Media

Whether it’s a lame joke or a fair assessment, you know the print industry is in trouble when Playboy is struggling. Although the brand may be slightly taboo, the relevance to modern business is uncanny. With increased competition on the web, an uprising youthful market, and technological advancements, it’s time for Hugh to pull a few tricks out of his red silk robe sleeves. Over the past year, Playboy has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons – decreased sales, buyout speculation, and now strategic direction – revealing the astonishing truth that it’s not all about the great articles… That is why Playboy’s popular, right? [...]

What a week to not be a celebrity. Besides shocked, the passing of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson might leave us all a little relieved that we’re as unfamous as we are. Superstitious or not, there seemed to be some sort of celebrity curse making the rounds. But to many of us branding/advertising/marketing types, the aforementioned stars aren’t the main loss on our minds. Rather, it’s the passing of legendary pitchman Billy Mays that resonates most strongly. Yup, for once he got our full attention without screaming at us that we’ll get TWO TUBS OF OXI CLEAN IF YOU ORDER NOW!! or that PHONE LINES ARE NOW OPEN!! [...]

Now that Oprah’s tweeting, your grandmother has a blog, kids are downloading their favourite shows and movies, and we all have Internet access on our phones, it’s tempting to believe the hype that standard TV advertising is going cold. That TV’s bigger, more interactive, more world-wider cousin has given it so many wedgies it can’t even sit right anymore, much less engage us. But put those defibrillator paddles down. This medium has as strong a pulse as ever. If you believe a new study, it’s possibly in the best shape it’s ever been in. [...]

If repetition is the way to get an idea into people’s heads, then D.B. Scott succeeded in letting us know that power of print is far from dead. At the MagazinesEast2009 presentation on the Power of Print, I realized that magazine advertising can have a unique effect on consumers, one that is still unrivaled by their media counterparts. I started thinking about the influence of magazines in my own life and realized they are the one source of information I willingly buy into with my undivided attention. [...]