This is all outlined by columnist Tina Sharkey of AdAgeDigital in her conclusions about a recently completed study, “2011 Shopping Rituals of the American Mom,” based on surveys of more than 8,000 online moms visiting the BabyCenter web site.

Sharkey has concluded that these young moms treat shopping as sport because she discovered in the survey that these moms are “developing strategies, rising to challenges, outperforming the competition, reveling in the big score.”

She says “84% of moms in our study agreed with the statement that: ‘When I save money on a shopping trip by using coupons, sales or other deals, I feel like ‘I won.’ “

This picture of the uber-competitive consumer is further reinforced, according to Sharkey, by this observation:  “Moms who shop use every available resource to gain an edge. Almost two-thirds have a bar code scanner app on their mobile device to help them zero in on deals — 30% more than the general population. Three in five moms belong to at least one group buying service. “

Sharkey explains how this type of shopping has become something of a team sport:

“Moms may not shop in packs, but that doesn’t mean they’re on their own. Instead of calling a girlfriend into the changing room for a second opinion, moms reach for the smartphone: 34% have texted a picture of a product before buying it (compared with 10% of the general internet population). And when they hit the retail trail, they take the entire social graph with them: 44% share deals and discount codes through social media, and 62% post online reviews.”

Sharkey’s column is worth the full read; you’ll find many fascinating and useful nuggets of information in it.

I am a senior Web Designer, and I am creating this post to educate the public about the differences between a Creative Designer, a Web Designer, a Technical Designer, a Web Developer, and a Software Engineer.

• A Creative Designer is an artist in the space; he is AWESOME at creative thinking, and at conceptual based design in the digital space, like UI, UX, Experience Design, and Brand Experience Design. (You will find this type of professional in Design Studios across the world, like Fantasy Interactive, and II Advance! The guys who win FWA awards!)

• A Web Designer is a “Designer” he uses Photoshop, and illustrator to create visually appealing websites for customers. He then uses HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for the layout, and interactivity of the website, or web based application.

• A Technical Designer is the combination of a Web Designer, and a Web Developer, and at times a Software Engineer too! This professional is rare! I called them the Hybrids of our industry. (They can run an entire IT department by them self…)

• A Web Developer writes code, and only code for the web. He can usually write HTML, JavaScript, PHP, jQuery, Dojo, XML, Json, SOAP UI, he can generate a wsdl. (These guys suck at CSS!)

• A Software Engineer writes mother languages like Java, C#, C, C++, Objective C, he can be a DBA, he can easily set up an open source environment, and is for the most part pretty damn good at math.

All these professionals have one unique thing in common… THEY ALL HATE INTERNET EXPLORER

And, yes, it’s true– we all really hate Internet Explorer.

Sigh… It’s stuff like this that gives advertising a bad name.

It was as if the company had a death wish. First, it announced that subscribers could no longer get mailed DVDs and online streaming for one price. Going forward, for those who wanted both, subscription rates would be raised by as much as 60%.

Not surprising – at least to everybody else in the world other than Netflix – subscribers went bonkers.

Then, in the middle of this self-created firestorm, the company announced it was splitting itself in two, making the rental of DVDs one operation, and the online streaming of movies and television shows another separate operation. If you wanted both services you would have to deal with two different sites.

In other words, more money and more hassle.

Customers said, “See ya!”

Netflix lost around 800,000 subscribers and its stock price dropped like a rock. The decision to split up the company was eventually reversed, but at that point it was a case of too little too late.

Talk about a business and public relations nightmare…

And this was a company that had once been way ahead of the curve, seeing a good business in mailing out DVDs, when everybody seemed more than comfortable stopping in at their local video store. Few, back then, would have been able to envision that Netflix would ultimately put those local stores out of business, as well as bankrupt the once mighty Blockbuster video chain of stores.

So, really, how did they get this one so wrong?

It seems that once again they were trying to get out ahead of the curve, only this time they went speeding around that turn with such reckless disregard that they jumped the guard rail.

Apparently, Netflix sees ahead to the day when nobody will want actual DVDs anymore. Streaming is the future. They thought if they split off the DVD service and charged extra for it, few would care.

Also, they figured they could use the extra income of the price hike to buy more programs, which they would eventually make available to their streaming customers.

But that’s just it – at the moment there really aren’t that many movies available to streaming customers. DVDs are still relevant. The future isn’t here yet!

And, it was as if Netflix was saying to customers, we want you to pay for us to get some new movies, so we can buy them and some time later rent them back to you.

Really?

The decisions Netflix made might not have flown at any time, but they certainly weren’t going to fly at this particular time. Not when it seems recession is the new reality.

Any business today that doesn’t respect how carefully people are counting their pennies is more than likely to get slapped upside the head.

Just ask Netflix how much that slap can hurt.

We especially understand that about our clients. That’s why we treat every single one of them, their products, and their markets as truly unique–even when they’re in the same field.  Because, in fact, no two are alike.  Everything we do is customized directly to each client, their needs and their goals.

And just as there is no one-size-fits-all client, there is no one-size-fits-all advertising and marketing agency. I’m bringing this up because in a world where shoppers often select by lowest price or loudest impression, we get requests for proposals that are often obviously scattered to any and all agencies within shooting distance, irrespective of specialties or experience.

If you’re in the market for an agency, let me explain why this is not usually the best approach:  Sure, you’ll probably get many responses with as many different pricing structures. And that’s because you’ll be getting skills and specialties from all over the board. Without knowing what each agency’s strengths and weaknesses are, you may wind up selecting a low bid from an agency because they’d be happy to use you to cut their teeth on getting into a new area. Or perhaps you’ll fall prey to the “bigger equals better” misconception. Maybe you’ll be happy with the results from either end of this spectrum. Maybe you won’t.

It’s easy to avoid a mismatch with the proper leg work. First, compile a list of no more than a dozen local agencies (think about including recommendations from business associates, a web search, and the yellow pages). Then visit their websites and look at their services to make sure they offer what you’re looking for. Then look at their work to see if you like their design esthetics. Then, just as importantly, read their “About Us” page.  Every agency has a philosophy that shapes not only their in-house culture but how they view their work and their clients.  Now cull out the obvious poor fits, and continue whittling until you have a short list of about  three or four. Now you’re ready to ask for proposals and meet with those agencies.

If it comes down to a large vs small agency, consider that if a small company retains a sizable agency, it most likely will not be getting that agency’s top talent. Yep, the executives of those large agencies will woo you with a sleek presentation that may win your heart and tempt your wallet. But they won’t be the people who will work on your business. They’ll most typically assign your work to their least experienced team, keeping their hottest talent for their high rolling clients. On the other hand, if a small company chooses a small advertising agency, it may have access to the agency’s owner, rather than just those handling the account. A big company may require a sizable agency that can provide a greater range of in-house services than smaller agencies, which is why it’s important to first determine what exactly a company wants from its advertising agency.

At the end of the day, you need to be able answer these questions:

• Does this agency really get our business?
• Are we getting the best of their talent?
• Are they respectful of our budget?
• Do we like the people?
• Do we trust them?
• Are they more concerned with providing clients with great work rather than being stuck on winning awards or making incompatible sales?

If you can answer yes to all of them, then you’ve found your agency.

Or maybe you belong to the generation for whom Facebook is a way of life, and you can never recall not having instant messaging and now your own cell phone and texting.

No matter your age, or how much of the history of social networking you can recall, I’m sure you’ll find this little trip down Memory Lane an interesting one.

Via: Online Schools

That’s the thing — we’re in this business because we love creating new ways to look at and to think about the world. We love playing with ideas. We love jamming. We love letting ‘er rip. We love going where no minds have gone befo… Well, you get the idea.

So, what’s the process? When a client comes to us with a project, we start with looking at what their objectives are.  After the information gathering stage is complete, we get together and let the words, images, and ideas flow. Our job at this point is to riff with reckless abandon — no editing allowed. When the creative dump has run it’s course, then we start sifting, sorting, combining, discarding, and finally, selecting.

Our process can be structured or improvised, individual or group, planned or spontaneous, consciously executed or subconsciously percolated. The number of ideas generated tends to be a function of the amount of time the client gives us and the information we’ve gathered during the initial phase.

While it’s true that creativity can be sparked through a social process, you don’t need a meeting or an involved format to be creative. Just as often, our best ideas happen in the solitary space of our own minds working at our own desks. Really, just a brain, some desire, and some time are all that are required.

So, if you have a desire to express your creativity in some way, don’t let yourself be hampered by anybody else’s rules. Just grab hold of an idea that fascinates you and do what this guy did.

This new client makes an especially nice fit with us, since we have a tremendous amount of healthcare marketing experience. We look forward to helping Saratoga Hospital make the communities it serves more fully aware of what an exceptional community hospital this truly is.

BBDO was one such lucky agency.  For their AT&T “Hands” campaign, they hired artist Guido Daniele from Italy to elaborately paint and position human hands to portray iconic images signifying various countries around the world. The results are dazzling posters that pull viewers in, while conveying AT&T’s brand messaging of having the best worldwide coverage. 

Following are some of my favorites. 

India

Bahamas

 Australia

Canada

Egypt

Costa Rica

China
 

England
 
 

Mexico

Click to view the full campaign