A brand that should know better

I received this eDM yesterday which in itself is not unusual. What I do find interesting is that for a "bank" that has built itself online, their digital communication was somewhat lacking.

The purpose of the eDM was to recruit me to save more money, under the guise of extra rewards. This is all well and good but they didn't make it very easy for me.

I had skimmed over the eDM (who actually reads ALL the words anymore - communication via 160 characters would have been more effective) then proceeded to click, and click, and click (you get it...) until I re-read the eDM and realised I had to copy & paste the URL into my browser.

Seriously, how old school is that? I would suggest that if the eDM allowed the recipient to click-thru, recruitment levels would have been greater and over and above this the consumer experience would have vastly improved.

Why do brands still make these errors? Surely an online brand like this has enough experience to know better? Or perhaps I'm just not privy to the reasons why you wouldn't enable the eDM with click-thru technology.... Please enlighten me if you have an insight into this.

The medium is the message

Play Pictionary for Austism is a nice creative way to draw attention to a problem.

This execution is a great example of how the medium may be used as the message.

I love that they've truly understood the problems associated with Austism then challenged potential donors to experience the problem themselves (albeit it via a fun spin).

http://www.drawtism.com.au/

Is guilt the strongest of emotions?

The global financial crisis has hit me of late. I look at my bank account and see red. It is not due to superfluous spending or a pay reduction, it just seems that life has become more expensive.

I, unlike many others am not in dire straits BUT I am still being forced to think about how I spend my money.

So this morning I stole my boyfriend's spare change to catch the bus and, I stole his $10 to buy my train ticket. Then when I got off the train I ran into Bill.

Bill is a Big Issue vendor who I have started a relationship with. It has been going on for about a year now and he always brightens my day. This morning however, I was compelled by guilt rather than goodwill to buy a magazine from him even though I couldn't afford it. As a result, I blamed him a little bit. He was still chripy & bright to me but I had lost some of the regular sparkle that I greet him with.

It is sad that I was driven by guilt to buy his magazine and am now wallowing in guilt for not taking the time to converse with him about his weekend.

So how do I tackle this guilt & how do I use it for a positive outcome? Suggestions will be readily accepted.

A sign of the times?

Is this a sign of the times? Westfield pushing food to a subscriber on their fashion database?

Morning warnings & public transport etiquette

So here's the thing.... I woke up & pressed snooze (which I never do). Got up after 10 minutes, dressed.
Stockings have one leg shorter than the other, so much so that I drew blood on my finger from the effort of pulling them up. Got a spot on my white dress.
Boyfriend rang - unhappy because I confused flight dates (damn international dateline).
Bus all good. Ferry all good. Train all good.
Station bad. What is it with people not understanding how to operate around public transport. There are a few basic rules.
1. Let people get off the train before you get on.
2. Stay to the left on the escalators.
3. If you have an enormous bag - go through human operated gate NOT through the ticket gates.
4. If you have an invalid ticket don't hold up everyone else by feeding it through the machine ten times before asking for assistance.
5. If you are smoker - just don't.

Here's to my day getting better.

Practising what you preach

I have an opinion that you practise what you preach and I am in the practice of communications.  

Now I am not claiming to be an expert - I've a mere 5 years experience to my name, BUT it is obvious to me that if media agencies are trying to sell the benefits of digital media to their clients they should be employing those benefits themselves - otherwise, as a client, where is my reason to believe in the agency's ability to execute?

Too many media agencies aren't doing enough of this very simple practice to make their preaching successful.  I'm quite an active twitterer and I can only find a handful of media agencies to follow.  The same goes for facebook.  And then, when I look for interesting blogs to follow not many of them are backed by the industry heavyweights.

It is disappointing that Australian agencies are either too scared to allow their staff's varied opinions to escape the moderated agency walls or they find it too time consuming craft their opinions for public broadcast.  Either way I think they are missing a trick.  It simply takes one influential to comment on their blog and suddenly the door to a healthy revenue stream can open.

If only I ran an agency...

We Cannes Do It!

I don't know if you've heard but I've been selected to attend the International Advertising Festival in Cannes! Check me out on mumbrella, The Australian, newsspace and campaign brief!! (Blatant self promotion... guilty as charged).

This is WAY exciting.  Not only will I have access to a wealth of amazing people and an educational experience one could only dream of at this stage in their career but on top of this.... I am going to Cannes!

Its been a little stressful organizing flights & accommodation as Matt is joining me on this amazing adventure so tonight I've jumped on last year's website & checked out their blogs.

It has got me all excited again.  I can't wait.  Plus this means my blog will be getting more action - perfect timing I think so rejoin me on my travels through life!