Your TV is Stalking You

TiVo sure threw a big rock into the still waters of TV network advertising.

With fewer people watching "live" TV, your friendly neighborhood TV network has decided to follow you around whether you want it to or not. Public video monitors are popping up all over to make sure you don't miss a golden chance for someone to sell to you.

Pumping gas? Introducing ShamWow! Going up to the 45th floor? Lose weight with Nutrisystem. Catching a cab downtown? Refinance your mortgage!

And this is impressive....now they're embedding TV ads into your magazines (watch this clip)!

I'm a marketer, and I love marketing. But sometimes I think we marketers won't be happy until each of us can beam our USP directly into the frontal lobe of every earthling with a checking account.

Where are the Sinners?

A team at Kansas State put together a clever graphic showing us where most sinners live. Southern Cal? Greedy. Bible Belt? Envious and lustful. Texas? Gluttonous. Montana? Slothful. Pretty much everywhere else is prideful.

What I learned: If you want to avoid temptation, move to North Dakota.

4 Billion Phone Users : 1.6 Billion Bank Accounts

Nokia has noticed that there are 4 billion global cell phone users, but only 1.6 billion bank accounts. They're about to launch Nokia Money, a new way to send and receive payments using your cell phone number. This move could make Nokia a leading global ATM really fast, especially in third-world countries where it's more common to own a phone than a checking account.

If Nokia gets its way, the next time you're splitting the bill, buying groceries or that Diet Coke at a vending machine, you might be paying with your phone.

Security is obviously the big concern here which is why I think it's just a matter of time before biometrics are integrated into mobile devices.

How Americans Spend The Day

Here's an insightful survey infographic from the NY Times on how Americans spend their days. I've created a composite (static) image here, and you can see the interactive graph here that lets you drill down to different demographic segments.

Computer use is suspiciously low, though survey respondents may have lumped it into leisure or work time. My big takeaway? Higher education = longer lunch break.

"Authenticity" - It's a Buzzword but it's True

You can't speak with a marketing consultant today for more than 3 minutes without hearing the word "authenticity". Your products need to project authenticity. Your marketing needs to be honest and authentic.

Of course, it's a buzzword because your marketing and products should have always been authentic - what's the alternative? But now even the biggest brands are trying to fake authenticity by "buying" fans. Michael Jackson is a brand, and according to Tech Crunch his team purchased 25,000 Twitter followers from the sketchy service uSocial.

First of all, even before he died I doubt MJ had to buy fans or followers. Second, they had to know that something like this would eventually get out and dent up the brand by making MJ look desperate and unpopular.

And all those celebs who have hired Twitter Ghost Writers, your brand dress-down is coming too once your fans find out.

Authenticity - sure it's today's marketing buzzword but it's something you earn, not something you buy.

Do Something Different Through Imitation?

Absolut Vodka just released a web ad hyping the virtues of being different. Their ad features artists bending nature to the audio backdrop of an emotive New Order remake - a solid effort at a viral advertising coup, right? But bloggers and message boards aren't raving about the originality of the ad - they're saying the ad rips off Stegan Sagmeister, an influential graphic designer.

So here's the rub for Absolut. They want creative people to spread the ad it to a wider circle, but when those creatives smell a fake they won't play ball. Absolut should "think responsibly" in the future when it rips others off to inspire originality.

Real or Subtle Viral Marketing?

Disney may have a hand in this fantastic marriage proposal on Main Street USA. Note the professional production, the multiple camera set-ups at high angles, the mikes, the sound system and the Disney-esque couple. How could this guy pull this off so flawlessly without some help from Disney. Even the song lyrics were right in line with Disney's brand messages. And was the girlfriend in on it?

Whether it was authentic or planned, it's a pleasure to watch - and it's generating lots of buzz on web video sites and blogs. Nice job, Disney.