Facebook Not Yet for B2B

A Dummy's Puppet's Ramblings - from Chip Martin, Mannequin American

Facebook Not Yet for B2B

While Facebook is popular and has proven to be a good resource for enabling individuals to tap their networks for worthy charitable giving and good works, it has yet to demonstrate itself as a strong marketing vehicle with good ROI.

I am a fan/friend of a few consumer brands on Facebook. But the Facebook brand sites are really not useful and I get nothing out of being a fan/friend other than occasional lame messages. Obviously those companies should be creating inclusive, engaging content and alerting me to special deals; but they're not. It would be even harder for B2B organizations to successfully and profitably navigate that course.

I do appreciate the fact that I can receive ads related to car products or painting products after I make a post about racing or painting. It beats getting ads about dog food ... (I don't particularly like dogs ... I used to be a tree.)  Relevant, targeted advertising is a good thing. But Facebook still has "who owns the data" issues, so targeted Facebook ads are not yet ready for B2B.

A few B2B companies are in the Facebook playground, but they tend to just "be there". No investment, no return.

So to date, Facebook has yet to prove its value as a B2B marketing venue. But I did find a long lost relative of mine on Facebook. At least part of him ... the part that's a skateboard in Rolling Hills, IL.  But even he's a consumer product ... not relevant for B2B.

"Pornographic" Candy Wrappers
A father-of-two has made public his disgust after spotting fruity cartoon characters appearing to have sex on candy wrappers. And he may be right.

Simon Simpkins was buying Haribo MAOAM sour candies for his children when he noticed the "pornographic" illustrations of limes, lemons and cherries "romping" with each other. Mr Simpkins, of Pontefract, West Yorkshire, said, "The lemon and lime are locked in what appears to be a carnal encounter."

I have to agree that the lime has a particularly lurid expression on its face during its encounter with the lemon.

The Lime enjoys a similarly smutty experience with a willing pair of cherries.

A spokesman for Haribo said the "fun" packaging of the sweets was introduced in Germany in 2002 and added, "The jovial MAOAM man is very popular with fans, both young and old." The company spokesperson said that the image was not meant to be "sexual."

Really? I must be getting jaded. Hopefully kids wouldn't notice; but you can't make me believe that the creators of these images didn't know what they'd look like to most adults. What do you think?

The Basics of
Second in a series by guest contributor, Leslie Bonk, APR

Twitter Backgrounds
Twitter allows you to choose from several backgrounds so you can customize your page. However, truly savvy tweeters create their own backgrounds.  Check out www.twitter.com/brownandmartin and www.twitter.com/moxxy333.

If you'd like your own Twitter background, tweet me and we will discuss offline.

TV Takes a Giant Step Backwards

Dale is old enough to remember when TV programs like Burns and Allen and many others worked commercials into the shows.  Harry VonZell would stop at George and Gracie's house for a visit and pretty soon they'd be talking about Carnation Evaporated Milk. Shows weren't interrupted for commercials. The commercials were built into the shows. It was an accepted practice and sometimes entertaining.

Now, ABC's Desperate Housewives is creating an integrated ad campaign that will tie in with the feel and drama of the program. A series of eight commercials for Sprint will unfold as a weekly soap opera. Why would a TV show take this marketing leap backwards, you ask? To thwart the fast-forward phenomenon, is the answer. When commercials are linked within the show, viewers are not given as much of an opportunity to channel surf.

When a 30-second commercial comes along and it looks and feels just like the actual show, the hope is that viewers will refrain from fast-forwarding ... channel surfing ... getting a beer ... reading my blog ... Hey! Wait a minute ...

It'll be interesting to see if it works. As Dale remembers it, George Burns would sometimes look at the camera and give viewers a comedic heads up by saying, "Here comes the commercial."

Speaking of Old TV

Isn't the guy in this print ad for Thermodor, from the Dick Van Dyke show?

Regardless, this "Stacked for Convenience" ad is proof that double entendre, sexism, poor taste and large bosoms were alive and well in 70's advertising ... just as they are today!