Does Pandora have it wrong? (i think so)

Pandora recently capped the amount of free usage they will allow a user to experience within a month (a measly 40 hours). As a customer using the service at work I find the new policy extremely frustrating. Although Pandora does offer the ability to buy more time ($.99 for the rest of the month), pay for a year ($36) or stop using the service until the next month begins. I feel like they are missing a serious opportunity while at the same time offending and alienating some of their best customers in the process.

Teaser time (even if it is sizable) is the way the offline economy works. If I wanted samples I would go to Costco. I'm on the web I want free. Even more perplexing is that I'm someone really interested in marketing. I often welcome the opportunity to be "intruded" on by advertisements in my day today life. Considering that Pandora keeps advertisements so unobtrusive they can be missed, why would I spend money to avoid them? Finally, why would I pay for premium service when I have a free broadcast radio (paid for by advertising) sitting on my desk?

Pandora should take advantage of their captive audience by running interruption ads 3 minutes for every hour the service is used. Not only would my exposure to the advertisers increase, but also my loyalty to the system would remain in tact. This would help Pandora in another way too. The premium service would actually create value for some consumers. Due to the current method most of my co-workers are going around the system (deleting cookies) or finding new solutions to their radio need (i.e. broadcast, CD's, and ipods).

I feel like Pandora came up with a panic solution. It looks good on its face, but they actually created a huge opportunity for a competitor to compete successfully. Myspace made similar missteps by ignoring Facebook.

WOW

Book Review :: Creating Magic

Creating Magic is a book I would suggest for everyone from High schooler's to Grandparents. The marketing idea behind the book is leading people in such a way that they become the brand. The book is written by the Disney executive who ran Walt Disney World for several years. It includes a lot of stories and anecdotes and it probably paints Disney in a slightly better light then it might deserve... However, that's actually a good thing. Cockerell sees Disney for what it can be which is how great leaders should see an organization. He also owns up to where they were and where they are so it can't be read as pie in the sky or idealism.

The book is really about how Disney has defined 10 key components they expect leaders to exhibit (They call them GLS- Great leadership Strategies). These are skills which develop people by affording them meaning and value in simple front line jobs. However, Cockerell's writing extends to so many other applications outside of the workplace, anyone can get something out of them.

This has probably been my favorite read of the summer, partially because I read it on my own accord. I think Disney has some of the best people in the world. Every cast member I have EVER come into contact with has been a professional and exceeded the level of service I anticipated (bare in mind I had annual passes to Disneyland for 3 years in a row).

This book is pragmatic, accessible, and in a summer of great reads something that stands out from the pack.

Warning: It is what you would expect from someone who believes in their product. I have no problem with this, I wish more people believed in what they did in the same way as Cockerell the world would be a better place.

Book Review:: What Sticks

I wouldn't suggest "What Sticks" as a valuable read for everyone. To be completely honest there are people that this book would do little or no good for. It also reads somewhat like a text book, so if that isnt your style it may not be a good fit. That said "What Sticks" is a great overview of Marketing, so much so I wonder how long before it becomes the standard for Marketing 101 or 102 courses.

A while back Seth Godin wrote on his blog about how little value there was in formal education for the Marketer. After reading this book I'd have to agree (sadly) particularly as someone who has completed almost all of my lower division undergrad work on the subject. "What Sticks" is a practical guide on the importance of data in the advertising field. "What Sticks" offers legitimate mesures to show ROI improvements or lack there of. It also gives insight into where advertising and maketing money is wasted. How and why brands are miscommunicated. "What Sticks" goes to the next level in explaining how to use data to resolve these issues. In the end, "What Sticks" is about communication. In reality, all marketing is about communication and better communication should always be the goal.

So who should read "What Sticks"?
Advertisers, Marketing Managers, Sales People, Coordinators, Leaders, and any one that needs to communicate to groups large enough where it is impossible to know the whole story.
In short, it was interesting, heady, challenging, and a very good book.
(As all suggestions by Robert have been)

Ads :: Our culture and messages head on

This blog is going to have a different feel than handy hour my focus here is going to be on the placement, design and scope. It's the other side of the coin. I'll focus on things like why the message was communicated effectively, where the ad was placed, and what there is to learn. Its the other side of the coin and its an opportunity to grow on that level for me.



::Up first::
"We all want to be hero's"

Blink

I was very impressed by what Gladwell did in Blink. His evenhanded approach paired with his willingness to tackle tough seemingly incongruent streams of data was encouraging and challenging. It was also refreshing that he didn’t present Blink in such a way that made the theory the answer to all things. Too often books have presented themselves in an over confident tone that is somewhat questionable in this genera, Gladwell avoids the pitfall well. For this book in particular it will take awhile for me to figure out what it means, but the issues presented are challenging and useful.

For me Priming was probably the most useful idea he covers. Its uses are staggering. One use I could see is for a team that is stumped. By using random word association games to offer fresh insight to break deadlocks. Priming allows a team to break away from box thinking and has the potential to reduce the effects of groupthink. Another advantage to priming is the ability for us to prepare ourselves for who we may need to be in a certain situation. Read adjectives, verbs and nouns and their definitions for the type of person you need to present. Often that person will show up, at least in some facet.

Over all I wouldn’t say blink is as revolutionary as some have made it out to be, but it is useful. If you need the meaning of life I'd probably suggest looking somewhere else. If you are looking for insight into the way the mind works check it out.

I just finished reading Click by Bill Tancer. I haven't completely thought through what it means but I am starting to get some traction. Im going to break this blog down into a few different segments.

WEB 2.0
Im glad I finally understand what the heck web 2.0 means. I have heard it float around for awhile and it seemed like one of those really cool words with no meaning. Web 2.0 if I were to sum it up into one equation it would be.."The internet + user content+ social elements = Web 2.0". Web 2.0 includes sites like facebook, wikipedia, Yelp, and any other site where a community has the ability to control and comment on the content.

The major lesson though comes from the realization that not every site needs to have 2.0 features. It also was interesting to see how much information we offer about ourselves just from a clickstream.

Trends on searches.
One underpinning that I found interesting was how brand focused searches have become. Over and over again searches were often targeting brands not generic topics. We are more likely to search Rolex watches than we are for luxury watches. To me this points the fact that even though we may think we know where to go on the web someone is still helping us which means we are pointed by marketing.

People can smell a fake
This one isn't in the book as a point but I picked up on it. When searching for stuff many users are able to feel deception and shades of the truth. We are a skeptical bunch particularly when it comes to the internet. This is why more and more people are searching with some sense of "navigation". We do want to get to a there but we want to avoid going to the wrong there along the way. As a company advertising on the web it should be noted that a non-click isn't always a passive choice, it might actually be a choice against. My advice be aware of when you market and yield a low click rate. It could signal potential problems with your brand or description.


If you are interested in anything I just mentioned I would suggest the read.