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Industry Insider
10.24.08:
Smart new websites
As media director at Cactus , I like to keep our staff and clients abreast of industry trends and smart media ideas. A few weeks ago I came across a report from iMediaConnection highlighting 10 new websites. It features some great sites with critiques fromindustry leaders and provides insight on trends and best practices. I highly recommend anyone working on a web project, or anyone who has a client working on a web project (which is everyone of us at Cactus), take the time to read the piece. Here are a few tidbits.
Converse ...Brand perfect! (check out the "Outofyourleaguegirl.com portion of the site)
For years our favorite-yet-inappropriate four-letter words have been banned from the airwaves. Should a Jerry Springer guest or reality TV contestant drop an f-bomb, that friendly bleep is there to save the day. But you may have noticed a recent increase in censored expletives in television spots and online video content. Well, according to Ad Age that’s because this time it’s an intentional move by marketers to project real-life moments that viewers can better relate to, while at the same time getting in a laugh or two.
Ever wondered what a word-of-mouth conversation is really worth? Well according to Brandweek , a Boston-based agency has found the answer. About 50¢. BzzAgent based their study on a conversation from one of its 425,000 agents on behalf of a brand. They then measured the success of its campaign by dividing its sales by total conversations, finally giving a tangible figure to this difficult-to-measure form of viral marketing.
06.30.08:
Storefront windows become advertising canvas
Billboards are going beyond just highways and street corners and directly into stores -- well on their windows anyway. According to Ad Age , the newest fad in outdoor media brings advertisers and media buyers to metropolitan areas in search for unused window space to display interactive ads for everything from fashion houses to film trailers. And storeowners and landlords are loving it. These street-level images rack in some serious revenue as the untapped storefronts make for some highly competitive property.
As we near towards election season and the Democratic National Convention here in Denver, there’s always one colorful question remaining. Blue or red?
According to AdAge, Florida-based Catalina Marketing is now adding green to that mix. They recently conducted a research study linking Republican and Democratic states to their environmentally-friendly behaviors. Turns out the blue states are purchasing eco-friendly and organic products at grocery stores in larger quantities than red states. However, according to Catalina’s website , our typically Republican population in Colorado has some of the highest green shoppers in the nation, even higher than eco-happy California. Local politicians are getting into green activity too. The Denver Post recently highlighted four regional candidates that feature wind turbines in their TV ads.
Even if blue trumps red in enviro-friendliness, green is making a huge impact on the entire nation. Over the last two years, green product sales have doubled and will continue to soar in the years to come. So whatever your political preference may be, it looks like green isn’t going anywhere.
As media director at 
Billboards are going beyond just highways and street corners and directly into stores -- well on their windows anyway. According to 