Top 10 TV Commercials of 2012

As 2012 nears its end, some companies are gearing up for their 15 second spots for the Super Bowl. But while most brands are not lucky enough to be featured in a Super Bowl spot, there is still a great deal of creativity in the television commercial arena.

Whether you prefer ads that make you think, laugh, or cry, there are many that stand out. But did the ads just stand out, or did they result in sales? How many of the following brands did you purchase?

Here are my favorite television ads from 2012:

Suburu: Best Friend

http://youtu.be/5Wa_6g9WNgU

Sears: Dogtastrophe

http://youtu.be/trmYFIdj4u4

Toyota: The Tundra Endeavour

http://youtu.be/74JWI5oYCxQ

Budweiser: Return of the King

http://youtu.be/OTztd4I_rzA

Apple: Introducing iPad Mini - Piano Music

http://youtu.be/vM9U70HgLsQ

Apple: Introducing iPhone 5 - Cheese

http://youtu.be/Xtm4ySJQPOc

Heineken/James Bond Skyfall Movie Teaser

http://youtu.be/VHz30rlNHCc

And some 2012 Holiday spots:

Mercedes-Benz: Frost

http://youtu.be/DOVGDtaGzzc

eBay: Pony

http://youtu.be/ibJHFCEUcoE

Zales: Holiday Commercial 2012

http://youtu.be/91XWdOq1lDI

What about you? What were your faves this year?

What’s Really Behind LinkedIn’s Endorsements?

By now, you’ve probably seen the latest addition to LinkedIn. The company calls it “Endorsements.”

According to LinkedIn, “As of September 30, 2012, LinkedIn operates the world’s largest professional network on the Internet with more than 187 million members in over 200 countries and territories.” We can all agree about LinkedIn’s purpose: users provide an overview of their professional background including education and work experience. Users can look for jobs, join groups, ask and answer questions, and above all, network. LinkedIn owns a niche market in the social media space, and it’s the leader in its space.

Previously, users aspired to add recommendations to their profiles. Recommendations could be created by co-workers, supervisors, vendors, etc. Typically, people would spend quality time to refresh themselves on an individual’s quality of work, teamwork, and successes – before writing recommendations. This was what made recommendations a valuable element of a LinkedIn profile. Whether a person was looking for a new job or building a personal brand, recommendations were important.

Fast forward to endorsements. First, users need to define their specialty areas or skills. That’s not a problem, and these strengths should be part of a person’s profile anyway. But, the problem arises when someone visits a profile – a box pops up and asks for endorsements.

People can make a decision in a fleeting second if they wish to provide an endorsement. In the same amount of time that it takes to sneeze, you can click and provide several endorsements. As a result, endorsements seem more like a popularity contest similar to a “thumbs up” or “like” from Facebook.

Was LinkedIn trying to become more like Facebook and less like a professional networking site? If so, it is interfering with its brand, and in the process, affecting the quality of its differentiation in the social media landscape.

So, are you using LinkedIn’s endorsements instead of recommendations?

A Question for Leaders: Do You Connect?

As a leader, it’s important to make connections with those you lead. But how often do you actually spend the time to make these connections? In the words of Carl W. Buechner: “They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” Therefore, it’s time to start.

Lyn Boyer, a leadership coach, author, and educator based in Florida, focuses on the emotional side of leadership, which she calls, “Affective Leadership.” Her unique background as a high school principal, coordinator of leadership development, and college professor, has provided a lens into the necessary emotional connections made by effective leaders. Who doesn’t want to be an EFFECTIVE leader?

Her book, Connect, Affective Leadership for Effective Results, “is about leaders who want to make positive connections and achieve outstanding results in all types of groups and organizations. In addition, it’s about possibilities for enhanced relationships, increased productivity, and greater personal and professional fulfillment.”

Lyn introduces a concept of Affective Leadership, which she describes as the connection of mind, body, emotion, and language that persuades others to join leaders. While business leaders focus on the bottom line, Lyn poses the argument that since leaders instill trust, it is the emotional connections that form the basis of all effective leaders.

Consider these statistics. Leaders may not always realize the emotional impact they have on others, whether positive or negative. But according to research from the Saratoga Institute, 80% of employees who voluntarily leave their jobs do so as a result of management issues or toxic work environments. According to the study, 50% of employee satisfaction was tied to the employee’s relationship with his or her supervisor.

One way to address a team or a challenging situation is to ask powerful questions:

[1] Why is this a concern for you? What do you fear?

[2] What are your greatest resources? What resources do you need?

[3] What have you gained or learned from this experience?

[4] What are your roadblocks to success?

[5] How can you turn the roadblocks into gateways?

[6] I am sensing frustration. What would make you relax?

[7] How would you describe your voice or body now? What does that tell you about how you feel about this situation?

[8] Am I trustworthy? In making promises? In keeping confidences?

So, how do you connect with others?

________________

Check out Lyn’s Blog: http://www.lynboyer.net

Connect on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Lyn_Boyer

Connect on Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/boyerlyn

What John Grisham and Baseball Teach Us about Business

Have you read the novel CALICO JOE by John Grisham? You don’t need to be an avid reader, a fan of John Grisham, a fan of legal thrillers, or even a baseball fan to enjoy this book. I promise not to give away the plot or ending, but I highly recommend the book even if you don’t fit into any of the above categories.

Grisham is known as the father of the modern legal thriller genre. His numerous novels feature memorable legal challenges, riveting plots, and engaging characters.

While CALICO JOE is first and foremost a story about baseball, it is much more. It represents the importance of trying things outside of one’s comfort zone. Grisham wrote an incredible story that will remain with all readers long after the book is finished. But why? The answer is because Grisham tried a genre outside of his comfort zone, and the result was an amazing work of fiction far different from his typical legal thrillers.

So how can you apply this lesson to your business? Don’t practice the “this is how we’ve always done things” strategy. Try new strategies. Create a corporate culture where all employees clearly understand that new ideas are encouraged. Innovation should be everyone’s objective.

You never know who will develop the next great iPod or who will revolutionize an industry.

Top 10 Branding Tips Using Public Relations

There is an often-overlooked aspect of marketing that can be considered a distant relative. Public relations, also referred to as PR, is this sometimes forgotten but very important component of promotions. At its core, PR can be defined as managing a brand’s image and reputation, but it touches all aspects of a business including employees, shareholders, customers, investors, financial markets, politics, media, and business partners.

When executed well, PR can garner free publicity in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and on CNN. When executed poorly or a crisis happens, publicity may not be welcomed.

Talented PR professionals develop long-term relationships with reporters, and over time, reporters depend on marketing and PR pros to provide them with the information they need to write their articles.

Here are my Top 10 Branding Tips Using PR:

[1] Develop competitive positioning statement and include with all printed collateral and online web pages, for example, fact sheets, brochures, annual reports, etc.

[2] Write articles about your company and how your product or service solved problems for your customers – and submit to local, regional, and national publications and websites.

[3] Videotape experts from your company as they answer questions about your product or service and submit to television stations and radio stations to pitch the experts for future interviews.

[4] Develop traditional press kits and online versions and include fact sheets, press releases, media alerts, printed or PDF versions of media coverage, etc.

[5] Develop a media list of appropriate reporters who cover your industry and update on a regular basis.

[6] Create a schedule for regular press releases and distribute to your media list.

[7] Develop testimonials and case studies by interviewing satisfied customers and use them as brand advocates – include these items in your press kits.

[8] Showcase your brand at industry trade shows and obtain keynote speaking engagements for your company experts – events are also great places to announce new products or services.

[9] Blogs have become an easy way for companies to share news and control how the information is presented, therefore, create a blog or several blogs – invite comments and monitor them quickly to further conversations.

[10] Since social media has changed the landscape for the dissemination of news, develop a social media marketing plan and integrate it with your overall marketing and PR outreach initiatives (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, and Pinterest).

What would you add to the list?