Marketing news

Popular US softdrink vendor, Dr Pepper, has landed itself in trouble over a publicity stunt in which it offered to give every American a free soft drink if Guns N’ Roses managed to release its long-awaited new album Chinese Democracy by the end of 2008. The campaign was an unmitigated success in attracting attention ...

What would the chances be of escaping a pod of killer whales? Well this little chap copes surprisingly well. To top it off the penguin and crew cruise off into the horizon, with his wing on one of the member's knee. Awww... Check out the video below! ...

Research conducted with Kelloggs confirms medium’s ability to drive strong branding campaigns for marketers Online advertising contributes to brand building according to research recently released by Nielsen Online and IAB Australia.  The research which involved a comprehensive study of the medium’s brand ...

There are predictions of rough times ahead for the publishing industry, but it seems Rupert Murdoch believes the profession may still have a bright future, if it can get rid of reporters and editors who have ignored their readers. “My summary of the way some of the established media has responded to the internet ...

Despite floating a very attractive offer, Facebook’s bid to acquire Twitter in exchange for $500m worth of stock failed after the two companies failed to agree on the stock’s value. Facebook has expressed its interest in acquiring the micro blogging site for a number of weeks. However, the main stumbling block was ...

Google has been in the news for a number of reasons lately – AdWords updates, potential takeovers, stoushes with Yahoo – but it seems one of the company’s interesting initiatives, Google TV Ads, has gone unnoticed. According to a posting on Andy Beal’s Marketing Pilgram site, Google’s Stephanie Duchaine, believes ...

IGN.com recenty announced that George Patterson Y&R have developed the first Australian IGN.com creative campaign. Launching on November 21st, the campaign will initially run online before a roll-out of print executions nationally. Developed by gamers within GP Y&R, the creative team on the campaign included: Creative ...

In further evidence that online video game ads, blogs and text messages are gaining influence with electronics consumers, especially in that all-important 18 to 34-year-old demographic, a study by the National Retail Federation and BIGresearch in the US has shown that online video game ads influenced 14% of all electronics ...

An on air marketing announcement of the Freeview platform will take place tonight – the first time in Australian television history Seven, Nine, TEN, ABC and SBS have joined for a single campaign. Prime, WIN and Southern Cross are also part of the not-for-profit organisation. Network CEOs have gathered at Parliament ...

Whether you’re selling butter or BMWs, retail marketing is a tough field to play. Keen to help readers conquer the marketing challenges of this highly competitive space, the team at Marketing is pleased to announce the release of a special Retail Marketing Survival Guide covering the full spectrum of retail today. ...

The 2008 salary survey of Australian advertising agencies has confirmed the recent fierce competition for skilled staff and the turnover of staff in the industry. This year’s Advertising Federation of Australia (AFA) survey includes salary data from 94 marketing communications agencies across the country, including ...

Nominate your favourite Australian media and marketing posts of 2008 The 2008 Moggy Awards Craig Wilson, author of the Media Hunter blog, has organised the 2008 Moggies - a new recognition system that was brought about as a desire to reward Australian marketing and media bloggers who have contributed posts of ...

Consumer research released by international business consulting firm, L.E.K. Consulting, reveals there is an emerging and burgeoning consumer appetite for carbon friendly products and services in Australia, with a small but growing proportion willing to incur additional costs to reduce their carbon footprint. ...

Weighing into the child obesity debate, Nestlé, the Swiss-based food manufacturer, is to cut the sugar content of some of its most popular childrens’ foods, as a part of its ‘Global Marketing to Children Principles’ initiative that is about to be released. Among the products to be reformulated is the renowned Milo ...

We all have our favourite Monty Python scenes. If it’s not the ‘Dead Parrot’ or the ‘Philosophists’ World Cup, it’s the ‘Ministry of Silly’ Walks. But who’s tired of the terrible, bad quality YouTube versions of these classic clips? Well, the crew from Monty Python for starters. Tired of cheap knock-off’s giving ...

Western Union, St George Bank, Ford Australia and Medibank Private, along with NSW Police, the SBS and the State Library of NSW are among the finalists vying for the crown of Grand Winner of the National Multicultural Marketing Awards for 2008. The grand award winner and seven category winners will be announced ...

More Australian shoppers are 'spending smarter' and going online to research brands, products and services as a recession looms, according to the findings of News Digital Media’s latest Digital Insight Report, released today. News Digital Media’s second Insight Report - Anxiety, the Internet and the Hip-pocket ...

Despite being a loyal general to the Yahoo! army, Jerry Yang has stepped down as CEO of the online search engine. In the face of mountain pressure by takeover bids from Microsoft and his beloved company sliding behind Google, the Yahoo! co-founder has done much for the industry. He'll certainly be remembered for ...

If you’re a creative looking through pictures of waify models for your next campaign, think again. According to a study conducted by the University of Queensland’s Phillippa Diedrichs, advertising that uses super-thin models does not make women more likely to buy products than ads featuring women who are of a more ...

Do you remember a time when computer games were simple, were in 2D and were filled with enough flashing colours they could cause an epileptic fit? When Commander Keen, Leisure Suit Larry and then, a little later, Mario Bros filled our lives with joy and frustration? We had our digital heroes then and, sometimes, ...

While Google’s G1 Android phone has already been called an iPhone killer by a few, things between the two heavyweights could heat up very quickly – there are rumours that Apple is developing its own search engine. The website TechCrunch, has confirmed it has received multiple reports about an Apple search engine. However, ...

It pays to check your diary before planning magazine launches – BBC Magazines has had to delay the launch of its much-anticipated Lonely Planet magazine after deciding it did not want it to be released on the same day as the 15th anniversary and 100th issue of rival travel magazine Wanderlust, preventing what could ...

Microsoft Live Search’s cashback program was initially the source of nudge-in-the-rib jokes, but now the computer megalith is showing off its success. General manager of Microsoft Live Search, Brad Goldberg says, “We are pleased to report a 30 percent increase in the number of product offers available in Microsoft ...

Qantas has launched the latest addition to its website – Qantas Travel Insider. Qantas Group general Manager sales and distribution, Rob Gurney, indicates Qantas Travel Insider is a comprehensive online resource that would help travellers plan their perfect trip. “Qantas Travel Insider combines stories by respected ...

Australia has been ranked as the World’s Top Country Brand for the third consecutive year, according to the 2008 Country Brand Index (CBI) that will be officially released at London’s World Travel Market. Rising from its sixth place ranking last year, Canada came second with the United States rounding out the top ...

Whether you love it or despise it, McDonald's has successfully infiltrated the Indian market according to branding expert Preeti Chaturvedi. In a paper published through the World Advertising Research Center (WARC), Chaturvedi points out that while countless fast food franchises that have attempted to open in the ...

Everyone gets ridiculous spam emails – updates from the Mexican Dental Association, requests for contributions to the ‘Save the Hungarian Ferret’ Fund and, of course, the ubiquitous Viagra sales pitch. But the worst of them is the Nigerian ‘You are in the will of a dead King’ scam. To most of us, it is a no-brainer ...

Fairfax Digital’s online employment site MyCareer.com.au experienced its highest ever number of candidate applications and a 25% lift in unique browsers* in October. The record numbers demonstrate the success of extra site features which MyCareer.com.au has created specifically for job seekers over the past year; ...

The Franchise Marketing Awards, one of the most highly coveted accolades recognising marketing excellence across the UK industry, has called on the UK and international franchise community to submit entries for the 2009 initiative. ...

Just when you thought that all the best promotional products had already been developed. For Over the Hump this week we look at a new way to promote your company – insert your logo onto people’s breakfast! Enter the Darth Vader Toaster, a great way to nerdify your morning meal. The toaster burns an effigy of ...

While the movie has been out for nearly two years, Saatch & Saatchi helping New Zealand network TV2 to advertise for a Mission Impossible 3 movie screening with a campaign involving a rival TV network and wild animals. First, a billposter advertising Mission Impossible 3 was plastered over the front windows ...

FremantleMedia, one of the largest creators and producers of entertainment brands in the world, recently announced a landmark agreement with YouTube. FremantleMedia will be the first global producer to offer two different strands of programming which create a multitude of new online formats that will be distributed ...

Nielsen Online recently released its second edition of its Australian Property Search Report showing the impact of online accessibility on the real estate industry in Australia. The report explores the way in which Australians search for and research real estate and what resources are vital for this search process. The ...

The National Retail Federation (NRF), the world’s largest retail trade association based in Washington, has conducted an eHoliday Study for 2008 in conjunction with Shopzilla and Shop.org. The eHoliday Study, now in its seventh year, provides an authoritative snapshot of the holiday activities of both large and ...

The 2008 US Presidential Election will no doubt go down in history, politically and culturally. But how has this 21-month odyssey affected marketing as we know it? A number of high profile members of the marketing fraternity have posted blogs revealing the importance of this occasion. Al Ries, global marketing guru, ...

Tom Cruise, eat your heart out! Supermodel Heidi Klum is featured in the latest Guitar Hero video game campaign in homage to the famous underwear scene in Cruise’s movie Risky Business. Klum is shown dancing around in lacy black lingerie, going crazy to Bob Segar’s ‘Old Time Rock and Roll’. The Victoria Secret ...

Online advertising continued to grow through 2008, reaching record revenues of $450m in the quarter ending 30th September according to figures released today by Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Australia in its Online Advertising Expenditure Report (OAER) which is compiled by PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC). Advertisers ...

ninemsn CEO Joe Pollard has appointed Kerry McCabe as the company’s new commercial director. McCabe joins ninemsn to lead the company’s commercial division that includes advertising sales (display, performance, mobile and video), commercial creative production, sales operations, partner management, market research ...

Cadbury has launched a website called DearCadbury.com, aiming to engage its consumers about ethical sourcing, consumption and the environment. Targeted at consumers, schools and its own employees, Cadbury is spruiking sustainability as a part of its long-term strategy and is hoping the website will portray this. ...

The drama has come to an end. Like any good soapie, the Google/Yahoo partnership has endured lust, accusations, hardship and strained friendliness, but it has now come to its conclusion – Google has broken up with Yahoo. The search engine leviathan has terminated its proposed deal to sell ads on Yahoo’s search listings. ...

With Obama now US president and the Australian cricket team gradually regaining some face (well kind of), it’s time for us to concentrate on other important matters - like Christmas holidays. It may seem that the end of year holiday period is still too far away in some minds to really acknowledge planning for it, ...

For all you awards junkies out there, a new prize – The Outdoor Awards – is being launched by the Outdoor Media Association of Australia (OMA). The recent resurgence in the creative use of outdoor as an advertising medium has prompted the OMA to organise this award to reward the best examples of OOH from across ...

Australian businesses invested more than AUD$17.9 billion dollars on digital services in 2008, a survey by the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association (AIMIA), IBM and Hyro has found. According to the first annual AIMIA Digital Services Index, revenue generated through digital services as a proportion ...

Superbrand Google has made two changes to its AdWords Quality Score and Ad Rank systems programs that will affect the way ads are placed on its search results page. All ads that go through Google have their own quality score, which is calculated through a complex formula based on a number of factors – the most important ...

Seven Network is apparently eyeing APN News and Media, now that it has $1.2 billion in spare change to expand into radio and outdoor advertising. Kerry Stokes’s TV network has been working with Macquarie Group investment bankers seeking to put together a consortium that could purchase the company. The pair had been ...

Tween magazine, Dolly, part of the ACP stable of magazines, has launched a new genre of digital and integrated marketing communication with the launch of the Dolly Wish List in the December issue. Hot on the heels of launching Dolly Messenger, the magazine has collaborated with Mocom to combine print, mobile and ...

Sensis and Google today announced a commercial agreement to provide Australians with access to Yellow business listings on Google Maps. The agreement enables users of Google Maps to search across all local business listings provided by Yellow, Australia's most comprehensive local business directory; and makes it ...

Sony Ericsson has launched a viral campaign and microsite in the UK to drive sales of the new Sony Ericsson Walkman W595 handset in the run-up to Halloween. The viral aims to draw the viewer in using classic scary movie cues before a dramatic final climax to build buzz around the mobile phone. Entitled ‘St Mary’s ...

Talk about cheeky tactics! Website AppleInsider is reporting that Microsoft is now placing a recording booth of its ‘I’m A PC’ advertising campaign outside an Apple Store in Birmingham, England. Its source also notes that a trio of staff from Microsoft will be turning people away from the Mac as much as they can ...

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has released improved Digital Radio Channel Plans (DRCPs) for comment. Chief executive officer of Commercial Radio Australia, Joan Warner said the industry had been working with ACMA to modify the DRCPs first released in December 2007. “We are confident ...