...I would be on my way to feed hungry families right now, thanks to Oscar Mayer's Good Mood Mission.
The Good Mood Mission is a partnership between Oscar Mayer (a Kraft brand) and Feeding America (the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization).
Visitors to www.goodmoodmission.com can help feed needy families across America by completing a Good Mood statement like, "It doesn't get better than...." or "The best cure for a case of the Mondays is..." By completing the statement "If I could ride shotbun in the Wienermobile, I'd...", they can also enter to win a ride in the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile for a day.
For each of these "Good Moods" submitted, Oscar Mayer will donate one pound of food to Feeding America.
For each "Good Mood" shared with friends via Facebook or email, Oscar Mayer will donate five pounds of food.
For each person who becomes a fan of Oscar Mayer on Facebook, Oscar Mayer will donate ten pounds of food.
Plus, folks can visit ebay.com/oscarmayer to bid on the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. The winning bidder will win the Wienermobile for a day, plus a catered Oscar Mayer cookout for 50, and a year's supply of Oscar Mayer wieners. All of the proceeds will be donated to Feeding America. As of this writing, the bid is at $1111.11 - the auction ends June 4, 2010.
This kind of initiative is why I love the idea of social cause marketing. Organizations support - and encourage their customers to support - a worthy cause, and build something fun around the effort. With the Good Mood Mission, people all over the world can contribute to the conversation, enjoy reading others' Good Moods, daydream about riding in the Wienermobile, watch a funny video of actor Ty Burrell with the Wienermobile, and have their days brightened in the process.
Not to mention that when they do so, they are also causing Oscar Mayer to feed hungry families.
If a company is going to make a contribution to a non-profit organization, why not give their customers a chance to get involved as well? And why not have fun doing it, and create a great experience for the customers who join in?
It has worked for Oscar Mayer and Feeding America so far - the goal for the Good Mood Mission was to donate 3 million pounds of food. As of this writing, 2,904,795 pounds have been donated.
As a corporation, find a way to help the world, and find a way to enable others to join in.
"...if I were an Oscar Mayer weiner, everyone would be in love with me!"
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Mascots, the Olympics, and Audiences
Yesterday the world was introduced to Wenlock and Mandeville, the mascots for the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The two were fashioned from drops of molten steel that spilled during the pouring of the last beam for the London Olympic stadium. They magically sprung to life, began to learn the Olympic and Paralympic events, and now roam throughout the world on a rainbow, teaching children about the games.
Or, at least, that's the story that is shown in this short film about the shiny, jiggly creatures.
In reality, the two friends are creations of London agency Iris. The one-eyed, bipedal, androgynous creatures were chosen as non-human, non-animal beings that would appeal to children, and whose "skin" could be changed to reflect different nations, events, etc. The orange light atop the head of each represents the lights standard on London taxicabs; while the single eye can be used as a camera to facilitate social, video, and interactive marketing.
The names point to the contributions that the U.K. has made to the modern Olympic Games: Much Wenlock in Shropshire held games that inspired Baron Pierre de Coubertin to found the modern Olympic movement in the 19th century; Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire was the location of the first "parallel Olympics" in 1948 for World War II soldiers with spinal injuries.
Within a day of their introduction, the London 2012 Wenlock and Mandeville are quite active in public interaction - each is on Facebook (I am Wenlock and I am Mandeville) and Twitter (@iamwenlock and @iammandeville), and, of course, they have their own website. And together they are visiting schools to encourage children to live active lifestyles.
Also within the past 36 hours, the duo have received much flak (disdain, scorn, disbelief, derision, contempt) from online audiences. One journalist compared them to a cross between Sonic the Hedgehog and Mike Wazowski; one design critic called them "computerised Smurfs for the iPhone generation."
The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), on the other hand, hopes that the mascots will "chime with children," "connect young people with sport and tell the story of our proud Olympic and Paralympic history," and "help inspire kids to strive to be the best they can be."
It would seem that many adults (or at least, many vocal, online adults) fail to see the attractiveness of creatures. We've yet to hear the voice of the children on the matter.
If the main audience for Wenlock and Mandeville is adults, LOCOG may have missed their target. If their main audience is indeed children, they may have hope yet.
Note to marketers: create for your audience.
The two were fashioned from drops of molten steel that spilled during the pouring of the last beam for the London Olympic stadium. They magically sprung to life, began to learn the Olympic and Paralympic events, and now roam throughout the world on a rainbow, teaching children about the games.
Or, at least, that's the story that is shown in this short film about the shiny, jiggly creatures.
In reality, the two friends are creations of London agency Iris. The one-eyed, bipedal, androgynous creatures were chosen as non-human, non-animal beings that would appeal to children, and whose "skin" could be changed to reflect different nations, events, etc. The orange light atop the head of each represents the lights standard on London taxicabs; while the single eye can be used as a camera to facilitate social, video, and interactive marketing.
The names point to the contributions that the U.K. has made to the modern Olympic Games: Much Wenlock in Shropshire held games that inspired Baron Pierre de Coubertin to found the modern Olympic movement in the 19th century; Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire was the location of the first "parallel Olympics" in 1948 for World War II soldiers with spinal injuries.
Within a day of their introduction, the London 2012 Wenlock and Mandeville are quite active in public interaction - each is on Facebook (I am Wenlock and I am Mandeville) and Twitter (@iamwenlock and @iammandeville), and, of course, they have their own website. And together they are visiting schools to encourage children to live active lifestyles.
Photo from the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG)
Also within the past 36 hours, the duo have received much flak (disdain, scorn, disbelief, derision, contempt) from online audiences. One journalist compared them to a cross between Sonic the Hedgehog and Mike Wazowski; one design critic called them "computerised Smurfs for the iPhone generation."
The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), on the other hand, hopes that the mascots will "chime with children," "connect young people with sport and tell the story of our proud Olympic and Paralympic history," and "help inspire kids to strive to be the best they can be."
It would seem that many adults (or at least, many vocal, online adults) fail to see the attractiveness of creatures. We've yet to hear the voice of the children on the matter.
If the main audience for Wenlock and Mandeville is adults, LOCOG may have missed their target. If their main audience is indeed children, they may have hope yet.
Note to marketers: create for your audience.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Just Plain Fun
I love this idea.
Gatorade and Fox Sports are teaming up to give unsettled high school rivalries a chance to settle the score - a decade after they originally played.
In Replay: The Series, old high school rivals are nominated to play again in re-matches organized by Gatorade and Fox Sports. The two companies provide training, coaches, a venue, and the opportunity to bring closure to old competition.
The first season of Replay: The Series featured the 1993 football teams from Easton (PA) Area High School and Phillipsburg (NJ) High School. The 1993 Thanksgiving Day game between these two long-time rivals ended in a disappointing tie. On April 26, 2009, these same players - now 33-year-olds, not 18-year-olds - suited up one final time to determine a winner once and for all.
Gatorade provided eight weeks of intensive training for the teams (as well as sports drinks for the game, of course); while Peyton and Eli Manning served as honorary coaches for the big game.
The second season of Replay: The Series culminated in a hockey match last Sunday, May 9, 2010, between the 1999 teams of Central Catholic High School and Trenton High School, both from Detroit. The original 1999 game ended in a draw after a player's jugular vein was sliced open by a skate. Eleven years later, that player inspired Gatorade and Fox Sports to reunite the teams for a final match-up.
I love Replay: The Series simply because it's fun.
It's fun to hear the stories of the original fateful (or non-fateful, however you want to look at them) games.
It's fun to see the passion and anticipation of these former high school athletes and their hometown fans.
It's fun to see grown men get back into shape for a shot at redemption.
It's fun to read player bios, follow the training, and watch the final outcomes of the games on the Replay website.
And it's fun to nominate one's own high school team for a Replay via the Replay Lineup Finder on Facebook.
If you want to build love of your brand, connect better to your audience, and strengthen brand awareness, why not do it with something that's just plain fun for people to participate in and to watch? Create a fun and worthwhile experience; people will remember you for it.
Gatorade and Fox Sports are teaming up to give unsettled high school rivalries a chance to settle the score - a decade after they originally played.
In Replay: The Series, old high school rivals are nominated to play again in re-matches organized by Gatorade and Fox Sports. The two companies provide training, coaches, a venue, and the opportunity to bring closure to old competition.
The first season of Replay: The Series featured the 1993 football teams from Easton (PA) Area High School and Phillipsburg (NJ) High School. The 1993 Thanksgiving Day game between these two long-time rivals ended in a disappointing tie. On April 26, 2009, these same players - now 33-year-olds, not 18-year-olds - suited up one final time to determine a winner once and for all.
Gatorade provided eight weeks of intensive training for the teams (as well as sports drinks for the game, of course); while Peyton and Eli Manning served as honorary coaches for the big game.
The second season of Replay: The Series culminated in a hockey match last Sunday, May 9, 2010, between the 1999 teams of Central Catholic High School and Trenton High School, both from Detroit. The original 1999 game ended in a draw after a player's jugular vein was sliced open by a skate. Eleven years later, that player inspired Gatorade and Fox Sports to reunite the teams for a final match-up.
I love Replay: The Series simply because it's fun.
It's fun to hear the stories of the original fateful (or non-fateful, however you want to look at them) games.
It's fun to see the passion and anticipation of these former high school athletes and their hometown fans.
It's fun to see grown men get back into shape for a shot at redemption.
It's fun to read player bios, follow the training, and watch the final outcomes of the games on the Replay website.
And it's fun to nominate one's own high school team for a Replay via the Replay Lineup Finder on Facebook.
If you want to build love of your brand, connect better to your audience, and strengthen brand awareness, why not do it with something that's just plain fun for people to participate in and to watch? Create a fun and worthwhile experience; people will remember you for it.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
It's Not Just a Bag
Anything that reminds people about your organization is a representative for your brand.
Hence we have logos - visual representations of the corporate identity of a brand. We have advertising campaigns, carefully planned to accurately convey a brand's identity and proposed value to consumers. We have colors, fonts, store designs, soundtracks, and even smells that are strategically chosen for what they say about their respective brands.
But other things speak for your brand as well:
Your partners (I blogged about that last week).
Your product packaging (I blogged about that two weeks ago).
Your facilities (how tidy are they?).
Your corporate vehicles (how often do you wash them?).
Your shopping bags.
Shopping bags (and other distribution packaging) have great - and often underused - potential as branding tools. Well-designed and attractively-branded shopping bags provide two marketing tactics in one:
Bloomingdales does an outstanding job of using shopping bags as branded items. People notice the cute, clever "Little Brown Bags" with which Bloomingdales customers leave their stores. The more customers shop at Bloomingdales, the more those Little Brown Bags are seen by others, and the more other people see public approval of the Bloomingdales brand.
FedEx also uses their "shopping bags" (aka their boxes) well. Every time you receive a package via FedEx, you see the FedEx logo, and are given another example of a customer who used FedEx for their shipping needs.
Start-up companies can use branded shopping bags to great advantage as they work to build brand recognition. Each time a customer carries out a branded shopping bag, the organization receives another instance of free advertising in the community, and another testimony of a [presumably satisfied] customer.
And to be remarkable, shopping bags need not be simple plastic bags stamped with a logo (although they very well could be). Why not use your shopping bags as another opportunity to exhibit great design? Why stick with a one-color print on plastic? Why not make your shopping bags something that are fun and attractive to carry around? Something that reinforces your brand's personality?
So, how are your shopping bags representing you? Do they speak your name in a clever, fun, innovative, or attractive way? Or do they speak your name at all?
Hence we have logos - visual representations of the corporate identity of a brand. We have advertising campaigns, carefully planned to accurately convey a brand's identity and proposed value to consumers. We have colors, fonts, store designs, soundtracks, and even smells that are strategically chosen for what they say about their respective brands.
But other things speak for your brand as well:
Your partners (I blogged about that last week).
Your product packaging (I blogged about that two weeks ago).
Your facilities (how tidy are they?).
Your corporate vehicles (how often do you wash them?).
Your shopping bags.
Shopping bags (and other distribution packaging) have great - and often underused - potential as branding tools. Well-designed and attractively-branded shopping bags provide two marketing tactics in one:
- First, they serve as free advertising - distributing your logo, willingly, through the hands of every customer.
- Second, they serve as social proof - every customer seen with your shopping bag indicates support of your brand to those around them. And as Robert Cialdini would tell us, observing the approval of others towards a brand gives permission to new potential customers to try the brand, too.
Bloomingdales does an outstanding job of using shopping bags as branded items. People notice the cute, clever "Little Brown Bags" with which Bloomingdales customers leave their stores. The more customers shop at Bloomingdales, the more those Little Brown Bags are seen by others, and the more other people see public approval of the Bloomingdales brand.
FedEx also uses their "shopping bags" (aka their boxes) well. Every time you receive a package via FedEx, you see the FedEx logo, and are given another example of a customer who used FedEx for their shipping needs.
Start-up companies can use branded shopping bags to great advantage as they work to build brand recognition. Each time a customer carries out a branded shopping bag, the organization receives another instance of free advertising in the community, and another testimony of a [presumably satisfied] customer.
And to be remarkable, shopping bags need not be simple plastic bags stamped with a logo (although they very well could be). Why not use your shopping bags as another opportunity to exhibit great design? Why stick with a one-color print on plastic? Why not make your shopping bags something that are fun and attractive to carry around? Something that reinforces your brand's personality?
So, how are your shopping bags representing you? Do they speak your name in a clever, fun, innovative, or attractive way? Or do they speak your name at all?
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