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Helpful Blogger + Brand Idiocy = Social Media Disaster

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Oh wait. Didn't we just write that headline? Here we go again. Or is it "there you go again?" I can never remember what that Reagan dude used to say all the time. Anyway, here's the deal.

In a blog post, Jason Roe pointed out a fluke on the Ryanair website that made it possible for someone to book a flight and not be charged for it. He didn't actually book a free flight but he wanted the error to be made know.

How did Ryanair react? As if a Mastercard blowjob ad, pricelessly:

10. Ryanair Staff #1 Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 5:25 pm

jason!
you're an idiot and a liar!! fact is!
you've opened one session then another and requested a page meant for a different session, you are so stupid you dont even know how you did it! you dont get a free flight, there is no dynamic data to render which is prob why you got 0.00. what self respecting developer uses a crappy CMS such as word press anyway AND puts they're mobile ph number online, i suppose even a prank call is better than nothing on a lonely sat evening!!

Sweet, huh? But it gets worse. Upon confirmation the above comment did, in fact, come from a Ryanair employee, Ryanair spokesman Stephen McNamara said:

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by Steve Hall    Feb-24-09   Comments (8)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Social, Strange, Weblogs, Worst

Bud Macs, Portfolios Gamed, Animals Fed, Diversity Tackled

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- This is really, really lame but since it has to do with Super Bowl advertising we're gonna share.

- Some stupid game called Gal-ad-a lets you review portfolios. We have a headache already.

- Layoff blog Please Feed the Animals has morphed into a job site of sorts where "where job seekers and cash-strapped agencies could find each other." Check it out.

- On February 11, BDI will host its Advertising Industry Diversity Job Fair at NYU. Get the details here.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-09   Comments ()    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Games, Industry Events, Spoofs, Weblogs

American Apparel Hooks Up With Chictopia Bloggers

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American Apparel has teamed with fashion blog social network Chictopia to feature the site's member's in a new advertising campaign. The campaigns will run on Chictopia's website as well as the member's individual fashion blogs. The models will wear a combination of American Apparel and the company's vintage line California Select.

by Steve Hall    Jan-20-09   Comments (5)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Brands, Promotions, Weblogs

Beck's Launches Blog. Does Everything Wrong

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Beck's has launched a blog, Different by Choice. Yawn, right? But the way they've announced it and the way it's formatted is so annoying, it can't be left alone.

In an email beginning with "Hello Important Marketing Blog People," Beck's blogger Darius asks, "has anyone told you recently how hot you are?" and then goes on to explain how he "destroyed" 850 other potential bloggers vying for the job "'cos that is the way I roll." Ugh. Cue the Agency.com Subway video.

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by Steve Hall    Dec- 8-08   Comments (9)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Bad, Opinion, Weblogs

Yawn. Oh Wait, Not Yawn! It's Time For Another Sony Commercial!

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Balls! Paint! Play-Doh! Foam! Zoetrope! Zoetrope? Say what? Yes, it's time for another grand scale Sony commercial and it's being shot right now in Northern Italy. The ad will feature Brazilian footballer Kaka and the the world's largest zoetrope as vetted by the Guinness Book of Records. The zoetrope, a device invented in 1834 by William Horner which creates short films out of static images, measures 30 meters in circumference and 10 meters in diameter.

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by Steve Hall    Dec- 4-08   Comments ()    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Brands, Commercials, Social, Weblogs

iJustine, Karen Get Lost in America With AT&T

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Surprisingly, there hasn't been much press on AT&T's Lost in America, a Wal-Marting Across America-style (sorry, Justine) travel blog program fronted by Justine Ezarik, a.k.a iJustine and Karen Nguyen. For a few months now, the pair have been "lost" in America and exploring Alaska, Austin and Chicago.

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by Steve Hall    Nov-19-08   Comments (7)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Mobile/Wireless, Online, Opinion, Product Placement, Social, Video, Weblogs

SocialSpark Launches Affiliate, Premium Blogger Programs

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In years past, we, along with others, have thrashed PayPerPost (now more commonly known as SocialSpark though the PayPerPost name still exists) for its initial, somewhat shady offering which paid bloggers to write about a particular company without disclosure. Following an immediate backlash, the company moved more and more towards open transparency and, today, is out with two new offerings.

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by Steve Hall    Oct-17-08   Comments ()    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Tools, Weblogs

Dog Disappears, Grey's Blog Disappears, HHCC's Reappears

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- In this new Venables, Bell & Partners-created commercial for Audi, a house gets a time-based makeover and so does the dog.

-Apparently, Grey SF is inexplicably no longer blogging.

- But Hill Holiday's blog, one of the earliest agency blogs, is active again after a few layers of dust settled.

- Google has launched do it yourself display advertising.

- Today's Jeopardy will feature a category dedicated solely to the AMC show Mad Men.

by Steve Hall    Oct-17-08   Comments (2)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Agencies, Commercials, Online, Weblogs

Cancer Bottled, Born Digital, Gawker Retools, Lingerie Objectified

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- There are many ways to call attention to breast cancer awareness. This is yet another one which makes an interesting association between the affected body part and the company behind the awareness campaign.

- Wonder what the "born digital" crowd does all day long? Here's your answer.

- Gawker Media's Nick Denton has announced cutbacks at his company and predicts a challenging year ahead in 2009.

- Perhaps due to genuine interest or perhaps to hear how many times Palin would utter yet another soccer mom-ism, 69.9 million viewers tuned in to the Biden/Palin debate, more than the 52.4 million who watched Obama debate McCain.

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by Steve Hall    Oct- 5-08   Comments ()    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Outdoor, Publishing, Racy, Video, Weblogs

Blogworld! Vegas! Sexy Geeks! Much More Than Just A Conference

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So Blogworld. If you've ever wanted to hang out with 3,000 bloggers and talk about, well, blogging then Blogworld is the place to be. In its second year, Blogworld brings together everyone from Robert Scoble to, well, people you've never heard of in Las Vegas each year to pontificate about how blogs and all that blogs have spawned effect, well (again), everything.

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In his keynote address Friday, Wine Library's Gary Vaynerchuk took a"just do it" approach to explaining what it takes to launch a successful business through the use of blogs and social media. Basically, his mantra was "become the expert" and "own the space." Identify every known blogger in your intended space, make contact with them, comment on their blog, comment on those who comment on your own blog, answer every single email, join Twitter and make contact with everyone related to what your business does.

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by Steve Hall    Sep-23-08   Comments (6)    Bookmark and Share     
Topic: Industry Events, Weblogs

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