Nissan's Key Campaign

Honorary Agent Rett sent this opinion piece from the New York Times.

As Rett points out, the article about the campaign isn't so interesting (as a viral campaign it seems to be succeeding), it's more fun to see how angry the professor gets at bending over for a set of Nissan Altima keys.

For those that don't want to leap, the joke is that the new Altima's personal driver recognition program does not require keys. It does not require one to give up on society. More about the campaign and promotion here.

Polarize Me

In the latest issue of Fast Company, (subscription required) Dan & Chip Heath, authors of Made to Stick, state “if you want people to like you, first decide who needs to hate you.”

As I’ve pointed out on this blog, you can’t be all things to all people if your brand is going to be meaningful and equitable. You need to be unique (differentiated), you need to ground that identity, and it must be profitable.

The Bros. Heath demonstrate through tea, vodka, and personal ads how one may differentiate or may just be a part of the “hey – I’m here too” group.

Ultimate?

Will the term Sanctioning Agent make it into the general lexicon? Special Agent Cragan is "interviewed" by the local arts and entertainment weekly.

This from the City Pages:

Ticking through the impressive list of big media outfits that have cited his work in the last few weeks—CNN, the Washington Post, even that "ultimate sanctioning agent," the New York Times—Dr. John F. Cragan looks pleased.

Ultimate? Dare I dream of the Ultimate Sanctioning Agent? It may be like a new Marvel superhero...or not.

Head Like A Hole: NIN's new SEO/Viral Campaign

Thanks to Field Agent Jason for this very interesting promotion from Nine Inch Nails. The campaign is a bit esoteric…or a whole lotta of esoteric. Read the Rolling Stone article and then look at some of the comments from music and marketing folks. What I like about the promotion is that it seems to combine an element of gaming and like good web applications or sites, it makes the user feel like they are making progress. In the end commitment is escalated to such a point that one will have to buy (or illegally rip) the album. Additionally, it seems to be "brand-right" in that the campaign is not all things to all people, but rather does a lot to shield the committed and bring in a certain segment.

Cool and weird.