The Pro Shop

It’s hard to take your eyes off the scenes of devastation in Haiti, or to focus on anything beyond the truly horrific suffering: On Monday it was estimated that the death toll might reach as high as 200,000, and that three-quarters of the capital city Port-au-Prince was in need of reconstruction. Shattered infrastructure and the lack of a strong government presence are exacerbating the problems by making it difficult to get rescue teams to those who might still be alive, and needed supplies to the survivors.

But in one way, Haiti has been fortunate: When it comes to financial support, new media—and specifically mobile–have stepped up to provide swift, frictionless new ways for ordinary people to contribute cash to the recovery efforts, deploying channels resources that were not readily available even a few years ago. more

Almost exactly a year ago, I wrote in this blog that I didn’t think Starbucks’ then-new Gold loyalty program offerred enough in the way of benefits beyond the basic rewards card. As I pointed out at the time, while a $25 annual fee got you the Gold card and a 10% discount on everything, I didn’t think the great mass of users would find those price savings worth the pretty hefty up-front fee. Even those who know they’ll spend that much on Starbucks coffee in a month or two, I thought, would balk at laying down $25 bills and then amortizing it at 10% a double-shot.

Well, paint me blue and call me Karnak, because 12 months later, Starbucks have come around to my way of thinking. Now if I can just persuade other holdouts to heed my advice, from the new management of the Cubs to the folks who invent flavors for Ben & Jerry’s, this would be a much better world. more

It’s easy for marketers to fall in line; One duck after the other swimming to keep up with the one breaking ground with a new marketing idea.

Purchases that trigger a charitable donation are just such an example. Some smart marketer long ago thought up the idea. Now consumers can’t walk into a store without tripping over a pitch to buy one thing and donate to another. And while it’s all for good causes, it’s stale, moldy, boring marketing. Consumers do want companies to look out for others and will support them, but innovation will make these promotions work harder. Isn’t that the point?

Enter Disney.

Disney’s offer to give 1 million free tickets to its parks to people who complete a day of volunteer work is ingenious.

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Call this a lesson in learning what customers want by watching their behavior—even if that conduct goes against millennia of human instincts for self-preservation.

Chicago’s landmark Sears Tower has found a way to enhance its must-see tourist status: a pair of glass-enclosed, glass-bottomed platforms hanging off the 103rd floor of the building’s west façade and offering a 360-degree view (well, minus whatever portion is attached to the building) of a large portion of the city from 1350 feet up. more

I stepped out of the office today to see how marketers can give away free food without Oprah Winfrey’s help.

The event was a sampling session for a new product, Flatbread Melts, launching today from DiGiorno, a Kraft division. And it was a good reminder of how very simple it can be to get a new food item into tasters’ hands for free—with, perhaps, a few caveats and concerns. more

When I told one colleague in the industry recently that Promo was dropping its print magazine and switching to an all-digital format, her reaction caught me by surprise: “Well, Promo had a good run.” more