Alternative ipad 2 Cases for Smart Case

admin    Technology     Alternative, Case, Cases, Ipad, Smart

Alternative ipad 2 Cases for Smart Case

Ipad smart case is said to be so much more than just a case. It’s slim yet sturdy, designed to be a perfect match for ipad 2 which is sold at in Apple Store. Competition makes great deals. Let’s see some alternative ipad 2 cases that excellent as smart cases but cost less.

The first one is Ultra-thin High Imitated Leather Pouch Protective Case Skin Cover for iPad 2. This case is specially designed for ipad 2 which would perfectly match. Besides, it looks like Smart Case, very much. And it can have almost all the fantastic functions of smart case. It can be folded into the perfect viewing angle, which would be a great ipad buddy for reading, watching, and typing. Multiple colors are available for your options just like smart case. And it only costs .53 with free shipping on PickEgg.

The first one is Ultra-thin High Imitated Leather Pouch Protective Case Skin Cover for iPad 2. This case is specially designed for ipad 2 which would perfectly match. Besides, it looks like Smart Case, very much. And it can have almost all the fantastic functions of smart case. It can be folded into the perfect viewing angle, which would be a great ipad buddy for reading, watching, and typing. Multiple colors are available for your options just like smart case. And it only costs .53 with free shipping on PickEgg.

The first one is Ultra-thin High Imitated Leather Pouch Protective Case Skin Cover for iPad 2. This case is specially designed for ipad 2 which would perfectly match. Besides, it looks like Smart Case, very much. And it can have almost all the fantastic functions of smart case. It can be folded into the perfect viewing angle, which would be a great ipad buddy for reading, watching, and typing. Multiple colors are available for your options just like smart case. And it only costs .53 with free shipping on PickEgg.

If you want a protective case with keyboard for your ipad 2, here is another option: Wireless Bluetooth Leathery Protective Case with Keyboard for iPad 2. This case is foldable just like the above one. And it’s designed with a keyboard with it. When your ipad 2 is folded with the case on, it’s no more bulky than a notebook. And the design is to fully cover your ipad. It also have multiple colors with the price of 51.47 bucks.

If you don’t like smart case style, then maybe you will like this ipad case: Nonslip Leather Case Folding Pouch Cover Shell with Stand for iPad 2. It is designed with non-slip material and has full access to touch screen, buttons and ports. It can be folded on the back to be a stand when you watch movie or video chatting. It’s just a convenient protective case for your ipad 2. And it only needs 12.98 bucks, so much less than a smart case.

Extended Alternative warranty iPhone Insurance plans

admin    861     Alternative, Extended, Insurance, iPhone, Plans, warranty

Extended Alternative warranty iPhone Insurance plans

There are many iPhone Insurance plans but there is none which is as relieving al the extended alternative warranty iPhone Insurance plans. You may think that you are able no get this everywhere but no. this extended alternative warranty iPhone Insurance plans are only available from the number one iPhone Insurance company in the industry. GoTronics iPhone Insurance plans are known to be the most accommodating in the market. This is because GoTronics iPhone Insurance company is always looking out for ways in which it can fulfill the needs of its customers as much as possible. That is what the coming of the extended alternative iPhone Insurance plans is all about. It is to get every single bit of damage that your iPhone may face your iPhone catered for.

Many people are not able to decide on the appropriate iPhone Insurance cover which can work well for them. This should not get you worried because there are always people at the GoTronics offices who are always ready and very willing to answer all your questions regarding iPhone Insurance plans. You should always be free to ask everything you desire to know about iPhone Insurance plans because that is the only way through which we can be able to provide you with viable iPhone Insurance plans that would offer you the satisfaction which you want. It is also of importance to give suggestions of the iPhone Insurance plans which you would love us to have included in our list. Our main aim is to have you as satisfied as we possibly can and it is only through your valued opinions on the available iPhone Insurance plans that we can be able to serve you better and even be able to get new iPhone Insurance plans which are perfect for your case.

The GoCare iPhone Insurance plans are so workable and inclusive of repairs and replacements of iPhone parts which may require that to be done. This extended alternative iPhone Insurance plans also take care of stolen phones. You are able to make iPhone Insurance claims to get you adequately compensated. The iPhone Insurance plans also include data recovery for your iPhone. Data loss is one of the most crucial losses which your iPhone may experience during its lifetime. Our iPhone Insurance plans have been designed in such a way that cases of any loss of data will be history. For as long as you are in our iPhone Insurance plans, you can be sure that out technicians would recover all your data if needed. You can therefore be rested knowing that regardless of what you need, we have all inclusive iPhone Insurance plans perfectly designed for your iPhones satisfaction.

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Exercising The Alternative

admin    Twitter Marketing     Alternative, Exercising

Check out these Twitter advertising products:

Exercising The Alternative
Healthy Living Through Disease Management – New Hot Product! “Exercising The Alternative” by Dr. Gene M. Exploring the Practical, Natural, Medicinal & Spiritual Aspects of Preventing Disease & Maintaining Good Health! Affiliates – http://tiny.cc/ky8h9
Exercising The Alternative

Home Made Strength Online Dvd
The Home Made Strength Online Dvd will show you how to make several high quality pieces of strength training equipment that will last you for years and save you a ton of money.
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iPad Alternative with Android

admin    8615     Alternative, Android, Ipad

iPad Alternative with Android

iPads has made many alternatives as the advancement of technology is inhering the new developers in this field. So the developers are using the new way of technology that is androids. There are around nine alternatives for the ipad with android:

1. HP Slate:   HP slate will run Windows 7, setting it apart from the field of tablets running Android will be seeing on the rest of this list. One of the indications that the tablet form-factor is about to become practically omnipresent.

2. Dell Streak: Dell has been upcoming with this new slate which shows many prototypes which are known as streak. This puts it less in the direct path of the ipad and makes it more akin to the existing line of mobile internet devices and has Archos series of internet tablets. This can also snag hands on photos of the device.

3. Asus Eee Tablet: Asus is the company which is held creditworthy for inaugurating the total concept of net book craze.  The device has four control buttons reminiscent of the favored layout for an Android-powered phone, leading to the logical speculation that the Asus tablet might well run Google’s mobile operating system.

4. Compal tablet: has several partners lined up to make Tegra 2-based tablets, so expect more of this type of device in the near future. Working prototype was shown off at CES 2010.

5. Notion ink Adam:

6. MSI

7. Quanta

8. ICD Vega

9. Google and HTC: Google Tablet is the most speculative entrant on this list for now. HTC is a plausible logical choice for the trusted partner as well, given its existing relationship with Google and the Android operating system.

Social Media Marketing – A Free Smart Alternative

admin    Social Media Marketing     Alternative, Free, marketing, Media, Smart, Social

Social Media Marketing – A Free Smart Alternative

Online societal advertising and societal networking has been close to a lengthy time, but only recently has it been experiencing an explosion in participation and promotion from close to the world, in each market imaginable. It has certainly gone ‘mainstream’ and is now even more important as being a tool in your internet advertising method.

As a outcome of the mass participation it can be receiving more difficult and more difficult to run a business about the web with out paying attention to what’s happening inside the societal advertising and societal networking sphere. Numerous organizations are failing to get a grasp of the new advertising and networking medium prior to they lose market share to savvy competitors.

It can be not a query of IF you’ll get included in societal media, but when. There is a large details demand and lack of supply, and to date there has been no location to get clear step by step directions on understanding the all encompassing nature of societal media and how it can be radically various than the standard internet advertising techniques that we’re all utilized to.

We wanted to lay out a easy but powerful step by step formula to enable you to far better recognize the energy and leverage of societal advertising and to allow you to begin to apply some of these tactics to generate free of charge traffic, targeted leads and convert more revenue in your business.

That is how you’ll be able to implement a skilled Social Media Marketing Tactic:

1. Sociable Media Way of thinking: Very first find out how and why social media marketing and societal networking is radically various in comparison with standard forms of internet advertising because of the societal media way of thinking..
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2. Central Hub of Operations, Your Website: When you recognize societal media plus the way of thinking, you build your “central hub” which is the core of all of your societal advertising activities plus the center of all of your research engine rankings plus the new SEO. Your WordPress website on your own server is the skilled market common.

3. Market Research: Then you find out the best way to move towards cutting edge of your market, find out it and explore it so that you simply recognize your market from a societal perspective. You concentrate on keywords which have been relevant and already attracting traffic about the research engines for your niche.

4. Targeted Sociable Media Networks: When you recognize your market, then and only then can you discover the societal media networks that should build your business.

5. Sociable Networking – Tribal Promoting: When you know the societal network websites that will support you build your business, you engage a systematic approach or procedure for understanding the best way to network and build relationships in your communities.

6. Sociable Media Optimization: When you find out your communities and how to engage them, it can be time for societal media optimization: the procedure of tying everything together with your central hub and your sales/marketing funnel or procedure.

7. Content material Syndication Tactic: Now that your web presence and societal media networks are optimized for societal advertising, you can create and deliver a articles method that’s designed to market your solutions and providers to your community.

8. Private Branding & Community Building: Now that you simply have developed your initial articles method, it can be time to begin to engage your community and target market with the articles you have developed through personalized branding and community building. You’ll find out the best way to build large followings of people that should spread your links, articles and your message towards far reaches from the societal media and societal networking world.
BONUS: Your Net Promoting Product sales Funnel: This entire system, or Perpetual Net Visitors Machine, as some experts call it, is all designed to intelligently lead targeted, motivated people directly into your internet advertising revenue funnel (lead capture page, autoresponder, revenue letter) so you’ll be able to generate traffic from the articles and syndication efforts and then transform that targeted traffic into leads, prospects and revenue for your business.

As you work to build your presence about the web you’ll find out the best way to tie all of that into a constantly growing web of influence while you gain higher and higher research engine visibility and create a powerful community that compounds and grows over time.

Start to find out and implement these strategies so you’ll be able to see for yourself how an integrated social media marketing initiative will not only increase your web presence but will ensure your continued success about the internet and put this powerful social marketing initiative into play in your business for generating influence, search engine exposure, free traffic, free leads and more sales and earnings

Kindle Alternative – the Ectaco Jetbook

admin    8615     Alternative, Ectaco, Jetbook, Kindle

Kindle Alternative – the Ectaco Jetbook

The Ectaco Jetbook is the smallest among the among the leading e-book readers. The screen size is at a mere 5 inches, which can be a great advantage or disadvantage depending on your personal preference. The small size compromises on its readability on one hand, but greatly enhances its portability on the other.

To make up for its size, this e-book reader has a great feature that enables you to rotate the text on the screen. You could either read your e-book straight up, or read it at landscape by rotating the device. The contrast and readability of the Ectaco Jetbook may not be as good as other models such as the Amazon Kindle or the Sony Prs 505, but it is good enough to provide a comfortable read in most lighting conditions.

Because of its small size, the Ectaco Jetbook seems to have a longer battery life compared to many other e-book readers. A single charge can last up to a week of constant use. This little device also boots up faster than many e-book models. There are three conveniently located page-turn buttons that allows for easy page flipping. The page turns on the Ectaco Jetbook are also smoother than many leading e-book models.

A feature that makes the Ectaco Jetbook stand out among the rest is its great built in file manager. Compared to the Amazon Kindle and the Sony e-book reader, the Jetbook has a great file manager that allows you to manage, delete and organize your e-book files. Browsing though thousands of files on this little device is also a breeze. Like many e-book readers, the Ectaco Jetbook has a built in MP3 player.

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Banner Advertising – A Wise Alternative to Search Marketing

admin    Web Marketing     Advertising, Alternative, Banner, marketing, Search, Wise.

Banner Advertising – A Wise Alternative to Search Marketing

Banner Advertising – A Wise Alternative to Search Marketing

Placing banners on quality content websites and blogs can be more effective than paying to show up in search results. Whilst search advertising is measured via performance based metrics using the number of click-throughs, banner advertising works by branding (something you can’t measure just using the click-through rate). This article shows how experts have valued display advertising and examines the options of obtaining quality Advertising Space on the net without breaking the budget.

Banners have a larger impact than originally thought

For years, Banner Ads have been criticized for their low conversions, but a comprehensive study confirms their importance.  Following research into the effectiveness of display advertising, industry leaders, comScore and Online Publisher’s Association, have given their support for the value of banner advertising.

The study, called “The Silent Click: Building Brands Online” looked at consumer’s behaviour after being exposed to banner campaigns, including their search activities in relation to that brand, their visitation to the advertiser’s website and consequential purchases. It’s a more accurate way of determining how effective display advertising can be. It examined 80 branding campaigns over 200 highly trafficked websites.

The findings were that 20% of people conducted searches in respect of that brand, they spent 50% more time on the advertiser’s website and visited more pages and they spend 10% more on products than people who weren’t exposed to the advertisements. So while the ads produced little click throughs, they did have an impact, perhaps even higher than performance based search marketing.

In addition to these findings, the study bolstered the atmosphere of the content site having an impact on the consumer’s behaviour. The brand aura is strengthened when being displayed on a high quality trusted website.

When using search marketing to brand, whether through an ad network or not, it’s impossible to ensure all your advertisements are displayed on superior sites which have consumers’ confidence. To secure placement on such sites, you’ll have to find the Ad Space yourself.

Options for buying Advertising Space

There are five ways of finding and purchasing advertising spots:

1) Organically, by searching for and contacting websites yourself,

This process is arduous and time consuming but can be very effective and requires minimal expense. You should locate websites relative to your niche who are attracting your target audience. You can find some great bargains by contacting sites that aren’t attracting much advertising. Even if such websites don’t have much traffic, your visitors will be qualified and highly targeted.

Such websites might not even have an advertising policy or structure set up, giving you the opportunity to negotiate the price and location of your ad. Popular sites will have a standard set of advertising rates, usually contained in their media kit. You will need to follow each website’s processes and organise placement yourself.

2) Browsing a Banner Auction;

Banner Auctions provide a venue for publishing websites (sellers of ad space) to list their available space for sale either by auction or flat price buy-out. It’s a useful mechanism for advertisers to find and compare available Ad Space.

This process makes finding Ad Space direct easier than starting from scratch since you can view the offers, contact the sellers and make purchases all from one place.

3) Using an ad network;

Ad networks provide a means of automatically placing your advertisement on many sites. If you lack the time to find and negotiate advertising placements yourself, then this is the ideal option for you. The costing method is usually CPM (cost per thousand impressions) or PPC (pay per click through). Networks can find placements at reduced prices by giving you inventory which wasn’t sold at the normal price.

A downfall is that automatic placement means you have no direct control of where your ads will be shown. Also ad networks have been criticized for failing to provide sufficiently targeted placements, meaning your ads are being clicked by an uninterested audience (which is a waste of your advertising money).

4) Employing an advertising agency;

This basically involves hiring an agency to use their skill and expertise for locating and negotiating placements on your behalf. Reputable agencies have many clients, enabling them to buy impressions in bulk. They can run the whole process from having each banner designed to arranging specialised and targeted ad placements.

While they provide professional expert service, many require an account minimum to undertake such service. You can carry out this task yourself or browse a Banner Auction website if your budget is limited.

5) Setting up an affiliate program.

You can arrange for other websites (affiliates) to display your banners and pay them for each specified event. Most work on either pay per click-throughs or paying a commission on making a sale (called pay per action advertising).

This method is results based and accordingly very cost effective. Due to the high number of websites running affiliate programs, referrers look for trustworthy and reputable program managers.

If you start a program, you will need to be attentive and punctual in managing your affiliates. Treat your affiliates fairly and provide timely accurate reporting.

An ideal marketing plan should include some form of advertising combined with the use of social media, press releases, newsletters, viral marketing and any other way of obtaining exposure to your website. When dedicating a budget to advertising, make sure you research all the options available for buying Ad Space to make informed decisions and to get the best use out of your marketing dollars.

Internet Search Engine Optimization No Longer Considered an Alternative Marketing Avenue

admin    Website Design Resources     Alternative, Avenue, Considered, Engine, Internet, Longer, marketing, optimization, Search

Burbank, CA (PRWEB) December 22, 2008 – Traditional advertising and marketing avenues such as television, radio and newspapers have been fading away as cost effectiveness has shown dramatic increases in usage by consumers utilizing the internet to search for products and services. The sheer reach of the Net far out shines anything old school methods of marketing can achieve and with the right techniques the cyber world of advertising can become incredibly profitable.First regarded as the poor relations of marketing budgets, Internet marketing has surged ahead print for example because of its ability to pin point marketing targets. By creating marketing programs that can focus on particular demographics that provide exposure to only those particular topographical areas from local, regional, country and up to the world. Internet marketing and advertising gives it all to you plus the big advantage to change everything about your campaign at a moment’s notice.Crucial to marketing on the Internet is the intelligent usage of SEO or Search Engine Optimization. According to experts at Internet marketing company iMajestic at www.imajestic.com , “Search Engine Optimization is the process of putting forward the best possible argument as to why a particular web site is more relevant and deserves to rank higher than others, in the search engines, for specific words.”Those specific words refer to what the industry calls “keywords”. Keywords are words and phrases that pertain to your company or business. People that use search engines like Google, Yahoo, Excite, AOL and others, type in particular words and phrases that direct the web crawlers to find your company’s web site.The trick and talent behind SEO work is being able to identify keywords that will not only be useable for your business in order for it to be located by the search engines but also to find keywords and their combinations that are unique and stand out from all your competitors. But once these keywords are produced, how you use them are equally important. Tags, meta-tags, web content, articles and blogs are integral parts of the whole process of SEO programs. It takes a person or company that has experience and knowledge of how all these components will fit together, in addition it is very important to understand the rules of engagement that the search engine companies put forth that regulates how a website uses SEO.The people at iMajestic put it this way:”SEO is not black magic or the cause of random events. It is the science and art of testing, monitoring, and forecasting current and future trends within the search engines as a whole. It requires extensive research, planning, careful execution and analysis.”Companies around the globe have come to rely on the Internet to present themselves to consumers that may never have had an opportunity to find them and experience the benefits of their products and services. The World Wide Web is a vast expanse of sites, portals and directories and in order to be heard above the roar of the crowd it is imperative that the smart businessperson hook up with a Search Engine Optimization company that knows what its doing has the ability to work with in your budget.Central to their success at iMajestic is the wide range of expertise that their staff brings to the table. Google and Microsoft certifications as well as years of knowledge and first hand experience creating successful SEO marketing campaigns have made them a stand out in the sea of cyber marketing business.For more information about this revolutionary approach to Internet marketing and business relations go to www.imajestic.com or contact them direct at 1-866-851-2402.

Alternative Marketing: Website Advertising With New Media

admin    Web Marketing     Advertising, Alternative, marketing, Media, website

 

 

Alternative marketing, also known as word-of-mouth, aims to reach consumers more directly than by traditional advertising on radio or television, or in print. It tends to be confusing, though, beginning with the number of names by which it is called. You can pick your favorite from a regular buffet of terms: under-the-radar marketing, below-the-line marketing, renegade marketing, street marketing, ambush marketing, vanguard marketing, ambient marketing, guerrilla marketing, covert marketing, stealth marketing, viral marketing, or diffusion marketing. They are all equally evocative of a marketing style that is unconventional in concept and hit-and-run in execution. Let’s look at just a few of the variations.

The Video Virus: Is it Catching?

Probably the best-known technique in alternative advertising is the viral video. A short video clip is produced, and slipped stealthily in front of the consumer by posting it on Internet forums, e-mails, video-sharing sites, and the like. This video is unlike the usual television commercial; it’s usually either humorous, or controversial, or both. A TV commercial wants to transfer information about a product to the potential consumer. These viral videos may include information transference, but their purpose is to entertain and amuse you. The idea behind them is that if people are interested and amused, they will pass the video clip on to Internet friends, and more people will then see it. Somewhere in the video is usually something about a product, or at least its name. Advertising companies believe that the details about a product will be sought out by the audience, if they enjoyed the video enough.

This is an interactive model of advertising, in that the consumer is active in receiving, viewing, and passing on the video clip. Even by just doing those three things, a person is exerting more effort than the watcher of television, who is simply sitting and watching. To see a video clip, at a minimum you need to press Play, or click on an arrow. And if you like it enough, you may watch it a few more times, then send it to some of your friends in an e-mail. After all this, it’s likely that you’ll remember the product when you’re in the market for something like it.

Blogs and Buzz

“Blog” is short for “web log”. Merriam-Webster Online defines “blog” as “an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer”. Blogs are a great way to reach an audience that pays no attention to traditional print and television advertising. Their contrast with the cleverly-produced values that are hyped on corporate websites is their “homespun” character. The voice in which they are told might be your own voice; at any rate, it’s the voice of ordinary, everyday folks. Many blogs are still, essentially, online diaries written by an individual; others have begun to dabble in the waters of marketing.

Anybody at all can set up a blog, as long as they have an Internet connection and something to say. There are webhosting services for sale that will help you create your own website for a blog, but you can get into blogging without hiring such a service. Most of the social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, or LiveJournal offer free blogging capabilities. In fact, there are so many sites and possibilities for blogging on the Internet that a new term, “blogosphere,” has been invented to encompass blogs and their myriad interconnections.

The marketing sphere and the blogosphere are beginning to intersect. Advertisers want to create “buzz” around their products: what better way than to get people talking about a product on their blogs? Young people, Generation Y-ers, and cool young professionals go to the Internet for the same services their parents would find in a telephone directory, an atlas, a road map, a radio or TV news program. This means that the Internet is the perfect place for advertisers to show their wares to potential customers. And blogs, because they are so friendly and believable, are the perfect medium for creating credibility.

You Can’t Get Away from the Ads!

The next new angle for advertising is the “captive audience”. Several companies like TransitTV are working this angle for all it’s worth. In five major US cities, over 3,000 buses, trolleys, and other public vehicles now have 8,400 screens installed to reach the captive audience. If you’re on a bus, in an elevator, or sitting in a restroom stall – you can’t get away from the ads! You can’t fast-forward through the commercials, or even turn the TV off! You are stuck, and even if you determinedly avoid looking at the screen, you can’t help hearing the sound.

TransitTV offers advertisers just what they want: an audience that is completely captive. There is only one channel, hence no flipping a remote from channel to channel when the commercials come on. There’s nothing else to watch. There is no way to get away from the commercial. Sometimes the commercials are hidden in what’s supposed to be a review of current events, a watered-down, not-of-the-moment news program; sometimes they are not. They’re the only game in town. Your only defense, as a consumer, is to avoid public transportation and elevators like the plague.

TransitTV also gives the advertising companies detailed demographic breakdowns of people exposed to their network. In addition, they can provide accurate measurements of advertising success. Advertisers love them; soon they’ll be everywhere.

“How’s It Going? Here, Try This!”

In an effort to make marketing more personal, and create real connections between advertisers and the people they want to target, “street teams” are becoming more popular. These people are paid to go out on the downtown streets and talk to people they encounter. They are a little like the lady in the supermarket with the bite-size samples of something or other – except that it’s easy enough to take another aisle if you don’t want to deal with the Sample Lady. The Street Team is right out there, walking alongside you, asking you to try something… it’s very hard just to brush past. It’s rude. They are counting on the likelihood that you won’t want to appear discourteous, and that you will have a verbal exchange with them, and maybe even agree to taste the crackers or cereal they’re pushing. They have already put up fliers and posters all over the buildings, so you’ve seen the name of the product just recently…

This is a first step in the creation of buzz. Advertisers have decided that the best way to get started on a network of personal connections that will be buzzing about their product is to force the personal connection between consumers and a company.

Buzz… buzz… buzz

“Buzz” is defined by Merriam-Webster Online as “speculative or excited talk or attention relating especially to a new or forthcoming product or event.” It’s estimated that consumers are exposed to about 3,000 commercial messages every day; so in order to cut through the clutter and make a point about your product, you’ve got to try something different. All the alternative advertising methods touched upon here are designed to create buzz and keep it going.

 

And buzz is a whole lot cheaper to use than traditional advertising. During primetime viewing hours, it costs an advertiser about $450,000 for a 30-second spot on television, for just a single airing. That’s just the airtime; it doesn’t include any production costs, actors, etc. Enough advertisers are investigating and using buzz that they have actually formed an association to try to weed out unscrupulous word-of-mouth advertisers. The Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association was formed in 2001, and is working with the Federal Trade Commission to set up guidelines to regulate marketing practices and prevent dishonest strategies.

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Alternative Marketing: Controversial Advertising Campaigns

admin    Web Marketing     Advertising, Alternative, Campaigns, Controversial, marketing

 

It’s a new world of marketing out there. Viral marketing, or the use of existing social networks to spread information and knowledge about products just as a virus self-replicates by means of human contact, is becoming increasingly popular. You’ll find viral promotions in the form of e-books, video clips, and interactive Flash games. You’ll find such promotions on Facebook.com, YouTube.com, Digg.com, and MySpace.com. You may even find them on your cell phone, in a text message.

One of the problems with viral marketing, however, is that the lack of a central filter for advertising ideas leaves the door wide open for ads that may be considered inappropriate, or even offensive. For example, do you remember the dispute that erupted in January 2005, centering on an ad for a new Volkswagen car? The UK newspaper The Guardian reported that two young British designers had created a brief video commercial for the Volkswagen Polo. The video was spreading, like a virus, online, through the social networking sites.

In the video, a darkly-bearded man in sunglasses and fatigues drives his VW Polo to a sidewalk café, parks, and detonates a bomb inside the car. His purpose is clearly a suicide mission, to blow up the café. A flash is seen inside the car, but is contained. The ad is followed by the tag line, “Polo. Small but tough.” According to The Guardian, Volkswagen strenuously denied having condoned or encouraged the advertisement. The designers, known only as Lee and Dan, stated that they had made the video for Volkswagen as a self-promotional effort, to show what they could do. Volkswagen announced that they intended to sue the two young creative professionals for damages to the company’s reputation – if they were able to locate them.

Despite all this, the video has continued to make the rounds on Internet forums, video-sharing sites, marketing blogs, and chat rooms ever since. The lack of accountability for content in this ad, the political “incorrectness” of its subject matter, and the explosiveness of the reactions to it all stand as indications of what’s to come in alternative advertising. And yet, even though VW may not have been behind the offensive ad – it certainly did bring them a huge amount of press and publicity!

The ideology and the act of terrorism are something we struggle with. Our country is currently waging a war against terrorism, and many of our young people have died in a personal and physical confrontation with it. Traditional advertising has always aimed to sell people a better life than the one they’re living. It has offered products and services with an emphasis on making people comfortable and happy. Now, with alternative advertising, suddenly the focus is on making us uncomfortable. Ads like the one for the Polo disturb us, unsettle us, but we do notice and remember the product.

Another controversial aspect of alternative advertising is that of incorporating political discourse. The line between news and advertising is increasingly blurred, as components of current political debate are included in advertisements whose purpose is to sell a product. In such a climate, how can we not become more and more apathetic and cynical about politics?

Only a month after the Volkswagen video incident, another huge company found itself spotlighted by a controversial event that boosted its sales. Hotel-heiress-turned-reality-TV-star Paris Hilton announced that hackers had invaded her T-Mobile Sidekick. Shortly thereafter, contact information for many of her famous friends appeared on the Internet, along with a number of – shall we say – indecorous photos that Hilton had kept on her cell phone/organizer/camera combination.

As the story unfolded, it was revealed that the group of young hackers responsible for swiping Hilton’s personal information had been amusing themselves for months by harassing various T-Mobile customers, some well-known and some not. They had made use of “social engineering” – deceiving people into giving away sensitive information, or in other words, old-fashioned con artistry – to obtain phone and account numbers, seemingly without much difficulty.

You’d think that this massive attack on T-Mobile’s security would have knocked the company right out of the market. Not so: Sidekick sales went roaring up after the Hilton incident and subsequent stories about the hacker group. Could it possibly be that T-Mobile had orchestrated the whole business to make the public more aware of the Sidekick? Could it have been a fantastically complex and clever piece of alternative marketing?

Both VW and T-Mobile received a tremendous amount of press coverage after their Internet scandals. Is it true that any press at all, favorable or negative, is ultimately good for a company? Maybe what we are seeing here is final proof of the value of risk-taking, controversial marketing techniques.

Finally, let’s look at user-generated content as an advertising stratagem. An example of user-generated content on a web page is offered by Amazon.com. Most of Amazon’s content is produced by administrators. However, regular users write reviews of products that are included in Amazon’s advertising. People of all kinds, with a myriad of different viewpoints, life experiences, cultures and educational levels, may have an interest in the same product. If they are encouraged to give their opinion of the product as part of the product’s advertising, the advertising can speak to all those various groups in their own voices.

User-generated content provides fresh ideas, cheaply produced. When consumers create most of the advertising for a product free of charge, a company’s costs for advertising plummet. All the company needs to provide is the web page and the hosting; the rest is accomplished by the consumer-generated content. In comparison to the expense of the traditional TV marketing campaign, user-generated content costs virtually nothing. There are no costs for creative staff, directors, actors, writers, and air time. It’s a pretty good deal for the company.

Here’s the trade-off, though: if you out-source the creative process, you lose control of the output of that process. You may like what users say about your product, or you may not, but you can’t do much about whether or not it is disseminated. The Internet is open for everyone to use. All those free upload sites like Flickr, YouTube, MySpace, and all the rest enable everyone’s ideas to be available to the public. And if their ideas are clever and unusual – like that VW video – there is every likelihood that they will make the rounds on the Internet for a long, long time.

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