Occupy Wall Street Protests Goes Global

The protests against corporate greed and failure of government goes global. See http://www.cnbc.com//id/44913817

Except in Singapore. The people are frightened by the strict laws against protest.

Dove | Uncontrolled women

BRAND: Dove

BRAND OWNER: Unilever

CATEGORIES:FMCG, Toiletries/Cosmetics

REGION: Argentina

DATE: May -May 2011

AGENCY: Initiative

MEDIA CHANNEL: BrandedContent, Digital,Online, PR

Dove wanted to re-launch its hair care range in Argentina and earn credentials amongst consumers as an expert hair care brand that women would trust. Dove wanted to refresh the promise that women who chose the Dove Damage Therapy range could reclaim control of their hair.

This re-launch featured new product formulas, new packaging, a new brand positioning and a fresh new tone in Dove marketing messages. But to achieve a successful re-launch, Dove needed to develop and distribute content to help generate awareness of the new 'control or uncontrolled messaging.

A series of videos were created that explored the idea of 'control and uncontrolled'. Well known female comedians discussed the things in their lives that bring chaos and stress, in a series of comedy monologues that tackled issues of control for women at work, at home and in their relationships.

Dove wanted to get involved in the online conversations of its consumers by providing them with some entertaining content they would feel compelled to share. Viewers are more likely to share content that engages them, which meant that Dove had to take advantage of the earned media potential of relevant, shareable content by ensuring that it was distributed effectively.

The resulting video series 'Stand Up Descontroladas' was seeded across multiple online platforms. Dove enlisted the support of key opinion formers in the blog space and launched a robust PR campaign on Facebook, Twitter and fashion aspiration sites. The key opinion formers spread the videos by posting entries on their blogs and Twitter feeds that discussed the difference between '#stable women' and '#uncontrolled women'. By the end of the first day, '#uncontrolled' was a trending topic in Argentina. Most of the tweets were linked to one of the Dove branded videos. Videos were hosted on a branded YouTube channel.

Descontroladas - Maria Freytes from CSquared on Vimeo.

Results

'Stand Up Descontroladas' achieved more than 500,000 views during the nine week campaign. 30% of visitors came from Twitter, Facebook, Dove.com.ar and paid media initiatives. 70% of views were counted in Youtube, coming from YouTube search or related video suggestions.

The mix of earned and paid media investment was split 10 % earned + 90 % paid.

The campaign contributed to a 10% increase in Dove's market share. (Source: CCR)

This campaign was shortlisted at the 2011 Festival of Media Latam Awards in the 'Best Use of Digital Landscape' category.

External links

Dove Argentina Twitter

Dove Facebook

Bankrupcy law change could help consumers recover: Experts

Some experts have recommended a change in bankruptcy law in the USA to forgive the debts of consumers (i.e. student loans, mortgage loans and consumer loans) and help the economy to recover, as stated in this report.

This is a dangerous suggestion that has moral hazards, but should not be written off entirely. Already, matters have become very difficult and bad! Anyway, the banks will not agree to write off the loans and will fight hard against such a law.

But I like to suggest this way out. If we study what is happening in Greece, the solution is for the banks to take a haircut and be paid say 50% of what they are due. In the case of consumer loans, the bankruptcy law could allow them to apply for a special fund from the state to pay off the loan at a 50% discount. The money borrowed from the state will have to be repaid in the future, but at a low rate of interest (instead of the usury rate charged by the banks). This will give consumers time to pay off their loans gradually and to rebuild their lives.

 

California Teachers Pension Fund takes a stand

I congratulate the California teachers pension fund for taking a stand against the obscene practices of over-paying CEOs of large companies. Read this report.

Trickle down economics

Quote in my blog: Republicans (in the USA) are fervent supporters of 'Trickle-down Economics' which is proven to be a fraud. Guess who else is also a die-hard believer of this economic nonsense? 

Here is an explanation of "Trickle down economics".

Question: Who is the "die-hard believer (in Singapore) of this economic nonsense"?

Stagflation

America is expected to see a period of stagflation, similar to the 1970s. It is a period of economic stagnation, i.e. no economic growth, high unemployment, coupled with a high rate of inflation. The lack of economic growth means that the high rate of unemployment will continue to be high, and the cost of living will increase, due to inflation. It will be a difficult time for many people. The problem is that this stagflation is likely to spread to other countries, due to the global environment.

What is the cure for stagflation? The economic stimulus adopted during the past three years did not seem to work. We need a new approach.

Lack of demand is cause of unemployment

The Republican politicians blame Government regulations for hampering the creation of jobs. Business owners disagree. It is the lack of consumer demand. Read this report.