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    Digital Distribution Empire

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    There was an ad campaign a couple of decades ago by a major Chemical Society that asked the question “What in the world isn’t chemical?” Well today that question might be better asked, “What in the world isn’t digital?”   
     
    One company poised to corner the digital distribution business is Amazon. Known for books then CDs, Amazon has evolved into a distributor of many different type of products, from electronics to tools, to health food. But as Amazon make inroads in digital music downloads, it has moved into digital books (thanks to the Kindle,) and has a digital download movie business called Amazon Unbox. Ultimately, they will sort through all the permutations of distribution, usability and rights management and strengthen their play in these categories — in which they are currently underperforming. And when they do they’ll have one supreme advantage: price.
     
    As Amazon begins to cross-sell its various digital products it will be able to amortize costs and offer discounts which will be hard to copy. Buy two digital movies and a digital novel by Nelson DeMille and we’ll give you Shelby Lynne’s new single.
     
    As Amazon becomes the online store for all things digital, they will be the Exxon Mobil of this generation.
     

    On the Fence About MySpace Music

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    For the life of me I can’t figure out how MySpace’s big music announcement with Universal Music Group, Warner Music and Sony BMG is going to play out. The geezer planner in me says it is headed for disaster, because MySpace is about friends, not selling music. And whenever a property thinks they know more than their customers about being a consumer, they fall into traps.  If given a choice to buy Music from Apple, maker of the iPod, or MySpace maker of “thanks for the add,” I’d choose Apple. But look how Wal-Mart ascended in music downloads. 
     
    The strategy of selling music in all device formats is smart, though it hasn’t driven crazy growth at Amazon. The strategy of 360 degree deals, selling all band purchase-ables: tees, tix, loads, pix, vids, is also smart. And convenient. And after “friends,” music is a big driver of traffic to MySpace, and therefore consumers have in a sense already voted for music as a MySpace app. Hmm.
     
    But bringing in three labels, notorious competitors, and then stirring up the bees nest of small indies (a franchise) vs. the big labels and that will create cause some anomy. More hmm.
     
    Though I’m kind of on the fence here, I’m going to say, it will be a small bust.  News Corp. will putz this thing up because there will be too many cooks in the kitchen. Plus the MySpace overall mission is now off-kilter. When was the last time you thought of your favorite music store as “a place for friends.”
     

    A turn off.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0

     

    I’m in the social networking, social media business and I must say the category is very exciting — but there is one phenomenon than many of the tech alpha fe/males are engaging in that I find odd. It is “real-time notification.” It’s the shit too, because lots of people are is doing it.  Twitter, FriendFeed, Plaxo Pulse, to name a few, allow the wired and wireless to post to the internet their every move and thought, broadcasting it to the world as a feed.
     
    I can see maybe being drunk and thinking that everyone would want to know what I’m doing and thinking, but come on! Sober? I’m not nearly that interesting to assume people need my every typed thought. And many of the people Twittering and FriendFeeding aren’t either.
     
    The technology is very cool, but I’m waiting for the app that is going to make sense for this. I somehow feel all this burn in the ether isn’t good for the environment, either. Let’s turn some of this shit off, Yo.
     

    Good exhaust.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    My first visit to Burger King was at the suggestion of my cool older cousin Tom. I was a MacDonald’s kid and we had to drive 6 miles to get there. Wasn’t impressed. I was too pissed off at not getting my way, plus I wasn’t a big lettuce and tomato fan. Not even sure if I had a Whopper.
     
    May years later I am a Whopper fan indeed.  Whoppers are all about the flame broiling. Kings aside and billions in ad campaigns later, it all broils down to the burger and the quality and presentation of the other perfectly orchestrated ingredients. Some Whopper make me moan with delight, others are just average, but I keep coming back in search of those killer Whoppers. 
     
    The best advertising done by Burger Kings does not come from Crispin Porter Bogusky — though they do better than good work — it comes from the exhaust fans. I can’t drive by Burger King without my mouth watering.
     
    The new CEO of BK, John Chidsey, really gets it. Read his interview today in the Wall Street Journal.
     

    Place-shifted TV

    By
    Steve Poppe
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     At the PSFK Conference in NYC last week Mike Hudack of Blip.TV brought up the notion of “place-shifted” TV. Many people today “time-shift” TV, which means they use digital video recorders to alter when they watch favorite programs. But in place-shifted TV they alter the device they watch a program on and therefore the place. One of Mike’s favorite tech shows he watches on his iPhone, presumably when he has some downtime.  Big HBO productions, on the other hand, are reserved for his hi-def flat screen at home. That’s when he wants the best quality sight and sound.

     
    Smart guy.
     
    Talking head shows that don’t require high fidelity make sense for smaller, low-qual devices. Downtime is perfect time for a good TV show. TV isn’t going away. It’s still one of the greatest forms of entertainment. Those who create great programming and broadcast it will always find an audience. And place-shifting will help audiences find that programming.
     

    “The Internet Newspaper.”

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    The Huffington Post’s tagline is “The Internet Newspaper.” It’s awful.  Unless Arianna Huffington plans to removes herself from the masthead and make the property more selfless, the HuffPost should not water down its brand meaning with this lazy tagline. 
     
    Using the word “newspaper” as a contextual reference is a mistake. Ms. Huffington can’t compete there. And who would want to? Newspaper ad revenue is down over 9%. Adding the word “Internet” to the line doesn’t make it any better.
     
    The Huffington Post is a post — a place for people to post; staffers and non. It has its center of gravity, as does the Drudge Report, and should build around that gravitational pull. Ms. Huffington needs to look within, recognize what makes her property unique and different and deliver more of it. Becoming an internet newspaper, if that is indeed her mission, will only dilute the Huffington Post. The Huffington Post IS an online news and opinion property. What it DOES (the brand promise) is less well articulated. A tag that highlights the “pull” is needed.

     

    Rock Stars at PSFK NY

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    There were some serious rock stars at yesterday’s PSFK planner and strategy conference in NYC, but the best part of the conference is trying to figure out who they are. Some guest speakers have done great things, others represent successful coms, edus and nets, still others are emerging – not fully baked. You judge them by their deeds, what they say, the insights they provide and, frankly, their salesmanship.
     
    Eric Ribert, an executive chef at Le Bernardin, is a rock star. Putting him on the program was the work of a rock star.  Eric’s gem? “I don’t use customer feedback” to help me decide gastronomic direction. “I do it to please myself.” (Dude, that’s art.) Artists drive culture, if you ask me.
     
    A young man from ETSY.com, Robert Kalin, was smart, confident and a hip-shooter. He started out by saying Second Life sucked (my words) and, little did he know, the unflappable gentleman to his left from NASA was about to present the merits of Second Life in his strategy (oops.) Mr. Kalin never missed a beat, never backed down. Rockstar.
     
    Steve Bryant NY editor of the Thrillist.com, Mike Hudack founder of Blip.tv, Noah Brier, planner at Naked and Marc Schiller CEO of ElectronicArtists also answered the rock star bell. I liked their freshness of thought and foresight.
     

    The pursuit of happiness

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    Our government promises Americans “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” which is exactly what many American’s were aspiring to when taking advantage of sub-prime lending rates to buy their first homes. As it turns out, many of them will lose those homes. 
     
    Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain said yesterday “it is not the duty of government to bail out and reward those who act irresponsibly, whether they are big banks or small borrowers.” Niiiice.  Is he saying small borrowers should be penalized for their pursuit of the American dream because of predatory lending practices? It is not the government’s job to watch out for these practices, prevent them and help solve them when things go awry? I think it is. 
     
    McCain is trying to make some noise here for his party. Getting the “reds” (sorry) to nod their heads and remember why they are Republican. But it’s a mistake. If we can’t protect our own people in their pursuit of happiness then we’re off course.
     
    And that pursuit of happiness thing? It’s a good marketing goal. What pursuit of happiness will the purchase on my product further? That’s a good question for a creative brief.
     

    Don’t muddle the is/does.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0

    I’m a brand and marketing planner and one thing I often come across, especially with new ground-breaking products, is mishandling of the is/does. 

     
    The “is” is a description of the product. Levy’s are jeans.  MySpace is a social network. Hoegaarden is beer. With a new invention, the “is” is very important. To those who are first-to-market falls the definition of the product and product category. They are responsible for the “is.” The education associated with defining the “is” can be costly, but if the product is indeed a breakthrough, the press and word of mouth will help.
     
    The “does” is where marketers often have trouble. The does, is typically framed more in terms of user benefit. Coke is a cola soft drink, but what it does is provide refreshment. Marketers tend to muddle the does, because they are sellers. They can’t stop selling so they pile them on.  
     
    Another problem in new product marketing occurs when marketers don’t explain the “is” and go straight to the “does.” Oy. 
     
    For mature products, the fight is always the “does.” Tide Extra Strength makes your clothes brighter. Everyone knows what Tide is, so it’s a “does” story. But if the reason Tide makes the clothes brighter is because of a new, breakthrough additive then you are back to the “is” again.   See why this is difficult?
     
    Here’s a question: When launching the iPhone, what did Apple think their product was? I finally figured it out.

    Now that’s progressive.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0
    Progressive Insurance is sponsoring the Automotive XPrize which will award 10 million dollars to teams that develop a car that exceed 100 miles per gallon. It is a multi-year competition that seeks to spur lots of global design teams to develop fuel-efficient, low emission, commercially viable cars. It’s the kind of thing capitalists can dream up but governments can’t.
     
    An X prize competition was established in 1996 to create a “private race to space” and a $10 million prize generated $100 million in contestant investment in the technology. This is the goal of Progressive Automotive’s efforts. 
     
     
    What does Geico stands for? Certainly car insurance. 15 minutes saves you 15%. Geckos. Neanderthals.  Fill in the blank. But now I know what Progressive stands for. They are progressive.  Their website says Progressive has a “proven tradition of innovative thinking” and “long history of industry firsts,” but that’s all marketing palaver. This contest is real proof or progressiveness.  It’s believable proof. 
     
    If given the opportunity to spend my hard-earned with a marketing juggernaut or a progressive company — prices being equal — I’ll opt for the latter every time.
     
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