One Half Amazing!

via Alex Toulemondes’s blog for web entrepreneurs

FEED is an annual consumer behavior report put out by Razorfish that, in the past, has charted how consumers adopt new internet technologies and digital services. This year they flipped it up a little and changed focus. This year’s report is focused on understanding how digital is changing the way consumers interact with brands and how experience really does matter. Their reports are worth their weight in gold. Great stuff, beautiful design.

Free PDF for Download. I’m also happy that they are now offering a printed version via Blurb

In case you missed it, new media mavens C.C. Chapman and Adrian Ho converged on Memphis for a one-day workshop.  TriplePoint PR has probably one of the best write ups on the event.

The mixer that followed gave attendees the chance to speak with both C.C. and Adrian one-on-one.  Both guys were very generous with their time and knowledge.  One Half Amazing gives them a tip of the hat.

Check out the beautiful slides below if you’re interested in hearing what they had to say.

Wow, who wouldn’t want to work for a company that valued and promoted company culture like Zappos.com?  Watch the video below and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

Zappos Core Values

1. Deliver WOW through service
2. Embrace and drive change
3. Create fun and a little weirdness
4. Be adventurous, creative, and open-minded
5. Pursue growth and learning
6. Build open and honest relationships with communication
7. Build a positive team and family spirit
8. Do more with less
9. Be passionate and determined
10. Be humble

What core values are important to you in your work?  What values would you add if you could start a company tomorrow? Let me know in the comments below.

Originally posted October 13, 2008

I ran across a great ChangeThis manifesto recently on establishing and building a personal brand with techniques learned from The Beatles.  It’s a quick and free read that’s worth it’s weight in gold.  Check it out (PDF).

Jingle Maker

Legendary (and fictional) record producer Tommy Silk helps you rock out your R.O.I and synthesize your sales by making a free commercial song with jingle lyrics written for your own type of business. Jingle lyrics are customized based on the business name and information you provide.  Commercials are based on Your Love, originally performed by The Outfield.  Jingle Maker is provided by Intuit, the makers of tax software QuickBooks.  I like how they’ve created a very creative and innovative campaign for a product that isn’t traditionally sexy.  In addition to the Jingle Maker microsite, they also have footprints on YouTube and Facebook

Mikes Hard Lemonade Victim Video

Need a day off, but you have to have an alibi?  Let Mike’s Hard Lemonade put together a personalized news clip that you can use to cover your tracks.  Upload a picture, give them some basic information and you’ve got yourself a custom video detailing your hard luck.  You can get sucked up in a street sweeper, stuck on a carnival ride or have your cat perform CPR on you.  To top it all off, they put the video in a customized web page that resembles a news website.  The videos are hard from believable, but worth many laughs.

Little Gordon Ramsay

Caterer.com has created 2 amazingly funny ads featuring a young Gordon Ramsay to promote their hospitality site. For my money (and attention), there’s nothing better than a kid with an English accent dropping f-bombs.  You have to see the videos to believe it. Video 1, Video 2.

Office Max – Power to the Penny

To promote their 1¢ back-to-school specials, Office Max put a hidden camera on an actor who went around to various establishments such as a deli, a used car lot and a jewelry store trying to pay with pennies.  As you can imagine, he wasn’t greeted with welcome arms after presenting a bag full (or truck load) of pennies on the counter. Office Max ends the spots with ‘We’ll take your pennies’.

The only down fall I found with this promotion is that the videos aren’t able to be viewed without going directly to the Office Max microsite, which is a major bummer to the viral aspect of this campaign.

Häagen-Dazs Help the Honey Bees

Maker of all things delicious, Häagen-Dazs, has created a public service announcement around the disappearance of the honey bee.  The ice cream gods go on to ask customers to plant a seed and support bee-keepers so the bees can continue to pollinate the delicious fruits that go into their ice cream.  Häagen-Dazs has also used more traditional forms of media to bring their cause to the forefront, including promoting their Bee-Boy dance crew that has been lighting up YouTube and the blogosphere.

I love the social aspect that Häagen-Dazs has employed with this campaign; its nice to see a company spend some of their own money to support and bring attention to causes they believe in.  I feel this only builds a stronger brand and increases the stickiness of their customer.  Check out the Bee-Boy dance crew video on this page in the feature video section.

Your Thoughts?

So, what have you learned from these?  What insight or tips have you taken away from these brilliant campaigns?  I’ve detailed my thoughts and tips below for making a creative and viral online marketing campaign below, but I want to hear what you think.  Leave your feedback in the comments or drop me a link to a campaign you find creative and witty.

Tips for making a creative and viral online marketing campaign.

• Make sure there is something in it for the user
• Make it easy and rewarding
• Think instant gratification
• Be sure the campaign doesn’t overshadow the product
• Insure users will connect the campaign to the product
• Make it desirable to pass on