Here’s a blatant promotion on my blog. If you are marketer or CEO who’s organization is struggling to come to terms with the digital revolution. Then, you ought to be interested in our latest news from Sticky Advertising. We’ve dropped the ‘Advertising.’

And, we’ve finally taken the plunge and repositioned the agency as digital with a focus on advanced digital strategies.

Why?  So we can take advantage of a growing need to manage the transition from a mainly offline business and marketing model to a growing digital and social business model. It also means higher profit margins and lower costs compared to advertising’s traditional cash cow of buying media which is now basically a commodity being sold by every Tom, Dick and Mary.

The process of change has been exciting, but at times scary especially for our principal, Craig (Media Hunter) Wilson – it’s his money we are playing with. However, Sticky has quickly scored some big goals by signing up a number of large national accounts. There is talk now of going International.

If you are interested you might want to see our new revamped Sticky and GetSticky sites…

Today, Media Cafe launches what is thought to be a world first a ‘one-stop shop’ website to help media planners, buyers and sellers communicate more effectively. (mediacafe.com.au)

Media Cafe site aims to take the myriad of information which is available in the media world and groups it in easily searchable categories. While industry news will be a small part of Media Cafe, it offers a much more comprehensive suite of helpful tools for all media professionals.

Photo by Lucas Janin

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I’ve just read a very interesting series of blog posts by Allen Mitchell, where he talks about how marketers have made a BIG error – a misperception – that pervades everything marketers do. And OMG he doesn’t hold back on marketing’s traditional belief systems.

But, what is this whopping great big marketing error?

Image from Ralph Buckley

Well, it’s our industry’s belief that marketing is a ‘stimulus-response’ activity where marketers send out various types of stimuli to consumers, whose attitudes and behaviours are then changed, to elicit certain desired responses. I think I have to agree.

Because on this, Allen thinks marketing is suffering from a bad case of schizophrenia.

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According to an online advertising expenditure study by the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) in the UK – the internet has now overtaken TV advertising to become the UK’s single biggest advertising medium.

UK’s Online advertising expenditure grew 4.6% to £1.75 billion in the first half of 2009, overtaking TV for the first time. IAB figures show ad expenditure online up £82m to record market share of 23.5%.

The IAB has declared the UK as being the world leader in terms of market share for online, with the medium accounting for 23.5% in the first half of 2009. The results signal a significant restructure of marketing budgets as UK advertisers follow their audiences online and look to the internet for even more measureable and accountable methods.

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For your delight, I’ve embedded Ninemsn’s new TV commercial titled “Bing and Good Things Happen.”

It’s part of a bigger marketing campaign that will use TV, print and digital banners to persuade us to switch over to Bing and hopefully boost Bing’s market share. I wish them well, but I hope they’ve got very deep pockets.

Phillip Kotler says “The better the product, the less that has to be spent advertising it. The best advertising is done by your satisfied customers.” Think about it people. Will you change your search habits due to seeing an emotive TV ad?

I know times are hard for the advertising world, but I’ve heard on the online grapevine that a Newcastle advertising agency have gone the full Monty, to attract new business. Well, it just doesn’t seem right.

Surely, a brand is what the customers say it is. So what does milky white skin say of a brand?

I just can’t imagine the creative’s at Peach Advertising dropping their Daks or the account directors at Enigma Communication running around Merewether Beach wearing just a smile?

As it turns out, I got it wrong.  It wasn’t Newcastle Australia, it was Newcastle-on-Tyne in the UK.

Newcastle Advertising Agency

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While most TV network executives were contemplating slashing their wrists with the news that Ad revenue was down $300m for the financial year 2007-08. The people at Channel Ten’s regional office in Newcastle were all dancing in the street with last weeks local TV ratings.

The following is a small snippet of an email I received from our local Channel Ten rep:

The ratings win continues for Ten, coming in 1st across all key demographics w/c 12/7 even up against State of Origin.

Here is a summery of the week:

• Ten was Number 1, People 16-39, beating NBN in 2nd by 7.1% & smashing Prime in a distant 3rd by 25.2%
• Ten was Number 1, People 16-54, beating NBN in 2nd by a minimal 0.2%, Prime came in 3rd by 16.5%
• Ten was Number 1, People 18-49, beating NBN in 2nd by 5.1% & Prime again came in a distant 3rd by 19.7%
• Ten was Number 1, People 25-39, beating NBN in 2nd by 12.4% & Prime in 3rd by a massive 27.7%
• Ten was Number 1, People 25-54, beating NBN in 2nd by 1.1% & Prime came in 3rd by 16%
• Ten had 12 of the Top 20 Programs for People 16-39, NBN had 7, Prime only had 1
• Ten had 11 of the Top 20 Programs for People 25-39, NBN had 8, Prime only had 1
• Ten had 9 of the Top 20 Programs for People 16-39, NBN had 9, Prime only had 2
• Ten beat State of Origin with the Top 2 shows in 16-39, 25-39, 25-54 (amongst other demographics)

How long will it last? And what will Channel Nine & Seven do?

It staggers me the amount of business professionals that think of marketing only as selling and advertising. Then again, no wonder – every day we are inundated with people telling us how to market our business via television programs, newspapers, books, magazines, blogs, podcasts and sales calls. Someone is always trying to sell us the next big marketing fix.

It seems the marketing profession is dominated not by marketers, but with very loud advertising & pr people, graphic & web designers, copywriters, salespeople, tv & radio presenters, journalists, life & business coaches  and the scariest group, cardigan wearing accountants.

Therefore, it may be a surprised to these people that selling and advertising are only the tip of the marketing iceberg. Although these functions of marketing are important, they are only two of numerous other marketing functions and they are generally not the most important ones.

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It’s finally here in regional New South Wales….ONE HD 24 hour sports channel.

Macquarie Southern Cross Media (MSCM) has announced today that high definition television will be available to regional viewers of Southern Cross Ten who currently receive our high definition (HD) service in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and the ACT for the first time from 2 July, 2009.

MSCM’s Southern Cross Ten network will launch ONE HD to regional viewers who receive our HD service in these three states subject to digital coverage. Viewers will require a HD set top box or television to receive ONE HD. ONE HD will be broadcast on Channel 50 which should be tuned in to the television sets of all viewers with a HD Set Top Box or built in tuner.

Here’s the promo:

This video is so near the truth – it isn’t funny! I’m wrong, it’s still funny. But, I hope those business people & marketers that want their logo’s bigger or want star bursts understand this video is satire.

And to all those designers & creatives who allow this to happen or don’t understand its WRONG – ya idiots.