Innovate, Communicate, Collaborate… Don’t Hibernate

Scott Kirsner would make a heckuva marketer or PR person (or history teacher too but that is another matter) if he ever gives up his current gig as a freelance journalist and writer.  For the past several years – both before he relocated to California and upon his return to Boston – he has written blogged and spoken passionately about two things, among many others:

1)      the role the Boston area has played in serving as the “minor leagues” to Silicon Valley by cultivating and growing young talent as well as great small and medium sized technology and Internet companies only to see them get gobbled up by the Big Boys from Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, San Jose, etc.

2)      and the need for New England, Boston and more specifically, Route 128′s academic, technology and venture capital communities to dig deep to try to restore some of the luster we’ve lost to Silicon Valley and other tech hot spots over the years.

Scott’s latest big idea was offered up in his most recent Sunday Boston Globe Innovation Economy column in which he designates June as Innovation Month in New England.  He writes, “We can do a better job of connecting executives who’ve built big, influential businesses with entrepreneurs who are just starting out. We can do a better job helping shaky start-ups find the funding they need to succeed. We can do a better job ensuring that every student who comes to New England to earn a degree has at least some exposure to some of the innovative companies based here, whether through an internship, a company visit, or a classroom presentation from the founder.”

Scott is onto something and he is starting with some really attainable goals. He’s passionately encouraging people to start small – converse, connect, communicate and collaborate.  He’s pushing events, conferences and tweetups as the vehicles for driving more innovation, more idea sharing and more energy around innovation. He is also encouraging people to post their ideas (or links to innovation-related initiatives more people should know about) on the Innovation Economy blog at www.innoeco.com/neinno.

As Massachusetts entrepreneurs, business owners, investors, residents, etc. we all have a vested interest in fostering more innovation. Enough with the complacency fear and uncertainty that goes with the current down economy. As Scott and others quoted in that column, get out, get over the “depressions” and do your part to improve our chances at recovery.  Let’s just keep this party going into July, the rest of the summer and the rest of the year.

– Posted by Tim Hurley

60 seconds or less…

Breaking down hot topics in technology, media and marketing for your reading pleasure… in 60 seconds or less.

• File under, “Really?!”  A charity auction for an internship at the Huffington Post has collected bids as high as $13,000. What’s worse…college grads so desperate for a job that they’ll pay five figures for one, or media companies trying to make their margins by selling internships?
• Entrepreneurs, fear not! After meeting with more than a dozen Boston-area VCs, Tech Journal South reports that venture funds have available cash to invest, are actively looking for new deals and don’t expect the rest of the year to be as bad as the first quarter.  
• The Wall Street Journal issues “Social Media Rules of Conduct” for its staffers. Among the rules? Editor approval is required before “friending” sources in Facebook or twitter.  Check out the entire list here.
• What did you do by the time you were 25? Did you start a company that has generated 200 million users? Were you named one of the The World’s Most Influential People by Time Magazine? Were you ranked one of the richest people in America by Forbes, with a net worth of $1.5 billion? Had you made $240 million off of Microsoft? Well Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who turned 25 yesterday, has checked all those times of his list. I know, it hurts.

– Posted by Melissa Coyle

60 seconds or less…

A new weekly feature breaking down technology, b2b and general marketing news for your reading pleasure… in 60 seconds or less.

• Twitter has rolled out a new update to its website that includes real-time search, trending topics and a slightly improved user interface. Will Twitter 2.0 be less buggy than the original? Magic 8 Ball says, “Reply hazy, try again.”  
• According to a recent study, personality may be a more effective prediction tool for media usage than demographics. For instance, sarcastic folks who balk at rules are 60% more likely to be high consumers of media. Can’t wait to see those direct mail/email lists – “Sarcasm & Rule Breaker List, $425 CPM”.
• Hot or not? Forecasts for mobile ad growth have been reduced, thanks to the current economic climate. But it’s still one of the faster growing ad segments, expected to grow 36% year over year.
• A slew of recent surveys indicate that the slump’s not as bad as we might think in the tech sector. Among the data, Mass High Tech says 44% off the nearly 700 New England tech companies surveyed  have no plans for staffing changes (up from 35.4% in Q4).
• First, TheFunded shook up the VC world with its blatantly honest reviews of firms. Now it’s changing the model for start-up incubators with TheFunded Founder Institute, free from on-site meetings and alternative stock compensation plans.
• Looks like we’re safe, at least for one more Sunday. Does anyone else find it ridiculous that the Boston Globe union was so unwilling to compromise on the lifetime job guarantee issue? Talk about an antiquated mentality.

– Posted by Melissa Coyle

BladeLogic Soars

Here’s a company that got funded just days prior to September 11, 2001. In someone else’s abandoned office space just off 128, a team of entrepreneurs began an unbelievable journey. These guys were excited, optimistic, energetic and passionate. The Internet bubble had already burst, but severs were quietly proliferating in enterprises around the world and this team held the keys to helping IT people manage those servers. The goal was to deliver results, one customer at a time, and create steady, real value in the company.

And then September 11 hit. The rules had changed overnight. In fact, our entire way of life had changed overnight and there were no rules. What did remain was a strong desire to move ahead in spite of constant reminders from the roar of aircraft from nearby Hanscom Field.

Building on the mantra of delivering results and creating real value, BladeLogic got going, one customer at a time. As the momentum grew, this management team kept its composure. They never compromised on the standards they had created at the outset. They never stopped believing in the superiority of their technology. They never sacrificed real value for “buzz” or hype.

Yesterday, BladeLogic’s IPO debuted. The stock price closed at $25. Sometimes the good guys really do win.

– Posted by Melissa Coyle

The Game Changer: The iPhone Cometh

Today is the day.

The day 6 months in the making, the day one small device, saves the world.

Ok, so a bit dramatic, but seriously, – this is a really big deal…right? Sure, other phones have come and gone, toting all new features, music, email, etc – but none have done it like this; and certainly none have done it with this much hype.

Now that the phone has been handed to a select few “chosen ones”, there are several preliminary reviews surfacing, possibly the best came in the form of David Pogue’s iPhone video-blog (sorry Walt). In one scene, he is attacked by an angry mob of coworkers, eager to get their hands on the device. Pogue proceeds to leap up on to the side of a cubicle where he begins preaching on the phone’s shortcomings – mainly complaining about the AT&T network, and EDGE Internet service. A few at a time, they begin to leave, until one man is left. He leans over an asks,

“Does it have an Apple logo?”

Pogue replies, “Yeah, see? Its right on the back.”

“Cool.”

Gotta love brand equity. This short exchange sums up the reason for probably 90% of the hype surrounding this thing, its made by Apple and, as the video so poignantly displays, regardless of flaws, the Apple fan-boy will still buy it. The Wall Street Journal’s breakingveiws.com column warns,

“…an iPhone may yet appear in every pocket now housing an iPod or phone. But if it merely becomes a rich hipster accessory, Apple’s stock would have a long way to fall.”

And that is my exact prediction. To me, the iPhone will become like a Ferrari; coveted by all, but owned by few. Think about it, an unsubsidized phone, with no choice of network at $499 and $599 price points, that doesn’t work with family plans and most certainly will not work with corporate plans because it won’t run the important apps hardcore business users need. The only demographic left IS the rich hipster.

I will use myself as an example. I am far from a rich hipster (though I am probably just as much of a music snob) but love Apple products, and though I don’t currently own a Mac (ask me again in a year or so), my household, like many others, does have 6 iPods. There is one apple sticker on my IBM laptop, and another on my Fender Stratocaster and spend more on iTunes than is deemed healthy by the FDA. I am a huge advocate for what the company does .

I want an iPhone as much as anyone, but the deal just doesn’t seem to work in my favor. I would have to break my Verizon contract, pony up the $600 for the phone (because why get a 4gig when you can have 2x the space for only $100 more) sign a new contract, which would be significantly higher than my Verizon family plan bill, plus data, plus WiFi costs (most aren’t free, right Starbucks?). Oh yeah, and don’t forget, the network is AT&T, meaning I would burn through minutes like crazy, as it seems like everyone in Boston has Verizon.

So, Game Changing? You bet. Revolutionary? Absolutely. But there is something in me that thinks the limits on this device make it not quite ready for prime time. We shall see.

Good luck to everyone braving the malls at 6 p.m., especially this guy.

.

BluePoint Venture Marketing – www.bluepointmktg.com

The Game Changer: Boston – Land of the Red Sun, Sox

There has been an issue on my mind for the past few months now, but have only now been compelled to blog about – the $150 million man himself, Daisuke Matsuzaka.

 

What was the straw that broke the camels back you ask?

I recently received an email from one of my favorite area watering holes, Boston Beer Works, (As our managing director Tim Hurley says, “Now there’s something to put on the resume…”) promoting a new beer called Sanshin Ale:

 

“Sanshin, the Japanese word for “Strikeout”, is an East-meets-West beer. Brewed with a blend of malt and rice, plus American and Japanese Sorachi Ace hops, then fermented with Sake yeast and American Ale yeast, make this medium bodied golden beer unique.”

 

A tasty sounding brew no doubt (how do you say “wicked good” in Japanese?), but it really got me thinking about how much things have changed around here since the arrival of the Gyro ball throwing righty.

Fenway Park has undergone an amazing transition this season to accommodate the Dice man. Dunkin Donuts, Avaya, even Lumber Liquidators are all changing their ads to include Japanese greetings. The Dunkin sign would be unrecognizable if it weren’t for the trademark pink and orange letters.

And something tells me we are going to see a lot more Japanese-themed product extensions in the near future as well. With the identity crisis that is Dunkin Donuts food (come on people, pizza and panini sandwiches?), I can see Rachel Ray pushing sushi for them soon, “Stop in now, because nothing goes better with a hot cup of hot Dunkin Donuts coffee like a fresh California Roll” ….it’s like peas and carrots right?

Then there was this article in the Boston Globe last month. If you didn’t happen to catch it, Japanese marketers are capitalizing on Dice K’s starts OUTSIDE of Boston. With Fenway commanding some of the highest advertising dollars in baseball, many Japanese companies are buying ad space in smaller market stadiums where he is pitching. Just two nights ago in Toronto, the usual “pizza pizza” ads on the backstop were replaced with a myriad of Japanese advertisements.  

Daisuke Matsuzaka is changing the game in sports sponsorship by creating a wealth of opportunity not only here in Boston, but nationally and internationally as well. It seems that everyone is reaping the returns from Theo Epstein’s bold move to put another quality arm in the rotation. While Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui (boo) were the first big name Japanese exports to play in the MLB, neither have matched Dice K’s impact on the game, as the first to really make baseball an international affair, for fans and marketers alike.

 

I think I’m turning Japanese, I think I’m turning Japanese, I really think so.

– Posted by Andrew Soucy

Spinning Out Of Control

In reading today’s Boston Globe business story on the “high end” Cambridge consulting firm eSapience, Ltd., which was hired by former American Insurance Group (AIG) CEO and chairman Maurice Greenberg to improve his public perception, I am not sure who looks worse – Greenberg, eSapience or the high powered academics from MIT, University of Chicago and University College in London, who lent their time, brainpower, influence and connections to Greenberg’s PR campaign. I can’t admit to being up to speed on all things Maurice Greenberg (who was forced to resign by the AIG board in March 2005, but I highly doubt that whatever work eSapience did on his behalf (for $400 to $1,000 an hour) moved the needle, or at least did so in the right direction. And, adding the proverbial salt in the wounds, Greenberg’s new firm, C.V. Starr & Co. is refusing to pay more than $2 million in fees owed to eSapience. eSapience, according to the Globe piece, is not returning press calls and their web site is down. The article – both through Rob Weisman’s reporting and comments from business ethics experts questions why these prestigious academics would participate in the Greenberg campaign.

Wild guess here but money and political favors might be at play here somewhere.

– Posted by Tim Hurley

Boston Proper, Err Paper

Competition in the news business can never be a bad thing right?

Well, news of a second free tabloid-style daily paper in Boston broke today in Steve Bailey’s “Downtown” column. Bailey reports that Russel Pergament, who started Metro Boston six years ago, is back in the Hub with plans to launch a Metro Boston competitor called Boston Now. Bailey writes that Pergament hopes to replicate this effort in eight to 10 U.S. cities within the next few years.

In so doing, Pergament will be duking it out with Stuart Layne, the Metro’s publisher. Layne, one of the true gentlemen in the news communications business, assumed the reins of the Metro last fall. Layne formerly ran his own sports marketing firm and also headed up marketing for the Boston Celtics and Seattle Mariners in previous lives. He’s a native New Yorker and die-hard Yankees fan, but that doesn’t necessarily make Layne a bad guy. And in fact, as any good marketing guy would admit, Layne has acknowledged what a great job the Red Sox have done in building their brand and marketing their product – locally, nationally and now (thanks to Dice-K) internationally. Given his baseball loyalties, however, one wonders if the Metro-Boston Now rivalry will one day be the newspaper equivalent of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry.

Finally, did anyone else who read Bailey’s column this morning pick up on the irony of Bailey’s and Pergament’s commentary relative to local news? Bailey wrote…(“Pergament promises a paper that will emphasize staff-written local news. That has certainly not been the track record of these McPapers, which are loaded with wire-service stories.” Pergament was quoted saying: “Our commitment is local . . . We are going to break some news. It is not going to be just watered down wire copy.”

Interesting stuff. So, just for kicks, let’s take a look at the very pages of this morning’s Globe business section and let’s do a quick count of its stories……including the Bailey column there were five staff-written stories with local angles compared to 12 wire stories of national or international import. Hmmm. Want some fries with your Boston Globe this morning?

– Posted by Tim Hurley

Turner Broadcasting Blows Up in Boston

While one of our managing partners, Tim Hurley, has been out in sunny Palm Springs, CA, participating in DEMO 2007 and going to extravagant after parties with H to the O-V Jay Z (more from him on that later today I’m sure), the city of Boston has been crippled, frozen in terror by….LiteBrights.

For the benefit of one of our fearless leaders on the West Coast and those of you outside of the Boston area, let’s back track. Early yesterday morning, a suspicious “object” was found underneath a bridge in Boston. Panic ensued, leading to more phone calls about more suspicious objects found throughout the city. The Boston Police, Jack Bauer and Homeland Security were called in to diffuse and disarm a total of 9 “bombs”. As we found out later in the day, the “bombs” were actually magnetic lights being used as a marketing campaign by Turner Broadcasting as a promotion for their upcoming TV Show turned movie, “Aqua Teen Hunger Force”, which was also launched in several major cities including New York, Austin and Seattle.

I’m sure the water cooler debate this morning is to determine if Boston citizens are more vigilant than other major cities, or if Santa didn’t visit their houses enough as children, but I’m going to shoot for the former. In a post 9/11 world, you can’t really blame anyone for calling in a suspicious object. In my high school, we had an evacuation after an automatic flusher broke off and was discovered on the floor by a student. It is easy to see how someone could mistake any type of black box with wires coming out of it to be a bomb. The mess here came in the “snowball effect” as people became more aware of their surroundings thanks to the morning news, the number of objects began to grow and grow, until millions of dollars were sunk into chasing after what were essentially toys. (A big kudos to all police and agents involved with this ordeal, I feel safer in this city than ever before.)

So, marketing disaster? You bet. But the sad thing is, people are going to see this movie in droves now. Before this incident, all I knew about Aqua Teen Hunger Force was that its’ theme song was often quoted on SportsCenter when Manny or Papi hit a bomb over the Monstah- “Makin’ the homies say ho, and the girlies wanna scream”. Now, I, along with most everyone in the region can tell you that the show is about the escapades of various delicious fast food items such as hamburgers, fries and a milkshake (sounds like a masterpiece). I’m sure Turner is sorry, but there really is no such thing as bad publicity, so the company is benefiting from this campaign anyway, as ugly as it has become.

In marketing, especially with guerilla tactics becoming a more mainstream practice, agencies need to proceed with caution. Obviously, in this case, someone missed a step and didn’t look at the entire picture. You can not put black boxes on land marks and bridges just like you can’t say bomb on an airplane (Focker), its just bad business. First and for most, Turner’s marketing department should have thought of the repercussions of what a campaign like this could entail, and, if they did decide to move ahead with it, which they did in this case, the proper authorities should have been notified to carry this thing out legally. I’m assuming by circumventing this last detail, Turner saved a few bucks, and came off as a bit more “legit” to their demographic, but in the end, I’m sure the extra money would have been worth avoiding the mess they’re in now.

It goes without saying that the blame has to fall on someone’s shoulders; however, it’s hard to say who, if anyone, the Boston PD should arrest. Is the starving artist, paid by a huge corporation really to blame? Or is it the huge corporation itself? Or the marketing person behind it all? As Andrew Hampp noted in his AdAge article…

“But at least one person found no humor in the outdoor ad campaign gone haywire. U.S. Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s telecom panel, said in a statement, “Scaring an entire region, tying up the T and major roadways, and forcing first responders to spend 12 hours chasing down trinkets instead of terrorists is marketing run amok. It would be hard to dream up a more appalling publicity stunt. Whoever thought this up needs to find another job.”

I am sure jobs will be lost over this, but what is the most important punishment, as Massachusetts taxpayers would tell you, is that Turner foots the bill. This operation must have been ridiculously expensive, and I’m sure everyone in this state would rather not have to pay for it, because they already have, spending an entire day worrying about loved ones on the edge of their seats, glued to their computers and televisions waiting for their sigh of relief.

A lesson learned to all of us in the industry….when it comes to guerrilla marketing, tread lightly, just put something up on YouTube.

– Posted by Andrew Soucy

Rock the Vote

Today is primary day across the Bay State and like many of you over the last few weeks I have thought more seriously about how I was going to rock the vote. I even watched the nightly profiles of the candidates on the local news. Ok not all of them. Unlike previous local elections when I gave more thought to who I was going to vote off American Idol or what unlucky Survivor’s torch would be put out, this year I feel prepared. On my morning drive this morning downing my Dunks coffee and listening to the radio I realized how much I do care about who gets elected as governor and for the first time in many years feel very strongly about my vote.

My vote has typically been based on influencers like charisma, likeability, and sometimes even a good suit or cute family. Party lines were not something I took enough time to understand. Ironically, I was brought up in a very strong political viewed house and my dad taught us that every vote counts and we can’t complain about issues if we don’t vote. So today don’t get bogged down in the media hype, the attack ads or even the cute suits. Think about what makes you tick – real estate taxes, after-school programs, keeping young talent in Boston, stem cell research or immigration.

No one really likes to complain, so we should all do ourselves a favor and vote. This way we have one less thing to complain about and we can whine about real issues in our life. Like the Red Sox and the weather.

Think about like this – it’s the seventh game of the World Series and the Yankees are at bat with 1 out and two men on. Who do you want at the mound?

– Posted by Kim Pegnato