Earlier I posted about a cute girl who would wear your shirt for a day and now comes a guy who will do the same basic thing – wear your shirt for a day, post a video of him wearing your shirt, blog about your shirt, etc.
His pricing scheme is strange and arbitrary – each day of the year goes up $1. So, Jan 1 is a dollar, Jan 30 is $30, all the way up to Dec 31 which I guess would be $365.
January is completely sold out but then again, that’s his cheapest month. I wonder what day will be the breaking point on value. April 12? That will cost you $102.
Is this the future of advertising – each of us setting a personal value of the shirt on our backs?
(via)
Starbursts has put together a multi-tiered web marketing plan. In addition to a redesigned website (ho-hum) and a YouTube channel nobody seems to be watching (top-viewed spot has less than 1,000 views), the candy-makers have decided to buy themselves some bloggers:
“The candy company has also partnered with video bloggers David Choi, DavidJr, Katers17 and Rhett & Link.
“We have engaged a series of leading bloggers who have established relationships with the millennials target that we pursuing,” said John McCarus, VP and group director of brand content at Digitas/The Third Act.
“What we found out about them is that the way they fit in is by standing out,” Stanley said of the millennials demographic. “They want to share excessively themselves and this is fueled by technology,” he added.
The video bloggers communicate what the Starburst brand stands for in their own styles, McCarus explained. For example, Katers17 created a video talking about her “juiciest” moment, which consisted of a messy tumble into a strawberry patch. “Through all those creative interpretations we’re going to be communicating the whole value and power of sharing across the Web,” he added.” (via)
Gotta hand it to Starbursts. Makes a lot more sense to use existing voices to shill for them than to try and develop their own original sales force.
Doesn’t seem like any of the bloggers are worried about reader blow-back against taking money for sponsored posts.
Tags: Arts, blogger, blogging, blogS, Google, NBC Universal, On the Web, sellout, shill, shilling, starburst, starbursts, video, Weblogs, World Wide Web, youtube
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July 24, 2008 4:36 pm | 
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Just getting to this article in the New York Times about Pepsi’s “non-traditional” launch of their latest soda, Tava.
What makes this release so unique, you ask? Well, for starters, there are no TV ads! Wow! And they’re using the internet! Breakthrough! Alert the presses!Pardon the sarcasm, but this is a very long article that reads like one big ad for Tava.
What else has the clearly revolutionary shop of Tribal DDB Worldwide, the interactive unit of DDB Worldwide, part of the Omnicom Group, come up with? Why, they’re giving out free samples at Sundance!
The only remotely newsworthy part of this story is a quote from Pepsi:
“That would not be an unusual introduction if Tava were intended for the younger consumers who have grown up in a digital world. But the product, which is fruit-flavored and caffeine-free, is being aimed primarily at men and women ages 35 to 49. “There used to be an assumption this target was not online,” said Frank Cooper, vice president for flavored carbonated soft drinks at Pepsi-Cola North America in Purchase, N.Y. “But there’s a group in that category that’s ‘reborn digital.’ They’ve lived through the change and learned to adapt to it.”
This much is true. The part that totally confirms that Stuart Elliott is either being paid by Pepsi for this work or is simply an idiot is when he reviews the Tava.com website:
“The content of tava.com goes beyond pitches for the product, including downloadable songs from emerging musicians like Deccatree, a rock band from California, and Stephanie McKay, a singer from New York. It also features the work of artists like Amy Guip, an illustrator and photographer, and carries information about arts events like the Boston Arts Festival, the Chicago Jazz Festival and Shakespeare in the Park at Central Park.”Seriously? I dare you to go to the site and come back here and leave an honest comment regarding any way in which Tava.com “goes beyond pitches for the product.”
Shame on you NYT. This is a terrible article that does nothing for the reader and plenty for Pepsi.
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