Captain Digital

Random musings on politics, society, and pop culture from the Internet's marketing curmudgeon.

You are here: Home / Archives for Marketing, Advertising & Branding / Marketing

Marketing

An open (“Dear John”) letter to Microsoft.

Dear Microsoft,

Another winner from Redmond. Remember?This is a difficult letter for me to write. We’ve been together for a long time – really since 1987. Oh, sure, we flirted before that, with Word DOS, but our relationship really became serious with the release of Windows 1.0. You had to know the level of my commitment to our relationship…I mean, after all, back in 84 when I bought my first PC, I had a choice even back then – an 8086 PC or a Mac. For me it was simple. A PC gave me more bang for my buck – the Mac was cute, but seemed more expensive toy than a real, working computer. Back then, it was like dating a foreign exchange student – I did my best to learn your language, ever hopeful you’d even try and learn mine. (I’m probably a handful of people that remember the painful joke that was EDLIN.) [Read more…] about An open (“Dear John”) letter to Microsoft.

Goin’ Digital.

I love photography. I have since I was a kid. Back then, the big barrier to entry was the hassle and price of developing film and getting prints. This struck me this morning, because I was asked by my daughter to take pictures of her for a school project. She protested a couple of shots, feeling as if she wasn’t ready for the shutter to snap. I explained to her, that it didn’t matter – I could take as many pictures as we needed to get the right shot – the bad pics would simply be deleted. [Read more…] about Goin’ Digital.

The Language of Advertising.

I love advertising. There. I said it. I’d rather watch a great ad than just about anything. A 30-second national ad has roughly the same budget, acting quality, directing quality, and production quality of a 30-minute sitcom. A well-crafted 30-second spot tells a short story, with a plot, characters, story arc, and everything else you expect in good communication. Oh, and it sells something. Usually. (Some advertisers forget to sell a product, and some forget to tell a compelling story, but I’m speaking here of GOOD commercials.
[Read more…] about The Language of Advertising.

Hunting Pwospects!

Elmer Fudd & Prospect.Marketing – or more specifically, the “advertising” part of marketing – is a lot like hunting. In this case, you’re hunting prospects, and not rabbits, but the principles are the same. Hunters have, basically, two types of firearms from which to choose – shotguns and rifles. In marketing, most customers prefer the shotgun approach. Savvy marketers prefer rifles. Here’s why… [Read more…] about Hunting Pwospects!

2007 Jeep Wrangler: First Impressions

Wrangler_3

Let me start by saying that I’m not your typical “car guy.” I didn’t grow up with my hood under an engine, and I’m not an expert in all things automotive. I did spend a couple of years working in automobile advertising, and I’ve owned twelve vehicles over my adult life, three of which have been Jeep products. I drive – a lot – and I know what I like. Those are my qualifications. Don’t look to me to talk about gear ratios, drag coefficients, and other arcane topics. I just wanna know if the vehicle drives well, handles well, is well-made, and will suit my purpose. That having been said… [Read more…] about 2007 Jeep Wrangler: First Impressions

Banking on Intelligence.

My wife is a brilliant woman. One day I was casting about for a creative idea to use as the nucleus of a website demo, and I asked her for some ideas. (I was stumped.) Out of the blue, she said, “why don’t you create a bank for intelligence?”

Wow.

In a flash, the whole thing hit me. It was a “V-8 moment” if ever I had one. [side note: A friend once started to tell me about a sketch he’d seen the night before, watching “In Living Color” with two guys in a phone booth, as the “Homeboy Shopping Network.” He didn’t have to say anything else – I could see/hear the entire routine in my mind’s eye. This was the same kind of experience. [Read more…] about Banking on Intelligence.

Un-branding.

The UN-Martin guitar
Okay, here’s the deal. I’ve just returned from a music store today, where I had an experience that I can only describe as unreal. I saw a brand commit suicide, right before my very eyes. Allow me to explain.

In addition to being a marketing guy, I’m also a professional musician. One of the instruments I play is the acoustic guitar. My brand of choice is C.F. Martin. Now, understand, I grew up in the music business. I took up guitar in my early 20s – well after I turned pro, as a drummer. I quickly grew to love the guitar, and went from a pretty nice “starter” instrument (a Yairi) to a Guild (which turned out to be a complete piece of crap) to what became my “ultimate” guitar – a C.F. Martin. I’ve owned several Martins, in the time I’ve been playing. My current instrument is a beautiful HD-35, with herringbone trim, and a three-piece, bookmatched rosewood back. It is a truly wonderful instrument. In those days, Martin made guitars so well, that they used a fixed truss rod in the neck. It couldn’t be adjusted, because you never needed to adjust it. It just worked. Years later, Martin bowed to pressure from those that valued user control over craftsmanship, and began selling instruments with adjustable truss rods. I was sad to hear it, because it took away the edge that made Martin a brand apart. [Read more…] about Un-branding.

The (Un)importance of Being Oscar

Oscar

I skipped the Oscar broadcast Sunday. I’m not alone. So did millions of other Americans. From what I hear, the ratings were off 10% from last year, which were down significantly from the year before. In fact, Uncle Oscar’s been slipping quite a bit in recent years. For the life of them, Hollywood can’t seem to figure out why.

I think I know.

I’m a red-stater. Proud of it. I’m one of the ones with which George Clooney admits to being “out-of-touch.” At one time, Hollywood proudly made movies that I was interested in seeing. Star Wars (the first one…you know…episode IV), Patton, Young Frankenstein. Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Big budget – small budget – I didn’t care. As long as it was entertaining, I didn’t care if it was a war picture, a western, a comedy, even a love story. Along the way, though, Hollywood forgot about entertaining me, and decided their mission was to indoctrinate me into their cause célèbres.
[Read more…] about The (Un)importance of Being Oscar

Patently Ridiculous.

Can we stop for a moment and talk about patents? I’m a creative guy. Over the years I’ve come up with any number of creative ideas. Some of them could/should be protected, intellectual property. Some were just great ideas. As a creative guy, I’m generally in favor of some kind of protection for those who come up with some useful new invention. On the other hand, I’m for the immediate dissolution of the U. S. Patent Office, and the creation of a new agency that understands what in the HELL they are doing.

Here’s the deal. Let’s say you invent something. Nobody ever thought of it before. It’s useful. It’s cool. You don’t want somebody to steal your idea, so you apply for a patent. Your product takes off. You make millions. At some point, your patent runs out, and everybody and their cat decides to market a me-too product, turning your product from a unique gadget into a commodity. You resign yourself to make less money.

This is how patents are supposed to work. [Read more…] about Patently Ridiculous.