There’s no Jack-in-the-Box franchises this side of the border that I’m aware of, but it’s been around our more South-bound neighbours a long time.

Here’s an old commercial for Jack-in-the-Box from the 70’s, brought to us by RetroJunk.com and YouTube user blank77:

Hard to believe people really did speak into a large, scary clown to place their greasy food order.  Bring those things back and I bet the obesity rates would drop.  Or perhaps not.

Now, compare it to a modern Jack, brought to us by maybe-not-quite-safe-for-work planetvids.com and YouTube user sgondesen:

The modern Jack-in-the-Box ads have a lot more bite to them, and given that the giant clown head is likely to given children nightmares, they might as well cater to a more adult audience (especially since there’s no competing with Ronald)

Not that McDonald’s commercials are without bite.

If your business is planning to be around for a long time, something that you’re going to have to think about is “What will my business have to be when it grows up?”.  Included in those thoughts is how you’ll be able to let people know you’ve changed.

Best have either a maturity plan, or an exit strategy prepared.

Remember Punchy from last post?

7-Up has this banned update:

Honestly, she’s just as big a jerk as Punchy, but there are a few critical differences here:

• Set up
• Predictability
• Consequence
• Gender

The set-up appears to be an entirely different commercial — both subjects are attractive and it initially appears to be a “sex sell”. In contrast, Punchy is a cartoon character in which mischief and violence is already expected.

When she delivers the punchline headline, it’s going to catch most people off-guard and far more likely to deliver a laugh, compared to Punchy’s obvious upcoming pun.

A critical difference between the 7-Up commercial and the early Hawaiian Punch commercials as well is the fact that after the action, the guy is nowhere to be found.  Opie the tourist on the other hand, is left visibly lying in a heap as Punchy skips away.  That way there’s a lot less time to focus on the consequences of the violence.  Removing that aspect makes it a lot easier to laugh.

Finally, there’s the gender.  Needless to say, there’s no way Punchy would be allowed win a fight against the 7-Up girl.  Not today, and hopefully not even in his day.  (I don’t think there’s been any commercial where Punchy ever hit a woman, although I’ve already shown you he’d do it if given the opportunity)

As always, now that it’s on the web, 7-Up will never be able to remove it.

The questions for this post are:

• Would Punch-Style commercials be acceptable today as long as Punchy was female?
• Should funny cartoon-style violence be acceptable for use in advertising on TV, the Internet, neither or both?

As usual, the questions link to a (2-question) Survey Monky survey, the results of which I’ll post as an edit to this entry.

Someone has probably asked if you’re on Twitter by now.  If you’ve ever been on Twitter, only to wonder why anyone would want to hear the surface thoughts of various co-workers and acquaintances, then this blog is for you.

Setting Up Twitter

First you will need a Twitter account. Fill out as much detail as you feel comfortable with.

Second, download and install a Twitter application.  I recommend Tweetdeck or Twhirl.  A Twitter application is a critical step because the simple HTML version alone isn’t very useful.

Third and most difficult for newbies, figure out the best Twitter account to follow.

I recommend your favourite news source, such as the Globe and Mail for national news.  If you’re local to Response Generators in London Ontario, there’s the London Free Press (or London Events which is a sub-feed of the LFP), AM980 News, or From My Bottom Step.

Using Twitter

Now while you’re using your computer, you will receive news updates as they occur.  These will pop up in little windows at the bottom-right corner of your screen with Twhirl, or top-right corner with Tweetdeck.

If you’re interested in the update, notice that most tweets come complete with link to the full story.  Click the link to read more.

If you’re not interested in the update, just ignore it and it will go away on its own.  If you’re using Tweetdeck, you can also manually dismiss the update earlier if you feel the need.

Over time, the utility of having little bits of news being delivered to you in a way that’s easily ignored will start to become apparent.  Those short, 140-character blurbs let you know in a simple glance if it’s anything you want to know more about or not.

And that’s a basic way to get started on Twitter.

(Actual tweeting, finding people with shared interests, lists and so forth are a post for another time.)

Many times people make New Year’s resolutions like “Lose weight”, or “Drink less” or “Save more”. Others don’t.

I think people don’t like making resolutions due to the fear of failure.  So rather than fail, they don’t try.

The problem with this kind of attitude is that it also makes people unwilling to create other kinds of resolutions, such as the business resolution otherwise known as a “goal”.

Sometimes people are brave enough to set goals in familiar territory, but when in an area outside their expertise, again they’re reluctant to set a specific goal due to their fear of failure.  Even if they hire a 3rd party to do the work, they’re STILL reluctant to set goals because even if they didn’t personally fail, they made a ‘wrong decision’ by either hiring ‘the wrong people’ or making the goal unrelastic.

The problem is without any measurable goals, how can you determine success?

If your client is unwilling to set goals, then you set them, even if they’re only used internally (someone has to know what’s going on).  Otherwise, you’re basically are running a race until someone yells “STOP!” or you’re just too tired to run anymore.

If you are a creator, or own creative works, at what point do you stop using them?

I mean really using them to generate attention or revenue.  “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “The Matrix” are two major blockbusters, and earned a tonne of revenue during peak popularity – but how many copies of the movies are being sold today?

They’re probably still making money, but not nearly as much as they used to.  They’re a little old now, the shine has gone off them, and people are moving on.  Why not lend them out?  Not physically, the licence to create works based off them.

Lending their works and trademarks to the public would allow them to keep them in the public eye as new variations are made.  Notice I said lend – they’re not giving up ownership, but allowing new creative works to be derived from their originals.

Don’t think this would work?  Take a look at Garfield Minus Garfield, or the Slap Chop Rap.  Both are not only new creations derived from the originals, but they’re support by the original’s owners.

Copyright Lending could be the next way of doing business, big or small.  The key benefit to the owner is that all-important credit (and link) to the original, which allows for recognition and retention of ownership.

This is the cool part:

Imagine if The Matrix DVD includes a link to the store where you can buy:
•    Swag like TV shirts, sunglasses and creator commentaries
•    Fan-production material like costumes, sound effects, fonts, guides and character models
•    Fan-made media like movies and  comics
•    Space your own Matrix Store where you can sell your Matrix fan-media.

Pay close attention to the last item – the creative work has become its own economy.  Tell me Warner Bros. wouldn’t like to profit off not just merchandise, but also the creation of fan-works by selling them the materials, virtual market space, and ‘taxing’ the sale of their derived works.

Consider it – and take a look at the Creative Commons while you’re at it.  Perhaps the next evolution of social media will be the social marketplace.

We received an excellent tweet via @SBoSM (Smart Brief) and @leif_n on Twitter — a collection of some great 404 images.

At some point, someone, somewhere, is gonna 404 on your site.  So it might as well look good, or at least provide an easy return to the home site.  Now, while many of the pages listed via Jedi-Star’s Technology and Learning’s Coolest Collection of ‘404 Error Images’ contain funny or stylish 404’s, there are three traits that your custom 404 page should have if you’re going to bother with one at all:

Match Your Style

It’s important that your 404 page matches the style and tone of your site.  If your site is conservative, then it should be polite and well mannered.  If it’s funny, the humour needs to be done in the same vein.  Finally, I’d avoid copyrighted images.  I have no idea if the sites shown have the permission to use Homer Simpson, but if they don’t, they shouldn’t.  Unless they’re Homer Simpson fan sites.

Quick Access to Contents

Oddly enough, only a few of those pages actually provide an easy link back to working content.  While escaping out of a 404 can be as easy as hitting a back button, if they landed on the 404 due to an expired link from a search engine, that back button will leave your site.  A link to the home page or site search can provide a quick recovery in this situation and is a lot friendlier than having the user manually back-track.
Also, last week I noticed a rash of broken links embedded in blogs and tweets, such as one for the Amazing Tree Quest – a site I visited gave the link as http://www.reforestlondon.ca/amazingtreequest, which incidentally takes you to a superb 404 page.

Easy Contact to the Site Admin

Finally, if the person’s found a broken link on your site, they need a quick contact to the administrator so it can be straightened out as soon as possible.

And as I close – yes, I know we don’t have a custom 404 page ourselves, but that doesn’t stop us from understanding the benefits.

Recently, London lost its morning show: “A Morning” is no more. In its place is the news from the night before, which is perfect for viewing along with yesterday’s coffee and day-old bread if that’s how you like to start your day.

In a 2007, an article by Grant Robertson was in the Globe and Mail, titled “Will CRTC ignore decline of local TV news?”

I guess the answer is “Yes”.

There’s been a lot of buzz in regards to the future of all kinds of local media – newspapers, TV and radio. Advertising is getting cut and their revenue streams are being squeezed.

Is it like the previous shift of radio to TV, or are we dealing with something far more chaotic with the addition of the economic crisis?

We’re definitely in the middle of change, so what do we do about it? People need marketing more than ever in a bad economy, but the rules are changing rapidly. That means they need help, and that means they need us.

When the dust clears, what will be the new media that we’ll need to know how to access to help our clients? What if local papers, TV and radio are all “minor”? Will we need to master social media? Should we keep an eye on local news aggregators?  If there aren’t any well-known ones, should we try to develop our own, and if we do – how soon?

Let me know your thoughts.

Source:  “When newspapers are gone, what will you miss?“ by Seth Godin

Let’s assume for a moment that the financial crisis that’s hitting traditional print media so hard isn’t just part of the current economy, and is in fact going to wipe out the newspaper.

Being able to be globally connected from the phone in your pocket allows for fantastic sharing of information, and as interesting as all that data may be, it doesn’t change the fact that physically, I am here in London, Ontario.  I should know what’s going on around me, locally.

Godin mentions how easily everything could be replaced, except for “local news, investigative journalism and intelligent coverage of national news”. If local newspapers vanish and are not replaced, it falls on the limited time of tv and radio to fill that gap.

The Newspaper Advantage:  it gives you news, entertainment and promotions all in one location.  There are similar services existing on the web already, but none are truly local.

• Example:  “My Yahoo” I can get national news for Canada, but nothing specific to London.  There’s a gap because it’s just not worth a big organization’s time to focus news and announcements notable only to the residents of a particular city.
• Example:  Technorati allows me to search for London, Ontario — but it’s not organized in a way that’s helpful for me.

If local press dies, in the post-press wasteland there will be opportunity.

You could call it a “Local Technorati” — a Locarati? — a news aggregator whose limited scope is its biggest strength.  Like a newspaper, there will be the need for a  site editor, whose job will be to maintain a level of expected quality by personally selecting the links.  Beyond summarizing when required however, the editor wouldn’t be required to write anything.

The editor is crucial however; to provide the same utility as a newspaper goes beyond just gathering a collection of posts tagged with “London” & “Ontario”.  It will require someone who combines an understanding of local culture, Web 2.0, and journalism.

Done right, the site could represent the locality’s face on the ‘Net, bringing its best events, businesses, bloggers, entertainers and artists forward.  It would also be the place for local businesses to advertise, knowing that the primary audience share culture and surroundings.

What do you think?

• Could a “Locarati” replace the local paper?  (That question best answered if you don’t live in a major city)
• Is there a real need to know the local news beyond what’s served up via local TV stations?
• Finally, if you’re in the business of PR, what could you do for your clients if newspapers were removed from the equation?