Marketing

Investing in "Ethical" Uranium

by Bob Burton — March 16, 2005 - 5:59am

Mining giant BHP-Billiton's proposed acquisition of WMC Resources, a major uranium mining company, poses no problem for the global ethical investment fund Sustainable Asset Management (SAM). While some ethical funds avoid both BHP-Billiton shares, following the Ok Tedi environmental disaster in Papua New Guinea, and WMC shares, due to its uranium project, SAM holds both. SAM's research manager, Francis Grey, explained that while they don't agree with uranium or nuclear power, company projects owned before 1994 do not affect SAM's "ethical" rating system.

Main Source: 
Australian Financial Review, March 16, 2005. (sub req'd)

McPositioning

by Bob Burton — March 11, 2005 - 12:44am

A new round of global television advertisements developed for McDonald’s by the Leo Burnett advertising agency, Chicago columnist Lewis Lazare writes, are "pushing too hard to position itself as a health-conscious company, a claim that comes off a bit disingenuous." Across the Pacific, New Zealand Minister for Health and former dental nurse Annette King was busy dismissing the suggestion that having Ronald McDonald’s clown face p

Main Source: 
Chicago Sun Times, March 10, 2005

Take the Drug Money and Run

by Diane Farsetta — February 24, 2005 - 9:56am

Two former Ogilvy & Mather marketing executives were found guilty of conspiracy and false claims, for inflating labor costs on a government account with the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy. The decision is "certain to prompt more questions among marketers about just how their ad agencies come up with prices and fees," wrote the Wall Street Journal.

Main Source: 
Wall Street Journal (reg. req'd.), February 23, 2005

Shill to the Beat of the Drum

by Diane Farsetta — February 11, 2005 - 2:11pm

McDonald's and MTV Networks have partnered, in a bid by the fast-food giant "to reach young people without running advertisements." Instead of ads, a new "30-minute monthly programme called MTV Advance Warning" will "feature new musical talent combined with McDonald's advertising imagery." The program will run in the U.S., Latin America, Europe and Asia. The move comes as officials in the U.S.

Main Source: 
Financial Times, February 10, 2005

Buzz Kill

by Diane Farsetta — February 9, 2005 - 2:37pm

To counter criticism of "buzz" or guerrilla marketing, the year-old Word of Mouth Marketing Association developed a code of ethics.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily (reg. req'd.), February 9, 2005

The Hidden (in Plain Sight) Persuaders

by Sheldon Rampton — December 7, 2004 - 11:08am

"Over the July 4 weekend last summer, at cookouts up and down the East Coast and into the Midwest, guests arrived with packages of Al Fresco chicken sausage for their hosts to throw on the grill," writes Rob Walker. Unbeknownst to most of the other guests, the sausage-bearers were agents of a marketing firm called BzzAgent, which gives people rewards for plugging its clients' products.

Main Source: 
New York Times, December 5, 2004

Big Tobacco's Last Gasps?

by Diane Farsetta — December 1, 2004 - 11:00pm

The World Health Organization announced that 40 nations have ratified the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The convention "changes the way Big Tobacco does business," said Kathryn Mulvey of Corporate Accountability International. The convention governs tobacco marketing, taxation and health warnings in signatory countries, starting in March 2005.

Main Source: 
Christian Science Monitor, December 2, 2004

The Drug Industry's Attention to Profit Disorder

by Diane Farsetta — November 28, 2004 - 11:00pm

"A few individuals in government expressing concern can't equal the marketing power of large companies," said a former U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency official, regarding stimulants prescribed for children with "attention deficit hyperactivity disorder" (ADHD). Leading ADHD researcher Dr. William Pelham says McNeil Pharmaceuticals, which manufactures the stimulant Concerta, uses "misleading" marketing campaigns and has pressured Pelham to "water down" his writing.

Main Source: 
AlterNet, November 29, 2004

Like Selling Candy to a Baby

by Diane Farsetta — November 27, 2004 - 11:00pm

The Geppetto Group's Chris McKee concerns himself with "the appeal of fictional characters like Harry Potter and, more broadly, how kid culture had saturated consumer society to the extent that it was becoming the central creative marketing force," reports the New York Times. "Unlike most marketing agencies, Geppetto limits itself exclusively to 'kid products' and 'kid campaigns' for the likes of Lego, Little Tykes, Kids Foot Locker and Coca-Cola. ...

Main Source: 
New York Times, November 28, 2004

Persuasion and Devotion, in Brand America

by Diane Farsetta — November 7, 2004 - 11:00pm

"As long as we become uncritical consumers who trust our irrational, visceral gut feeling over intellect, [marketers and advertisers] will be able to reach us through all the din of messages, and get us to do what they want us to do," said Barak Goodman, one of the producers of the new public television documentary "The Persuaders." The documentary "examines the advertising arms race that's left the American landscape carpet-bombed with marketing and promotional clutter," including

Main Source: 
Boston Herald, November 8, 2004
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