Marketing: when the government gets it oh-so wrong
Last week I explored the ways in which the government succeeds at its online marketing, but even then I had to admit that these bursts of brilliance are few and far between.
Unfortunately, sometimes our leaders and public servants just get the whole thing so very wrong. Here are a few of their worst offences but please feel free to add your own. It is like bad call centre experiences, everyone has a story!
Q&A with Thomas A. Cohn, Venable LLP
Tom Cohn is an online advertising legal eagle. During a 17 year stint with the FTC, he was regional director for the Northeast region in the marketing practices division. He's also worked as a legal advisor to the director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Currently, Cohn is with Venable LLP's New York office, where along with legally representing clients, he also advises them on legal and practical aspects of FTC and industry regulatory compliance. His clients include some of the major players in digital advertising as well as industry trade organizations including the IAB, AAAA, AAF, and the DMA.
We caught up with Tom to ask what he sees as the burning legal issues in online advertising today. Number one on his list? The still-in-progress FTC Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
Does the government get online marketing?
The government is not having the best of weeks, what with all the Hobnobs, moats and dog food controversy, so I decided to give our not-so-esteemed leaders a break and concentrate on what they can sometimes get just right: using the web to communicate with citizens.
Q&A: Eric Frenchman, Chief Internet Strategist, Connell Donatelli
Eric Frenchman has been managing online advertising and CRM campaigns for over a decade. His corporate work has involved brands like AT&T, Diageo and Harrisdirect. Today, he's the principal of Eric Frenchman LLC and Chief Internet Strategist for Connell Donatelli Inc., an online agency focused on politics.
In 2008, Eric managed the online campaign of US presidential hopeful John McCain. We spoke with Eric to learn more about that experience, the lessons learned and how some of the techniques Eric and his team applied in the political campaign can be applied by digital marketers at large in advance of his keynote at Econsultancy's The Future of Digital Marketing conference.
European Commission wants software protections
When it comes to software, should consumers be entitled to the same protections they receive when purchasing physical products?
If two European Commission Commissioners have their way, consumers will.
Collecting multichannel customer feedback
It's increasingly common for businesses to seek out feedback from consumers and their customers, both directly and indirectly. From email surveys to customer reviews to brand monitoring solutions, companies have no shortage of tools to try to find out what customers think of them.
The biggest challenge is collecting the data and analyzing it to gain actionable insights.
Is Google avoiding UK taxes?
When you think of tax evaders, you probably think of greedy industrialists, billionaire financiers, criminal masterminds and despised multinational corporations.
You probably don't think of Google, a company which has made it a point to 'do no evil' and spends considerable sums on wholesome pet projects and philanthropic ventures.
EU wants cookie approval
What if you had to receive consent to place a cookie on a user's computer? As an online publisher or digital marketer, you might find it very difficult to operate.
But that's exactly what an amendment that will be voted on in the EU Parliament considers requiring.
US senators take aim at mobile spam
US Senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) want to make unsolicited commercial text messages illegal. They have introduced legislation they're calling the m-SPAM Act of 2009 to put the brakes on mobile spam.
The proposed legislation would strengthen the powers given to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to curb unwanted text messages. Additionally, it would flat out prohibit sending text messages to mobile numbers on the Do-Not-Call registry.
Can the model behind the HuffPo's new venture keep journalism afloat?
As newspapers continue the struggle to adapt and survive in a digital world, just about everyone in the business is trying to figure out how to make journalism a profitable exercise in the 21st century, especially online.
Charging for content is back in vogue, but charging for valuable content that publishers have foolishly devalued through ad-supported business models that don't look so great today is a tough proposition.
Social media: the best and worst of 2009
Email marketing: six steps to improving customer engagement in 2010
Web 2.0
Graham Charlton
Strategy & Planning
