Disqus - Latest Comments for mfherzog

Re: Mobile Apps from Car Brands Blur Lines Between Branded Utilities and Product Features

mfherzog — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 18:19:18 -0000

Thanks for this informative piece, Bryan. The scenarios and possibilities described inspire in me awe, professionally, and a good bit of horror, personally. Brave new world, indeed.

Re: Virgin Prepares for UK Banking Push

mfherzog — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 15:20:31 -0000

Give me a good reason why I should bank with Virgin? Because Branson knows how to make money? That doesn't mean he will do the same for me. Sorry, but given my experience with Virgin airline, I'd say this is another brand that promises much and keeps little.

Re: Miracle Whip Finds Its Brand Voice

mfherzog — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 09:30:19 -0000

Now that's being in conversation, not just part of it. Way to whip it up, Miracle.

Re: 2009: A Space Odyssey

mfherzog — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:22:31 -0000

And more examples of brands re-imagining space: http://adage.com/digitalnex...

Re: 2009: A Space Odyssey

mfherzog — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:50:14 -0000

Richmond Heights

Re: The Element of Surprise

mfherzog — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:40:47 -0000

This is why I try to avoid at all cost knowing what's on the cover of my favorite mags, until I fish them out of my mailbox.

Re: Post-Agency III: Naming Names

mfherzog — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:49:29 -0000

Even supposedly more forward-thinking members of the trade fall victim to common place ideas and advice. See LA Times less than flattering review of Bogusky (or is it Bogus?) and Winsor's latest book, "Baked In": http://www.latimes.com/busi...

Re: Members Only?

mfherzog — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 08:51:50 -0000

Maybe it's generational, but, frankly, there is a lot of common sense missing, plain and simple: 1) The ATP official who gave the same lousy, badly rehearsed remarks, mostly read from a script, to "congratulate" Clijsters and Del Potro upon their phenomenal wins. 2) The unsuccessfully negotiated(?) TV time to only cut short an exuberant Del Potro who desperately wanted to say a few words to his friends and family in Argentina. Never mind, that he spoke to a much greater (Hispanic/global) audience, than those closest to him. 3) The inability to turn a negative into the beginning of a positive, such as the fact that foot faults cannot reviewed effectively yet. Maybe the hawkeye system could be evolved? And the list goes on...

Re: Members Only?

mfherzog — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:16:21 -0000

Serena's amended apology: http://straightsets.blogs.n.... Too little too late. A consummate professional like her knows better and should have taken advantage of the post-match press conference to apologize sincerely and immediately. However, as disappointed in her, as in professional tennis. Cannot think of another sport that would pussyfoot around an issue so much. Yet another bad day for the professional tennis brand!

Re: Members Only?

mfherzog — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:54:14 -0000

Authors' note: Federer won 15, not 16 grand slams so far.

Re: The Team Colors of Profit

mfherzog — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:53:44 -0000

Old notions of exclusivity and ownership in sports are indeed rampant. I am greatly annoyed whenever tennis commentators, including John McEnroe, whom I adore otherwise, refer to tennis as "our sport."

Re: How Customers Saying "No" Can Become a Consumer Experience "Yes"

mfherzog — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:49:21 -0000

I never tire of Henry Ford's quip: "If we had asked the public what they wanted, they would have said 'faster horses.'"

Re: Refreshing “Refreshing”

mfherzog — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:01:12 -0000

Thanks for coming by, Avery. I agree getting mixed up in politics can be a flirt with danger. That said, brands are part of the cultural fabric after all and so are politics. However, as I pointed out, Pepsi went further and deeper, and mostly moved on from that specific moment in history. The South Korean flag observation is great, and I would love to know what Mr. Arnell has to say about that one...

Re: Refreshing “Refreshing”

mfherzog — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:06:34 -0000

I only wish Pepsi had also applied this thinking to its packaging and retail strategy. As a friend of mine said, the Pepsi packaging looks more like something that's appropriate for crude oil. Imagine each Pepsi package and can in pop soda colors and each carton as the canvas for one of the bits of everyday vernacular: innumerable opportunities for stacking and "writing" different messages (retail as media!) and plenty of opportunities to tailor the display to match the store location and consumer base (and very inexpensive at that!).

Re: Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Shifting Food Trends Suggest Broader Emerging Agenda

mfherzog — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:03:24 -0000

Far Foods -- far out:http://www.jwgreynolds.co.u...

Re: MMMmmmm... Crowdsourced Doughnut

mfherzog — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:58:44 -0000

So true, Rachel. If KK doesn't take this beyond the stale, traditional media stunt, this is going to be as painful as watching dough rise.

Re: Refreshing “Refreshing”

mfherzog — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:19:13 -0000

Thanks so much for the read and comment, Grant. I've been following your work through your books and your blog that "sits at" www.cultureby.com for a number of years. What an honor to have you "pop over."

Re: Data Visualization: Stories for the Information Age

mfherzog — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:00:31 -0000

My vote: forget about Bing or Google...Zoetrope is the real deal when we talk about the semantic web.

Re: Refreshing “Refreshing”

mfherzog — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:05:39 -0000

That's what's so intriguing. Pepsi borrows meaning while adding new meaning to it's own status as a pop (culture) icon. Yet, they do it in a smart, intellectually stimulating way, although it looks deceptively simple at first.

Re: Variable Pricing and Brand Destruction

mfherzog — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:13:21 -0000

One: competing on price only, not a winning proposition. Two: portfolio strategy, anyone?

Re: CNN: Stuck in the Middle with You

mfherzog — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:07:45 -0000

When in Africa earlier this year, CNN was the only "American" broadcast voice we would hear, and it was frustratingly disjointed and repetitive, while the content seemed banal and badly curated for a global brand. Not impressed at all.

Re: Out of Service

mfherzog — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:34:42 -0000

Not even my local NPR station has its fund raising efforts in check: receive e-mail asking me to make my yearly contribution after I just did so during their spring drive; ask me to consider increasing my contribution by $25. Then receive letter with same call to action but with a request to give 2.5 times more than in spring! Message to KWMU: "How about you do zero for the time being, because I will have to think twice whether or not I want to give my hard-earned money to your station anymore. More inconsistent messages and useless mailings won't help, that's for sure!"

Re: A Brand New Broadcast

mfherzog — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:24:54 -0000

Speaking of ingredient brands: although not a poster child for reinvention either, there are some good recent examples how some members of print media have leveraged branded content lately. One I like particularly well is the collaborative effort of Good Magazine and Prius, called Roadmap to Harmony (http://awesome.good.is/ecos....

Re: Out of Service

mfherzog — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:06:10 -0000

To put it bluntly: spending big dollars on advertising, then breaking the consumer trust in a matter of a single interaction is as good as pouring money down the drain.

Re: Brand Katie Holmes Gets Ready for the Judgment Day

mfherzog — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:41:40 -0000

Not just brand Holmes but brand Hollywood is utterly outdated and out of touch. Iron grip control is a thing of the past. How is that for a brand challenge?