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Bud's Interactive Musical Floor - Guitar Hero For Your Feet

Budweiser wants to féte your fee.

The popular Bud brand is rolling out interactive, musical floor that works like a life-size Rock Band game, where players become the instruments as they perform an rock song, at a metro station in Montreal.

According to Dailydooh, the contraption - called the Studio Bud Musique -  involves an 8' x 8' surface in which player-musicians must display agility and concentration as they try to keep the beat and get to the next musical level as difficulty increases.

Each section of the floor is associated with a specific instrument - drums, electric guitar, lead guitar and electric bass. Play just right, and you're rewarded with the sound of crowds cheering.

"We wanted to provide a never-before-seen experience to Budweiser drinkers in Québec by blending music, projection and video game to create a highly interactive environment,” Stéphanie Trudeau, vice-president public affairs, La Brasserie Labatt, tells the pub. “The Studio Bud Musique delivers all that, putting the players right at the heart of the action.”

You could see how fun this could be at a concert, at a mall, at a metro, anywhere. Especially after players have had a few Buds.

Read more here.

And see lots of photos here.

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“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

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eMarketer: Big Potential for In-Store Mobile Marketing (And Who's Doing It Right, Now)

But that's only if you're doing it right.

According to a new eMarketer report titled "Mobile Shopping from In-Store: A Potential Game-Changer," such things as access to branded mobile product reviews could make a big difference for retailers. I say branded because you don't want to end up, as eMarketer puts it, "a showroom for online pure plays like Amazon."

In my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, I look at how brands like Sephora are taking a proactive approach, creating mobile apps for in-store shoppers to read product reviews from other customers, right at the point of consideration.

How retail brands like Bloomingdales are actively connecting shoppers with shoppers' personal social networks to facilitate that "does this make me look fat or fab?" conversation in the store instead of long after they've left.

And how m-commerce is about to enter the equation in a major new way.

As I recently told the Global Retail Executive Counsel at CTIA last fall, mobile will define the retail winners and losers of the next decade, whether they recognize it today or not.

Read more about the eMarketer report here.

And read more about the book here.

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

 

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Swedish Pop Star Robyn's 3D, Interactive Music Video Fueled By Fans' Twitter Comments

This is pretty innovative: A 3D, interactive music video that's fueled by real-time comments from fans' Twitter feeds.

The song, for Swedish pop star Robyn's single, "Don't F*cking Tell Me What to Do," is written in code that displays the song's lyrics, followed by Twitter comments posted to the #killingme hashtag, making it a unique experience every time you watch.

Catch it here.

And read more about the effort here.

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

 

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Audi A1 Rolls Out Augmented Reality Screensaver

First there was the A4 Challenge iPhone game. Now it's augmented reality.

Audi is just the latest automaker to introduce augmented reality into its marketing efforts. In just the last few weeks, Toyota rolled out 'The Cleanest Test Drive' multiple marker AR experience for its forthcoming hybrid. And Audi itself has used AR to promote the R8.

Now the A1 is getting the treatment, this time in a downloadable screensaver from MagicSymbol that enables users to get a look at, and interact with, the model before it arrives in showrooms. 

In my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (available everywhere books are sold), I look at how a growing number of companies - including automakers like BMW and Toyota - are using augmented reality to engage consumers through high impact, highly immersive experiences.

Audi - always on the cutting edge - looks to have harnessed the technology in an interesting new way A1 shoppers will want to experience.

Read more about the effort (and try it yourself) here.

And read more about the book here.

 

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

 

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Police Use QR Code in Safe Driving Campaign

Police qr code safe driving There's perhaps something a little humorous about using mobile marketing in a safe driving campaign - given the role mobile phones seem to play in so much unsafe driving.

But for England's Surrey County Police, that's the whole point.

In a new effort, outdoor posters and leaflets feature QR codes that, when snapped by barcode reader, takes the user to a dedicated mobile site with more information.

I do hope the posters & flyers feature the overall message enough so users don't have to use the QR code. But this does point to a potentially smart way to connect with the kind of tech- (and text-) savvy teens the campaign is trying to reach.

Maybe we'd better hope Apple's FaceTime video calling doesn't actually ever go mobile.

For more on the Surrey safe driving effort, click here and here.

And to see how major brands are using QR codes to connect with consumers in amazing new ways, check out my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (available everywhere books are sold), here.

FOLLOW RICK ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO



>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

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Forbes Names World's Most Powerful Celebs, Adds Social Media Ranking

Forbes is out with its annual list of the world's most powerful celebrities - and yes, Oprah still reins supreme. But this time out, it's not enough to just rule the airwaves, you've got to rule the Twitter roost as well.

For the first time ever, social media rankings have been added to the list, for "presence on Facebook and Twitter."

Lady Gaga tops that particular ladder, followed by Britney Spears, Taylor Swift & Coldplay.

In my new book THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, I look at how Twitter in particular seems to be of utmost interest to celebrities in feeding the cult of personality.

Of course, the content of most celebri-tweets run from solipsistic to the soporific. A missive from David Gregory, host of NBC's "Meet the Press" might share with followers that he just finished rehearsing this week's show, an that he's thinking about having a bagel before airtime.

A typical tweet from Oprah: "Worked out an hour. And now going to read the Sunday papers and have a skinny cow or 2!"

It's unclear if this social media ranking signifies much to the overall Forbes listing. Coldplay is in the 30's in overall rankings and James Cameron, who ranks 81 out of 100 in social media, takes the #3 spot overall.

If there's a message in that, perhaps it's being anti-social can pay off, too.

Check out Forbes' interactive Celebrity 100 here

And read more about the book here.

FOLLOW RICK ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

 

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iPad Magazines: Exciting To Look At, but Lacking In Social Interaction Common On Web

Those snazzy iPad editions of popular magazines like Wired and Popular Science are eyeball blasters, complete with interactive features and advertising.

But has the emphasis been too weighted on design and content, not enough on community?

The New York Times seems to think so - pointing to the Wired iPad app. Very cool content, but no way to copy and past links or test, much less comment on interesting articles with other readers or even post to Twitter or Facebook. Ditto for Time Magazine.

Rick Levine, vice president of editorial operations for Condé Nast, which publishes Wired, tells the Times that the company is exploring those features, and that readers could expect them soon. “Condé Nast is actively considering the integration of social networking features as well as favoriting beginning as early as this summer,” he said. “It is certainly part of the Wired playlist.”

Indeed, look at Condé's revamped Gourmet Live app to see how that might happen. That app will include gaming elements and much more social interaction (see the video above for more).

The primary hurdle in the slow social integration? To hear pub execs tell it, time - the iPad is so new, and pubs have rushed to ready their apps in time.

But as I talk about in my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, the iPad is part of an ecosystem that is predicated on social media, not just cool graphics and commerce. Commerce? Check. Content? Check.

Now let's get social.

Read the Times' take here.

Read more about the book here.

FOLLOW RICK ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO



>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

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Harris Study: Location-Based Marketing Gaining Interest With Consumers - Just Not Who You Think

I just received news from VCS about a new study that finds location-based marketing is increasingly popular among both Mars & Venus - just not in the same age groups.

Indeed, a new Harris Interactive study finds younger men are into LBM - as are women over 35.

Those women are into it for specific retail categories (perhaps like clothing), while younger men are less so; presumably giving more deference to experience-based offers around clubs, bars, restaurants and gadgets.

And 27% of over 2,000 consumers surveyed say such marketing alerts have impacted their decision to buy products in physical retail locations.

Personally, I look at such data with a some healthy skepticism. I think LBM is going to see massive growth over the next 18 to 24 months. It's just that I think receiving offers from 90 different retailers as you make your way down the street is ultimately going to get a little old with consumers. I could see how activating offers as you walk in a store will work better - a kind of updated checkin. But better offers and more useful services will need to be attached to such things - perhaps in apps - for consumers to really cotton to them.

Either way, who would have expected such differences in Mars' & Venus' May-September interest in location?


Chiquita Banana Hopes Its New Social Media Contest Sticks

Chicquita is pulling an Essence of Coke-style "crowd sourcing" promotion that enables consumers to compete to see their designs featured on the brand's iconic blue stickers.

Users will vote for 18 winners in all, but what's nice is that even if your design doesn't get selected, you can purchase mugs, t-shirts and other gear featuring your design. And you can use your design as an icon on Facebook.

In my new book THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, I look at how brands like Coca-Cola, HP and Jones Soda have been  using such user-generated design contests to great effect.

We're about to see if a banana sticker contest will hold the same a-peel.

Check out the contest yourself here.

And read more about the book here.

FOLLOW RICK ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO


 

 

 

 

 

 

>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

 

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Ashton Kutcher To Run Social Media Efforts for PopChips - As More Celebs Become Marketers, Not Just Pitchmen

Madison Avenue just got Punk'd again.

San Francisco-based Popchips, Inc. is creating a new social media campaign, and it's asking actor Ashton "Mr. Demi Moore" Kutcher to run it, instead of a traditional ad agency.

In fact, according to today's Wall Street Journal, he is now President of Pop Culture for the company, after buying a stake.

The trend: Celebs are looking to become the marketers themselves, not just the pitchmen. 

"The deeper relationship, that has more authentic layers to it, helps validate the relationship" in the eye of consumers, Steven Lashever, co-head of the commercial-endorsement division at Creative Artists Agency, a Hollywood talent agency, tells the pub. These types of deals, says Mr. Lashever, are the "next wave of the merging of celebrities and brands."

Kutcher's not the first, of course. As I've talked about here, Lady Gaga is now the chief creative officer for Polaroid. And Sarah Jessica Parker is the CCO for Halston.

Time will tell if it works out. But as I write in my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, folks seem to have a thing for Kutcher & Twitter, so who's to say this won't sell a lot of Popchips?

That is, besides the commentator at the end of the video segment shown here?

Read more here.

FOLLOW RICK ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK

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>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

OD_cover "... WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, DYNAMIC ..."

“THE ON-DEMAND BRAND is witty, insightful, dynamic, and highly inspiring. This book should be required reading for marketers—or anyone trying to understand how to keep their brand relevant and energized through the rapidly changing consumer landscape. Mathieson has a gifted ability to dig under the breakthrough ideas that are keeping top brands engaged with their current and new consumers, offering key insider takeaways that we all can learn from.”

Alison Moore
Vice President, Brand Strategy
& Digital Platforms
HBO



>>> IN STORES NOW - LEARN MORE (AND ORDER YOUR COPY) - HERE <<<

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