Parisian Love

I have to admit that my favorite thing about watching the Superbowl is, of course, the ads.

In the midst of all the ads for beer, cars, and snacks, surprisingly the Google ad is the one that stood out to me the most. In Parisian Love, a love story is told through a series of Google searches. The ad begins with a search for “study abroad paris france” then on to “impress a french girl” to “long distance relationship advice” to “jobs in paris” to “churches in paris” and finally “how to assemble a crib.” The ad launched Google into new territory and with over 1.7 million views (and counting) on YouTube, it clearly struck a chord with viewers.

In case you missed it, check it out below.

Coyne PR Hotsheet 02/05/10

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		Obama to Field Questions Posted by YouTube Users On Monday, President Obama held an interactive interview session through YouTube – during the first-of-its-kind group interview, Obama read questions submitted by YouTube users and replied to them via live Web cast Source: NYTimes.com, 01/31/10
		Grammys: Imogen Heap Accepts Award Wearing "Twitter Dress" Recording artist Imogen Heap brought microblogging and fashion together during the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards by wearing a "Twitter Dress" — the custom made ensemble included a real-time Twitter feed display; Heap asked her fans to "accompany her on the red carpet" by tweeting the hashtag #twitdress Source: Mashable.com, 02/01/10
		Nokia Points the Way With Huge London Sign To promote their navigation services, Nokia hung a giant interactive arrow from a crane overlooking London – users could use their cell phones to text in details for any destination around the world; the crane would move the arrow to point in that direction and display the distance on the arrow – check out a video of the construction and implementation of this interactive installation Source: AdFreak.com, 02/02/10
		Tired of the Talking Babies? The eTrade talking babies have gone viral – a new Web application released by the online trading company allows users to send BabyMail to others; the message can be personalized by uploading photos or recording a message via cell phone Source: BrandflakesForBreakfast.com, 02/02/10
		Google Lets Kids Design Next Logo Today, Google launched their third annual Doodle for Google – students grades K-12 are encouraged to enter a “Google Doodles” for the chance to see it posted on Google’s homepage for a day Source: Mashable.com, 02/03/10
		Giant Pandas to Be FedExed to China The U.S. said goodbye today to giant pandas Mei Lan and Tai Shan, who were returned to China on the "FedEx Panda Express" – a fuel-efficient 777F aircraft was specially branded by FedEx for the trip, due to a conservation agreement; once in China, the China Wildlife Conservation of Giant Panda Breeding hopes to find a mate for Mei Lan (also see Wanted: Chinese teacher and boyfriend for US-born panda) Source: News.Discovery.com.com, 02/03/10
		Social Media and Teens: Blogging Down, Social Networking Up According to a recent study by the Pew Research Center of U.S. teens (defined as Internet users ages 12-17), blogging is down to 14 percent compared to 28 percent in 2006, and 73 percent of teens are active in social networks, up from 65 percent in 2008; only eight percent of teens are tweeting, compared to 66 percent who send and receive instant messages regularly Source: MediaBistro.com, 02/04/10
		Golden Grahams Are Next Best Thing To a Job Golden Grahams wants to help make light of America’s worst job search stories – users are encouraged to send in their sagas for the chance to have them turned into a cartoon and posted on the Golden Grant microsite; winners will also receive 12 boxes of Golden Grahams Source: AdFreak.com, 02/04/10
		VW Social Media Campaign Delivers One-Two Punch Volkswagen has developed a marketing campaign for the Super Bowl surrounding the classic “punch buggy” game – renamed “Punch Dub,” a playoff of VW nickname “Vee Dub,” players are encouraged to “punch” others in person and online for the chance to win a new Volkswagen CC Source: Wired.com, 01/29/10
		New Heinz Ketchup Packet Must Have Been Designed By Mommas Heinz has put a new squeeze on ketchup packages – their revamped Heinz Dip & Squeeze package, which holds 3x more sauce and can be opened in two different ways, is getting praise from media and bloggers alike; the release comes with a Facebook page, www.facebook.com/HeinzKetchup , where fans can express their love for the famous tomato product   Source: TampaBay.com, 02/04/10
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Cozy up with "Outliers"

As part of Coyne College, I’m taking part in Talking Titles. Talking Titles is a reading group that allows employees to participate in fun discussions about the latest and greatest best selling business books. It’s been a great experience so far. Our first book, “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How Social Media is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR,” was a great way to kick off the series.  The book we are currently reading is “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell. Although I’m only one-third of the way through it, it looks at various facets of a person’s life that may point to their success. It really makes you think. For those of you who have read the book, maybe you asked yourself some of the same questions I did. If I was born in the early portion of the year would I have become a professional athlete? Or if I was born in 1954 or 1955, like Bill Gates, would that make me more successful? Or if I had practiced an instrument for more than 10,000 hours before the age of 20, would I have become a renowned musician?

I have to admit, I think the book is great. It’s very interesting to take a closer look at some very successful and intelligent people. So far, the part I enjoyed the most was on page 54, where Gladwell describes all of the events that happened in Bill Gates’ young life which may have led to his vision of Microsoft. Its unreal how nine specific opportunities may have teed up his very impressive career, which in turn continuously ranks him among some of the World’s Wealthiest People.

It does take more than just opportunities to become Bill Gates. It should be noted that he scored a 1590 on his SATs and has an IQ of 170. We have our book group discussion in a few weeks; it should be interesting to see what the rest of the agency thinks about the book.

Fighting the Good Fight for New Jersey's Reputation

Yesterday morning I was fortunate enough to attend a PRSA-NJ event at Seton Hall University. The panel discussion focused on the recent MTV hit, "Jersey Shore" and all of the speculation and debate surrounding it.

For those of us in attendence, it was definitely an interesting morning. Panelists included Neil Genzlinger from The New York Times, Mark Dilonno form the Star-Ledger, Jason Chupnick from PR Newser, Debbie Galant from Baristanet.com, Michael Genevrino from the Italian-American Heritage Institute and Andre' Mino from UNICO. The combination of panelists debated over the whirlwind of media coverage the show has received, it's affect on Italian-Americans, as well as whether or not the show has cast a good light on New Jersey as a whole.

From a PR perspective, Jason Chupnick from PR Newser had a lot to add in regards to New Jersey's reputation. While he believed "Jersey Shore" is merely a form of entertainment, he also suggested that New Jersey get on a long-term PR plan for its reputation - and fast.

With other shows like "The Sopranos" and "The Real Housewives of New Jersey," the panelists are calling the addition of "The Jersey Shore" the trifecta for the state's negative reputation.

What are some things we, as PR professionals, might suggest New Jersey do to counteract the negative light may (or may not) be cast on us as a result of these shows?

Challenges Continue for Toyota

Toyota is facing mounting challenges each day – the latest being the “stop driving” comment by the Transportation secretary along with brake issues with the Toyota Prius. Timeliness and accuracy is obviously key. In the instance of the mis-statement; it was interesting to see that Toyota did not immediately react until late in the day after the Secretary amended his comments.

Toyota’s Twitter has become an important communication channel for the company, however, with only 15,000 followers, this crisis impacts close to 5 million vehicle owners. An interesting piece was posted yesterday in Newsweek discussing how poorly Toyota is handling this crisis in this new media world. This challenge requires Toyota leveraging all media channels with strong leadership to deliver clear, timely messages to help sway the tide for Toyota.