The Affari Blog

While scanning today’s edition of The New York Times, I came across a rather interesting article regarding a whole new look for casual dining chain Applebee’s. In an attempt to pump up sagging sales, Applebee’s is launching a whole new ad campaign featuring the voice of comedienne Wanda Sykes as the company’s “spokesapple”. The spots, part of Applebee’s annual $180-million ad budget, features a feisty apple convincing people who are eating alone to get together with friends and family at Applebee’s for a meal. But the chain isn’t just stopping there. The entire chain will undergo a renovation in terms of a new logo, new uniforms, new building designs, and an upgrade on interior decorating.

Now at first I have to give Applebee’s some props for this massive public relations overhaul. Their recent ad campaigns, under former agency Draft FCB (Applebee’s is now with McCann Erickson) didn’t make the chain stand out from other casual dining chains such as TGI Friday’s or Chili’s. And with the economy to blame mostly for slumping sales (higher gas prices and a shaky housing market means less disposable income for the family to eat out), why not shake things up with a new look and a new feel to remind customers you still exist.

I also have to commend Applebee’s on how it has built up to this weekend’s unveiling of the ad campaign by taking out a full-page ad in USA Today on October 9th, directing readers to a website featuring “tryouts” by other types of apples for the Sykes apple that was eventually chosen. Applebee’s then allowed the videos to spread virally through websites such as YouTube to create a buzz. With Applebee’s wisely buying commercial time during TV programs such as “Desperate Housewives” and “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”, the chain is hitting it’s target audience– the moms of these families who ultimately decide where the family will eat.

But the biggest problem I have with Applebee’s has nothing to do with the new ad campaign or the refreshed logo and look of the place. To me, it all comes down to the food. Now maybe it’s because I’m a 30-year-old man and I don’t play on the emotional pull of “Together is Good”, but for a place like Applebee’s I’m just thinking about what I’m getting to eat. To me, a basket of boneless chicken wings at Applebee’s will taste just as good (or bad) as the same order of boneless chicken wings from Chili’s, TGI Friday’s, Ruby Tuesday’s, or Bennigan’s. With all of these aforementioned chains offering essentially the same line of food (burgers, chicken, sandwiches, fattening appetizers, and 2-for-1 drafts), there’s just no good reason for me to select one over the other. And most importantly, and this is what kills casual chains from the male point of view, I can think of several local or regional restaurants here in the Tampa Bay area (such as Tank’s Tap Room or Beef O’ Brady’s) who offer food that taste BETTER than a national chain and cost just about as much.

Applebee’s isn’t too worried about the smaller restaurants, rather it’s the fast food giants who have helped dragged down the casual dining market a bit. MacDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s, now offer healthier top-end choices along with their traditional greasy burgers. Kentucky Fried Chicken (trying to wean itself from the “KFC” moniker) is trumping how their low-priced combo meals are in fact meals and not fast food. Sister company Pizza Hut claims their family meals of pizza and bread sticks, or big servings of pasta, cures all ills when it comes to cooking for the family.

So it’s going to take more than just a new look and an altered menu for Applebee’s to pull ahead of the crowded, yet lucrative, casual dining market. Bennigan’s plays up the Irish pub angle (although as an Irishman I’m not buying it) while TGI Friday’s plays up the “flair” card with wacky outfits and drink specials. Red Lobster cornered the chain seafood market while Olive Garden snagged the middle-class Italian market. Applebee’s will have to come up with something creative with their cuisine, not their logo, to really make the other apples in the casual dining bunch look like oranges.

As if the never-ending attention to Britney Spears and her lethargic MTV Video Music Awards performance wasn’t enough for people trying to find a shred of news in the local newscast nowadays, along came Chris Crocker.

Crocker, as you are probably aware of by now, is the “star” of the “Leave Britney Alone” videos on YouTube. What was just a simply awful video of a young man screaming about how unfair people were being to Spears has become a worldwide phenomena. Amazingly, it has also turned Crocker into a celebrity. His MySpace videos have topped 35 million views, the Britney video has been spoofed on late night talk shows, he’s been a guest on those same shows, and he has signed a contract with 44 Blue Productions to star in a new reality series. What’s even more appalling is the reality show deal came just one week after the Britney videos were posted on line. I’d hate to be a waiter in Los Angeles who has been turned down in casting call after casting call only to see this guy get a deal just like THAT because he turned the camera on his self.

Now understand I’m not flabbergasted by Crocker’s fame because of his sexual orientation or just plain weirdness. You are what you are and that has actually helped Crocker tremendously. What’s really bothering me about this is two things: the rise of a “celebrity” who really isn’t a celebrity, and the fact that the media and general public are eating it up.

Let me tackle the second issue first. It wasn’t that long ago people voiced their displeasure over the news media’s coverage of Paris Hilton’s imprisonment or Lindsay Lohan’s continuous run-ins with the law. Recently, people are moaning over the wall-to-wall coverage of Spears’ custody battle for her kids with former husband Kevin Federline. But an interesting things remains under this alleged disgust: people love a train wreck. Even I have to admit when I’m bored and have a few minutes to kill I’ll check out TMZ.com or the New York Post’s Page Six (but only after I’ve exhausted my viewing of more important websites).

If you doubt people like train wrecks, then explain why reality TV is still around even though it really doesn’t reflect reality at all. Explain why the first few episodes of FOX’s “American Idol” pull in higher ratings than episodes featuring the final 12 contestants. Think of why you watch shows like “The Next Food Network Star” or “The Bachelor”. You don’t really care who wins, you just want to see who screws up the most. With this love for the freakish, whether it be a reality show meltdown or DOT cameras showing a collapsing interstate bridge, we just love seeing things going wrong. Enter Crocker, and America embraced him with open arms.

And this opens the door for my other point of contention. The accolades for Crocker have ranged from The Daily Reel proclaiming he is, “an insidious comic mastermind” to the Ocala Star-Banner’s Dave Schlenker comparing Crocker to the late Andy Kaufman. While there is an entertaining quirkiness to Crocker’s schtick, the man is hardly a comic genius. In fact, he claims the Britney video was his honest feelings toward Britney and not an act. There’s no fine line between comic genius and comical by accident. Kaufman, George Carlin, Lenny Bruce… they were comic geniuses. Crocker is comical because it appears he has a lot of issues in his life right now.

Yet Crocker is invited to awards shows, Hollywood parties with real celebrities, and TMZ paparazzi follow him around town looking for a photo op. Only in America… and only in cyberspace. If there’s one thing about Crocker’s newfound fame is it is only a testament to the power of the internet. One video, whether it be funny or sad or gory or enlightening, can find it’s way into millions of peoples’ every day lives and illicit a response. This is a guy, who is only 20 years-old, who for a couple of years has posted videos and photos of himself doing weird things and building a fan base. The Spears video launched him in star status, whether I like it or not. It’s amazing what popularity a slightly (check that, WAY) off-centered young man could garner with a simple video.

Imagine how popular someone could become with a good video online.

Now I have to admit, I’m not a big fan of fast food these days. At least, I’m not as big of a fan now as I was about 10 years ago. You see, I was really big because of all that fast food so I’ve practically cut it out of my diet. Now I eat fast food only when I have prepared no food and don’t plan on eating anything at home for several hours. And when I do eat fast food, it’s typically a burger with no fries and a water– something to hold me over for a few hours and not fill me up.

With that said, I am still amazed at how one of the fast food giants is missing the boat when it comes to advertising and customer loyalty. In 2004, Wendy’s, the longtime #3 restaurant chain in the fast food wars, was finally catching up to second-ranked Burger King in sales. The main reason for this increase? According to reports that summer, Wendy’s healthier, adult-themed fare was selling better than greasy cheeseburgers from Burger King. Keep in mind 2004 was the year of the Atkins diet, when fast food chains scurried to offer healthier fare in hopes of keeping carb-minded customers coming through the doors and drive-thrus.

But unlike their competitors, Wendy’s had the distinct advantage of already having salads, baked potatoes, chili, and other alternatives to the fast food menu when the carb craze hit. For years Wendy’s had positioned itself as the “adult” fast food place thanks to folksy founder Dave Thomas‘ appearance in their ads until his death in 2001. Thomas’ whole idea behind Wendy’s was to make a tastier, better, and fresher burger than McDonalds, Burger King, White Castle, and other chains that exploded in popularity in the 1960s. Even after Thomas’ death, the folksy feel and laid back atmosphere of cheap but good burgers and fries drew in older customers who didn’t like the noise or grease of a McDonalds or Burger King. Then, a few funny things happened.

The carb craze died in 2005, and fast food customers went back to their old ways of purchasing double quarter-pounders with cheese and salty grease-laiden fries from the Golden Arches. Burger King rolled out the “Enormous Monstrous Sandwich” for breakfast, an egg, cheese, and bacon concoction that amazingly was unhealthier than a Whopper. Sales at Wendy’s plummeted, and ownership panicked. So what to do? Wendy’s made the big blunder (in my opinion) of trying to go after the big boys and their 18-34 year-old consumers, while dumping the older customers who liked the folksy experience of Wendy’s.

Wendy’s launched the “Do What Tastes Right” campaign centered around the instrumental portion of the Violent Femmes‘ 1981 hit “Blister in the Sun”. That will CERTAINLY get 18-34 year-olds to buy the burgers! Eh… wrong. Perhaps it was Wendy’s selection of a song about masturbation that turned these youngsters off, but it didn’t work. Sales remained stagnant as Wendy’s went with a new ad campaign, and a new ad agency, going with the “Wendy’s, That’s Right” pitch. The pitch goes back to basics in advertising “fresh, not frozen” hamburger patties which has always been a strong sales point for decades. But the TV commercials feature a grown man wearing a red wig (like Wendy… get it?) doing bizarre things like kicking trees or playing the role of an aborigine when he realizes he wants a fresh hamburger.

In some aspects the commercial is doing well in it’s attempts to get sales going in the stores. Wendy’s recently reported a modest second-quarter gain, yet in April it announced it was looking for a buyer, and in June it lowered its earnings outlook. To me it all comes down to advertising. The new ads are quirky, and are a hit on the internet where most 18-34 year-olds gather these days. But it seems to me Wendy’s has overlooked the older consumer (we’ll just say 35+ for demographic purposes) who doesn’t want the quirkiness of a 20-something lifestyle mixed in with his or her burger. They want what Wendy’s has always given them– a better, tastier burger than what McDonalds or Burger King can offer. No Happy Meals, no goofy big-headed king dancing to his BBQ Bacon Burger concoction, just a damn good burger please. And give me some options too, such as the salads, potatoes, and chili.

Wendy’s may make a little gain in the 18-34 year-old demographic with these new ads and an upcoming new breakfast menu, but even 18-34 year-olds grow up and I’m not so sure they’ll be coming back to Wendy’s when they just want good food without the bells and whistles thrown at the younger crowd going to McDonalds and Burger King. I give credit to Wendy’s for trying to drum up sales by rocking the boat, but by doing so the older customer is getting thrown overboard. It may be best for the healthy 37-year-old business to stick to what’s made it last so long– catering to those who are the same age or just a bit older.

Josh Hallet,  of <strong><a href=”http://www.hyku.com” target=”_blank”>Hyku</a></strong> and <strong><a href=”http://www.empircalpolk.com”target=”_blank”>Empircal Polk</a></strong>, has asked me to be a session leader for the 2007 <strong><a href=”http://www.blogorlando.com”target=”_blank”>BlogOrlando</a></strong>.

Now, unlike conferences you may have attended, BlogOrlando is specifically an <strong><em>un-conference</em></strong>.  The concept grew out of the realization that most people at trade shows, academic conferences, and industry gatherings learned a heck of a lot more from the Q&A sessions or just talking amongst themselves during the social time.  So why not take those good parts and make the entire conference like that??

<center><img src=”http://www.blogorlando.com/images/bo-nodate.gif” alt=”blogOrlando” border=0/></center>

So, what is BlogOrlando, you ask?  Well…

<blockquote>Hyku, in partnership with Rollins College will host the second edition of this FREE event that is open to bloggers and non-bloggers alike from Florida and anywhere else. We hope to bring together a good cross-section of folks to discuss blogging, podcasting, public relations, social media, citizen’s journalism and other related topics. In addition to the Friday event we planned some outings at the local theme parks over the weekend. The event was as much a social/family gathering as it is a ‘work’ gathering.</blockquote>

I attended the <strong><a href=”http://www.stateofsunshine.com/2006/09/21/heading-to-blogorlando-tomorrow/” target=”_blank”>first BlogOrlando last fall</a></strong>, and learned a great deal.  In fact, it helped spur me to move from Blogger to my own domain and use WordPress.

If you have even the smallest interest in social media - especially blogging - then you should make the trek to Olrando for the day.  There are some great people leading various sessions, including bloggers who I read every day.  From politics to media to blogging for business to second life, BlogOrlando has something for just about everyone.

<center><img src=”http://www.blogorlando.com/images/BlogOrlando_BeThere.gif” alt=”blogOrlando” border=0/></center>

I’ll be there.  Will you?

During the past few days, former CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather has been the target of much hate for his assessment of the current state of the program he hosted for 23 years. But when one looks at what Rather said, HE hit the target with his comments while those throwing bitterness at him are clearly missing the point.

It all began the morning of Monday, June 11th, when Rather appeared via phone on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” program, hosted by Joe Scarborough. When the topic of conversation shifted to the current state of the CBS Evening news, currently ranked third in the Nielsen ratings among the three network newscasts, Rather gave his honest opinion. In short, he felt the people at CBS have been “dumbing it down, tarting it up,” by having Katie Couric host the program. This comment is the one that has set most people ablaze. But I ask, what’s so wrong about what he said?

When Couric announced in May 2006 she was moving from NBC’s Today Show to the CBS Evening News, there was much hoopla– 98% of it from CBS. In a day and age where fewer people are getting their daily news from old media (network TV, radio, and printed newspapers), CBS felt it had to re-invent the wheel. Instead of a stodgy old man like Rather or Bob Schieffer sitting behind a desk with a map of the world behind him, here was a vibrant woman at the tail end of the Baby Boom age range. She would sit behind a desk, but she would also stand in front of green screens with a lot of eye candy in the form of nice graphics and really shiny colors zipping by. She would also introduce guest opinion segments called “Free Speech”, a rare (by today’s standards) editorial piece from today’s biggest celebrities.

The biggest re-invention though would be on the internet, where the newscast supposedly would have met with a larger audience through various innovations such as a Couric blog, on-demand “editor’s cut” versions of interviews, a rundown of that night’s newscast in the afternoon, and an on-demand one-minute newscast on the top stories of the day. With the new and younger face, and the hi-tech additions to the old-fashioned newscast, where would CBS do its research to see how this new newscast should be carried out? CBS decided to send Couric out on a nationwide “town hall meeting” tour in the summer of 2006, going through several major cities to see what the “average person” wanted in his or her nightly news. That would prove to be the biggest mistake by CBS.

Nowadays everything is title “MY” this or “YOU” that thanks in part to successful new media platforms Myspace and You Tube. As online technology and information gathering and dispersal fly miles ahead of traditional media, anyone who runs a TV or radio station, or a printed newspaper, is panicking to get in to the mix. CBS depended too much on the “average person” factor in shaping its new version of the nightly news. As the average person knows, yet major broadcast networks still fail to understand, is what works in Los Angeles doesn’t necessarily work in Chicago. The people who went out of their way to speak with Couric at one of these gatherings probably weren’t watching the nightly news that night. Do you see what I’m getting at? While a carefully molded group of likely young women were collected at meeting sites, the 60-something white males who are the network news’ bread and butter were at home actually watching the news.

Following these meetings, and some additional research from a demographic much younger than the one that watches network news now, CBS radically altered the nightly news. With Couric, it brought in the softer side of hard news. Unfortunately for the people at CBS headquarters, it didn’t bring in the hoards of people expected. Ratings for the newscast were excellent at first in September 2006, but by the end of October CBS had returned to its familiar third place in the ratings. The situation hasn’t improved much since then, as it has become painfully clear that people who watch the network news on a regular basis don’t want soft news coming from someone who spent 16 years interviewing celebrity chefs and fashion designers on the Today show. There’s a good reason why “hard” news segments last only five minutes on national morning talk shows– people who watch those shows want chatter and not news.

So I ask again, what did Rather say that was so wrong? In an attempt to beef up ratings, CBS spent on a ton of money to lure a morning show interviewer away from the competition, spent even more money promoting that interviewer, and tried to change the content of network news for a generation of consumers not brought up on Walter Kronkite or David Brinkley. From the view of an old hawk like Rather, this was CBS “dumbing down” and “tarting up” what he knew as network news from the 1960s and 1970s for the vastly different world of the early 21st century.

Network news ratings as a whole have continued to decline over the years, while most people under the age of 50 (and specifically under the age of 30) now get their news online in one form or fashion. CBS tried to bring the two different realms of media together and it hasn’t worked yet. To be fair to Couric and CBS, this experiment is only nine months old and any measure of success for any TV or radio program should be done over a year’s time.

Still, in the end, we may see CBS shift back to its traditional hard news delivery, and according to some insiders it may not be Couric delivering it after the 2008 presidential election. CBS will fall back in line, and the big three network news makers will still have a low-rated nightly newscast simply because there are enough people in their twilight years sitting in the recliner watching it.

No, we’re not an SEO company. There are quite a few in the area, tho.

But for those who might want to try some search engine optimization on their own, check out SEO Tools. They have “links to the best SEO Tools on the internet and these tools will help you to optimize your website and move your search engine position higher.”

Just a good place for people who want to improve their search engine placement.

(h/t to Think)

NOTE: This cloumn was originally written and posted by Matt Sammon at the Tampa Bay Devil Rays fansite, draysbay.com on April 1, 2007. It has been republished with the permission of draysbay.com. Matt is a regular contributor to draysbay.com, and is a part-time employee of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. His views and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays’ ownership, management, players, coaches, or other employees.

Believe it or not, all 30 teams in Major League Baseball already know how they are going to do this season. How do they know? It’s all in the marketing my friend. And now, if you don’t mind, let’s step away from the insanity of no lefties in the Rays’ bullpen and Jorge Cantu wants to be traded as we look at how the other teams are selling themselves.

This is has become an annual tradition of mine. Come opening day, I cruise around other MLB sites and see what the big sales pitch is. Some season slogans are creative, others are dull, while quite a few are just plain dumb. In a column I wrote on February 16th, I said I really liked the Rays slogan for 2007, “More than just a game.” I liked it most for its honesty– with a team relatively unchanged from last season a postseason berth probably isn’t in the cards this season. So, let’s pump up the fact that going to a Rays game is fun, even if the outcome of the game isn’t.

You’ll notice if you bounce around the other 29 MLB websites, the teams that aren’t guaranteed a playoff spot or long lines wrapping around the box office have to come up with a slogan. The world champion Cardinals, Yankees, and Red Sox don’t need an ad campaign with razzle and dazzle. As long as there is an open keg of Old Style in Wrigley Field, the Cubs don’t need a campaign. As long as Cubs fans live in Milwaukee, the Brewers won’t need a campaign. As long as Peter Angelos remains a cheap bastard, the Orioles won’t have a campaign.

So the other teams in MLB can’t just roll up the blinds at the ticket window and expect the gates to be stormed by people hungering for baseball, especially if the team may have to luck its way into the postseason. These teams then have to spend thousands of dollars on marketing groups headed up by people who never picked up a baseball bat, and thus the silly slogan is born.

Before we look at this season’s attempts to stuff a few more people in the stadium, a quick reminder of my picks for dumbest ad campaign in MLB the past two seasons:

2005– Pittsburgh’s “Come Hungry” campaign
2006– Detroit’s “Who’s Your Tiger?” campaign

* First the nominees for “winning = ticket sales” ad campaigns: The Padres, A’s, Yankees, and Cardinals have slapped some kind of postseason success logo up and that’s good enough for them. Must be nice.

* The “It worked well enough last year” group includes the Twins, Giants, Angels, Tigers and Pirates.

The Twins claim their “This is Twins Territory” campaign was so successful, they brought it back by popular demand. As long as notorious penny pincher Carl Pohlad owns this team though, I’ll always believe he just didn’t want to invest in something new.

The Giants again go with “Your SF Giants”, apparently still trying to alert people in the other city by the bay that the Giants are not moving to Tampa Bay.

The Tigers return with their silly “Who’s Your Tiger?” campaign from last season. I guess the eight-year-old who came up with that still works for little or no money.

Speaking of cheap, the Pirates again go with “We Will”. We will win? We will lose? We will, we will, rock you? Chances are “we will” precedes “miss the playoffs again for the 15th consecutive season.”

The Angels again roll with “The A-Team!” Knowing Mr. T’s financial situation, I’m sure there’s some kind of kickback here.

* Alright, let’s now go top to bottom, alphabetically, up to my selection for dumbest ad campaign of the season:

The Houston Astros proudly proclaim this season is “the return of the good guys”. I don’t know if this is saying the Astros will be good again like they were in 2005, or if Andy Pettitte and Aubrey Huff were assholes and the team is glad they’re gone.

The Blue Jays get aggressive this year with, “It’s always game time”. Great, just another reason why the Jays will be loaded with injuries again. Game time is all the time and these kids just can’t get any down time.

The Braves are suddenly coming up with slogans, and this year they try, “Welcome to the bigs”. One look at the Braves’ depth chart and those words have probably been uttered to most of the 25 active players recently. Less veterans, more kids still having to prove something, and probably a fourth-place finish in the NL East.

The Diamondbacks scream, “Are you ready?!?” For another ho-hum season in the desert? Not really, but at least the new unis look nice.

The Dodgers slogan isn’t flashy (It’s Time for Dodger Baseball!) but the way they write it is. Written in a 1954-esque style script, it appears somebody gave the marketing keys to Vin Scully. Either that, or the Dodgers are willing to bring Duke Snider back so he can earn an honest living and not evade the IRS again.

I like the Rays’ honesty in their ad campaign, but the Indians may have beaten the Rays in the honesty department this season. Ya ready for this? “Indians ‘07″ Yep… they’re the Indians and it’s 2007. Or is it 1907? The 1907 Indians also finished in fourth place, so there may not be much of a difference between now and then.

You have to look hard for the Mariners‘ campaign, but I found it and it sucks; “Mariners baseball… my oh my”. Well, I’ve heard different, more obscene descriptions of Mariners baseball recently, so I guess this is kid-tested and mother-approved.

The Marlins have the hysterical, “You Gotta Be Here!” campaign this season. Well I guess you gotta be there, because judging by the attendance figures you haven’t been there recently. It is a step up from, “Oh please, oh please just show up!”

The Mets have an equally goofy campaign, proclaiming, “Your Season Has Come”. Wow… after failing to do anything in two seasons of winter little league baseball, and playing nothing but beer-league softball (even that was six years ago), I’ve finally earned a season with the Mets! Baseball HAS been beddy beddy good to me!

The Nationals actually have a great and clever campaign. “Pledge Your Allegiance” is topical considering where the team plays, and is also a slight dig at the Orioles who continue to lose fans every day. Still, considering how painful of a rebuilding process the Beltway will see in the next few years, fans may be pledging their allegiance to masochism.

The Reds go with, “C You There!” Get it? There’s a “C” on their hats. Ummm… yeah.

In January the Rockies rolled out a “R You In?” slogan, but it hasn’t been back up as the team sticks with their previous “Gen-R-ation” campaign. Apparently their marketing genius really likes instant messaging, since he or she can’t spell a damn thing right.

Think your job sucks? Ever thought of selling tickets for the Royals? There, doesn’t that put everything in perspective? The Royals have to be the most creative, and this year they came up with “True Blue Tradition”. Sadly, that’s all the Royals have… true royal blue tradition from George Brett, Bret Saberhagen, Dan Quisenberry, and the greatness that is Buddy Biancalana. KC is still looking back at 1985, and owner David Glass is still counting every dollar in his pocket.

The White Sox don’t have the advantage of selling world champion t-shirts this season, so the south siders had to create the odd campaign of, “Back to the Grind”. True, the Sox have to get back to the style of play that got them a championship in 2005, but that approach just seems so depressing. You almost want to bring a gun to U.S. Cellular Field to off yourself. If you talk yourself out of the suicide, you can then protect yourself from the late night hoodlums in that part of town.

* The runner-up for dumbest ad campaign in 2007 is… the Texas Rangers notable attempt at selling tickets; “You Could Use Some Baseball”. Let’s do the math kids– 35 seasons, three playoff appearances (none since 1999), and zero championships. Yes, the people of Arlington, Texas, sure could use some baseball, and not the crap the Rangers will serve up this season.

* Finally, the winner of the dumbest ad campaign in 2007 goes to our brothers in the city of brotherly love. The Phillies dare to ask, “Goosebumps– What Will They Do For You?” No really, that is their big-money ad campaign this season. Granted the Phils may finally put together a postseason run for the first time since 1993, but goosebumps? What about Ryan Howard, or Jimmy Rollins, or Chase Utley, or Pat Burrell, or the incredible changes Pat Gillick has brought to Philly during the past few months? GOOSEBUMPS?!? I haven’t gotten those from watching the Phillies since Tug McGraw threw his arms up in the air when he recorded the final out against the Royals in 1980. If the Phillies get that far this year, other side effects could include nausea, vomiting, and listening to Philly fans all offseason long bragging about their team. Please consult a doctor.

So there you have it, a look at how the other teams honestly think how they’ll fare this season. With 22 teams not making the playoffs this season, I can guarantee at least 22 more crazy, lame, or just plain dumb ad campaigns in 2008.

Okay. Here is a video from the Canadian Broadcasting Company. It looks like 1980’s technology and video quality.

Thanks to B.L. Ochman on the What’s Next Blog.

For Immediate Release

Affari Edge Announces
Grant Program for Non-Profits:
$5,000 to Enter Social Media

TAMPA, Florida – Affari Edge, a local authority on using social media, announced today a grant for Tampa Bay area non-profit organizations, offering up to $5,000 in social media consulting and training services. “Giving back to the community is a core principle at Affari Edge,” said Dave Sizemore, one of two partners at Affari. “Because of our expertise with social media, we felt we could help a local organization explore this new technology.”

Social media is a name attributed to a collection of technologies including but not limited to blogs, podcasts, virtual communities, wikis, and virtual worlds that enable people to communicate with each other online in ways that mirror offline interpersonal interaction. Prominent examples of social media also include sites such as MySpace, Flickr, Twitter, Wikipedia, Digg, and many more.

“It’s a natural extension of any organization’s marketing and public relations efforts,” said Wendy Robbins, the second partner with Affari Edge. “By using these new technologies, we can help any organization build a close-knit community.”

Applications will be accepted until May 15, 2007 and will be judged based on a number of criteria.  More information is available on the Affari Blog on the Affari Edge website.

Affari Edge is a full-service advertising agency offering a comprehensive range of advertising and public relations services. Affari Edge is made up of creative gurus, with extensive business experience, from small business ownership to leading different aspects of some of the largest empires in corporate America. The mix of business background with creative expertise leads to superior results. Affari means business.

# # #

Last week there was a nasty meme flowing through the blogosphere. There’s no need to go into a lot of detail here, as it was hashed and re-hashed ad maseum last week. However, it was centered around the personal attacks of another blogger. It led to cries of cyberbullying, and because the victim was a woman, there has been significant discussion of misogyny. (I am not making light of the situation, just trying to move past the talk of what happened).

One result of the brouhaha was a call for a code of conduct within the blogosphere.

The first I saw of this was a post by Jim Horton at Online Public Relations Thoughts. He was reacting to an article on the BBC website that quoted Tim O’Reilly (more on Horton’s reaction in a moment):

Among those calling for a bloggers’ code of conduct is Tim O’Reilly - one of the web’s most influential thinkers.

He told BBC Radio Five Live that it could be time to formalise blogging behaviour.

“I do think we need some code of conduct around what is acceptable behaviour, I would hope that it doesn’t come through any kind of [legal/government] regulation it would come through self-regulation.”

He’s right that it should come through self-regulation. My first thought on this is to suggest that instead of a code of conduct, the leaders in the blogosphere should, instead, develop an international semi-professional association that could develop standards. Bloggers who join and adhere to these standards could then have the right to display a “seal of approval” on their blogs signifying their willingness to rise above the fray.†

You see, Horton is right. In his post, he said: “Codes of conduct are useless unless enforced — and they rarely are. Look at the Public Relations Society of America and its ethical code of conduct. Practitioners ignore it and the PRSA is helpless to enforce it. It means little, even as a guideline. Enforcement is fundamental. Those who call for codes without means of enforcement are naive.” His example of the PRSA notwithstanding - if an association has requirements for membership, it can and should expel members who fail to meet those requirements.

Tony Hung at The Blog Herald agrees with Horton. Hung writes:

A Code of Conduct for most bloggers doesn’t have much a point because the blogosphere is self-regulating. If you act like an ass, people will know, and for the most part, will readership will decline. If it doesn’t, that probably means they won’t care a whit about any rules of conduct anyway. Secondly, even if one did have an audience who might care, if you broke it what really happens? Nothing.

There are no real consequences that come of breaking an Official Blogger Code of Conduct.

Now, Hung also dismisses the idea of having a badge for the same reason. If there is no retribution for those who display their badge, but break the code for which it stands, the badge itself has no real meaning. (So I am all for having a mechanism to report abuse and to expel a member when the code is indeed broken).

Marianne Richmond of Resonance Partnership also agrees that there are really no punishments in cyberspace:

Addtionally, what is the consequence for violating the code? For Blogher, or any community with guidelines, violaters theoretically will not be allowed on the site. Thus if a member of the community violates the rules their membership ends. On our own blogs, we don’t have to permit behavior (comments) that offends us either. In either case, there are no “punishments” other than removal.

Okay, I will admit that an association is not perfect. But it’s a start. Of course, any list of standards needs to have a first draft - and O’Reilly included his list on his blog:

1. Take responsibility not just for your own words, but for the comments you allow on your blog.
2. Label your tolerance level for abusive comments.
3. Consider eliminating anonymous comments.
4. Ignore the trolls.
5. Take the conversation offline, and talk directly, or find an intermediary who can do so.
6. If you know someone who is behaving badly, tell them so.
7. Don’t say anything online that you wouldn’t say in person.

This is a good list, and you can read his blog for a detailed explanation of each suggestion. John Cass at PR Communications has a post about how bloggers should take care in criticizing others (a take off from Jen McClure’s post here.): “I can certainly agree with Jen that is a good idea to act maturely. I do think it is okay to give your opinion and criticize other organizations and people. I think the way in which you should conduct criticism is through either positive or negative constructive criticism.”

In the end, we are each responsible for what we do. Marianne mentioned the Golden Rule. For me, it is a guiding principle off-line as well as in cyberspace. It’s probably the best place to start.

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† - The mechanism for displaying the badge should be through some function that could limit the ability of people to use the badge without permission. Perhaps a text-only badge linked through a javascript file (like Google AdSense) would work, allowing the association to police who actually displays the badge on their blog. But that’s a discussion for bigger geeks than me.