Ubiquitous Marketing

Ubiquitous Marketing is the personal weblog of Keith O’Brien, editor-in-chief of PRWeek. All opinions and work represent that of Keith O’Brien and not of his employer. Topics covered include marketing, PR, advertising, journalism, culture (both mainstream and alternative), and their inevitable confluence.

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Entries from May 2008

On oil, onwards to ‘06 elections

January 31st, 2006 · No Comments

Let’s assume the CW out there is correct: there are two distinct forces: Bush-bashers and Bush-lovers whose opinions (and political affiliation) are impenetrable; they’re pulling levers straight down the line in ‘06, no matter the personal beneficiary. Let’s also throw out the possibility that a politician is making decisions without pursuing a political strategy. Save [...]

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Tags: Politics · Television

The oddball blog announcement world runs through Rubel

January 31st, 2006 · No Comments

Via the aforementioned Rubel, we learn that the LAFD is blogging.
I am incredibly unconvinced that this will be able to really factor into situations where a blog would really matter. It’s not going to staunch crisis; it will post the communications equivalent of "hello, I’m your waiter this evening; I’ll be right back to [...]

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Tags: Crisis Communications · Weblogs

Frey, continued

January 26th, 2006 · No Comments

It appears that Oprah Winfery has reversed her opinion on James Frey’s fabrications.
Oprah is normally careful to a fault, and this reversal, to admittedly unknowing eyes, seems owed to voluminous amounts of criticism/complaints from Oprah viewers.
Says Gawker, who has someone at the event live-blogging:
Oprah opens the show by saying she’s sorry; she also apologizes for [...]

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Tags: Television · Ubiquitous

Edelman, podcast

January 26th, 2006 · No Comments

Via multiple blogs,
Edelman has launched a podcast, to be helmed by Phil Gomes.
Tags: Edelman, podcasts

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Tags: Ubiquitous

On McDonald’s and impatient stakeholders

January 25th, 2006 · No Comments

McDonald’s launched a blog called Open for Discussion (not the worst title it could use), which focuses on corporate social responsibility matters.
Of course, since there’s only one post from 1/19, people have already started counting down the time until it’s abandoned. So it seems in the marcomms blog world that you’re chided into starting a [...]

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Tags: Weblogs

The quotes that matter #3

January 20th, 2006 · No Comments

Person: Jack Shafer
Source: PRWeek (free link)

“If you look at what has happened in the last ten years on the web-for somebody to start up a calendar service, or even a webzine, in 1996 would have taken hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of computers, and the bandwidth would have cost you up the wing-wang, and [...]

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Tags: Events/Promotions · Media · Ubiquitous · Weblogs

Addendum (though it appears before)

January 20th, 2006 · No Comments

Read the previous post first.
What do you think of those financial service ads that show the boomers as hippies, then as adults, playing the guitar as they’re discussing retirement options. Too cool, huh? No?
My twenties generation (though I’m close to 27 now) and that generation (at youth) have their similarities. Music, avant garde film, [...]

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Tags: Benign Corporate Patronage · Music · Sponsorships · Weblogs

Remarks on challenges you will face when you attempt to purvey products to me

January 20th, 2006 · No Comments

Let’s look at Keith O’Brien as a consumer.
Sure, I have a laser-like focus on the ad/marcomms for my day job. But
I consume; I ache for the  societal tethering that owning products provides as little or as much as the next guy.
Here are some basic truths:
I spend a lot of time online
A good [...]

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Tags: 18-35 marketing · Benign Corporate Patronage · Music · Sponsorships · Weblogs · Word-of-mouth

‘WaPo’ has enough

January 19th, 2006 · No Comments

The Washington Post’s blog post.blog has shut down its comments function, citing "personal attacks, the use of profanity and hate speech."
Allowing unfettered commentary in an area where no small number of right-wing advocates believe in a biased traditional media is obviously a difficult decision. I do hope the WaPo does figure out how to restore [...]

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Tags: Events/Promotions · Media · Weblogs

The quotes that matter #2

January 19th, 2006 · No Comments

Anonymous Fortune 500 executive:
“They don’t have to maintain their own blog, but if I say, ‘Technorati,’ and they don’t know what I’m talking about, the interview is over.”

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Tags: Ubiquitous · Weblogs