Zeno Group Blog

Here are some articles the Zeno team has been reading from October 31st:

• Advertising Age: Power 150 – Ranking the top blogs and bloggers in advertising, marketing and media
• Mediabistro.com’s PRNewser: Joe the Plumber’s Publicist: “Today Was One of the Busiest Days I’ve Had” – Joe the Plumber has secured Jim the Publicist
• NYTimes.com: Hanging Out at a Mall for the Holidays – Teen Vogue magazine has a creative way to reach teen girls where they congregate the most: at the mall
• NYTimes.com: World Series Sets a Low for Viewership
• AllFacebook.com: Bono Teaches Lesson on Facebook Privacy – As the author puts it: "It’s unfortunate for Bono but I can’t say that I feel bad for him as he was partying on a yacht in St. Tropez."

With uncertainty about the economy and conflicting news reports, it’s difficult to predict how natural and organic product sales will fare – will they continue to soar or continue to slow? The industry is betting on the former, with 26,000 people attending the Natural Products Expo East trade show held two weeks ago in Boston. Even if we can’t predict sales, there were some evident trends. With the economy causing people to eat more meals at home, convenient, restaurant quality meals that consumers can purchase in the frozen food section and simply heat up are going to be hot, as are bulk organic products they can use to create their own meals from scratch. And, with seemingly continuous bad news, comfort foods – think organic chicken pot pie and mac & cheese – are also growing. There was a dramatic increase in the number of Fair Trade products shown, as well as products made with interesting ingredients like heirloom grains and coconut milk.

Last year saw an explosion of such exotic superfoods such as acai, hemp and kombucha and this year, it looks like we will be seeing cici fruit, Indian gooseberries and tart cherries. And, with food allergies on the rise, gluten-free products will also continue to be big. I’ll be attending the Opportunity Green conference here in LA in a couple of weeks, so stay tuned for a report on eco-friendly business.

Every time he’s in front of a camera, I wince watching Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Selig has lead America’s pastime since 1992, but in those 16 years I doubt he’s ever spent time with a media trainer. If he has, MLB should request a refund.

Selig was at the forefront Monday night, left to explain the bizarre circumstances that lead to Game 5 of the World Series becoming the first Fall Classic contest ever suspended mid-game due to weather. As he sat on the dais and stumbled through baseball’s rule book, Selig’s confused look leant credence to the theory that baseball’s brass were just making up rules on the fly. New York Daily News columnist John Harper summed Selig up best noting: “Selig tried to sound authoritative…but he just never comes off looking as if he has all the bases covered in these situations.”

Following Selig’s press conference, ESPN analysts criticized the commish for sounding so morose when the league had no reason to apologize for Mother Nature’s wrath. Whether he’s addressing baseball’s steroids scandal or handing the keys of a new Chevy to the All-Star Game MVP, Selig’s lack of polish is striking. His contemporaries, Roger Goodell (NFL), David Stern (NBA) and Gary Bettman (NHL), are far more competent at delivering a message. (Bettman’s success as NHL commissioner is debatable, but at least he speaks with authority.) When the season ends and baseball players begin off-season workouts, Selig should make media training part of his winter regimen.

Here are some articles the Zeno team has been reading from October 28th:

• Wired: Clive Thompson on Social Networks and the Wrath of Moms
• Wahsington Post: The Election That Has the Whole World Blogging
• NYTimes.com: Forget Taxes — This Plumber Wants to Sell Your Data

I just returned from the Marketing to Moms conference and I have to say, it truly has never been a better or more exciting time for marketers to be reaching moms. Why? Well, for one, mom’s powerful. Consider the fact that mom controls 80% of all household spending. She spends $1.7 trillion every year, including an average of $13K on her baby during the first year alone. But today, it’s not enough to simply know that mom is out there spending money. With so many different types of moms out there, it’s more important than ever that we as marketers understand how to effectively engage her in relevant and meaningful ways. In other words, welcome to the new age of “mom.”

Who is she?

She’s a fan of reality TV, and she’s active on the message boards. She doesn’t watch TV. She’s playing games online. She can’t wait for her triplets to arrive. She’s stressed about the arrival of her second baby. She’s all about “me” time. She only buys organic. She eats out four times a week. She’s working full-time. She’s staying at home.

One theme that was woven throughout every piece of this 2-day conference was centered around the idea that all moms aren’t created equal. Whether you’re talking to a “Gen Y Mom”, or a “Second Time Mom,” today’s moms are multi-dimensional people (yes, not just a “mom” but a real person) who constantly influence the decisions of those around her. Did you know that the biggest concern of the Gen Y moms is time? Or that sixty-two percent of second-time moms use social networking sites? This is important because it reinforces the fact that we must speak to these moms differently. Whether it’s a different message, or a new communications channel, campaigns must be targeted to be effective.

Another key differentiator among today’s mom is how quickly she moves into different roles. Eighty-six percent of women see motherhood and womanhood as something very different. Marketers need to think about mom as a 360 and respect her different hats. In other words, “Don’t go all mom, all the time.”

Not surprisingly, moms are online. Technology has liberated moms from feeling ‘alone’ and has empowered them to trust their instincts and seek information from experts as well as other parents. Consider the fact that moms are going on social networking sites more than any other demographic. They are pushing out information as quickly as they are absorbing it. Among pregnant and new moms, the internet is the #1 driver of word-of-mouth. And half of all moms say blogs influence their purchasing decision.

At the end of the day, the message moms are sending us is that they are people too, with different habits, needs and wants. And like anything, it’s critical to research and understand the moms you are talking to so you can reach them effectively.

After all, they’re the ones holding the purse strings.

Here are some articles the Zeno team has been reading from October 21st through October 22nd:

• MSNBC.com: The Politics Behind the Pink Ribbon
• Slate.com: Palin’s Campaign vs. McCain’s – When Sarah Palin disagrees with John McCain, it means something. Or does it?

From Absolut to Zappos, companies are embracing a new era of customer engagement and influencer marketing online; although many laggards remain when it comes to social media. Corporate hesitation is rooted in three traditional marketing considerations: message control, brand management and ROI. While these are still important topics to evaluate in marketing efforts, companies should first think of social media in terms of relationships and community; rather than revenues and corporate identity.

“The Growth of Social Technology Adoption,” a new report from Forrester analyst Josh Bernoff indicates that 69 percent of U.S. online adults read, watch or consume social content; while 75 percent use social tools to connect to each other.

Peter Kim, an entrepreneur and former Forrester analyst, is tracking social media efforts through a continuously growing list; which currently features more than 270 brands and their initiatives. The most popular social media tools, or influencer platforms, include YouTube/online video, blogging, Twitter/microblogging, social networks, widgets, crowdsourcing, photosharing and podcasting.

The rising popularity in social media is evident in how many times Mr. Kim’s list has been bookmarked – nearly one thousand times on Delicious, one of the most widely used social media/bookmarking tools. Marketers who need proof that companies can be successful through social media should bookmark, explore and share this list. For active social media participants, the most admired question of 2008 is “Will it blend?” These three words represent a groundbreaking Blendtec/YouTube campaign, rather than concerns of an old-school marketer.

Here are some articles the Zeno team has been reading from October 20th from 21:53 to 22:55:

• NYTimes.com: Some Papers in Financial Trouble Are Leaving the A.P. to Cut Costs – Big name dailies are ditching the AP. Is this a sign of things to come or just a negotiating ploy?
• New York Times: A Hemline Index, Updated – Many industries try to put their deflated two cents in about trends and measured changes in a recession, but what seems to come out of it is little more than contradicting opinions and big egos.
• Los Angeles Times: My (fat) kid’s not fat – Highlighting the selective effect that media has on perceptions of children’s weights. While 40% of parents surveyed saw their children through my-child-is-perfect goggles, those who did find flaws thought (incorrectly) that in general their daughters were overweight and that their sons were underweight.
• NYTimes.com: Google Learns Lessons in the Ways of Washington –

Last week I attended the Windflower Ball, an annual event hosted by First Candle to raise money for SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). I was invited to the event by Alison Rhodes, also known as “The Safety Mom.” After experiencing the death of her child to SIDS, Alison became committed to saving children’s lives and is now a national voice for child safety.

On any given day, you’ll see “The Safety Mom” giving tips on national and local media outlets, showing millions of viewers (millions of MOMS) the latest and greatest products on the market to help keep kids safe. Of course, we’ve gotten Alison on the Evenflo bandwagon.

Today, those of us who work with children’s products understand the influence of moms, especially those vocal mommy bloggers. Alison is a great example of a mom who took this one step further and turned herself into a successful brand by following her passion.

This week I’m heading out to a large conference all about marketing to moms and I look forward to sharing my insights. Stay tuned.

With all the talk of the rise of online social marketing it has gotten me thinking about whether people have abandoned their old ways of getting information from their girlfriend networks or from speaking to friends. I am pretty sure that most people still crave human contact and cherish the relationships they have. Which leads me to my next question: Are they connecting more frequently now because its easier with the Internet? Probably so as it’s also easier to touch more people at once.

But what I think PR people and marketers in general need not forget is the power of the offline conversations that are still happening and that they are happening perhaps more frequently than ever. Women still meet with their girlfriends for coffee or dinner, guys still get together with their guy friends and play ball. The conversations that happen in those venues, I would argue are as important, if not more so than the “online community.”

Also, with cell phones in as widespread use as they are, I would further argue that people talk to their circle of influencers more than ever. So as us marketers work on ways to reach and influence audiences to buy something or change their behavior, we should not forget that as humans we still like to use our hearing sense and talk to people and that the power of the spoken word is still as powerful as the online community or cyber world.