A Question of Dumb Marketing?

Regarding Dumb Marketing, here’s an ad from this month’s Bicycle magazine. The product is a plastic wrist bracelet ID with your name and emergency information for a mere $29. Now, is it just me, or aren't EMTs are trained to look for an ID? Plus a driver’s license (which you've already paid for) can fit in even the tightest Lycra racing shorts.

The tagline for this ad about an ID bracelet is, “It’s who I am.” Thanks Captain Obvious!

Well that’s awesome.

     “I was so pleased, when I got my new Road ID bracelet. It was who I am. It had my very own name and everything. Thank you.”

                    Bill Stzanton, Dayton OH

So, at $35,000 per page insertion rate (circulation 435,000) and a 6 issue ad buy with a 40% gross margin:

1.  Do they sell the 36,000 Road ID units required to generate a paltry 2X ROI on the ad spend?

2.  Is it just me, or is that tagline really, really dumb?

Answer these two pressing questions with This Link!

Dilbert creator Scott Adams on Storytelling

Cartoonist Scott Adams chimes in on Storytelling in the hiring process – hilarious!

http://www.dilbert.com/strips/comic/2014-10-01

Intel's Bryan Rhoads Cracks Up Content Marketers

Brian Rhoads is the Manager of Intel's Media Lab (he has a cool job). He also won Content Marketer of the Year at the 2,500 person Content Marketing World event in Cleveland, OH. Marketing World is produced by the Content Marketing Institute.

Rhoad's was cross scheduled with Intel's own event, but the video he produced as an acceptance speech provides an awesome example of how humor engages audiences.

Great content. And stories about how to create great content!

Got the YouTube PlayList up and running. TTV Great Stories. 

Please send any suggestions - thx.

What constitutes great content?

Here's an article on how Red Bull uses content marketing (they may be the best on the planet at doing so), and one of my favorite examples of Epic Content. What "great" content have you seen lately produced by B2B marketers?

Epic Foreword

EPIC CONTENT MARKETING -- HOW TO TELL A DIFFERENT STORY, BREAK THROUGH THE CLUTTER, AND WIN MORE CUSTOMERS BY MARKETING LESS.

We secured permission to share the foreword to Joe Pulizzi's latest book, written by Michael Brenner, Vice President of Marketing and Content Strategy at SAP. If I ever sit still long enough to write a book, I hope that someone steps up to the task of crafting a foreword like Brenner did.
Please let us know what you think!

TTV Partner Profile: Fisheye Media Productions

I have had the pleasure of working with FishEye for the better part of the decade. Live events are the number one tactic employed by Content Marketing pros according to CMI's (Content Marketing Institute's) 2014 industry survey. Video production is number 3. FishEye does both.

Do you consider live events and video to be cornerstone tactics for your content marketing program?