jeff bean

I've Moved!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 23:22:00 +0000

Hello, after trying the big three blog services -- Blogger, TypePad and WordPress, I've landed on what I feel is the best for my taste ... The winner is ....

WordPress (sorry Blogger and TypePad). It was a tough decision... They're all very good...

For latest postings, please see me over there.

Thanks!

True Mobility

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 03:34:00 +0000

With Google intending to bid on valuable 700 mhz spectrum up for auction by the FCC next month, can we expect a new player in the U.S. mobile service provider space? Analysts and Silicon Valley journalists aren't betting on it. Google and advocacy groups (lobbyists) pushed earlier this year for consumer freedom to choose their own mobile device and software application for the new wireless network once it's launched by the winning bidder. Just as open source developers and startups are forcing Microsoft to evolve, Google is pressuring mobile carriers like Verizon and AT&T into a more consumer-friendly business model. First Android, then the Open Handset Alliance. I'm rooting for more choice.

In Germany, two carriers are battling over a locked version of Apple's iPhone, exclusive there to T-Mobile. Vodafone wants a chance to grab some of the revenue from two-year customer contracts and is hoping for a favorable legal ruling Monday. Will they win?

Flaxseed Oil: The Movie

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:25:00 +0000

Word that HBO will do a movie based on the book, "Game of Shadows," is timely. With Barry Bonds under federal indictment, a new final chapter must be written into the best-seller by San Francisco Chronicle staffers Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada (now of ESPN). The legal twist gives instant life to a move script (more salacious details!) even though we know the main allegations and saw Bonds eclipse Henry Aaron's home run record this summer. Reports indicate the script co-writers selected for the project also did "Tin Cup." One line from that romantic comedy has potential for the newest effort. But a really important question: Who will be cast as Victor Conte?

The "CNNTube Effect"

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:23:00 +0000

Did you see the Republican presidential debate this week? Not to worry. Catch the highlights. Thirteen of the 20 most popular YouTube videos tonight as of 7 p.m. PST were from Wednesday's live broadcast of the debate on CNN (for you kids, that's a cable news network on television). This CNNTube Effect is yet another example of the Internet's growing symbiotic relationship with traditional television news media. More than 1.4 million people had viewed the 13 newly posted debate videos. YouTube is trending near the top of all sites visited on the Internet. In early 2006, it passed CNN's website, which of late has been experiencing a traffic decline, according to Alexa the Web Information Company (see graphic). Yes, CNN the television network commands a robust audience, but many of its viewers think YouTube is a merely a mispronounciation of Boob Tube. Do they vote more? We'll see. The 18-24 demographic is flexing its muscle. YouTube and CNN are a great marriage. Content is still king. And broader distribution of that content benefits everyone. Just ask Ron Paul's campaign, whose own YouTube channel counts 38,647 subscribers and 6.2 million channel views.

I Live on the Freeway

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:13:00 +0000

Google's new feature "My Location" for its mobile maps application is groovy. Because it's in beta and 85% of us don't have GPS-enabled mobile phones, we can't be too picky about accuracy. I tried it tonight on a Blackberry 8130 from my living room to learn that my house is on the freeway. OK, not quite. A shaded larger area the shape of blue circle is the best Google can do if your cellphone is not GPS-enabled. Within that circle is my house, with about 100 others. Cell towers provide signals to draw these coordinates. From a non-GPS cellphone, you'll still need to type in a real start address and destination if you want the best directions from point A to B (or ask a cabbie or concierge when on the road). Here's is one funky thing I also learned: If you're using the mobile maps to find a hospital in my neighborhood, be flexible. From the downstairs living room on the west side of the house, a search with keyword hospital produced first on the list Intellidot Corporation (not a hospital). But from the upstairs office on the east side of the house, the same search performed spot on: Pomerado Hospital appeared at the top. Progress.

It's Tally Tuesday!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:12:00 +0000

In the wake of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and even the upstart Buy Nothing Day, what phraseology helped consumers make sense of last Tuesday? Call it Tally Tuesday. But how great it would be to see a breakout of data for money spent by consumers on the four days following Thanksgiving.

First reports said online spending Monday rose 21% over last year. Cyber Monday has roots in the frothy dotcom build-up of the late 1990s, which included the $400 Amazon stock price prediction. Surely, modern savvy online holiday shoppers were not waiting for an official Cyber Monday to start buying. No, they clicked all extended weekend long (some in their pajamas), avoiding 4 a.m. rushes to the mall and parking lot anxiety. Cyber Monday isn't really targeted at them. It's for Black Friday shoppers who struck out at Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Target -- or need a spending outlet while in the office. One word that you'll never see attached to today: Returns.

Those come after Christmas, as in Returns Wednesday.

Video: Powerful Storytelling

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:11:00 +0000

As a follow-up to my Nov. 17 post, I noticed that San Diego-based Slacker has posted additional Portable Player product photographs (a handful of new UI screen shots) to its website. But it still needs more to tell a great story. To their credit, the Slacker team is including a link in customer emails to video from an October segment that CNN ran on the company.

So why not use the power of video to your advantage? PR is one way. Another is pure marketing. An online demo (see Sirius Stiletto 2) can reinforce upcoming Slacker Portable Player reviews from tech writers, most of whom have written with excitement about the company's business model since its March launch.

With a million registered online users, Slacker has an audience ready to receive the product message through a richer online medium. Consumers can't touch or experience the product yet in retail stores, so trust and loyalty must be earned in other ways.

Facebook or Macy's Parade

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 01:01:00 +0000

Saw a little item on NYT today. The topic: How virtual our lives have become, yet how face-to-face interaction remains a natural wonder. No logging in with user name and password required. Smile. Talk. Enjoy. Online social networks help us enhance and expand human networks. We benefit from access to information, cultures, interests and knowledge that each of us is willing to share. So now that the parade has passed, flickr has lots of colorful photos posted and available for you to see, some of them from Thursday. A search of Macy's Parade yields 7,246 results as of tonight.

Simplicity as Brand

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 01:46:00 +0000

One of my favorite brands is Moots. The company builds bicycle frames and components available in one color: bead-blasted titanium. Think no frills, functionality and simplicity like the iPod. New Moots titanium frames fetch about $2,500, give or take a few hundred dollars. The Steamboat Springs, Colorado company is small, competing in a global marketplace where Taiwanese factories stamp out frames for huge U.S. brands. Moots spends roughly zero on advertising (not even Google ad words) yet has managed to sell in the U.S. and abroad for more than 25 years. That's brand equity. Customers (like me) carry the Moots message without hesitation. It doesn't hurt that the products are beautifully designed and handbuilt. But Moots doesn't just make bike products. It creates relationships. From the first interaction to post-sale communications, a bonding between company and consumer occurs over time. And consumers remember. What other new product today comes out of the box affixed with a tag hand-initialed and dated by the people who had a hand along the way in making it? Two years ago, Moots invited owners to submit essays on what they loved about their two-wheeled machines. The company personalized its annual product catalog through these stories and the faces of storytellers. This week, Moots launched its newly designed website, complete with a riders' forum section. Simple. Like its product. As word spreads, the loyalists will post. The curious will read. And converts will be won. Small can compete with big.

Kindling? Are They Kidding?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 05:37:00 +0000

At first glance, the Amazon Kindle looks like a modern Etch A Sketch in eggshell white with keyboard and wireless features. Kinda ugly yet neat. But the product's name, value proposition and target audience elude me.

First, the name: Kindle? As in to ignite? Imagine a Kindle product launch after the holiday shopping season. Any spark? We probably keep reading our trusty printed tomes, unworried about fumbling with them in the airport security checkpoint (after removing our shoes, belt, jacket, laptop from briefcase, cellphone from pocket).

Second, the value proposition: 90,000 titles and up to 200-book capacity. Not terribly exciting on its face -- who is going to read 200 books in the next year? Next 5 years? Most of us like to consume books one at a time. Then display them on our shelves. No such thing as novel shuffle or party mix. However, what may bode well for the product is the ability for a user to purchase a book wirelessly now -- bingo, the impulse buy after reading a great review or getting a recommedation from a friend. That's consumer magic. No waiting for the FedEx truck.

Third and most puzzling to me is the target audience: Who is Amazon going after? They've got great market data so I can't doubt them. Clearly the under 30 market is wireless. But are they book buyers and newspaper consumers? Why read blogs on Kindle when you can read them on your mobile. Feels like a 35-49 demographic play. I read the NYT on my Blackberry Pearl while out and about. A single news column fits on the screen perfectly, and I carry it around in my pocket. My eye scrolls down news columns just like it would on a newspaper page. But I don't spend hours. Just enough time to scratch the information itch. No, I don't want to read the newspaper on a tablet. I'll buy one, thank you. Fifty cents to a buck, if out of town.

So, what are books? An escape. A chance to get away for an hour or so. Sometimes a vacation. Sometimes brain food before sleep. The intimacy of reading and savoring the page are part of the experience. Making dogears. Scratching notes in the margins. Going back to revisit a key passage. Seeing how close you are to the end and wishing for more -- or sensing relief about finishing.

Kindle? I'm not feeling the fire.

But an Etch A Sketch may end up under the tree this year. I'm a sucker for red.

Email : Losing out to TXT and IM?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 17:24:00 +0000

Slate this week included a catchy piece that asks if those of us who remember how cutting-edge and cute Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan were in 1998's "You've Got Mail," will abandon email for more popular texting and IM of our children's generation. The rise of Facebook and Myspace, combined with texting (wildly popular in Asia while the U.S. was still spell-checking Yahoo outbox missives) has a few techies wondering if email will die. For social interaction, the answer is yes -- at least as we know email today. For business, hell no. Here's why. Staying current with the ebb and flow of your buddies' movements and their free time requires 24/7 connectivity. Voice, text, IM. It's an A.D.D. sort of world - quick exchanges with little or no punctuation: what up? r u going? ttyl. For 9-5 office mates, it's email and structure. The line between "knowing now" and "checking email" is a firewall that divides our personal lives from our professional lives. The line blurs when your google email forwards to your mobile, but I've been in offices where 90% of employees under 30 juggle IM dialog boxes, emoticons and trusty but dry Microsoft Outlook. It's second nature. They move back and forth between fun and duty. Email outside of work? Only when they have to send resumes if the employer won't accept video resumes posted on You Tube.

Internet Radio Meets Digital Player

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 21:13:00 +0000

It took longer than predicted, but availability for portable digital music devices from Slacker was announced this week in advance of Black Friday, the largest U.S. consumer spending day of the year. Slacker said it's taking online pre-orders for players that will ship in mid-December. But no retail sales yet where a hands-on experience is how Apple has done marvelously with the iPod and iPhone. Instead, Slacker will market directly to their 1 million desktop radio subscribers first. One executive said the company hopes to sell 100,000 units. First thing, they should start posting more product photgraphy ASAP. The image above is making the rounds this week. Deeper in the Slacker website are photographs of users and recording artists holding the players, but you have to hunt to find them. Competing for mindshare in a space with Apple and Microsoft's Zune requires loyal consumers or a product too hot to ignore. We need to see more of it.

Really?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 05:26:00 +0000

In the world of advertising agencies, awards are now bestowed for the act of creative planning. This from an organization of creative agency planners. Its mission statement below. I am not making this up.

"The Account Planning Group exists to promote and celebrate excellence in creative thinking. We believe that creativity is the key to differentiated, successful brands. The emphasis is on creative, rather than merely disciplined, buttoned down thinking. We argue that if exciting ideas govern a brand and its communication, that brand or business will enjoy greater success. We believe that the planning discipline can be applied to any and all marketing and communication issues and channels. The APG champions new thinking by enabling new publications on the subject of planning, and celebrates the practice of excellent planning in its biennual Creative Planning Awards. The APG is a not-for-profit organisation run for and by its membership."

Disciplined, buttoned down thinking? I usually do mine in a mock turtle neck...

Dick Pound and WADA

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 04:48:00 +0000

Dick Pound draws blood, ripping professional baseball on its drug testing program. Top section from tomorrow's NYT from a story out of Madrid, where doping experts are meeting: After years of criticizing Major League Baseball for what he called useless, toothless drug-testing policies, Dick Pound, chairman of the World Anti-Doping Agency, chastised the sport again Friday, saying that Barry Bonds’s indictment on perjury charges confirmed that the league’s doping problems were “out of control. The professional leagues have consistently denied they are cheating their public and putting their athletes at risk by saying there is no problem, there is no drug use,” Pound said. “When forced to acknowledge that there is, and these investigations are starting to show that it is really widespread, they are turning the other way. We’ve seen this before, in cycling, and we all know what happened to that sport — it nearly destroyed itself.” Here is story in L.A. Times on Pound's comments

MLB : Messy Little Business

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 16:37:00 +0000

Bud Selig must want to spit. Once he opens his eyes, that is. After beaming at the World Series about how Major League Baseball had its best year at the gate, he now must go silent on the Barry Bonds matter. Asterisks, denials, hypocrisy. Professional baseball knows it needs steroids to go away, with Barry as the black hat. Professional cycling is years ahead of American sports in its fight against doping and its reconciliation with fans and sponsors. An ugly chapter, but the right thing to do. MLB needs to adopt a real doping / testing program so real athletic talent is rewarded.

Take a Mulligan

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 03:46:00 +0000

Post-Thanksgiving, the marketing bean website goes live. The site was unveiled on Labor Day this year before the corporate world came calling. After a quick retooling, the site goes back up and I begin doing work in my free time for selected clients.

Advertising : Tri-Branding

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 21:28:00 +0000

The 2007 roll-out of print advertisements in publications read by corporate resellers of golf products ensures that the TaylorMade Golf, adidas Golf and Maxfli "tri-brand" and "service" messages reach their audience. Call to action is toll-free number where sales support staff are ready to handle reseller needs and help them shine with their corporate clients, no matter how big or small. All inbound calls are tracked in CRM for reseller assignment, as well as future marketing touches and campaigns.

Market Positioning : Sales Kick-Off Event

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 20:25:00 +0000

Companies that rely on channel resellers must constantly create energy around their brands and products. Educating resellers on the power of three golf brands to service their clients was critical for the 2007 TaylorMade-adidas Golf Corporate Sales kick-off event "Playing With Fire" (click image). Leveraging tour players, the event introduced a tri-brand solution for resellers, while publicizing the launch of a new golf ball named "Fire". More than 500 targeted invitees attended during the annual PPAI Industry show in Las Vegas. Each online RSVP loaded automatically into CRM for simple follow-up and sales engagement post-event. Attendees received custom sell kits, product samples, catalogs, CDs and more to start out the year and move more TaylorMade, adidas and Maxfli product.

Market Positioning : Custom Logo Web Site

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 19:59:00 +0000

The creation of a new Custom Logo site for TaylorMade Golf, adidas Golf and Maxfli in 2007 positioned these brands (all part of the adidas Group) to compete head-to-head in the interactive marketing space with Callaway Golf and Titleist, two well-established players with a decade of experience in corporate sales. Previously, TaylorMade, the No. 1 driver company on the PGA Tour for six years running, lacked any meaningful way for U.S. corporate customers such as American Express, Coca-Cola, TD Ameritrade, Jaguar, Marriott, Dewars and others to easily discover the power of co-branding with TaylorMade's high-end golf products. The Custom Logo site has had an immediate impact on awareness and lead generation. The site also enables in-house staff to easily update product images and content. It keeps the site fresh and saves thousands of dollars in agency maintenance billings. To experience the tri-brand site, please visit www.customlogo.tmag.com/catalog. Navigate by clicking on brand logos and product categories.

Channel Marketing: Value Proposition

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 19:30:00 +0000

"Your Caddie" is a channel marketing program to serve 25,000 U.S. promotional products resellers in the Ad Speciality Services Industry (ASI). Among the biggest challenges for golf companies serving ASI customers is digital asset management, consistency of brand message, and differentiation. TaylorMade-adidas Golf Company's Corporate Sales Group began moving to its tri-brand and service message in early 2007 with a dedicated Extranet for distributors, more than a year in advance of the expected launch of an adidas Group company-wide Digital Asset Management system from a third-party vendor. The Corporate Sales Group Extranet will save the company more than $45,000 annually in staffing and overhead. It is an invaluable tool for resellers who build their own branded catalogs annually and whose selling method requires a significant visual element.

Aspirational Marketing

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 16:43:00 +0000

The Open Championship at Carnoustie in Scotland looks nothing like the 1953 black-and-white version won by Ben Hogan. One of golf's four majors, the tournament is a world-class exercise in product placement. And golfers love it. Golf is an aspirational sport, game, pastime. Weekend choppers and hackers who carry a 20 index believe that the equipment they see on TV will help them score. And if it doesn't? At least an aspirational golfer can look cool at their local club. Sergio Garcia, the Open Championship leader on Saturday, is resplendent in "Clementine" (read orange) togs. Last year, Garcia wore "banana" colors on one of the tournament's four days, an ABC/ESPN commentator commentated. Logos for all sponsor brands are visible on player hats, sleeves, back yokes, shoes, bags, head covers, balls, and even the shins of their rain pants. Garcia has six logos of the adidas brand affixed to him. Imagine how many more golf clubs and accessories could have been sold in 1953 if Ben Hogan wore just one brand on his body.

Rocky Mountain Rides

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 23:45:00 +0000

With the Tour de France running nonstop on the Versus network in my house, I've been motivated to do big miles on Saturdays and Sundays. This past weekend, I added altitude to my summer training, and got a chance to ride up Mount Evans in Colorado. At 14,240 feet, the peak is one of 54 "14ers" (www.14ers.com) in the state. That's 54 mountains taller than 14,000 feet. By contast, the tallest point in San Diego County is below 6,000 feet (Palomar Mountain or Laguna Mountain). Sitting in Boulder, Colorado, as I write this, I'm @ 5,400 feet. The views from Mount Evans are spectacular (photo above), the wind incredible, the road narrow but fair. I recommend adding this to your list of places to ride if you love going uphill. Two other great rides that I also got to experience include Brainard Lake (11,000+ feet) from North Boulder. Don't forget to stop at the store in Ward, donate a couple bucks to the water cooler fund and sample a chocolate chip cookie. The other ride worth doing is Jamestown, also via North Boulder, providing a gradual climb to about 8,000+ feet). The combination of trees, vistas and descents are a welcome change from Southern California.

iPhone

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 05:16:00 +0000

Lest we drink in too much hype of the new Apple iPhone, I've got admit while the device is visually stunning and completely engaging on first touch, it's not perfect. For the most part, the media have fallen in love with iPhone. If you are thinking of buying one, spend a half hour minimum at an Apple store or AT&T store. Try all the features. Compare with your current device. The iPhone "keyboard" is a bit clumsy for anyone who is adept at typing @ 60 WPM on a Blackberry. And although Web surfing is amazing, you only get to taste it on Wi-Fi signals while in Apple store. Everything else? Pretty sweet indeed. Next generation will be an improvement.

Excerpts of Column by Nora Ephron in NYT

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 06:06:00 +0000

SIX STAGES OF EMAIL

Stage One: Infatuation
I just got e-mail! I can’t believe it! It’s so great! Here’s my handle. Write me! Who said letter writing was dead? Were they ever wrong! I’m writing letters like crazy for the first time in years. I come home and ignore all my loved ones and go straight to the computer to make contact with total strangers. And how great is AOL? It’s so easy. It’s so friendly. It’s a community. Wheeeee! I’ve got mail!

Stage Two: Clarification
O.K., I’m starting to understand — e-mail isn’t letter-writing at all, it’s something else entirely. It was just invented, it was just born and overnight it turns out to have a form and a set of rules and a language all its own. Not since the printing press. Not since television. It’s revolutionary. It’s life-altering. It’s shorthand. Cut to the chase. Get to the point...

Stage Three: Confusion
I have done nothing to deserve any of this: Virus Alert. FW: This will make you laugh. FW: This is funny. FW: This is hilarious. FW: Grapes and raisins toxic for dogs. FW: Gabriel García Márquez’s Final Farewell. FW: Kurt Vonnegut’s Commencement Address. FW: The Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe...

Stage Four: Disenchantment
Help! I’m drowning. I have 112 unanswered e-mail messages. I’m a writer — imagine how many unanswered messages I would have if I had a real job. Imagine how much writing I could do if I didn’t have to answer all this e-mail. My eyes are dim. I have a mild case of carpal tunnel syndrome. I have a galloping case of attention deficit disorder because every time I start to write something, the e-mail icon starts bobbing up and down and I’m compelled to check whether anything good or interesting has arrived...

Stage Five: Accommodation
Yes. No. No :). No :(. Can’t. No way. Maybe. Doubtful. Sorry. So Sorry. Thanks. No thanks. Not my thing. You must be kidding. Out of town. O.O.T. Try me in a month. Try me in the fall. Try me in a year.

Stage Six: Death
Call me.

Southern California Blogging

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Bean) — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 10:04:00 +0000

A nifty to way to keep people up to date -- with words and pictures no less! Time to keep a blog, journal, record, scrapbook... Call it what you may. No blathering. Pledge to post concise entries. If it becomes too much to maintain -- or starts feeling stale, I'll turn out the lights. For now, no deadlines to make or column inch counts to fill. No newsprint cost concerns or ad revenue targets. Best to everyone in the news business, high-tech, blogsphere, advertising, public relations, entertainment, professional sports, and weekend sports. You know who you are.