The
Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR, Al Ries,
Laura
Ries, HarperCollins Publishers, May 2004
If you’re responsible for your company’s advertising
budget or its branding efforts, you need to read this pithy,
iconoclastic book by marketing gurus Al and Laura Ries. The
authors, best known for their acclaimed The 22 Immutable Laws
of Branding, begin with a blistering indictment of the advertising
industry: Its products - such as TV commercials and magazine
campaigns - are outrageously expensive, of little interest to
most consumers, and can rarely be linked to an actual increase
in sales. Even buzz-generating campaigns like the Energizer
Bunny ads, Nike’s “Just Do It” commercials, and
Budweiser’s “Whassup?” TV spots (the most honoured
in advertising history) have been unable to prevent significant
losses in market share. Advertising, the Rieses conclude, is
simply not able to fulfill its most basic mandate - the creation
of brand loyalty. As an alternative to conventional advertising,
the authors prescribe public relations, and offer dozens of
ideas based on the success of products (Krispy Kremes, Starbucks
coffee, the Ford Mustang) that have achieved national recognition
without ad campaigns. Krispy Kreme, for example, persuaded a
local celebrity to be the first customer to sample a glazed
doughnut at the opening of its Phoenix store; the resulting
free media coverage was far more effective than expensive advertising.
Although the authors acknowledge exceptions to their rule (Altoids
and Absolut vodka are the most obvious), their argument is persuasive.
This book is a quick, enjoyable read, and its core message could
very well save your company substantial sums of money while
earning it the most elusive of holy grails — sustained
customer
Search
Engine Advertising: Buying Your Way to the Top to Increase Sales
Catherine
Seda, New Riders, February 2004
You don’t have to have the biggest name or the most dazzling
graphics to lure customers to your Web site. These days, all
you really need is prominent search-engine placement. This book
shows you how to get it! With searching being one of the most
popular Internet activities, a top spot on a major search engine
virtually ensures a high volume of visitors-though converting
them to buyers is another story. In these pages, top Internet
marketer and strategist Catherine Seda tackles both parts of
that equation. First, she outlines the strategy involved in
buying the specific keyword positions that will lead users directly
to the page you want. Then, she describes how you can turn poor-performing
ad copy into targeted sales-getters, and how you can evaluate
and correct low visitor-to-buyer conversions. Beginning marketers
will find the info they need to implement a Web strategy quickly,
while advanced marketers will find all kinds of tips for analysing
and improving current results.
Madison
& Vine: Why the Entertainment and Advertising Industries
Must Converge to Survive
Scott
Donaton, The McGraw-Hill Companies, may 2004
“The once-clear line between commerce and creative has
become increasingly blurred. Mass marketers faced with fast-changing
technologies and attitudes are being forced to abandon their
staid, comfortable push model in favour of a consumer-controlled
pull model, in effect moving from intrusion to invitation.”
Madison & Vine provides a front-row seat to this unfolding
story. Written by Advertising Age editor Scott Donaton, who
has played a central role in understanding and facilitating
the new intersection between content and commerce, this valuable
book explains what is happening and why. High-profile professionals
from every corner and faction detail their successes and failures
at reviving long-fractured pathways to the hearts and minds
of today’s consumer.
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