Alex Woodruff Biz Buzz

Having already posted on the progressive marketing skills of the Bavarian beer-loving Pope, I am pleased to see his publicity bandwaggon is accelerating. In preparation for his 2008 tour of the United States, he’s gone and got himself a logo. I love that fetching yellow sweeping arch. It expresses all the dynamism and forward-looking zap [...]

This has to be one of the most blatant examples I’ve ever seen of “passing off”. Basically, the neatly named “Dromedary” is counting on Mexican illiteracy, cross-eyed consumers, or pure ignorance. It may be no surprise to hear that – as far as I’m aware – this brand (that is clearly riding on the back [...]

Problem-solution advertising through and through, scanned in from a German magazine: But somehow this is so blatant, it’s corny. OK, the target market is clear. OK, it clearly shows the “brand benefit”. OK it’s encouraging men to drink this alcoholic beverage and not just women. But do me a favour. Actually, under new guidelines in [...]

While more and more people in west European countries complain about the rising number of immigrants, some marketing departments are recognising the demographic shifts and responding to the opportunity. In the States this started happening a long time ago. The Mexican population alone numbers more than 15m – that would be a whole country in [...]

In 1963 Kennedy made a promise to the American people that the US would put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. Sadly he was never there to see it happen, but his proud scientists did it. It took billions in investment, with money thrown almost recklessly at “getting it right [...]

If you ever have any type of business dealings on an international level, you’ll know how easy it is to have misunderstandings. Speaking the same language helps, but it only allows you to understand interactions, not cultural motivations, beliefs and fundamental assumptions underlying those interactions. Much work has been done on cultural differences, spearheaded in [...]

In assessing the impact on the marketing environment made by technology change, Kotler describes a somewhat unexpected chain of trends, products and markets created by the invention of the condom and contraceptive pill. In fact some claim contraception was one of the most influential inventions on mankind in the whole of the 20th century. The [...]

Nothing like poking fun at the competition. Some people would maintain you must be desperate for something really interesting to say if you have to resort to mud flinging, but this sequence of ads from South Africa was amusing. It started with this: To which came this superlative: Others joined in: It was rounded off [...]

According to the story I heard, a few years ago at the big German car show, the IAA, the makers of the new Mini (BMW) decided to put their car next to a Smart (made by arch enemy Mercedes) and fill them both with ping pong balls. As visitors to their stand could clearly see, [...]

Leading maker of biscuits in Australia, Arnotts, dominates many product sectors. Their TimTam brand is a household name. Yummy chocolate layers, yummy cream chocolate filling, yummy chocolate covering. Enter Dick Smith, the local hero Down Under and a keen opportunity spotter. Dick is a champion of me-too products and the curse of many a brand [...]