December, 2007 Archive

999 Police Calls – Don’t Try These From Home!

Before Christmas, Cambridgeshire Police released an article on their website by way of a seasonal appeal.

999 emergency call centres (911 for those of you in the US) have always been abused by the ignorant & the stupid, but Chief Inspector Mike Winters decided to publish some of the more idiotic nuisance calls on the internet in the hope it will help get across that abuse of the service can cost lives:

“The message is; don’t put lives at risk by calling 999 when you do not need an emergency police response.”

Although the below are hilarious – just what were they thinking!!??

What is today’s date? – 376kb

There is pole dancing at number 3! – 1.43mb

Where’s Homebase? – 2.20mb

I need a haircut… – 1.32mb

My Fave – I want to speak to the Prime Minister! – 5.76mb

Postman Pat Delivers A Direct Mail Opt Out

My post last week about Royal Mail Direct Mail, was picked by Postman Pat himself ! 🙂

He commented:

“Opting out of addressed Junk Mail:

http://www.mpsonline.org.uk/mpsr/

Opting out of unaddressed Junk Mail:

 

http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/print?catId=400126&mediaId=500081

 

Feel free to visit the Royal Mail Chat website but please be aware that the site itself has no connection with Royal Mail or the CWU it just happens that most who go on there are members of the CWU and are employed by Royal Mail. Happy Christmas!”

 

Thanks Pat……Father Christmas does exist after all!

The Royal Channel – Queen Hits YouTube!

And we’re not talking Freddie, Brian, John & Roger here!

Following on from my post yesterday about hordes of us shopping online during the Queen’s speech, her highness has reacted by launching her own channel on YouTube.

The Royal Channel already has 8k subscribers, and shows herself is adapting to changing times by reaching out to the yoof of our nation, and giving all 3.7m of us who will be rudely bargain-hunting online while she’s on the box, a chance to catch her thoughts at our own convenience.

I hear she’s considering Facebook, Twitter and Windows Live Messenger chats next 🙂

Christmas Shopping Bargain Hunting On Xmas Day?

The Telegraph reports this morning that a whopping 3.5 million us will be hunting for delicious deals online on Christmas day.

And we’re going to spend £52m!!!

Apparently we’ll be so fed up with our families, fed up with turkey and pudding, and so eager to top up our credit card debt, that a spot of online frittery will be our favoured choice of indigestion remedy.

The Duke of York has said today that The Queen likes to watch her speech by herself.

Spare a thought for our illustrious monarch, as the peak time for this online shopping fenzy is between 3 and 4pm, exactly when she’s on the box.

If 3.5m are shopping and 5.7m are watching her highness, what are the other 50.8m of us doing?

Latitude Gets VC Funding To Diversify

Search engine marketing agency Latitude has been given a nice Christmas present……

Funding from Vitruvian Partners has ensured tonight’s festive party will go off with a bang.

Let’s hope the hangovers get cured before next year, as in 2008 they promise to expand into other geographies, and diversify their portfolio of digital marketing expertise.

More from Matt Brocklehurst in their press release here.

Earlier this year The Search Works got snapped up by TradeDoubler for £56m.

Back then there was speculation as to when Latitude would be next.

Guess they’re in no hurry!

Royal Mail & Direct Mail – Think Digital

I have a love/hate relationship with The Royal Mail

I love the way the post people send me is delivered through my letterbox, but I hate all the other rubbish they stick in with it, and I can’t figure out how to opt out.

When poking around on their website I found a page called Why Use Mail Shots?

They claim:

“Mail is a boom advertising medium. And it generally boils down to one key point. It works. Mail works because it’s personal, it’s responsive, it’s measurable and it’s cost effective.”

Erm……no it isn’t….it’s a pain, it’s a waste of paper, and it soaks up large wads of my council tax recycling it.

They go on:

“Mail has the power to change the way people think and feel about you because you can make it so personally relevant.

Mail is engaging. Consumers spend on average 10 minutes reading mailshots. Compare the cost of that length of exposure against other media such as TV. (eh???)

Mail is a tangible form of advertising. It gives you a physical presence in your customers’ home or office, and can literally put your product in their hands.

Mail can be targeted to reach very specific audiences – almost every individual, household and business in the UK can be reached by mail.

Mail can support and deepen relationships with your customers, building awareness as part of integrated campaigns, or involving customers with your business as part of ongoing, two-way communications. It can provide one of the few opportunities for people who actually use your product or service to tell you how they use it, why, and what else they would like from you.

Doordrops (unaddressed mail) offer you the chance to talk to people you don’t know. You can profile and target lists of likely customers – either in broad geographic or lifestyle bands, or through the use of highly specific street-by-street or even door-by-door data.”

Swop the word “mail” with “digital” and you have a much more compelling marketing channel 🙂

BTW – It’s 11.26am and the postie still hasn’t been 🙁

Steve Jobs – Are You Deaf?

OK the Apple & iPod are pretty cool.

A sexy brand, the sort that gives you a quasi-orgasmic thrill when you walk into one of their stores, and one that is as ubiquitous as it is instantly identifiable.

The iPod is to the MP3 player what Hoover is to the vacuum cleaner – fabulous – no competition – until maybe the Zune hits our shores very soon 🙂

So with design featuring so high on the list of plaudits, why are the headphones so bad?

This morning I was on a train from Clapham Junction to Victoria – a journey of 5 minutes – and I was surrounded by four white-headphone-wearing buffoons, completely and selfishly oblivious to the leaking cacophony of rubbish pouring out from about their ears.

What is wrong with people? Why is people’s self-awareness so rotten?

I have a pair of these babies from Shure – in-ear, noise cancelling – I can’t hear anything but the music and no one else can hear I’m listening to Genesis – job done!

So many iPods will be given away this Xmas – sigh – the white wires are a great advert but a dead giveaway…

Microsoft Partners With Viacom

Hot off the press – we’ve done a deal with Viacom.

Topline:

“Microsoft will license, on a non-exclusive basis, long- and short-form television and theatrical content from across Viacom’s cable network and motion picture businesses, including MTV, Comedy Central, BET and Paramount Pictures, for use on Microsoft properties such as MSN and Xbox 360.

Microsoft’s Atlas division will become the ad server for Viacom’s U.S. Web sites and Microsoft will have the exclusive right to sell remnant display advertising inventory on Viacom’s U.S. Web sites.
 
Microsoft will buy advertising on Viacom broadcast and online networks over a five-year period and the companies will work together on promotions and sponsorships for MTV Networks and BET Networks award shows.
 
Viacom will work with Microsoft on opportunities to become a preferred publishing partner across Microsoft’s casual gaming platforms.”

Deals like this are only possible when you have a portfolio of services for PCs, TV, Web, gaming, and phones!

Just the beginning… 🙂

Live Search Launches Celebrity xRank & Video Search

Just been given the nod that the Live Search UK beta for Video Search and Celebrity xRank has gone live here in Blighty.

Search for your fave pop star or actor and find a glittering array of images, videos, biogs and movies in the search results.

The coolest feature is the video pre-roll – just hover over a video thumbnail and it’ll play right there and then, saving you clicking back and forth to different sites to find the clip you want.

Nice to see Phil ranked just 3 behind Beyonce and 3 in front of George Michael 🙂

Bill Suggests Boards Buck Up

One thing I love about working here is the amount of research we invest in.

Last month is was all about small business marketing and how some 62% of SMBs are not investing in promoting their websites through online strategies because “it’s too complicated!”

This month Bill Gates has written an article for the BBC based on research that shows “IT knowledge” placed 7th on the list of must have key-skills by the leaders of 500 companies in the UK.

He hinted that computer skills were undervalued as “a solid working knowledge of productivity software has become a basic foundation for success in virtually any career.”

So from the below, where would you put IT? Doesn’t a good knowledge of computers enhance most of the other skills? Should it be on the list at all?

TOP BUSINESS SKILLS

1. Team working and interpersonal skills

2. Initiative

3. Analysing and problem solving

4. Verbal communication

5. Personal planning and organising

6. Flexibility

7. IT skills

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