Business Battlefield: The Internet Land Rush Is On
Jim Nichols, Contributor
Jim Nichols, Contributor
Avi Dan, Contributor
Marc E. Babej, Contributor
With perhaps a nod to the rising power of value seeking procurement executives, The Coca-Cola Company altered the way it compensates its agencies. Overwhelmingly, agencies are compensated by charging their clients a fee, estimating labor cost and including an agreed profit margin. Coke, however, feels that labor-based fees are irrelevant, and that compensation should be tied solely to business results. It adds a pay for performance overlay that allows the agency to earn up to a 23% margin when meeting[...] read »
PepsiCo-Gatorade finds pro athletes who already use their products in new campaign.
How the company focuses on both brand equity and product development.
Ever hear "pretty is as pretty does?" This homily means "don't just look at the surface, it's the underlying qualities that matter." When I read analyst reviews of companies I'm often struck by how fascinated they are with the surface, and how weakly they seem to understand the underlying markets. Financials are a RESULT of management's ability to provide competitive solutions, and no study of financials will give investors a true picture of management or the company's future prospects. read »
The Dockers brand is in search of its target audience.
I just came across an article by branding guru Al Ries in Advertising Age, in which he deplores the decline of brand advertising at the expense of advertising for specific products. Here's an excerpt:
"With all the innovations that have occurred over the years, very few brands have anything to advertise, except the merits of individual models or products. In today's overcommunicated society, this "model" strategy is wasteful and ineffective."It's been a while since I've[...] read »
The people at Smartwater is a brand that surely knows how to make waves (pardon the pun). Back in March, Smartwater combined the power of celebrity, sex and new media savvy with its "Jennifer Aniston Sex Tape" video, which has racked up more than 9 million views on YouTube to date. read »
CMO of Aflac responds to controversy involving their popular mascot.
