Google Smokes Rivals Again

This time it scores big in customer satisfaction. Here’s what went right for the search engine. FULL ARTICLE

The Un-Dying of the Microsite Sure, the microsite thrived because it was a tool of convenience. But don’t write it off before reading David Armano’s prescription for the ailing tactic. FULL ARTICLE

Why CPG Brands Better Buy Paid Search Those little text ads have a big impact on brand awareness, says a survey from MediaVest and Yahoo. FULL ARTICLE

Uh-oh, Where Did Those Newspaper Web Ads Go? File this under “It can always get worse.” FULL ARTICLE

Fear of Preroll Ads Eases If a 5% loss of audience is attributable to preroll ads, what are we all worried about? FULL ARTICLE

‘Sports Illustrated’ Sells Ads Via Online Auction It’s one of the most striking attempts yet to harness new media for a traditional publisher’s gain, writes Nat Ives. FULL ARTICLE

You Shared With Me, Now if We Can Just Get Brands on Board Here’s what you told us you wanted to see in DigitalNext. FULL ARTICLE

InBev Calls Global Creative Review for Stella Artois

Longtime Agency Lowe Won’t Defend $40M-$50M Account

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — After a 25-year relationship, Lowe Worldwide and Stella Artois are calling it quits. InBev put its Stella Artois brand in play, with the beer maker calling a global creative review for the brand’s estimated $40 million to $50 million global account.

FULL ARTICLE

Fear of Preroll Ads Eases New Study Helps Dispel Belief That Online Video Viewers Will Surf Away

LONDON (AdAge.com) — The perils of preroll appear to have been vastly overstated, according to research by Jupiter, which suggests audience loss as a direct result of prerolls could be as little as 5%. The figure comes as the research firm releases a major European report about online video and in-stream video advertising.

FULL ARTICLE

Creativity Weekly Top 5

Huggies Takes You ‘Inside the Diaper,’ Nike Serenades Team USA Hoops, What a Heart Attack Feels Like and Other Work

Watch the Spots

In this week’s episode of Creativity’s Top 5, courtesy Creativity-Online.com, Huggies and JWT give us a look “Behind the Geyser”; Wonderbra puts a lot of pairs together; Barrie D’Rozario Murphy and director Shy the Sun make some animated music for United; Nike serenades the U.S. Olympic hoops stars with classic Marvin Gaye; and British Heart Foundation delivers a hard-hitting impression of a heart attack.

FULL ARTICLE

The Ad Industry’s Single Biggest Issue: Talent A 3 Minute Ad Age Video Report

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Recruiting and retaining talent remains the single biggest problem of the U.S. advertising industry, according to American Association of Advertising Agencies President-CEO Nancy Hill. Speaking at the Ad Age Women to Watch luncheon, she lamented that the industry is held in such low esteem by the general public. Two other Women to Watch — Arnold Worldwide President Pam Hamlin and Cookie magazine publisher Carolyn Kremins — also comment.

FULL ARTICLE

GM Drops Out of Oscar, Emmy Broadcasts

Expense ‘Difficult to Justify’ As Company Struggles to Return to Profitability

DETROIT (AdAge.com) — For the first time in more than a decade, General Motors Corp. will be absent as a major sponsor of next year’s glitzy Academy Awards broadcast on ABC. The auto giant also has dropped out as an advertiser in next month’s broadcast of the Emmy Awards, also on the Walt Disney-owned network.

FULL ARTICLE

Phonetic or Pathetic? Grading My Garmin on Its Spanish

The Big Tent

California, like many other states in the U.S., has a significant number of Spanish-language and Spanish-language-influenced street names. La Brea, La Cienega, Pico, Santa Monica and so on. So you would think that creators of navigation systems, whose main purpose in life is to give directions, would have given this some serious consideration.

FULL ARTICLE

The King Is Out. Long Live the King

Heartbroken Chinese, Including Many Sponsors, Watch Liu Xiang Exit Olympics

China Olympics 2008

In a devastating turn of events for China, one of the mainland’s biggest sports celebrities pulled out of the Olympic Games yesterday. Liu Xiang was unable to compete in a qualifying heat for the men’s 110-meter hurdles because of an injury to his right foot. Liu may not be a household name in the U.S. or Europe, but inside China, he is a star.

FULL ARTICLE

Agency Reviews During a Recession It Sure Is a Little Wacky Out There

Small Agency Diary

It’s been a long time since I have worried about the ability to get new business in the door. This summer I’m just plain freaking out.

FULL ARTICLE

Creativity Top 5: August 18

In this week’s episode of Creativity’s Top 5, Huggies and JWT, New York give us a look Behind the Geyser, Wonderbra puts a lot of pairs together, agency Barrie D’Rozario Murphy and director Shy the Sun make some animated music for United Airlines, Nike serenades the U.S. Olympic hoops stars with some classic Marvin Gaye, and the British Heart Foundation and director Brett Foraker deliver a hard-hitting impression of a heart attack. » Read more

People news from Mullen, Mekanism and more Former McKinney ACD Matt Fischvogt (pictured) joined Wenham, MA-based agency Mullen in the new position of creative director, innovation and integration. … San Francisco-based production company Mekanism signed New York directing duo/former Mother, New York creatives Dave and Rory to its roster. … » Read more

Confessions of a Reality TV School Graduate

Ad Age’s Andrew Hampp Discovers the Genre Isn’t So Real After All

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Before I enrolled, I wasn’t sure which was more ridiculous about the New York Reality TV School: the fact that it exists or the fact that it’s taken so long for someone to think of it. But after completing the school’s three-hour workshop, I can unequivocally say it’s the latter.

FULL ARTICLE

Uh-oh, Where Did Those Newspaper Web Ads Go? Tribune, Scripps and Lee Report Declining Online Revenue

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — File this under “It can always get worse.” Amid the constant stream of circulation declines, vanishing ads and staff reductions that have afflicted print newspapers, some major publishers are seeing online-revenue declines for the first time.

FULL ARTICLE

Former AT&T Marketer Wendy Clark Lands at Coke

Will Lead Integrated-Marketing Division

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Wendy Clark, who last month left her role as senior VP-advertising at AT&T, is set to join Coca-Cola Co. as head of integrated marketing communications and capabilities, reporting to Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer Joseph Tripodi.

FULL ARTICLE

Lionsgate Tries Bipartisan Approach to ‘W’ Marketing Outdoor Campaign Set for Both Conventions

LOS ANGELES (AdAge.com) — In marketing Oliver Stone’s forthcoming film “W.,” Lionsgate has elected to not “misunderestimate” the importance of appealing to both Democrats and Republicans. And so, to build buzz for “W.,” Hollywood’s largest independent studio will be targeting the Democratic National Convention in Denver next week and the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis with a double-barrel blast of outdoor advertising campaigns prior to the film’s Oct. 17 opening.

FULL ARTICLE

2008 Chevy Malibu vs. Honda Accord

Optimedia’s Antony Young Road-Tests Media Strategies to See Which Got the Most Mileage

There hasn’t been a lot of good news for the auto industry in 2008. However, one sector to emerge relatively unscathed is the midsize car segment.Two success stories in this sector were the 2008 model launches of the Chevy Malibu and Honda Accord.

FULL ARTICLE

Why CPG Brands Better Buy Paid Search Yahoo/MediaVest Study: Sponsored Text Ads Increased Awareness 160%

BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — Package-goods and fast-food marketers: Ignore paid-search advertising at your own peril. That seems to be the message of new research by Publicis Groupe’s MediaVest and Yahoo that finds search ads have a huge impact on brand awareness, perception and purchase intent — even among consumers who never click on them.

FULL ARTICLE

Candidates Put on the Brass Knuckles

Could See 100 Consecutive Days of Attack Ads

Campaign Trail

Lately, the race for the White House has been an eruption of hard-hitting negative ads.

FULL ARTICLE

Are You a Partner or a Vendor? Living With the V-word

The Big Tent

Recently I got a call from a major client. “We’d like to get more of our vendors certified as women-owned businesses,” she said. “It will be good for both of us.” I thanked her but inwardly cringed. The V-word.

FULL ARTICLE