Ad Agencies - you've got to laugh...

I'm with Holly Buchanan on this one.

The CEO of Grey Worldwide outlining his plans for change thinks that putting more focus on strategy is important. - well duh!

About half-way through 2005 Dave and I discussed if we should bother "slagging off" ad agencies any more!

My view was that they're not worth the effort / no longer a story. Dave said the reality is that they're still out there - and people still listen to them - so we need to carry on the fight!

Well it's 2006 now and I've changed my mind - I agree with Dave.

What a bunch of idiots!

Or all Holly says more elegantly after reading the story in Ad Age - "Holy Cow. I'm speechless"

Why do iTunes customers like Volkswagens?

Nobody knows. But they do, along with having a taste for cider and reading Wired, according to data from Nielsen//NetRatings.

Story from Guardian Unlimited.

I've a feeling this is going to be a thread for Chemistry Digital this year. Revisiting our 4G web strategy - what's actually really important are what we called the - "communities of interest".

This is really just our original Tribal Marketing vibe - but given a new name.

I think what we're missing with our online permission marketing thrust is that there are groups of people who you'll never categorise. So top down Analytics and Demographics won't give you the information you need to communicate any more. Especially if you've stopped wasting your money on broadcast media channels!

It has to come from bottom-up micromarkets.

Markets are built by people now - not planned by companies.

The RAC is brilliant [WOMM]...

Just seeing if this gets on anyone's radar as a test.

I've had some problems with my car recently and I called the RAC (Royal Autombile Association) out to my home (...I don't have home-start cover) - they gave me a temporary upgrade!

They didn't think the car was safe to drive but while we were waiting for approval to tow it to a dealership the patrolman remembered he had a spare part for a similar car "I think it''s the same VW engine - let's have another look."

15 minutes later and my car is back to normal - no need for the garage at all. No need to pay for the part - it's a gift. Brilliant.

I've told this story to at least 5 people already - 1 who is planning to move from another provider + we will be upgrading to at-home cover in March when it comes up for renewal - you just can't buy this kind of advertising!

Thank you RAC...

2006 Mantras - remember - "take responsibility" / "pay attention to detail" - that's what customer service is about.

Best Blonde Joke ever...

It doesn't really matter if you're male or female - it's still hilarious -
go find it here

trust me it's good...

Tom Peters and Goal-Free living...

Two links for the price of one from today's trawl of RSS feeds!

Tom Peters talking about the 5% / 5% rule of influence - that sounds about right to me and ties in with one of Seth's posts.

I was also going to link to this interview about a new book "Goal-Free Living" - sounds very familiar to me!

"My only goal is to have no goals. The goal, every time, is that film, that very moment." —Bernardo Bertolucci

Tech Tags: ilovepdg tom+peters

Inside Google

This is a blog that you have to follow if you involved in any kind of online marketing, specifically pay per click...

Inside Adwords

Presentation Blog

This is a good one if you are into sales or other kinds of presentations, the blog has been running for a while and as well as good examples of the state-of-the-art in presenting it also has tips and tricks.

Presentation Zen

Enhancing Your Brand Values with a Game…

Just before Xmas we launched a game to support Experian's Busibody brand. Busibody is a great product that provides online credit checks and financial reports. Not enough business, particularly small ones, use credit checks but there is no excuse when there is such a great service available. The game is based on that very principal, credit check everyone you can and destroy the bad payers before they drain away your cash!

Click here for more>>

Enewsletter Archive Now Available...

Just in case you feel like you are missing out...

http://www.pdg4g.com/pg.asp?enewslist

Smart sales enewsletter launch...

Part of our ethos at PDG is never to stand still, and we always have ideas and services in development that will make you more profitable and look even better! To this end, we have created a separate enewsletter focused solely on smart sales tools, you will need to opt in to receive it, click here to find out how...

Don't let your IT dept hold back sales...

We'd all be stuck without our friends in IT, however sometimes it's better to control things yourself - especially when it comes to maximising the benefit of your website for sales and marketing purposes. Lost control of your web presence for sales and marketing purposes? You need a smart sales extranet!

Click here for more >>

Targus take away the pain...

We've recently completed a groundbreaking micro-site for Targus as part of an integrated marketing campaign for the launch of the Targus ergonomic accessories range. The pan-European campaign aims to raise awareness of the 'ergo' product range and position the brand as the market leading supplier of ergonomic laptop accessories. If you are a laptop user and are suffering from any kind of pain or discomfort this site is a great starting point to help you sort it out.

Click here for more >>

ilovepdg podcast Pendulum mix...

What a cool review of 2005's podcasting - thanks to Dan for this...

Hope you enjoy it as much as me and Dave do!




track length - 5:58

podcasts remix

2006 Seth Godin mantra...

Happy New Year!

Of all the blog posts over the holiday season here's the one that we're going to take to heart straight away...

1- take responsibility
2 - attention to detail

We're working on our chemistry digital New Year Resolutions at the moment.

Once we've opened up the conversation internally we'll open it to our customers for some feedback as well...