10 Items Well Known Just Because of their Brand Name

It's the pinnacle of branding. Your brand's name replaces the actual name of the product. It's crazy cool if you can get your brand to this level.

Dumptster: The actual name is front loader waste container or mobile garbage bin. The name dumpster was first used in 1936, by the Dempster Brothers, who patented this style of trash container one year later.

ChapStick: It's called lip balm. You probably knew that, but did you know it was invented in the 1880s by a doctor and pharmacologist in Virginia? Dr. Charles Browne Fleet sold the rights to the lip balm for $5. Today, Pfizer owns the brand.

Hula Hoop: Humans have probably been using some form of the toy hoop-as it's known generically-for centuries, maybe millennia. But, the Hula Hoop came about in the 1950s, when Wham-O toy company introduced the plastic hoop we known today and trademarked the term Hula Hoop. You know, for kids.

Band Aid: The adhesive bandage was invented in 1920 by Earle Dickinson, an employee of Johnson and Johnson. He created it because his wife frequently cut and burned herself while cooking. What a progressive guy.

Kleenex: Facial tissue is the generic name, and legend has it that the product was created by Kimberly-Clarke Corp. for use in gas masks during World War I. Kimberly-Clarke invented the facial tissue as it's known today in 1924. Gesundheit.

Onesies: It's called an infant body suit-sounds so '80s - but the brand Onesies, owner by Gerber Childrenswear, has become the common name for it. Aww...

Post-It: The corporation 3M invented the Post-It note in 1968, but the product's generic name is sticky note, repositional note. How's that for jargon?

Wite-Out: The generic name is correction fluid, and it was invented in the 1960s by insurance company clerk George Kloosterhouse, who enlisted the help of his friend Edwin Johanknecht. They trademarked the term Wite-Out in 1974

Styrofoam: This might have the most convoluted generic name - extruded polystyrene foam. In 1941, researchers at Dow Chemical "rediscovered" a method used by Swedish inventor to create foam polystyrene. Dow Chemical owns the trademark today.

Frisbee: That flying object that you're dodging at the beach is actually called flying disc. Frisbee is a registered trademark of the Wham-O toy company - which you may remember from such popular toys as the Hula Hoop. Until 1958, Frisbie Baking Co. of Bridgeport, Conn., made pies, among other products. The pie tins - once relieved of crust and filling - proved aerodynamic, and New England college students began tossing and catching them. Many colleges have claimed to be home of "he who was first to fling."

Want to see more products known by their brand names? BuzzFeed has named 32.

What Good Public Relations Cannot Do

Often I've heard about some one's bad experience with a PR firm that has spiraled into a strong dislike for PR people. It's painful to hear criticisms and generalizations about my business, but I can't resist jumping in to diagnose the problem myself. My feeling is that 95% of client-agency problems comes down to one thing: expectations. On both sides. Expectations for publicity outcomes, service levels and overall return-on-investment are not always articulated during the courtship, or even the negotiation phase of the relationship. However, many times clients have circled back later usually causing misunderstanding and disappointment. This has caused me to think about a few things that event the best PR programs cannot accomplish:

Replace a sales and marketing campaign. PR is actually a very unreliable tool when it comes to driving sales of a product or service. Yes, a strong publicity placement can make the phone ring, but a PR campaign more typically works to drive brand visibility and favorability over time. It's just not a demand generation tool.

Serve as as cheap or "free" advertising. A good way to look at the difference is like this, use advertising for frequency, but PR for depth. Altogether a good, social PR campaign usually has increased visibility as a long-term goal, it's very difficult to achieve an ad-like level of control and frequency with earned coverage.

Overcome a bad product or customer service. PR can help repair customer relations after a service interruption or problem, but unhappy consumers will always share their feelings, and social media is a powerful megaphone. What's more typical PR tactics like implied endorsement from third-party expert or celebrity can actually make matters worse if there's too great a contrast between the PR and the reality.

Make you famous. PR can help you build a brand or personal reputation, and raise your profile in professional circles, but it won't make you an overnight celebrity.

Cure a crisis. Most situations we term "PR crises" result from poor business practices, not faulty communications. Yes, a good crisis program will help you prepare for a problem or issue, and sound communications handling can mitigate its effects, but PR can do little in the face of unethical or shortsighted actions.

Human Billboard Show Signs of Success for Some

Imagine this: you're driving down the street by a strip mall, look over at the corner while waiting for the stop light and find a person dressed up in a statue of liberty costume for the tax service business or holding a sign for a deal to a pizza place, car shop or hair salon. Think for a moment about this work ad: "Employee needed to work outside. Smiling and waving required. Dancing encouraged. Bring your headset." I've been seeing more of this type of advertising happening and it's got me to thinking about whether or not this advertising actually works?

Companies seem to be pulling out all bells and whistles to attract business. Many are trying new marketing such as doing social networking on Facebook and Twitter and coupon sites such as Groupon, but some have gone back to their roots and are bringing back old-fashioned methods.

The human billboards are a variation on an old marketing strategy, the sandwich board. What you're truly looking at though is an inexpensive outdoor ad. Businesses that sell luxury items such as jewelry have had a hard time these past two years. Some have moved to smaller locations where city ordinances wouldn't allow them to put a sign in the window. Instead, some of them have taken to the streets, dressing someone up in 'loud' clothing and holding a sign on a busy street. Other small businesses such as hair salons have reported that when they hire someone to dress up as a large pair of scissors and hold a sign on a busy street their business more than doubles.

But, then if this advertising works, why isn't everyone doing it? It really depends on who they hire. The person standing still, looking at the ground doesn't attract the attention someone jumping, smiling and laughing does. The second type of person pulls outsiders in. However, the 'waver' needs to be brand appropriate.

Research says that generally the concept works best for a spontaneous purchase, such as an oil change or a pizza. Some pizza places have someone stand outside from 4 to 7 holding a sign. It's perfect because those people tired, hungry and heading home from work see it. Most of the human signgs must try to have fun on the job, so it works best for a business with a sense of humor. Tax services don't usually elicit a lot of yuks, but Liberty Tax Service is trying to change that. Every tax season, from mid-January to mid-April, at least one employee from its 39 Minnesota locations is dancing near a busy intersection, drumming up business dressed as the Statue of Liberty.

The company employs wavers, an official title, in the coldest season of the year. Fortunately the costumes are baggy and can hide a coat underneath. It also helps that Liberty employees are encouraged to bring headphones. The wavers are a big part of Liberty's business model and auditions are held after applications watch videos of the company's favorite wavers. Prospects get suggestions such as saluting police officers who drive past and arm-pumping to get truck drivers to honk. But, does this actually make people choose a tax preparer because someone was in fun costume and waved at them? Liberty says that it helps potential customers who are nervous about filling out their tax forms feel more relaxed about the process.

So, what your probably wondering is who is the right person for this type of job? Old class clowns maybe? Turnover is high in these jobs, the pay is usually minimum-wage, and most wavers don't get commissions, despite the uptick in sales. Doesn't sound very good does it? On the other side, breaks are frequent and shifts rarely last more than four hours.

Advertising on the Rise

When the economic slump started a few years ago advertising executives began to worry if the advertising downhill slide would ever end? Would marketing money return to all media or just a few?

The answers are becoming much more clear and the outcomes are showing proving to be positive. The American advertising market, which has benefited from government stimulus and old media are showing recovery.

However, not ALL old media are showing growth. Advertising is still leaching out of newspapers, in particularly regional ones. It is returning only slowly to magazines. Billboards are faring better. Yet, the greatest old-media winner is TV, is most countries the main advertising medium.

In early 2009, it looked as if many public TV broadcasting stations might go belly up, but at CBS, ad sales rose from $4 billion to $4.5 billion from then to now. Shares in the company have more than tripled from last year's lows, although they are still well below pre-recession peaks.

Most of the time the advertising business comes back last, but this time it led. A rebound effect is at work. Car dealers and banks that stopped advertising in 2008 have decided they cannot stay out of the market for ever. Yet, there is two inherent reason why a drop in advertising must be followed by a rise. Just look at newspapers, where a painful fall in advertising in 208 was followed by another steep drop in 2-09, with a further fall expected this year. Television is recovering more strongly than other media because it has two distinct and growing advantages.

Why? First, companies that want to make the emerging middle class aware of their brands inevitably turn to television. That's its big advantage. Second, its power to monopolize attention is undiminished. Many newspaper readers have moved online, where they are worth less to advertisers. Not so TV viewers. In the first quarter of this year the average American spent 158 hours per month in front of the box, according to Nielsen, a research firm. That was two hours more than a year earlier. By comparison, he spent just three hours watching video online and 3 1/2 hours watching it on his mobile phone.

Can You Use a Trademarked Logo Without Permission? State Fair Asks for Logo to be Removed from Bachmann TV Ad

During Minnesota State Fair time, if you were watching TV, you may have seen the Michelle Bachmann ad criticizing Tarryl Clark for 'raising taxes on a variety of State Fair goodies.' The ad was criticized for not only slander, but for showing the Minnesota State Fair logo twice during the chimerical.

"I know, I know, it's State Fair time and you don't want to hear about politics," says Jim "The Election Guy," a character in Bachmann's TV ads. "But while you're at the fair, you should know Tarryl Clark here voted to raise taxes on your corn dog. And your deep fried bacon. And your beer."

While Clark did vote 'yes' on a bill that would increase taxes on liquor sales, Bachmann's claims about corn dog and bacon taxes are a bit misleading. Her campaign says Clark favored a transportation bill that included a metro sales tax hike, which affects corn dogs and bacon but does not specifically target those things.

The State Fair was upset because their logo appeared twice in the TV ad and Fair officials asked the image to be removed. "The State Fair does not endorse any candidate running for political office," said a State Fair official.

Bachmann's campaign said that although they believed they have legal right to keep the image in the ad, they would switch it out for a generic one "out of good faith."

This got me to thinking, what is the proper usage for logos? I think of this issue as almost like a product placement the State Fair did not ask for. The American Advertising Federation (AAF) believes product placement is a good way to advertise, but says it is when everyone benefits from it: the placement source, the company being promoted and the consumer. Also, it is alright if the placement is disclosed in some way. Also, product placement is always agreed upon by both parties involved. That is the issue here. It may not be illegal, but if you're not going to ask for usage permission, don't complain when the party in question doesn't like it and asks to be removed from the situation. I think the Bachmann campaign should be lucky they didn't get into more trouble.

For more questions and answers regarding ad usage, look to the AAF's website here.

Threat and Anxiety: Why Negative Political Ads Work

The race for the next Minnesota Governor is underway and has been for about awhile now. The election is over two months away, but the three candidates are already battling it out on TV with negative campaign ads and I'm already sick of it. Negative campaigning has long been a part of politics. This got me to thinking though, why do candidates use negative campaign ads, attacking the other person? Because they work.

Candidates use negative attacks because they work. By threatening voters, by making them anxious, afraid, and fearful, candidates can win elections.

A controversial attack ad now running in Minnesota comes from The Alliance for a Better Minnesota, an independent liberal group. The ad in question is called "Missed Votes" and it's here.

The ad claims that Tom Emmer has missed 142 votes (1 out of every 5 votes) in the state legislature in 2010, and compares it to missing one day of work each week. It's geared to target everyone, not just one party in particular party or its supporters. It aims to anger those who are working hard to keep their jobs by working more hours than usual and upset those who are unemployed, want to work and are looking for work. The ad threatens Minnesotans and makes them fearful of electing Tom Emmer as Governor because he may not do his job.

Threat and anxiety are powerful stuff in political campaigns, and recent research says that these negative emotions are strong predictors of candidate support and voting behavior. It has been found that candidates chosen are more likely to physically threaten the subjects actually lost 65% of the real elections (involving those same candidates).

Take Advantage of Increased Time Spent on Social Networking

The small business I currently work for has started using social media marketing and all I have to say is that it's about time! A new Nielsen study titled "What Americans Do Online" shows that Americans spend a growing percentage of their time online visiting social networking sites. Businesses need to be aware of trends like this in order to focus marketing efforts where the target audience spends its time.

Social networking and other next-generation Web tools and services are changing the face of the Internet. Sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are growing exponentially - Facebook just passed 500 million users, and Twitter just sent it's 20 billionth tweet. Companies need to grasp how to take advantage of these platforms to effectively communicate with customers.

The Nielsen study tracked the online activity of 200,000 uses -comparing to June 2010 against June 2009. What Nielsen found is that the portion of online time invested on social networking sites grew nearly 50 percent, from 16 percent to 23 percent, and that social gaming surpassed 3-mail to take the number two position.

Bloomberg Businessweek reports that the Nielsen study also revealed that the use of Web portals is on the decline - dropping from 5.5 percent to 4.4 percent of online time. Ironically, Yahoo beat out both Google and Microsoft to be the captain of that sinking ship, as well as the leader in both e-mail and instant messaging.

It is also worth noting that the social network audience is getting more mature, and culturally diverse as well. Nielsen found that twice as many uses over the age of 50 are using social networks than uses under age 18. For businesses looking to use social networks as a marketing platform, these types of demographic details are important.

The only other area that saw growth from 2009 to 2010 was the viewing of online video such as YouTube. It is a different type of platform than Facebook or Twitter, but still social in nature. Just look at how Old Spice managed to combine YouTube videos with social network messaging to create an Internet marketing sensation overnight.

Companies still spend lots of dollars paying for placement in the Yellow Pages. (You know - it's that giant stack of paper that a random stranger litters your porch with, until you eventually throw it in the recycling bin?)

If your customers are spending more time online, and most of the time is spent on social networks, then that is where the marketing and advertising budget should be spent.

Even though you like the Old Spice ads, do they make you want to go out and buy Old Spice?

How do you make an 'old' brand look new and young, especially when the word 'old' is in the name? It's hard. The brand Old Spice has been around for decades, and most of us think of it when we're looking for a gift for our dads. However, recently ad agency Wieden + Kennedy attempted to reshape the brand by creating a new ad campaign and I think they did a great job.

Old Spice's "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" ads, staring former NFL wide receiver Isaiah Mustafa as a chiseled dreamboat moving through surreal landscapes while brandishing Old Spice body wash, launched in February and have been gaining popularity on TV and the internet ever since.

The entire campaign is great. The ads are hilarious, Mustafa's overall presence is fantastic, and the ads are doing an excellent job attracting the attention of their target audience, the younger generation.

Now the question is, whether or not the target audience will go buy Old Spice products. Yes, I like the ads and pay attention enough to remember the name, but will I run out and buy Old Spice body wash for my boyfriend? I'm not sure.

If you haven't seen the ad, you should, check it out here.

Use Facebook Ads to Make Employers Hunt You Down

If you pay attention to the news, you may think that anyone looking for a job should immediately cancel his or her Facebook account and never sign up again. Headlines read: Bank Intern Busted by Facebook, Employers Look to Facebook Too and Employers Snoop on Facebook. There's rarely anything new in the stories, but somehow they continue to pop up. More and more companies are using Facebook as a recruiting tool, but for the most part any press that has included the words "employer" and "Facebook" has been negative. Not anymore.

When you sign on your Facebook account, you may notice an ad on the right side of the screen. Facebook allows you to target your ads very specifically. More than ever, employers are trying to leverage Facebook to find great entry-level talent, but not many are doing a good job.

An organization called One Day, One Job came up with an idea, what if you reverse the role and have the employee target the company her or she wants to work for with Facebook ads? Basically, they wanted college grads to create an ad for themselves. The goal was to sell yourself with a picture and a few short sentences which would convince any recruiter seeing their ad to click through to their resume, web page, contact information, etc. Most importantly they needed a target. This target would be based keywords, location or company. Targeting by the company is the most likely to succeed, because they could guarantee that they would actually reach people who work at companies that might consider hiring them. How they target would depend on what kinds of jobs they were looking for. Yes, this process does cost some money, but overall when looking at its success rate, it's pretty cheap.

To learn more about this idea and how to set up your own Facebook ad click here.

Would you Brand Yourself with your Company Logo?

Most companies prefer staffers to not have any tattoos visible, but at some work places tattoos are being used for branding purposes.

At Anytime Fitness, one employee got the health club chain's purple running man logo tattooed on her upper left arm. She is just one of the more than 200 other employees among the company's nearly 1,300 clubs worldwide who have undergone the needle in the name of Anytime enthusiasm over the past several years. At least 20 of them work at the headquarters in Hastings, Minnesota.

"We bleed purple here at corporate," said CEO Chuck Runyon.

Many times at annual conferences, a tattoo artist is on hand to oblige employees who are feeling particularly dedicated.

While it's common for businesses to hand out temporary tattoos of their logos, this is taking products branding to a very personal, and some may extreme, level.

Find your Target Audience for any Marketing and PR Campaign

Who do you want to reach with your business or organization's marketing and PR efforts? Once you have a clear idea of your target audience, you'll be better equipped to tailor your key messages to each segment of your target market and select the right communication tools to use with each audience.

Here's a list of possible target audiences:

• Current clients
• Potential clients
• Business partners
• Referral sources
• Subcontractors
• Vendors
• Industry and business media outlets
• Business, civic and professional associations
• Local community
• Elected officials

The next crucial step is to understand what your key audiences think about your company. You can find this out by conducting a services of informal interviews with your clients and business partners. The results of this survey will be very valuable in showing you what is most important to your clients' uncovering what your clients value most about your company' and highlighting which services or products you may need to do more to promote.


Here is a list of suggested survey questions:

1. What do we do?
2. What services do we provide? (You may be surprised to learn how little some people know about the full complement of products and services you provide.)
3. How do we stand out among similar companies?
4. What do you value about us?
5. Who is our main competition?

Gathering this information is a critical first step for any small business in developing the right messages for a successful marketing and PR campaign.

Caribou Gets a Makeover

The latest phase in a year's worth of rebuilding and rebranding at Caribou Coffee hits the town today. The new look ranges from the subtle brown cup covers to the new-looking Caribou Coffee logo built out of a coffee bean. The company's theme remains unchanged - "Life is short. Stay awake for it."

This change, along with others, are part of a yearlong revitalization of a brand that was languishing a year ago when the company reported a $16.8 million loss. The hope is that all these changes will help the company reconnect with its customers. Caribou is a distant second to Starbucks in the coffeehouse industry, currently having 515 stores, including 112 franchised and licensed. The company also has a commercial wing that sells branded products to grocery stores, airlines, hotels and other merchandisers. Caribou is the official coffee partner of the Minnesota Twins in their new Target Field Ballpark.

The new Caribou includes:

• A deeper blue backdrop for the caribou
• Brown coffee cup lids - These proved to be more popular; they don't show lipstick marks!
• Messages to coffee cups and napkins called "Bou-isms" in reference to the "Bou" nickname. Messages will say "Spend time with your kids, tomorrow they're a day older" and "Dare to adventure" and "Don't wait for New Year's to make a resolution."
• New store decor
• And coming soon, billboards and other outdoor venues that designers hope will resonate with consumers. These should start popping up in April.

Caribou Coffee has new leadership, CEO Mike Tattersfield, the third leader in three years. Under his direction the company has shut some stores, is now focused on its core markets, added new products and is concentrating on upping customer service. Last month Caribou added "handcrafted" oatmeal to its menu following the addition of new chocolate beverages late last year. The company now is testing in-store baked items in 25 of its Minneapolis locations, and five flavors of Tea Latte Fusion are being introduced this week. I think this rebrand is a great idea for Caribou Coffee. Since Caribou Coffee started 18 years ago, their competition has increased greatly, as many more coffee shops have started up. The company has had a rough patch financially and really does need to remind their customers why they're great.

Measuring the Twitter Bowl

Tops on Twitter:

Minneapolis ad agency Colle+McVoy tracked viewers' Twitter comments on Super Bowl ads via a proprietary Web tool called Squawq. The program declared Frito-Lay, the maker of Doritos, the Twitter winner, capturing 21 percent of the chatter on game day. Here are the top 10 tweet-generating advertisers.

• Frito-Lay - 35,294 mentions, 21%
• Anheuser - Busch, 22,211 mentions, 13%
• Coca-Cola - 10,550 mentions, 6%
• Unilever - 6,851 mentions, 4%
• Audi of America - 6,261 mentions, 4%
• Focus on the Family - 6,131 mentions, 4%
• Mars - 5,797 mentions, 3%
• Google - 5,442 mentions, 3%
• Levi Strauss & Co. - 5,114 mentions, 3%
• E-Trade - 4,969 mentions, 3%

Will The New York Times' Paywall Help to Avoid Collapse?

It appears The New York Times have found a solution to the 'online news reader only' problem. Last week, The New York Times announced that it would erect a paywall in order to help collect from news readers who only get their news online from their website. Their idea is neat because the paywall will get the frequent readers to pay for The New York Times content, but not the new, visiting readers.

This plan is called a 'metered-model,' will call for people who visit the website (nytimes.com) a undetermined amount of times per month to pay an undetermined fee, excepting those who currently subscribe to the weekly print paper, including those who only get it on Sunday. Not knowing how much The New York Times will charge, I'm curious to know if it will cure the problem newspapers are having.

I say yes. Currently, The New York Times (nytimes.com) has 17 million unique visitors per month which allow them to have high ad prices. Since they are taking their time, and getting this high-tech program to separate new and old visitors they can still keep those good ad sales up, attract new readers and hopefully charge those who want to keep coming back.

The print journalism industry has gone through a tough time in recent years and has needed to make some changes in order to survive. Is this the solution or will this only decrease readership? Now, I'm curious to see how many other newspapers will take on this approach. Further, if it works for The New York Times, how fast it will take over the print newspaper websites. Lastly, as a social media user, I wonder how this will affect linkage to The New York Times page and articles. In another release last week, The New York Times made it clear that they are aware of this reality, stating that its metered model would allow it to still "stay connected to a search-driven Web." It's smart that they are on top of this because this aspect is equally as important to its survival as publication income. In order to stay afloat, the site must continue to be part of the large online conversation.

Can you use a celebrity’s photo without their permission?

Last Wednesday, a larger-than-life President Barack Obama became a presidential pitchman on a Times Square billboard that used his photo without permission.

Outerwear company, Weatherproof, used a recent news photo of the president in front of the Great Wall in Badaling, China, wearing one of their coats for their advertisement, with the tagline "A Leader In Style." This rose questions of the need for celebrity permission.

The photo was taken by Charles Dharapak of The Associated Press and the company purchased the right to use it from AP Images, the news gathering organization's commercial photo arm. The AP agreement with Weatherproof required the company to seek any necessary clearances, said a spokesman for The AP. However, Weatherproof did not seek permission from the White House, nor does it believe it was necessary to do so since the billboard does not say Obama endorses the product.

At the same time, animal-rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, recently debuted a new ad campaign featuring Michelle Obama, and also did not ask for the first lady's consent. Those ads are appearing in Washington's Metro stations, magazines and PETA's Web site.

The way I look at it, the ad has potential to be effective with consumers because the president and first lady both carry considerable fashion credibility. However, it's a risk because passers-by may get so caught up with the image and not notice the brand name. Overall, I disagree with the usage of the photo, but think the ad/marketing idea is brilliant. Right now there are no strict laws or punishment against the use of the photo and besides the press it's getting from the ad placement, it's getting a whole lot more by this debate's media coverage.

The Power of the Internet

As I look back on the past decade I believe the Internet and technology improvements or changes in the business (and personal) world will be what it's most remembered for. The Internet has changed the way business outreach is done completely in the last decade. It has created another outlet for organizations and corporations to advertise in and social media has created a totally new way for them to communicate with their target publics.

A month before the Super Bowl, CBS released that only four TV advertisement placements are still open, but one of the NFL's biggest supporters, PepsiCo, announced that 23 years they are dropping their sponsorship. Pepsi plans to shift its marketing budget to less costly digital venues, such as Facebook and other Internet social networking sites.

This shows just how the Internet is reshaping companies marketing techniques by offering them less expensive ways to convey their messages to customers. It seems that even though Super Bowl ads are made for TV, they aren't traditional television ads. It appears that companies buying Super Bowl ads are using that ad as a starting point to other PR and marketing opportunities. Companies will create their ads with the intention and hope for conversation on the Internet long after the game on ranking sites, blogs, twitter, etc.

In a time of companies slashing jobs and government bailouts to automakers, fearful of criticism for misused financial priorities, the Internet offers much cheaper outreach compared to the Super Bowl advertisements. However, of course this type of publicity is uncontrolled and can turnout negative instead of positive.

This trend in corporate outreach has caused marketing advisers to rethink their game. A read about a small marketing agency in the Twin Cities, Three Deep Marketing, that has mastered the ability to measure online website trafficking. The agency's popularity has really grown because of their success advising small to large companies on how to enhance their online marketing efforts. Their strategy is to figure out what consumers do when they view a company's website. They research and trace where somebody clicks, what they viewed, see if they filled out a form and figure out if they bought anything from the site. From this information they report and advise what a company should do to better utilize their website. I believe this trend will really grow.

The Super Bowl is not in distress to find corporate sponsorship - I don't want you to worry. Since PepsiCo decided to drop out, Korean Automaker Hyundai has moved up (since the networks offer the best placements to loyal sponsors.) Plus, there are still many big name sponsors creating ads for this year such as: Hollywood Studios, Cocoa-Cola, Doritos, Hyundai, Honda and Audi, Internet job sites CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com and Anheuser-Busch. I just believe that the coming decade will bring about many more changes and improvements online which will make it even more important to the business world.

Where Do Those Facts Come From? False Advertising Issues & Cheerios

The Food and Drug Administration raised questions about three out of four studies General Mills used to support health claims for the nation's top-selling breakfast cereal, Cheerios. (One box of cereal out of every eight sold is Cheerios!) cereal This has caused concerns of false or misleading advertising.

False or misleading information in advertising is known as deceptive or false advertising. Since advertising attempts to persuade consumers into buying products, many governments around the world have set regulations to control false or deceptive advertising. Truth in labeling is essentially the same concept, that consumers have the right to know what they are buying and that all necessary information should be on the label.

This summer General Mills argued that it should be allowed to say that a diet of Cheerios cuts levels of low-density lipoprotein (sometimes referred to as "bad") cholesterol by specific amounts. October 9th, the FDA sent a letter to the company addressing two other claims. They said that the statements, which appeared on boxes reading "4% in 6 weeks" and "10% in one month," were either too short or incomplete. Under the labeling laws, Cheerios may make the claim that it may make the claim it can lower the risk of coronary heart disease when eaten as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol. The law allows food manufacturers to make a second claim that specifically mentions a certain food, for Cheerios it's oats or "whole-grain food," as long as it's made as part of the more general claim about soluble fiber.

The FDA sent a warning letter to General Mills in May that talked about serious violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, drawing attention to the Cheerios claim that it can "lower your cholesterol 4 percent in six weeks." They said that the placement of the statement on Cheerios boxes were problematic, since the claim appeared in large print on the front of the box. A smaller, second statement appeared near the edge of the box reading cholesterol reduction also required a diet low in cholesterol. As proof, Cheerios responded by submitting four peer-reviewed studies they conducted in the past 11 years.

Barbara Schneeman, Director of the Office of Nutrition, Labeling and Dietary Supplements in the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said in her October 9th letter to General Mills that just one of the studies, Johnston (1998), stood up to her office's review. The study supports the claim that 3 grams per day of soluble fiber (meaning three servings or 3 cups of Cheerios per day) would cut bad cholesterol by 4 percent in six weeks, Schneeman wrote. Yet, health claims must take into account not just one study, but every relevant study, according to FDA rules, and the three other studies that General Mills submitted don't seem to clearly support the claim, Schneeman wrote, referring to Karmally (2005), Reynolds (2000) and Maki (2009). Two of the studies don't report the average cholesterol reduction for people in the study who ate Cheerios vs. people who didn't eat Cheerios. The third study lasted four weeks, not the six weeks suggested in the Cheerios claim.

The FDA said that they did not hold enough strength to support the claim and that to make such a bold statement they must take into account not just one study, but every relevant study. The FDA's letter also said that both the "4 percent in 6 weeks" claim and the "10 percent in one month" claim are based on three servings (3 cups) of Cheerios daily. The letter went on to suggest that the phrases might need to be reworked to make it clear that they don't refer to a single serving. Cheerios is still standing behind belief and is battling with the FDA, but has removed the statements from their products.

This is an example of a disclaimer violation and further, a manipulation of standards violation. Often companies use disclaimers to try and absolve themselves of their legal responsibility for their own actions. Along with unreasonable conditions usually there is a fine print in hopes that consumers will commit themselves without reading it. When a company manipulates a standard, they make something have a different meaning than what it is widely understood as.

I don't think this type of advertising is right. So often in reports and advertisements we see facts that we just accept right away. We don't question really where they've come from or the resource. I think it's good that we have organizations such as the FDA, FTC and other government organizations watching out for unreliable statements and that there are punishments. I don't think that General Mills handled this situation very well at all. They do not to seem to see their statement as wrong in anyway and don't appear to be concerned with telling the public the truth. Lastly, I don't think this issue will hurt the Cheerios or General Mills brand very much, if at all, but I am glad they took these generalized samples off their products.

Where is there hope for creative careers in the corporate world during a recession?

It's not a surprise that creative departments and agencies suffer when businesses and organizations are not doing well enough to keep the basic parts running. When companies are stretching all of their money across the board just to get by and stay open, they're not going to pay for the frills and lace that makes them fancy and unique. Even if it is 'for the best of the company,' it kills me to read the poetic statement released after each layoff that they paid some poor communications employee who is still left to write.

I was inspired to write about creative employee layoffs when I heard the announcement of Target Corps decision to layoff eight percent of its corporate marketing department this past Thursday. Since I am looking for a public relations career in the Twin Cities, I was upset to learn the news. Even though the retailer reported declining profits eight quarters in a row, spokeswoman Lena Michaud said the layoffs were unrelated to the economy or Target's financial performance. Instead, the layoffs are part of a "reorganization to make sure marketing is aligned to the needs of the business," Michaud said. The laid-off workers will get full pay and benefits through Dec. 14, severance based on years of service and the option to continue their health insurance for 12 months at their current employee rate, Michaud said.

Two years ago, before this current recession the PR, ad and marketing industries thought they were working their way back up to the booming business days of the 1980s. However, this Summer the Star Tribune wrote about the funk the creative industries are falling into. "The recession changed all that. Some agencies saw layoffs. Some saw revenues decline. Some struggled for new business. Some treaded water. Very few have thrived. 'Flat is the new up,' became the mantra for bottom-line financial growth, but even flat is an ambitious goal when corporate clients are slashing marketing and advertising dollars." (David Phelps, June 22, 2009)
Another hard hit to the creative industry in the Twin Cities came this Summer when Carmichael Lynch laid off a number of its employees. "Like everyone else we had to pare a few people," said Doug Spong, President of Carmichael Lynch, the third-largest agency in Minneapolis. "There isn't anyone else in town who hasn't." Held primarily by the new business from Subaru and stable business from longtime clients like Harley-Davidson, Carmichael Lynch saw revenues increase by 5 percent last year to $63 million. "Agencies are a reflection of their clients, and we've been very fortunate to have a brand like Subaru that is at a price point that consumers can afford and is a brand that appeals to the consumer," Spong said.

"About one-third of our clients are cutting back because business is tough. One-third are maintaining or increasing their budget and one-third is just kind of flat," said Carmichael Lynch CEO Steve Wehrenberg. Wehrenberg said the agency's food and packaged goods clients are doing fine as penny-pinched Americans stay at home to eat their meals while its hard-hit financial sector clients like the Hartford are doing less. On the other hand, Campbell Mithun learned just this summer that H&R Block, a client of nine years, is taking its $120 million book of business to another agency. "It's definitely not a growth year for us unless a miracle happens," Wehrenberg said.

Martin Williams had two rounds of layoffs, totaling 30 people after the agency lost a telecom client and was an unsuccessful bidder for financial services giant J.P. Morgan. Annual revenue of $62 million was down 1.6 percent in 2008, according to Adweek Media. "We saw this coming and made adjustments," said CEO Tom Moudry. "We've tried to control costs, travel, office functions, summer parties, subscriptions. If there's a silver lining, it's that we've taken a look internally and restructured to be faster."

On the upside, the Olson agency actually grew in the heart of the economic downturn. The company went from 156 employees in 2007 to 186 employees in 2008. John Olson, founder, boasts of 11 consecutive years of double-digit growth, including an increase from $25.1 million in 2007 to $35 million last year. In the past year, Olson has landed clients such as Memorex, Carlson Country Inns & Suites, Lee Jeans, Chinet and United Health Group's Ovations division. "We're not chasing everything," Olson President Kevin DiLorenzo. "Sometimes you have to say no."

Colle+McVoy saw its 2008 revenues reach an eight-year high at $26.3 million. Interactive billings increased by 300 percent and now account for 30 percent of the agency's revenue. "We're extremely fortunate. We have no clients in the (battered) automotive, financial or health care sectors," said Colle Chief Executive Christine Fruechte. The rise in social networking means more work from its interactive clients, which include ESPN, Yahoo, Aveda and the Manhattan Toy Co.

Online seems to be proving the way creative industries can still grow in these tough times. "The people who are doing well have a specialty in new media for a direct one on one contact with the customer like social media and interactive media," said St. Thomas's Purdy. "It's an intriguing toy to a lot of clients." The Associated Press agrees. Just this month they wrote that "signs of an online revival are emerging even while advertising in print and broadcasts remain in a slump that has triggered mass layoffs, pay cuts and other upheaval."

"You can draw a straight line from the time when people hear an ad on the radio or television to when they search for that company on the Internet," said David Karnstedt, chief executive of Efficient Frontier, which helps manage ad campaigns on search engines. These trends will give Internet advertising 19 percent, or nearly $87 billion, of the worldwide ad market in 2013, up from just 4 percent, or about $18 billion, in 2004, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers and Wilkofsky Gruen Associates. That would make the Internet the third-largest marketing medium. Television is expected to remain on top, with $168 billion, or 36 percent of the global ad market in 2013, up from 35 percent in 2004. Newspapers would still be No. 2, but their $92 billion in advertising revenue is projected to account for 20 percent of the global ad market, down from 28 percent in 2004. (Star Tribune, Michael Liedtke, October 20, 2009)