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Restaurant Owners to Negative Yelp Reviewers: Go Get Hit by a Bus
Nobody likes criticism. Adding the word “constructive” doesn’t make it much better either. Heck, just having someone point out that you’ve got a spec of broccoli in your teeth can ruin an entire day....
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Negative Advertisers Face Digital Justice
The story of online glasses retailer Decormyeyes.com has exploded since the New York Times reported on the owner’s “negative advertising” scheme. Online complaints about the company’s horrendous...
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Jay-Z Revisits Champagne Beef (Yummy!)
Ever since Jay-Z exploded onto the scene in 1996 with Reasonable Doubt, he has exalted in the luxury champagne brand Cristal as a symbol of success. And he’s not the only emcee to have professed his...
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Columbus Dispatch Misses Ted Williams’ Viral Wave
If you gave a passing glance at the internet this past week, you heard about Ted Williams and his Golden Voice. His story pulled at our heartstrings and resulted in a slew of job offers. Since then,...
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The Social Media Scientists
Like it or not, consumers are talking about your brand. And while they talk, researchers are taking notes. In an age where consumer-generated content is aggregated and judged for macro-sentiment by a...
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Taco Bell Harnesses Social Media to Squash Customer Beef
Few are naive enough to think that Taco Bell is authentic Mexican cuisine. But diners were recently surprised to discover that the restaurant chain’s “seasoned beef” actually consists of only 35% beef,...
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FTD.com and Groupon Join Forces to Ruin Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is one of the 20th century’s oh-so-special holidays. Husbands and boyfriends rush to their computers to put the least amount of time (and money) into purchasing flowers while the single...
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Facebook Sponsored Stories Turn Your Life into a Commodity
This post originally appeared in our February issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. Facebook’s Stories project has,...
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There’s No Business Like Bieber Business
We’ve had some time to get acquainted with Web 2.0 and its progeny. Slowly but surely it’s all starting to make sense. Digital tools are immersing consumers in deeper and more meaningful brand...
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Barbie & Ken: Reunited and it Feels So Good
The news shocked the world on Valentine’s Day of 2004: America’s favorite couple was breaking up after 43 years of going steady. The split even made the evening news. There was public outcry. How...
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Chobani Embraces Digital Storytelling with Real Love Stories
Greek yogurt has quickly become the red bottom stiletto of the dairy world. It’s suddenly “cool” to be seen eating this thick, creamy yogurt, and brands are eager to capitalize on this new-found caché....
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Verizon’s Not So Subtle Jab at AT&T
It’s been running all month but gets fresh comments daily. And the folks at AT&T are probably still smarting — especially since many of those comments come from jubilant owners of brand-new...
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Privacy v. Profit: Facebook’s PR Balancing Act
Most of us tell the same lie almost daily: “I have read and agree to the terms of use.” This lie is so common and so institutionalized that there’s even a lively discussion on a religious forum...
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A Traveling Minstrel for the Modern Age
I hate most music venues. They’re expensive, they’re crowded, they’ve got long lines, and there’s always some jerk singing along right in my ear. That’s why Bobby Bare Jr. is the performer for me. He...
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What Facebook Questions Means for Brands
On March 24th, Facebook rolled out a new version of Questions, allowing brands to directly poll their fans. Questions was launched in beta nearly a year ago and released to users soon thereafter, but...
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Mashable Tests Social Waters with “Follow”
This post originally appeared in our April issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn...
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3 Tips for Creating a Talkable Brand
At Post Advertising, we talk a lot about creating engaging content that audiences not only seek out but also share with their friends. This type of “talkable marketing” is often referred to as Word of...
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How Fleshlight Made Me Famous
My name is Mike Cannon. I am an extremely highbrow stand up comedian based in New York City. Oh, you’ve never heard of me? Well that sadly makes perfect sense. Last week, in an effort to broaden my...
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Ads Behaving Badly: 8 Examples of When Trying to Do Right Goes Horribly Wrong
It’s certainly not unusual for brands to fall over themselves to attach themselves to worthy causes: the environment, education, human rights. Because what consumer doesn’t want to believe their...
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Why Milk’s PMS Campaign Went Sour
Over the past few weeks, a bold campaign by the California Milk Processor Board, featuring men as suffering victims of PMS-crazed women and milk as the cure, has become the latest poster child for...
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How to Brand a City (Are You Listening, Cleveland?)
As geographically stable as most cities are, their identities shift over time. Pittsburgh was the symbol of American muscle in the ’50s and ’60s; today it’s a poster child for urban decay. New Orleans...
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Which 5-Star Resort Wants to Censor Your Comments?
[See 9/2/11 Update at bottom of post] A strange encounter with a somewhat hostile innkeeper in the wilds of Nova Scotia has focused me on the escalating war that more and more businesses are waging...
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In the Hands of the Masses: 5 Killer Crowdsourced Advertising Campaigns
As post-advertisers, we spend most of our lives coming up with ways to tell brand stories. So much time is spent thinking, brainstorming and discussing that we spend every ounce of gray matter our...
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Occupy Wall Street Does Have a Message: Telling the Protesters’ Story
Contributing authors: Charles Coxe, Chuck Wentzel, Karen Nagy, and Katie Edmondson CNN business reporter Alison Kosik tweeted to the world on October 4: “Purpose in 140 words or less: bang on the...
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Three Secrets to Successful Branded Viral Marketing
Like the search for the Holy Grail, viral marketing success has been an elusive treasure. While we see a new wave of viral content every day, there’s no clear path toward creating the next big thing....
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Occupy Wall Street, Defining Your Brand, and Storytelling
This post originally appeared in our October issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. As the Occupy Wall Street movement...
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2011: The Year Consumers Took Over Brands
Out: brands barking at consumers. In: consumers taking control. From Coke’s recent cancelation of its white Christmas cans to Gap reverting back to its signature logo, 2011 seemed to be the year of...
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Balancing Privacy and Transparency in Social Media
This post originally appeared in our December issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. The art of tightrope walking is one...
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Crowdsourced! Eight Ways to Involve Your Most Important Allies
Brand-hatched crowdsourcing is nothing new. But constructive crowdsourcing with usable output? Crowdsourcing that evokes a palpable sense of togetherness? That’s new. Steps being taken by nimble...
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5 Rules for Brands to Avoid Being “Pruned” From Social Profiles
Breaking news: Young people care about their reputation and appearance! Well, maybe that’s not such a hot scoop, but when you add the words online and social media, the ears of brand managers...
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Why There’s More to Facebook Pages than ‘Likes’
The most successful brands on Facebook Pages aren’t the ones you’d think. If I told you that Coca-Cola’s Facebook Page has an engagement rate of less than one percent, would you believe me? Well, it’s...
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Staying True to the Story: Where ‘The Lorax’ Went Wrong
It’s been weeks. Why haven’t I gone to see the movie adaptation of my favorite childhood story, Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax? It wasn’t the trailers or previews, but rather the antics of Universal Pictures’...
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Post-Advertising Summit Brings Storytelling to Life
Since 2008, we’ve been charting the evolving landscape of marketing and discussion the future of advertising at this blog. For the better part of the last decade, Story Worldwide (who keep the lights...
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Adios, Middleman: The Rise of Direct-to-Consumer Platforms
Turning a great idea into a reality is getting easier by the minute. Small businesses and individuals can pitch, barter and sell straight to the masses. The audience is connected directly to the...
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Engaging Audiences of Friends and Foes on Social Media
Community managers come across all types of people in their daily adventures in social media. No two audience-members are exactly alike, and understanding how to engage with them on a daily basis is...
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Why Streaming Services Could Upend Cable TV’s Content Model
Cancellation is almost always a death sentence for a television show. Some are revived decades later, like the 80’s soap opera Dallas, which was reborn with a handful of original cast members this past...
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Lessons From This Summer’s Biggest Social Media Blunders
When a brand makes a PR fumble, regardless of the faux pas’s size, the brand’s response and the action it takes afterward—nowadays, largely in the arena of social media—can often be more influential...
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3 Carmakers Embracing Brand Stories
My first car was a gray 1987 Honda Accord LXi hatchback. Well, it was actually a two-toned gray, since I never bothered to get the replacement panels painted after a fender bender (primer gray was...
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Making Sense of Social-Media Timing
This post originally appeared in our October ’12 issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. Data can be maddening. Like...
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5 Ways to Anger Your Brand’s Fans and Lose Credibility on Facebook
It gave me the creeps. It annoyed me. It even made me a bit angry. I saw that a Facebook friend of mine had commented on an FM radio station’s page (that I was not a Facebook fan of). The post included...
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Coca-Cola Falls Flat Tackling Obesity
This past weekend my beloved New England Patriots, a team in the U.S. National Football League, lost in the conference championship game, falling one game short of the Super Bowl. I was devastated and...
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Marketers Take Notice: Reddit is Very Much Here
From Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Dave Grohl to a five-year McDonald’s employee and a valet for the stars, the “I Am A ____, Ask Me Anything (AMA)” section of Reddit takes on...
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Possibly the Greatest Brand Story Ever Told
The most effective mass media is the stories we tell and conversations we have with each other. If you don’t believe me, let me prove it to you. We’ve all seen an endless number of ads for cars, car...
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Breaking Down the Viral HRC Marriage Equality Campaign
Unless you gave up Facebook for Lent, I’m sure that last week you saw a number of your Facebook friends’ profile photos (and possibly your own) change to a pink square with an equal sign in support of...
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Baking Brand Storytelling Into Your Lunch
Any restaurant is rich in stories, from the founding of the establishment to the experiences of its patrons. Because of that, the restaurant business is an interesting venue for content marketing,...
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Getting Marketing Miles Out of Your Superfans
In my tween years I was a huge fan of the WWE (then the World Wrestling Federation). I would watch every episode of Superstars of Wrestling and Saturday Night’s Main Event, among other various WWE...
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When Promoted Hashtags Are Campaign Killers
This post originally appeared in our April ’13 issue of “Live Report from the Future of Marketing,” our monthly Post-Advertising newsletter. Subscribe for free here. No matter how lofty a brand’s...
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Why It’s a Mistake For Brands to Ignore Tumblr
Pretend I’m someone who understands the basics of the Internet but has never used a social platform. Now let me ask you: What’s Facebook? What’s Twitter? What’s Instagram? Most answers, at least from...
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An Open Letter to Nutella: Why Did You Eliminate Your Greatest Marketing Asset?
My dearest Nutella, For decades your hazelnut spread has turned everyday consumers into product purists. From brownies and cookies to hot chocolate and crepes, Nutella has been the cornerstone of a...
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“Boris” Bikes and Barclays’ Problem with Authority
London’s rammed with bicycles. Everyone’s on two wheels. It’s fun, cheap, and good for you. Barclays-branded hire bikes are everywhere. But no one thinks of the sponsor when they pick up their wheels:...
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