According to BBC, Greenpeace commissioned a study that shows consumers are willing to pay $197 more for a computer with fewer toxic components. Electronic waste, or e-waste, is a massive global problem. Thirty million computers are thrown out every year in the US alone. About 70% of heavy metals, such as lead and mercury, in landfill sites come from e-waste. Dell says it will eliminate the use of all brominated …
More Customer Non-Service
Consumers—equipped with video and audio recording devices and sites to place said media—are putting customer service reps and the companies they work for on notice. Last week we shared the AOL customer service debacle. Now, there's another sickening display of incompetence at which one may only marvel. According to the New York Times: Two weeks ago, a Comcast repairman in Washington fell asleep in a customer's home. …
Vodka For The Smart Set
Books sales aren't what they used to be. In fact, reading isn't what it used to be. Hence, now more so than ever, literary writers need sponsors. According to the New York Times, they're fiding them. In a continuing sign of the blurring of boundaries between literature and advertising, a campaign for Svedka, a Swedish vodka, is serving as inspiration for a series of articles to appear online and in a book. Nerve.com, …
Paradise Lost
Summer camps are getting unwanted publicity on the interweb, according to an article in the New York Times. Summer camp directors have a new scourge, and it is not mosquitoes or impetigo. It is the Internet, specifically sites like MySpace, Facebook and Friendster, where young people often post personal or revealing information. Camps say they are increasingly concerned about being identified in photographs or …
Put A Target On Your Butt
Without a doubt Target, a.k.a. "Tar-zhay" is an iconic brand, on par with Nike, Apple and Coca-Cola. Much of the discount retailer's brand advertising has crossed over into art. Now, the logo is crossing over into high end fashion. According to the Washington Post: Target Corp. has licensed its bull's-eye logo and name to consulting firm Brand Central LLC for use in a new line of high-end clothing called Target …
BMW Takes Interactive TV For A Test Drive
Clickz reports on BMW's efforts to engage an audience known for avoiding advertising. BMW this week became the first advertiser to use TiVo's new interactive advertising features within a program, embedding interactive tags into an episode of Speed Network's Test Drive series featuring its new M line of cars. The tags, first introduced last August, appear at the top of the screen to allow the viewer to pause live TV …
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Choose Your Words Wisely
Lewis Lazare despises the new Evian campaign. Evian is coming at consumers with a new print and online effort from Euro RSCG/New York that feels horrendously wrong-headed. For reasons we can't begin to fathom, Euro has decided to advertise Evian as the water to "detox" with, a word with strong drug-addiction associations that really doesn't belong in the same sentence with bottled water. But somehow we're supposed to …
