5 Blogs Before Lunch

In The North End of Boston, Wednesday is Prince Spaghetti Day

Get Ye a Chief Corporate Blogger

Long gone are the days when a blog was a personal journal. Corporate blogs are now mainstream, and expected. The number of Fortune 500 companies with blogs has nearly tripled in the last couple of years, and a growing number of these companies (and others) are finding that naming a blogger-in-chief gives the brand a valuable intangible: voice.

As companies including Coca-Cola, Marriott and Kodak have discovered, it's a good idea to have a chief corporate blogger. "It's going mainstream because companies are realizing this is a tool that has utility," one media consultant says.

From Financial Week:

While the title of chief blogger is seductive, analysts and industry insiders said the title shouldn't be the focus. What's essential is the brand voice, whether it comes from one chief blogger (such as vice chairman Bob Lutz on General Motors' FastLane Blog or CEO Jonathan Schwartz on Sun Microsystems' Jonathan's Blog) or a group working together, such as those on Southwest and Wal-Mart's blogs.

No one is saying that a chief blogger or blog voice is right for all brands. Bloggers and analysts said companies that want to blog should identify a specific reason to do so, such as to humanize the company (like Microsoft), make the company more open (like Dell) or advance the fun-and-happy company image (like Southwest).

American Idol: We're All In This Together

Long ago, before there were 5 blogs before lunch, Americans gathered around their television sets to watch Uncle Milty (Milton Berle). Then, the evening's schedule asked for america to stop what they were doing to watch Uncle Walt (Walter Chronkite) tell us what was important to know in the world. These were media events which stopped the country for a little while, and focused all of our attention on a single event. We were one nation, under the spell of a television program.

I'm afraid that today's center of attention is...American Idol. The obvious research to prove this as fact comes from the sky-high ratings, the $billions spent on advertising, product placement and in merchandising, the 30 million plus votes cast every week for the contestants. But on a more personal note, it is the fact that every time the Fox show is broadcast, my email, IM and phone calls immediately cease for 60 minutes, and return to regular patterns immediately after.

Next time Ryan, Paula, Randy and Simon are blathering on-screen, take note of your electronic devices. It seems we're all in this together.

Boston Consulting Group: Mastering The Home Market In Rapidly Growing Economies

Local companies are mastering the domestic markets in rapidly developing economies (new acronym: RDE's), growing fast and holding the multinationals at bay. How do they do it? Boston Consulting Group identified 50 leading companies in RDE's -- from an instant-messaging service in China to a budget airline in Brazil -- and found six key success factors. Go to Boston Consulting Group for more.

Amnesty Internationals New Ad Campaign Uses Cartoon Character To Highlight Chinese Human Rights Abuses

Amnesty International's new online campaign features a cute, animated character being brutally beaten with an electro-shock baton. The baton is then handed to another character, who uses it to light the Olympic flame at Beijing's Olympic stadium.

The campaign is design to highlight Chinese government human rights abuses during the run-up the he Summer Olympics in Beijing.

'Torchure' was created by animators Sweetworld TV and launches online today, marking 100 days to go until the Beijing Olympics. It is the first in a series of four ads, focusing in particular on the risks of peacefully protesting in China.

The website enables people to send campaigning letters and emails, share content or start their own blog. Amnesty is also releasing a new booklet accompanying the ad, showing "the two faces of the Beijing Olympics".

From Brand Republic: Yasmeen Ismail, animator at Sweetworld TV, said: "With animation you can create a lot of emotion. The characters in the Amnesty China campaign are quite innocent and cuddly. When something horrific happens the impact is greater because you have built up a bond with them."

Starbucks Looks To Smoothies and Iced Drinks As Differentiators

Starbucks has announced that it will add a line of smoothie-like drinks this summer in an attempt to add healthier food and drink choices to its menu.

The smoothies will be made with fresh fruit and whey powder. The company also will begin selling a more-indulgent sweet, icy beverage developed with an Italian company. That drink will only be sold in select markets.

From The Wall Street Journal: "It's also what we believe to be a huge differentiator," said Rob Grady, Starbucks' vice president, beverage. "You cannot get [them] from any fast-food establishment." The flavors Starbucks has developed include chocolate banana and orange mango.

Budgets Down, But Agencies Not Out

There are a lot of reasons why marketers dump their ad agencies, but the downturn in the economy apparently is not one of them. 76% of respondents to a Reardon Smith survey said they had no plans to switch agencies this year.

But here's the bad news for agencies--according to a Forrester Research report, a majority of U.S. marketing executives said the economic downturn has moderately to greatly affected their companies in recent months, with 77 out of 100 marketing heads saying marketing budgets will remain flat or be slashed this year.

More at Adweek.

Christie Dames at the Commonwealth Club: "Where Did My Mojo Go? Energy Management for Maximum Personal R.O.I"

For those in San Francisco, or looking for an excuse to visit, I hope you'll check out Friend of 5 Blogs' Christie Dames' speech at the Commonwealth Club on May 5th. Christie is CEO, TechTalk Studio and Co-founder, Extreme Healing and will be speaking on the topic: "Where Did My Mojo Go? Energy Management for Maximum Personal R.O.I."

Energy vampires - individuals or organizations that take excessive amounts of energy without giving anything in return - are a hidden epidemic of modern life. Dames argues that invisible toxins rob our brain of its natural vitality and diminish productivity. She will offer ten strategies for overcoming and transforming blocks to peak performance in all aspects of your life.

COMMONWEALTH CLUB
595 Market Street, 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
Tel: (415) 597-6700

MONDAY, May 5, 2008
5:30 p.m. reception, 6 p.m. program

Cost: MEMBERS FREE, $15 non-members, $8 students (with valid ID)

Program Organizer: Kevin O'Malley

Ideas On Ideas Talks Digital With Saatchi's Kevin Roberts

Eric Karjaluoto over at Ideas on Ideas has posted an excellent interview with Saatchi's Kevin Roberts, talking about how the digital world has seeped into mainstream agencies.

From Ideas on Ideas:

Readers of ideasonideas are well aware of my bullish stance on digital and how I often reference large agencies as rather out of touch. This doesn’t mean I’m against the big guys (heck, I’d love to work in those neat offices with great views). I just feel as though we’re in the midst of a change that is completely rearranging this space and will result in extinction for a few.

Go to Ideas on Ideas for the full interview.

Gucci, Living in the "New Luxury" World, Is Being Hit By The Downturn In The Economy

It is a rule of thumb that when the economy tanks, the luxury sector remains pretty solid. "The rich will always be rich" I always say.

Today however, the luxury sector is defined differently than in the past. The consumers of Prada and Maserati and second-home beach houses are the "new luxury" where you don't need to be "rich" (in that I don't need to work to earn money type of way) anymore. They just need to have disposable income, and chose to spend it.

This new luxury category has allowed luxury goods manufacturers to grow exponential during the economic high-times, but it also means that as the economy slows, so will their market.

Take Gucci for example. The company has decided to promote goods with lower price tags as part of its strategy to boost sales. The decision is a sign that the expected consumer slowdown has started to bite and follows a decline in sales at the fashion house.

Analysts are warning against other luxury brands following Gucci's lead. 'Luxury brands must be managed with great care,' said Richard Perks, director of retail research at Mintel. 'It's crucial to think long-term to avoid undermining the value of the brand.'

We must watch and see how the New Luxury will be affected by the New Economy.