Category Archives: Marketing Matters

PARCEL SCAM

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With Christmas fast approaching the frequency of the Undelivered Parcel Scam will be increasing.

As most readers will know this is where we receive emails, or cards through the door, advising us to call a telephone number to trace a parcel addressed to us that a parcel delivery service was unable to deliver. The number turns out to be a premium rate one that costs at least £1.50 a minute, billed through your friendly telephone service provider, who take a lucrative cut of the fraud and squeal. if challenged, that they are simply the utterly innocent “conduit” for the fraudsters.

Dont make any of them richer at this festive time. www.crimestoppers-uk.org

IMAGE PROBLEM

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A basic annual salary of £1 million is “very low”, according to Sir Martin Sorrell, head of advertising agency WPP.

Sorrell was being interviewed on BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme when he revealed that he has to struggle along on the above amount, made less challenging by an additional £3.2 million in incentives.

Some have wondered what planet Sorrell is living on. For our part we wonder why a man who makes such a screw-up of his own public image should be heading a firm whose job it is to look after other people’s.

SEXUALISATION

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The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is introducing tough new rules governing racy and provocative images on billboards, which are claimed to have the effect of sexualising children.

Some images which have been used by the clothing and perfume companies will be banned from placement within 100 yards of schools and the more sexual will be banned altogether.

FTC BUTTS IN

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Trainer makers Reebok have been fined 25 million dollars (£16 million) in the USA by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for falsely claiming that their EasyTone product was proven to tone it’s customer’s buttock muscles 28% more than its rivals.

In the UK the face of Reebok, (in the USA the fanny?) is model Kelly Brock, who poses on billboards in just a pair of EasyTones, showing off a possibly airbrushed posterior that might or might not have been toned by them.

TOP TASTES FOR XMAS

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A recent blind tasting by a team at foodie magazine Delicious found that some of the cheapest Christmas fare available tasted the best, after tasting 121 samples.

An Asda Christmas Pudding at £3 beat others up to £14, a Tesco Christmas Cake at £10 beat others up to £23, Co-op mince pies at £2 beat others up to £9.25 and champagne from Morrisons at £19.99 beat others up to £30.99. Those beaten included products at luxury prices from Heston Blumenthal, Fortnum and Mason, Waitrose and Harrods.

TWEET TOO FAR

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Sending helpful tweets can be bad for your wealth, it seems.

The £60,000 a year head of Greewich Tourism, Neil McCullam, told his fellow twitters about a trip he was making to Woolwich, which has something of a name for pickpockets, and advised that he was going to “make sure wallet is not visible” Sadly his employers did not share his sense of duty to warn the public about such things and he was sacked for his honesty.

Watch your wallet in Woolwich…

SMELLS REET TASTY

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A new fragrance, Eau de Burton has been launched containing notes of products associated with Burton-on-Trent.

These include smells of brown ale, Branston Pickle and Marmite and the product retails for £36.50 for 500ml.

Of course those wanting to save the money could just splash on some beer and dab a little yeast extract behind the ears…

OSCARS FOR THEM

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Full marks to Ken Livingstone for revealing that the official signing of the host city contract for next year’s London Olympics by Sebastian Coe and the IOC was just an empty stunt to maximise press coverage – the contract had already been signed the night before.(Evening Standard)

In his book, You Can’t Say That, Livingstone reveals that it was the habit of some cities offered the games, especially New York, to try to wriggle out of promises made before agreeing to sign contracts. All five cities in the running were forced to sign their contracts the night before the vote and the winning city, in this case London signed a copy of their contract the next day for the world’s media.

Both Jacqes Rogge of the Olympic Committee and our own Seb Coe should, we feel, receive Oscars for their acting performances.

Marketing Matters Nov/Dec 2011 ISSUE 23

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GET THE BOYCOTT LIST
The latest issue of Ethical Consumer magazine focuses on the effect of boycotts of products and services over the last 20 years and offers a list of all the on-going….

BARCLAYS WORST
Barclays was the UK’s worst bank, going on the number of complaints, in the first six months of this year, say the Financial Services Authority (FSA)…

PARCEL SCAM
With Christmas fast approaching the frequency of the Undelivered Parcel Scam will be increasing. As most readers will know this is where we receive emails, or cards….

IMAGE PROBLEM
A basic annual salary of £1 million is “very low”, according to Sir Martin Sorrell, head of advertising agency WPP….

SEXUALISATION
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is introducing tough new rules governing racy and provocative images on billboards, which are claimed to have the effect….

FTC BUTTS IN
Trainer makers Reebok have been fined 25 million dollars (£16 million) in the USA by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for falsely claiming that their EasyTone….

TOP TASTES FOR XMAS
A recent blind tasting by a team at foodie magazine Delicious found that some of the cheapest Christmas fare available tasted the best, after tasting 121 samples….

TWEET TOO FAR
Sending helpful tweets can be bad for your wealth, it seems. The £60,000 a year head of Greewich Tourism, Neil McCullam, told his fellow twitters about a trip he was….

SMELLS REET TASTY
A new fragrance, Eau de Burton has been launched containing notes of products associated with Burton-on-Trent….

OSCARS FOR THEM
Full marks to Ken Livingstone for revealing that the official signing of the host city contract for next year’s London Olympics by Sebastian Coe and the IOC was just….

ABBREVIATION HELL
On February 28 at Earls Court 2 marketeers can visit three exhibitions, TFM&A, OA&A and DMX….