Took a break from posting for a few days due to some business travel in the Sunshine State. And as you could imagine, there are some nice benefits of having clients in Florida: getting a tan, taking a swim, and visiting the Orlando theme parks. Nothing like putting the Blackberry away, turning off the cell phone and getting lost in fantasy land for a bit.
But being the communications/marketing nerd that I am, I found myself noticing all of the interesting and creative ways that Disney and Universal studios were utilizing product placement within their attractions and rides.
One of the most compelling examples of this, was how Volkswagen was integrated into one of Universal Studios most popular rides: Revenge of the Mummy.
While this marketing investment from the German car maker was most certainly from a national budget, it lead me to believe that this was yet another example of the creative fragmentation of marketing dollars. I bet that some of these dollars used to primarily go to Broadcast and Print.
If you have a local online Media property, are you doing more that just offering banners and pre-rolls to your clients? Are you coming up with innovative ways to embed your clients brand or message within your content? Maybe you are building special sections, or landing pages? How about unique podcasts, contests, or video programs ?
Yes, amusement parks are now one of your many, growing list of competitors.