Yuk!
WTF JC Penney!
What did brands learn from the Motrin Mom fiasco? Obviously nothing! JC Penney’s attempt at using social media to tap consumers’ interest, specifically the female shopping, is yet another fumble by big brands.
Smartblogs post on brands social media campaign at SXSW, pointed out JC Penney’s “Doghouse” video went viral to the point of servers crashing. Some will argue bad PR is better then no PR, but I disagree.
What did JC Penney and Motrin do wrong with social media?
Advertising has and always will play off of stereotypes and social generalizations. It’s never really ok. JC Penney and Motrin social media campaigns took stereotyping to the extreme. It went from playful joking (which is never innocent) of men trying to find the best gift for their female counterpart to bashing male intelligence. More specifically, here’s what’s wrong with the video:
Stereotype 1: Folding laundry and household chores are forms of male punishment. I know many dual working families who split the household chores. I know many men who are better at folding laundry and cleaning then their female spouse. Does this belittle a man’s intelligence? If household chores are form of “punishment”, then what where woman in the 1940’s being punished for? I highly doubt single men or single dad’s view the laundry as punishment for not meeting a woman’s demands.
Stereotype 2: Woman make all the rules, men are only there to please. Thank you Saatchi and Saatchi for making it appear that all woman’s liberation did was form a band of demanding, spiteful, man hating woman. I am so proud of one of the top American advertising agency’s can portray woman in such an insightful and intelligent role as a bitch.
Stereotype 3: Men have no idea how to buy gifts or make a woman happy. The joke of a man never buying the right gift is overrated and not funny. In fact, men and woman a like have problems gift buying in general. If the woman in the video walked around all day whining about the size of her thighs and on a constant diet, a thigh master would seem perfectly acceptable gift. Why wouldn’t it? I don’t see men jumping over joy to get a wrench for Christmas, it just means more work for them to do.
What JC Penney Should Have Done
JC Penney most likely approached Saatchi and Saatchi to create a social media campaign which would reach out to female buyers. The problem is Saatchi and Saatchi didn’t look at the campaign from positive generalizations or stereotypes. There are a dozen softer ways to play on the stereotype of gender based gift buying. The video could have depicted a man commanding his entire family on a secret mission to discover what mom wants for Mother’s day. Using product placement of JC Penney towels, apparel, fitness equipment, or cookware. For Saatchi and Saatchi, it shows limited creativity and consumer insight of their marketing team.
JC Penney has always been viewed as the family department store. Where a family together can get everything they need or want. This campaign contributes nothing positive to the JC Penney brand. Instead, it has hindered the brand from being the all American family store.
Kim Chong-Il is tired of Palin, too
My original post on the subject of north Korea’s recent ballistic missile movement and the US response was long. Realizing no one really would read a lengthy post on my opinion, I decided on a shortened version.
1) north Korea is most likely preparing to test their Taepo Dong missile again. The long range missile has the capability to hit Alaska. Possibly targeting Palin’s front porch?
2) Clinton spanks Kim Chong-Il for his bad behavior. Offering a motherly bribe of an “official peace treaty” if the Asian bully plays nice. This is substantial as it implicates the US would officially end the war with the communist country. What’s next, allowing them a seat on the UN’s national security council?
3) Clinton is agreeing to move 8,000 troops from Okinawa to Guam. Trying to smooth pink icing over rocks to portray the idea of the US “backing off”.
Since Clinton is offering an enormous shift in the US’s policy toward communism and a nuclear state, what is your opinion? Do you see it fit for the Obama administration to openly acknowledge a country once declared by the Bush administration as an “axis of evil”?
This may have nothing to do with your ’stimulus pay’, economic tundra, or the babble clad of automobile industry…but this is quite substantial, and worth discussing…
On the other side of the Social Media curve
Newsflash: Social Media is BIG.
Your response to that was probably less then ecstatic and more like “Um, ya. No Shit.” Because if you read this blog which is not SEO optimized, you probably have a blog of your own, Twitter, FaceBook, LinkedIn, and YouTube account. You know what social media is, and you are engulfed in it everyday.
While working with several clients who cannot get their head around social media, I have noticed several trends. First, there is the social media in crowd and then there’s the “new-bees”.
Social media has become a virtual trade association. It’s a massive free networking event for social media users. If you weren’t blogging 5 years ago, didn’t get on Twitter in the first round, then you are not apart of the “inner” circle. Those who did, are deemed gurus or experts.
Sometimes I feel I am on the other side of the curve, trying to play catch up. If you read most of the web expert’s resumes or bio, they started blogging years ago, headed straight into web development, PR, or communications straight out of the gate from college. Now at the ripe age of 25-35, they are gods of social media. Like many others, I took a different route. My gate release was straight into the military. So while many of the social media “oldies” where blogging or working on web development during Sept 11th, I was apart of a 24 hour operations in support of OEF. Regardless of if I was there at the “beginning”, I am a user and player now. There are many like me, to which the social media cliches are failing to network with.
A virtual world built on minimal ROEs, now is inundated with social media acceptable web behavior. From how to effectively use Facebook, to what is the right way to use Twitter (who the fuck is in charge of the manual? You? FU! ), to what is a good “blog” and what is not, the rules of engagement of social media are growing exponentially. Sure they all started as suggestions, but now they are getting flung out there as rules. Chris Brogan hand slapped Twitter users from using auto reply messages.
Bloggers and Twitter users must now be careful not to seem to “self-seeking” but authentic. How is networking your skills using social media not authentic? Some people don’t want to share pictures of their kid’s dirty diapers on Flickr to portray “humanness”. Would you whip out the wallet pics at a trade show? Social media is nothing more than a big trade show for networking.
To the disbelief of most web savvy, there is a “real” world out that that doesn’t’ engage in social media. Even though more and more corporations are making a presence on the web, the majority of industry’s (with REAL skills) don’t need social media to survive. It’s about bricks and mortar. Making the sale, closing the deal, delivering product, following up, etc. Um, no where does social media help the average business in doing those fundamental business tasks. Those who started out from the beginning with Web 2.0, may want to be a bit more friendly to the new-bees. When it comes push to shove, the more people using social media, the more successful you are. Right? Might want to rethink the hand slapping instead embrace. Otherwise, people will quickly get turned off, and the CEO of Merck might just say FU.
If I asked who’s Pete Chasmore on Twitter, I would get an overwhelming response back. If I walk into the mall and asked, most people would provide a blank stare back. The web is still somewhat disconnected from mainstream society. It is still an industry, niche, and market. It does not reach everyone or all of us equally. Simultaneously, the young Gen Y or teens are growing up immersed in the web. They are the growing users of Facebook and YouTube. They will also change the web and how it is used. The social media experts of today won’t be old school news in 10 years. It’s a short term fame as developers create something new and in five years all the twenty somethings are using it, but the old school web 2.0 people aren’t. There will either be a shift in skill to move with the trends, develop your own platform (not just be a user), or embrace that one day you won’t be the guru but the learner instead.
To understand social media and how it is all interconnected doesn’t take a mechanical engineering degree. It’s as simple as making a presence, keeping a presence, and engaging in others. There’s no real brick being made by any one on the web except by the developers. Being a user doesn’t require much skill or intelligence. Amanda Chapel Tweets it best every time there is another news release of more layoffs “Company X just created 500 more full time bloggers.”
It’s Friday!
It’s Friday..the point where my “work” to do’s transform into my “weekend” to dos.
Realistically, I didn’t get to the lazy portion, and probably won’t. But that is totally ok…I’m not in the mood to be lazy. My energy and dedication was killed off yesterday, and I finally revived it.
Yesterday, I got my feet stuck in the mud. Completely disheartened and tore down by a conversation I had that evening, I wondered why this person was in my life. It’s amazing who we choose to have as our partners. Some partners will cheer you on when you want to change the world, other’s won’t understand.
I suppose we all want our own cheering section. Awhile back BNET had an article about surrounding yourself with positive reinforcements - people who believed in you. It definitely makes a difference in your motivation level, sense of self worth, dedication, and ability to accomplish the untouched territory. You can’t charge on an adventure, if the only ones saying goodbye are convinced you will fail.
During a six year relationship, I fought hard to keep my ambitions quiet, and dreams of leaving a footprint for only my soul to see. Why? My partner didn’t understand, didn’t believe, and ultimately, didn’t want me to succeed. I never let my dream go..but they definitely didn’t flourish. After living months on a relationship hiatus, I began to flourish inside and outside. And Damn, did it feel fucking amazing!
Then one innocent phone call, turns into breathing disbelief into me again. Ashamed I allow someone million miles away to have such an effect on my motivation, but it made me realize something much more grand. Run with a partner who believes in you. If you don’t have a partner, run alone. Don’t ever, ever, take a detour to spend precious time on someone who doesn’t want to believe.
