Hasta La Creative!

Following the release of his second book “Performance Marketing for Professionals,” and pre-empting the release of his upcoming content marketing book with Bruce Clay, digital marketer Murray Newlands has released “Mobile Marketing Strategy Guide“

The guide has five chapters, ranging in topics from an introduction to mobile marketing, to building, running, tracking, and optimizing mobile campaigns. While the guide is written in large part by Newlands himself, it also contains a handful of guest-authored sections containing expert insights and tips from a handful of successful mobile marketers and app developers.

According to Newlands, his “Mobile Marketing Strategy Guide” is meant to serve as an introduction to the industry for those who are looking to expand their repertoire and enter the mobile space in the year to come.

In an interview, Newlands told us, “I’ve noticed from all of the traveling I’ve done this year and speaking with advertisers and publishers at conferences that a lot of people are trying to get into mobile. The only reason they haven’t made that leap yet is because there just isn’t a lot of information out there about how to do it,” he explained. “So I tried to take it upon myself to create a well-researched, easy to read resource that people could use to start their careers in the mobile advertising industry.”

Continuing, Newlands said, “I wanted to make sure that all of the major topics were covered and that people were able to get a solid grasp on mobile by reading the guide. Plus, I’ve included a few guest sections from people who are experts in their respective niches so that there is some great experience-based insights and tips, and that the guide is more than just a basic introduction. Readers can expect to find anything from how to get started as a mobile marketer, to expert tips on generating app downloads or creating a great mobile landing page.”

A few weeks ago, we announced that BSSP had won creative and digital duties for streaming services device Roku. Now, the Sausalito, California agency has debuted their first work for Roku with the “Moxkat Grvida” campaign.

The idea is simple, yet clever: You might not get Roku for Christmas, so buy it for yourself, wrap it, and say it was from Moxkat Grvida, your dear Ukranian friend. In “Merry Christmas from Moxkat Grvida,” Grvida introduces the concept in a friendly message extolling the virtues of Roku and offering up his services as an excuse for buying yourself one this holiday season. You can think of Grvida as a sort of friendly, older, Ukranian version of Borat. With so many holiday ads trying too hard to be over-the-top and ridiculous, it’s refreshing to see a simple, direct idea like Moxkat Grvida executed well. It’s worth a chuckle, and the humor is employed in a way that could actually help sell the product.

In addition to the above, minute long “Merry Christmas from Moxkat Grvida” spot, there are also three 15 second ads along the same lines. One of these, “Moxkat’s Favorites” finds Grvida sharing a few of his favorite movies. We’ve featured it, along with credits, after the jump. Enjoy.  continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

You hear about the hirings, the fundings, the skyrocketing valuations and exits. But for every $1 billion dollar IPO, there are dozens of companies that never get close. They spark, they sizzle, and then they go flat, or worse.

One of those companies is Vibrant Media, a former rising star in ad-tech that built a $100 million dollar business selling in-text ads before native advertising and real time bidding rose to prominence. Vibrant is still alive but stagnating, and one day last month the company’s problems came to a head.

On a mid-October afternoon, Vibrant’s employees were called into an all hands meeting and told that the company’s COO Martin Forbes, CTO Tom Iler and CRO Sheila Buckley would all be leaving. The departures of Mr. Iler and Mr. Forbes were voluntary, according to a source with knowledge, while the company’s board was behind the ousting of Ms. Buckley and Vibrant’s former CEO, Cella Irvine, who had been dispatched weeks earlier.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

We hope you’re not too tired of Movember, because we have a fun moustache-related item today. Two creatives over at Reno agency The Glenn Group started a website to get their dads to grow back their signature ‘staches. (So far one of the fathers has started growing it back, while the other has not.)

On Grow It Back Dad, they explain the reason for the site’s existence “If your old man had a mustache, and like ours, he did the unthinkable by shaving it off and going around bare-lipped, then this site is for you. We have the tools you need to get your dad to grow his ‘stache back, all while getting involved in the epically good cause that is Movember.”

If you were expecting, like me, for this to be accompanied by photos of their father’s nifty seventies moustaches, you’ll be disappointed. This is a pretty glaring omission, as you’d think shots of the fathers with and without their facial hair (and then with the facial hair re-grown) would be the backbone of the campaign. But fear not, there are plenty of shots of other people’s father’s moustaches over at Grow It Back Dad’s Facebook page, and also this funny picture of what Full House era Bob Saget would look like with a Hulk Hogan moustache: 

If you’d like your dad to grow back his signature ‘stache, Grow It Back Dad has a form letter you can use to send dad a heartfelt email. If that won’t work, there’s also a petition to persuade your father that the world really misses that hair under his lip. There’s also a link to the Movember site, and a link to the Facebook page, where you can upload photos of your dad’s moustache — or just some random funny ‘staches. Enjoy the Movember madness, and we hope your dad listens to reason and grows back his lip warmer.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

For those of us in digital marketing and advertising, we stay on top of social media trends to keep our brand current, but what are the fundamental truths that guide our social media approach? This white paper from Prestige Marketing explores the truths that stay constant through passing and lasting trends. Besides practical insight on how social media serves business development and online marketing, read on for:

• Essentials and rules all businesses should follow in social media
• Review of social media trends for 2013
• Forecast social media trends for 2014

Download this whirepaper now and gain valuable knowledge on the fundamentals of social media and ensure your brand is ready to hit 2014 with both feet on the ground.

Yahoo has a new face to rival CEO Marissa Mayer’s starpower.

The portal has announced former “Today” host and “CBS Evening News” anchor Katie Couric as global anchor of Yahoo News. Ms. Couric will start her role leading Yahoo’s news division early next year, according to a company blog post.

Ms. Couric’s role will be both on air and behind the scenes. She will conduct regular interviews each month that will stream on Yahoo’s properties, according to a person familiar with the matter. She will also help to develop Yahoo’s news business.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

(TrendHunter.com) Animal hybrids reflects man’s desire to combine the best attributes of two or more disparate species in order to create something superior.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you dirds; a dog/bird…

Mindshare Worldwide has partnered with Shzam to launch AUDIO+, a program to help leading brands audit, map and capitalize on the sound-based elements of their advertising campaigns. The two companies will work together with Mindshare clients to facilitate consumer interactions via second screen mobile devices using the Shazam App.

Currently, text, video and image assets are all easily monitored and distributed as part of a brand’s paid, owned and earned media strategy, but audio assets have for the most part gone un-monitored.

AUDIO+ aims to address this by auditing, mapping and then helping brands use their audio assets to provide insights to clients into the ROI on sound-based assets. All of the client’s advertising campaigns with audio can be Shazam-enabled, presenting different mobile experiences to consumers depending on the type of media or placement.