Monthly Archive for November, 2006
In a very smart move Yahoo has identified 100 brands or properties that are very popular with its users and is using that as the basis for creating brand/product focused mini sites that pull together content from all over Yahoo.
Two very prominent social media properties that are getting blended together here are Flickr and Delicious, giving these mini sites a very authentic and dynamic feel. Add that the integration of Yahoo videos and you can see how Yahoo is really leveraging these tools to create something greater than the sum of it’s parts. Weaving the whole thing together is an overarching design and yahoo authored, professionally created content.
I’m sure there are some partnerships that are going on behind the scenes here, so maybe yahoo is getting some kickbacks, I mean what brand wouldn’t want Yahoo to put together a mini portal for their product. The only thing there missing on their Wii portal is a stock tracker where I can find one of those elusive little bastards.
UPDATE:
I tell a lie, they do have a stock tracker on their buyers guide
Tip of the hat
Update:
Some more coverage on AdWeek and Marketing Vox
Previously I blogged about the BlendTec blenders and I asked the question “does your company make something extraordinary” scamp commented that most companies don’t make extraordinary products.
Well as a wonderful video counterpoint to this, Milwaukee Best Light beer (which could never be accused of being anything but ordinary) decided to put a campaign together that highlighted their very ordinary product being used in a rather extraordinary way. That is fired out of a cannon.
In many ways the Milwaukee idea is rather like the Mentos/Diet Coke thing in the fact that it is the act that is extraordinary and not the product. In many ways I imagine that this kind of video serves more of an “awareness” building purpose than a “preference” building purpose. I’m more aware of Milwaukee Light Beer, but I’m more likely to consider a blend tec blender now that i’ve seen it chew up a rake.
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Second Lifer Anshe Chung now has “in game” assets valued at over 1 million USD
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Agencies shouldn’t try and reinvent the wheel but partner with the experts and thoughtleaders
Steven Colbert says the number 1 threat on the “threat down” is the Nintendo Wii, because he can’t tear himself away!
I think google maps must have changed the way it detects browsers as now it’s telling me my firefox 2 based browser (actuall BonEcho for intel based macs) is not compatible. Even worse, they totally blog access from the google maps application, redirecting you to a totally hobbled version of the app. The minimum requirement it states is Firefox 0.8 which this browser is. Worse that that there is no one to tell about this which is incredibly frustrating. I ended up joining a google group for support and looked under “maps troubleshooting” and found another post from a user experiencing the same problem:
From: *****@gmail.com - view profile
Date: Wed, Nov 22 2006 3:55 am
Date: Wed, Nov 22 2006 3:55 am
I’ve been using Firefox 1.0 Preview for nearly 2 years now. I’ve been
using Google maps about as long as it’s been around. I’ve always been
thankful for Google’s lean, yet powerful and flexible interface.
Suddenly, it’s telling me my browser is outdated. I check the list of
browser minimums and it says Firefox 0.8. I’ve changed nothing on my PC
(including software) since the last time I was able to use Google maps.
Anybody knows what’s going on? What Google changed that suddenly I’m
locked out? Thank you for your time.
and look at this useless answer, i’m not even sure they read the post
From: Google employee Google Maps Guide - view profile
Date: Wed, Nov 22 2006 3:50 pm
Email: “Google Maps Guide”
Date: Wed, Nov 22 2006 3:50 pm
Email: “Google Maps Guide”
I’m sorry to hear you’re unable to access Maps. We try to test as many
browsers as possible, and you may run into problems when using a browser we
don’t regularly test. From time to time a unsupported browser works on Maps,
but I can’t guarantee it will work as we continuously make changes and
improvements to our site. For a list of support browsers, please visit
http://maps.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=16532
We’re both using browsers “better” than the minimum requirement and still they block access to the maps program with this message:
This experience is very frustrating because it takes my ability to control the situation and make decisions out of my hands. It would be much better if they said “it looks like your using a browser we don’t support so use the application at your own risk”, that way I could use the maps application even if there detection script is broken 
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Bob Garfield on YouTube
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video from the cut & paste competition in SF
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very cool tool
From next Monday through Dec. 31, the Procter & Gamble Charmin brand will operate a public restroom in the heart of Times Square, amply stocked with Charmin Ultra, and complete with attendants who are assigned to clean up after each use.
And google will be supplying contextual ads
Tip of the Hat to John Winsor
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