Characterize Internet Users (Rodgers, Sheldon), I attempted to uncover information relative to these situations as far as navigation and design.

The Three Key Navigation Points: Orientation, Metaphors and Depth/Breadth.
Probably the most important element in designing a website's navigational system is allowing the user to quickly determine his/her orientation within the site's info architecture. Too often, a site's page is linked from a search engine or other website, that directs a user to a deeply nested page. Once arrived, the user quickly needs to determine the organization of the site and where the page falls within that. Many times large sites fail to provide users with enough visual clues to orients them effectively. This effect usability creates frustration and confusion and can impart negative feelings towards the site operator. User interface specialists need to be aware of this and design sites with an eye toward assisting users in this regard. Easy access to information helps the user access it, but also provides site designers and content creators a solid roadmap for further development.

In my work as a web designer and developer, it has become sort of a personal preference to gravitate towards designing user interfaces that place main vertical navigational elements on the right side of the page. My theory was that the right side of the page was where a user's mouse would most likely be, and in doing so, would enable faster access and greater feels. While researching navigation best-practices, I uncovered research on the topic that was surprising. In a nutshell, there was no significant difference in usability between left and right-justified navigational systems, but that usability may be enhanced by following common practices. (Nielson, 1999). Although several studies have suggested increased efficiency of right-justified navigation, common practice trumps these. Most sites rely on left-justified schemes. Taking this into account, there may be additional benefits, like expectation and familiarity, that are difficult to be measured but translate into easier usage by surfers.

What much of the current thought shows is that to keep navigation consistent, providing strong relative clues to context or spatial relation, and recognizing that certain situations don't lend themselves ideally to the 'page metaphor' of the web.

Pop-ups, Banners, and Other Web Advertising
The types of web advertising that are available now days are really amazing. In just a relatively short time span, what once only provided a rudimentary means of promotion and advertising has spawned countless ways of doing so. No more is this evident than in the range of web advertising, a realm that now includes banner ads, pop-ups, pop-unders, interstitials and variations using rich media and animation.

To get a better grasp of what's cool and what's not so cool with these media forms, I visited the Interactive Advertising Bureau (www.iab.net). The site lists a tremendous amount of information on the growing Internet advertising market. Along with data, trends and forecasts, the site also provides visitors and professionals with approved guidelines regarding media and usage. On the site are a series of guidelines and best-practice reports. One of them, Pop-up Guidelines' in 2004, provided a lot of interesting anecdotal information regarding pop-ups and pop-unders. I thought it was very telling what I read. Basically the conclusions that we reached is that this form of advertising is a big annoyance to consumers. They listed several common factors that consumers responded to during a 2004 survey. Companies need to take factors such as these into account as they experiment with different online advertising mechanisms.

In reviewing the recommendations they listed for other types of interactive media, I found many of their recommendations consistent with the concept of what I call user empowerment. Basically, this includes thinking about a user's experience and providing the necessary functionality to address their needs and desires. For instance, the IAB recommends that advertisers provide controls on interstitial advertisements that allow the user to skip ahead. Or when audio is used, the ability for the user to mute the sound. I felt these were user empowerment types of issues that always need to be addressed by advertisers. Granted, not all types of interactive ads require such controls, but advertisers need to approach the web from a context that caters to the user. Too often interactive advertising appears as a one-way street. And of course, this is not limited to advertising, but also to website design, copy writing and even the types of information companies provide. Because the web is an entirely new medium that provides altogether different functionality and potential, companies should approach it from a refreshed perspective.

Electronic Mail
At work we used to get a ton of SPAM, but recently engaged a service that filters and flags incoming SPAM, groups it, and sends a message where we can access them if needed. SPAM is everywhere today and is slowly eroding users' confidence in email as a communications source. This begs the question of how effective is email marketing going to be if things continue?

Although I consider myself a heavy web and email user, I don't however, receive a ton of email. I have foregone signing up for mailing lists, listservs and other types of services. I maybe receive 5-10 truly important emails a day. I do proactive things like hiding or encoding my email address if posted online. Even so, the marketing messages I do receive, very seldom do I open them to view them. If so, it is very brief and last about 2 seconds.

With this in mind, if a company uses email to market, what would be the best way to address a user like myself? My answer is that it depends on the circumstances, the message and the response that one is trying to emit.

Professionally, I produce a range of communications that are distributed through email. This includes several serial publications - or ezines - and various announcements. These are produced as either plain text or in HTML. Depending on its nature will determine its delivery format. Plain text email, in my opinion, is perceived as more serious and straightforward, while HTML-based messages less so. They are more marketing-advertising-centric. Generally, if there is an important issue we need to communicate with our members, we use plain text. Our serials use HTML. My point is that the situation determines what type of email is most effective.

There are other important factors to successful email marketing. A crucially important one is the subject line of the message. Spammers know this of course. I find it interesting how some professional colleagues do not, however. A technique I use related to this (and one my organization adopted) is using our corporate acronym as a prefix to any message. Some of our users have commented that this helps them quickly identify our messages, especially for those coming from staff members. Subject lines should be short, discrete. They need to capture a user's attention immediately.

Along with the subject line, many in the email marketing field stress the importance of using some sort of opt-in mechanism. Marketers need to be aware of this. Lately, there is growing interest in double-opt-in mechanism, essentially where the user signs up and has to confirm entry via a separate, but connected process. Opt-in, as well as a quick and easy opt-out method are keys. They help to build credibility and trust with recipients. There are organizations that firms can rely upon for targeted, permission-based lists for email purposes.

Another important aspect of email marketing that is always needs to be considered is frequency. This seems to occur a lot where I work. I get separate requests to email different things and our users are bombarded by messages by our organization. They can be quickly turned-off by such practices. Organizations need to tightly control the frequency with which they email their constituencies. Related to frequency is timing. What is the best time to email your constituency? Myself, I try to send message on Tuesday to Thursday mornings, close to 10:00 a.m. if possible. The optimal time is going to vary depending on your group. Mine was determined based on anecdotal industry info I found at Wilson Web (http://www.wilsonweb.com), a website I routinely visit.

Marketing email should also be tracked in some way. Most email software tools that are used in message construction and delivery provide some way to tracking who is viewing the messages. Marketers need to see what messages are getting opened, read and how much activity they are generating. The days of mass-emailing without regard to metrics is over. I personally used very rudimentary techniques (invisible. gifs) to track our campaigns' activity. Modern software or service providers provide more advanced capabilities.

Web Video and Rich Media
Since my web surfing and browsing days began, I have had little interest in this ever-growing media form. Maybe I have just been polluted in thinking that slow connections and problematic plug-ins make the technology to unreliable. Lately, however, I have been slowly becoming more open to realizing the benefits and potential web video offers.

In addition to web-based video, I also consider audio to be a rich media form. There seems to be thousands of resources available to download or stream the latest songs, music and news. Often, these services provide a venue for advertisers to communicate their message to a targeted audience. Connected to audio - and somewhat the new kid on the block - is using audio is new ways. There is growing use of web audio in portable digital music players. Pod-casting is a means by which web audio is downloaded to iPods for replay and redistribution. While this is still quite new and it's future somewhat uncertain, the lesson here is that organizations must realize and appreciate new opportunities as they are happening. They must look to innovative media forms - however small - and map them to their overall marketing communications strategy. Successfully doing so will foster increased brand awareness and loyalty.

Within the past month or so, I have also noticed that CNN has begun to offer users free web videos of daily stories. My research uncovered that these videos are sponsored by Chase and General Motors. When you queue up on a video at CNN's Video page (http://www.cnn.com/video), you automatically see a short commercial for one of GM's cars. With web video growing - and CNN such a popular site - I think it's a win-win scenario for CNN and their sponsors, and users. It also raises the bar for other news sites to do the same.

In addition to web video, I have also been noticing a growing creative use of Flash animations online. This is allowing firms to provide a more advanced interactive experience to their users. They are integrating compelling artwork and animation into data-rich applications. In some cases this is burdensome to some types of users (like the visually impaired), but it is allowing organizations to re-purpose content in many different ways. At the same time, it is opening up new doors of opportunity and re-defining existing workflows. A good example of this is online training. In the past, many of these types of implementations were a combination on web video, audio and/or standard HTML. Increasingly, I am witnessing providers relying on more unified environments like Flash to do the task. This is changing the nature of the courses and redefining workflows.

Blogs, Chat and Bulletin Board Systems
Seems everyone has a web blog (or blog) nowadays. They are everywhere. You've got thousands of personal bloggers, they're are executive blogs, professional bloggers, bloggers that cover just about every imaginable topic. Publishing on the web has gone decidely small, independent and niche-focused. I think this has an effect of the marketing by enabling more consumers and raising the expectations of everyone for more information and competing viewpoints.

I think as blogs and personal publishing forms proliferate, it is causing foundational changes in the way consumers are influenced. Age old standards like word-of-mouth, Consumer Reports and the trade presses are beginning to be eroded by this 'new' medium. Publishers or bloggers represent a new form of mass media that combines network communication with individual thought and opinion, but without the constraints that might be effect the nature of these expressions. While this can be good and bad, I see it as enabling small independents to carve out highly-respected niches - both big and small - that can achieve authority status. With the credibility that this brings, consumer/user opinions can be shaped through the content in blogs.

While the average web surfer might frequent one or two blogs in an average week, there is a growing sense that their content can serve to be informative, and as such, a user may be inclined to consider a blogs content while gathering info on products and/or services. This could have major effects on corporate public relations and marketing communications. Companies know this. So do bloggers. Blogs are seen to be empowering to consumers because of their independent nature. But they also serve to provide readers with extremely up-to-date information as well. This combination is powerful.

Although I see blogs continuing to expand in popularity, other community communication tools, like online chat and bulletin board systems, also have a place in the online world. While their implementations may be called different things, they all provide companies with an effective way to extend relationship building, offering value-added services and building brand loyalty.

For example, I think its important today for firms to provide expedited, person-to-person communication mechanisms online. This is especially true for large, consumer products and consumer services organizations. More and more, firms are providing online customer support via online chat. It is being referred to as 'live person' or 'live support', but basically relies on very similar technology as chat does. Additionally, for many firms, value can be added to a customer's experience by providing extensive support or knowledge information. Additionally, interaction between users in a place that promotes shared ideas and community also adds value. Many firms are launching bulletin-board systems in ways that help them achieve this. They provide the company with the means to share knowledge, increase brand and consumer awareness and extend relationships.

Direct-to-Desktop and Peer-to-Peer
One type of technology that we really didn't get a chance to investigate was the growing use of peer-to-peer tools and networks, as well as direct-to-desktop tools. Within both of these environments, the classic metaphor of the web browser takes a back seat to custom, proprietary networks designed to connect people to people and organization to person. While their applications may not be applicable to all firms, they do provide unique advantages as compared with more popular methods.

Southwest Airline stands out as a leading pioneer in the creative use of direct-to-desktop technology. The Southwest Ding! tool is a lightweight application that users download and install on their individual desktops. Once installed, it allows Southwest a direct link to each users' desktop, allowing them to communicate with users in a variety of ways. From the user's perspective, it is a tool that is part of their personal desktop environment, and not necessarily 'on the web'. Southwest has used Ding! as the mechanism for offering special, time-sensitive discount airfares. Users who have it downloaded are reminded of offers by an audible reminder - a ding - that gets their attention. The tool most likely provides Southwest with extensive metrics information as well. This type of tool represents a new and compelling media form that takes advantage of the Internet's communications ability in unique ways.

While users may still be skeptical about downloading 'extra stuff' on their computer (especially if it is seen as a conduit for marketing and advertising messages), direct-to-user tools that connect a users' computer with a companies' products or services could effect many things. I see it as a growing trend that is just in its infancy. Another simple example, is that of FedEx Kinko's. User's can download a simple printer driver that enables them to send their copy and print jobs to the most convenient store. Technology like this moves the interaction upstream, away from the web browser and closer to the 'point of need'. It relies on Internet infrastructure in new ways.

Peer-to-peer technology also offers some exciting possibilities. While today it is heavily known for its ability to share files, it essentially enables user to connect with one another in a different digital context. As bandwidth capabilities increase, resources that can be shared among a 'connected community' will multiply. I see this having a big effect on media organizations of all types. On the surface, a technology like this may not be applicable to every type of firm. But once again, the challenge is to creatively map technology to an organization's goals, and to serve and assist customers accordingly.

Search Engines
Just last week I had a client email me with a question regarding search optimization or SEO. SEO has been creating a lot of buzz recently due to aggressive SEO companies and a savvier corporate web public. Companies understand that people are searching for information and products online and it makes critical sense to be found. There's lots of money to be made in the field because it's so nebulous, lacks a long history/track record, and is considered a fast moving target. What works today probably won't work tomorrow. As a web guy myself, I know enough about SEO to know that I know nothing. Of all the disciplines of the web today, SEO is the closest to quack-science and there's a lot of quacks out there.

Search and search marketing is one of the cornerstones of electronic marketing and will continue to be forever. In an effort to locate resources online, people have come to rely on search engines. I don't see this changing. As a result, it makes sense to be able to be found online. Whether it is in the organic results or SERPs (Search engine results pages)or via other means like Paid-Per-Click or even Paid-Inclusion (yuck!), search marketing is huge. Google's sales and profits figures confirm just how important firms think this is. They recently posted record profits as advertising sales continue to explode for them.

I think, however, the days of generic, all-the-web engines, are numbered. While they will never die, I see that due to increasing amounts of information online, there are growing needs for specialized, topic-specific engines and/or services. While current engines like Google do enable this currently to a degree, there is a belief that they also inventory as much of that type of content as possible. This is not the case. I have read that an engine like Google inventories much less than half of the web. Other engines vary, but yield similar results. The bottom line is that because of the amount of information, there is a growing need for more specialized search tools.

Social Click Networks
My nephew clued me into a really neat concept recently. Once I got thinking about it, the more powerful it became for marketing. I feel it is still very new, but nonetheless important. I have named them social click networks. An example can be found at http://www.asmallworld.org.

Basically, they are online social communities that are closed and not open to the public. AsmallWorld forces new members to be sponsored to become a member of the community. In order to sponsor someone, a member needs to attain a certain number of contacts within the community.

While A Small World is just one type of network, other ones like Friendster, MySpace.com aggregate users into a community for networking, contacts and relationship building. Networks like these enable online interaction among people. They provide a means to tap into shared values. Recently, MySpace was purchased by NewsCorp for about $580 million. Social communities like these are increasingly being recognized by major brands. Although MySpace is the 800-lb gorilla and one of the most highly trafficked sites, they all offer a lot of potential.

The reason behind this is because these emerging social communities aggregate a variety of functionality around a social networks needs. The offer users the ability to interact, share files/resources, instant message, view classifieds, and even date. It's these core functions that draw users back - sometimes multiple times daily. This community aspects presents new opportunities for users.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Peter Graber - Week 3
Banners, Pop-ups, Pop-Unders

To begin, I don't necessarily care for pop-ups and pop-unders and rarely click on banner ads. Although I see many of these ads during my online experiences, I seldom do anything to act on their messages. While I enjoy the amount of creativity these employ, I consider putting up with them a necessary evil.

Of these three types of web advertising, I feel the one that is the least obtrusive is the simple banner ad. For this paper, I have attempted to investigate all three types to determine if there were any major differences in how they completed their messaging.

The University of Phoenix
The first website banner that I clicked on was located on CNN Money (cnnfn.com). It was for an extremely popular web advertiser - University of Phoenix (UoP). I’ve seen UoP ads everywhere and they often use pop-unders that I’m constantly deleting. Upon clicking the banner I was immediately taken to the University of Phoenix web site. I landed on a page that was headlined 'The leading University for Working Professionals'. On multiple parts of the page were graphics and banners touting the university's Flexnet, a degree format that combines classroom and online learning. Initially I thought that this landing page was an interior page of the site. There was nothing on the page that gave me any point of reference. I attempted to return to the site's main home page by clicking on the site's logo. It was then that I determined that I was on the home page after all.

Overall, I found the site to be shallow - approximately 5 pages - and one that was designed to get users to 'Request More Information'. Basically a lead generation site. Beyond well-written introductory material, there was little information about the institution. You would expect that such a ‘large institution’ would have a site comparable to what other universities have.

In considering the nature of the banner ad, there was essentially no enticement offered to click-through on the ad, and the landing page as described above, did not offer any special information. From a consumer's perspective this might help the organization's credibility as it fosters the user to take the initiative. But I would think that this would lead to very limited response.

The UoP site was nicely done, but altogether too brief and lacking specifics. I came away feeling that anyone can write pleasing copy and build a small website. It didn’t improve my perception that the organization is a well-organized diploma mill. This may be a touch off base, but the organization should be providing a more robust public-facing presence. With almost all universities now offering electronic distance programs, this is more important than ever.

Verizon DSL
The next advertisement that I clicked on was for Verizon DSL. The ad appeared on another of my most favorite sites - The Drudge Report (drudgereport.com). The headline of the ad exclaimed 'Verizon Online DSL 3.0Mbps'. I clicked and was immediately taken to a Verizon landing page promoting a 'limited time offer'. But to see the latest offers in my area, I was required to enter a phone number. I obliged for the sake of this discussion.

After I entered my Verizon Wireless telephone number, I was greeted with a page that informed me that ' Verizon Online DSL Is Not Available', but that I could enter my first and last name and my email address for more information. The page also communicated that the Verizon network was 'continually being expanded' and that Verizon didn't want me 'to miss the opportunity to get a dedicated high-speed Internet connection...' From that point I was sort of stuck. There seemed no point in going any further. Verizon didn’t offer services in my area. Case closed.

Clicking back to the original landing page, I decided to venture around a bit. What I thought was effective was the information the company provided in comparing DSL to cable access. They presented a link to a JD Power Report on the company, as well as an interactive tool comparing Verizon with a variety of cable access providers. The tool presented a user selection list naming companies like Adelphia, Cox, Earthlink, AOL, Bellsouth and others. When you selected a competitor, their 'ratings' appeared next to Verizon's. As a skeptic of comparisons, the page highlighted that they were based on 'responses from thousands of consumers nationwide. The six categories below (cost, billing, image, performance and reliability, customer service, e-mail) were the factors found to have the greatest impact on customer satisfaction.'

When compared to the competition, Verizon faired extremely favorably. This may or may not be true in real life. Although the 'results' showed them being bested by certain competitors in specific categories, they were always superior in price. Although I was skeptical, I then visited the JD Power and Associates link they provided. The information they provided - namely a quick abstract of their 2004 Internet Service Provider Residential Customer Satisfaction Study - seemed more credible. This worked to buttress Verizon's claims. I thought this was an effective way for them to drive home credibility in their services and their survey results. It appeared to be consistent.

What I thought was most interesting about the banner may have been its biggest weakness. I consider myself a very savvy internet user that's extremely comfortable with technology and as a result of my professional work, probably have a better grasp of technology than most web users. Given this, I felt the ad's headline was confusing. What is DSL 3.0 Mbps? I understand 3.0Mbps, but I'm unsure if the average Internet user would. And besides, for this banner to appear on a site designed for low-bandwidth connectivity, I questioned why anyone would waste his or her time to investigate it. Last, after I clicked-through to the Verizon site, there was no other mention of this feature. This seemed to be a bit confusing. I’m sure the average user would have experienced similar difficulties.

The Online Reward Center - http://onlinerewardcenter.com/
The last ad that I viewed was a pop-under advertisement that appeared on my computer when I followed a news link from the Drudge Report regarding a tourist being shot on Broadway in New York City. The advertisement was designed to simulate an operating system 'System Status' dialog box that proclaimed that my 'urgent attention is required'. This type of ad epitomized the creative, yet sometimes rogue nature of some forms of modern web advertising. I clicked through only for the purposes of this discussion.

From a design perspective, the ad was well done, complete with authentic looking system features. It was only slightly discernable from a normal system. The copy of the ad stated that I had been chosen to 'receive a free* laptop PC' and that the offer was only available online and for a limited time. When I clicked, my browser opened up a new window and I was taken to the Online Rewards Center.

Upon arriving, three types of laptops appeared. These included a Toshiba Satellite, a Compaq Presario, and a Gateway Notebook. There was a form field that required me to enter a Zip Code to determine if the offer was available for my area. Beyond this information, there was clear information that stated that to be eligible for my 'free laptop' my information would need to be validated, I would be required to complete a user survey and I also be required to participate in the several ‘sponsor offers’. Further browsing uncovered customer testimonials, and more specific information regarding what 'sponsors offers' really meant. The information about what this entailed put me a ease somewhat. They stated the following:

" Examples of sponsored offers may include free trial offers, credit cards, free quote requests and other free or low-cost offers. Please note that there are typically a variety of offers presented for your selection - some offers require a small purchase, while others are free trials or free applications which does not require a purchase (and can be cancelled without obligation)."

I felt that this was adequate information and actually intrigued me. Beyond this, they listed other specifics of the program, along with some frequently asked questions. They stated that users could even monitor the status of their progress online. This was another plus.

Taking all of this information into account, I viewed the Online Reward Center in a different light. They seemed very credible. I was almost tempted to try it out, but thought otherwise when considering the time frame (90 days), and the administrative hassles of completing the necessary steps. But even so, this was a plus. I had a different perspective on the nature of the service.