Give Them Something Good To Say

By Editor, March 10th, 2010

Do you truly know what consumers are saying about your brand? Do you know how powerful your website can be in influencing what they actually say? 

Our recent point of view, “Give Them Something Good to Say,” reveals that we can inform the social conversation right on your brand’s website – your true digital headquarters.

We uncovered that now, more than ever, the experiences consumers have on your brand’s website shape the opinions they share with one another in social media. A fair amount of the conversation that happens about a brand on Facebook, Twitter and social shopping sites is being fueled by someone’s experience on your site. 

Our POV delves into the different ways in which consumers share their opinions in the social space.  And in partnering with ForeSee Results, the leader in website satisfaction research, we share with you the key drivers of website satisfaction and likelihood to recommend (and talk about) your brand.

Celebrity Endorsements are Here to Stay

By Editor, March 8th, 2010

Despite the potential pitfalls, celebrity endorsements are as in demand as a Lady Gaga red carpet appearance. Adweek’s feature story this week examines how the balance of power has shifted to brands and how marketers are evermore selective in who represents them. Instead of stars’ wallets getting fatter, it’s the girth of endorsement contracts that’s growing, and “moral clauses are the centerpiece of talent contract discussions and are becoming more thorough and specific,” our Sheryll Kollin, senior vp, director of business affairs tells Adweek. This part of the contact has become as important to the brand as the compensation figure is to the celebrity.  
 

Click here to read the full article.

Doner’s 360 Guitar Hero Competition

By Editor, March 2nd, 2010

What do you get when you cross ambitions of rock grandeur, killer chops and cutting-edge gaming technology? You get Doner’s first annual Xbox 360 Guitar Hero Competition to celebrate the launch of our newest stage, the Emerging Media Lab, a place to highlight the latest in advertising technology in the digital space.
 
The event was represented by eight makeshift bands with names only a mother could love, while Microsoft and Massive gaming were on hand to keep the festivities moving along with Xbox 360 prizes and great eats.
 
BAMM, 2-Day Turnaround, No Sweat, NBF, Traffic Trio, Whammy This, Rodrigo Rodriguez 366 and Itchy Brains competed for a chance to win cold, hard cash, bragging rights and the satisfaction of being the headliner on a digital frame outside the media lab for a year, by each playing their rendition of Bon Jovi’s Living On a Prayer. Everyone was great (in a don’t-quit-your-day-job kinda way), but solo act, Whammy This! featuring Michael Rykalsky and the band No Sweat featuring Will McAlister, Kathleen Muccino, Andrew Copenhaver and Laura Camburn were the clear winners. Congratulations, guys. You rocked the hardest—THIS time.
 
Check out the pics below for a sneak peak of what is sure to be the next Rolling Stone cover:

A New Member of our Executive Management Team

By David Demuth, February 18th, 2010

Great marketing ideas begin with well articulated insights and come to life through commitment and passion.

With that in mind, we are pleased to announce that we have promoted Alison Taubman to the new position of executive VP-chief strategy officer. She will continue oversight of Doner’s strategic planning and research teams and remain a core member of our business development team.

We believe this promotion not only reflects our commitment to strategic planning and insights, but also in providing the opportunity for employees to reach their potential and share in the success they help to create. Alison has been with us since 1986 when she started as a research project manager. From that day, she’s demonstrated incredible levels of intelligence, dedication and intensity (not necessarily in that order).

Over her 23-year tenure, Alison’s contributions to the agency have been influential not only in the way we serve clients but also how we fundamentally operate. We are thrilled to have her as a member of our executive management team.

Among her career highlights, Alison developed the research protocols to support our proprietary Path2Purchase™ strategic process and she was one of the key developers of our integrated communications development. Alison also has been the lead strategist for our thought-leadership content, including our “The Art of the Possible” series and “What Has Worth and What’s Worthwhile.”

Please join us in congratulating Alison on her new role. We look forward to sharing more good news with you in the coming months as we continue to shape the New Doner.

David, Rob and Tim

alison_taubman_evp_chief strategy officer_doner

Del Taco Fills Up On The Weird With Skit Show

By Editor, January 15th, 2010

AdFreak
January 15, 2010
By: Brian Morrissey

Taco Bell is clearly trying to reach beyond its young-dude appeal with its implausible new Taco Bell Diet campaign. But rival pseudo-Mexican-food purveyor Del Taco is going a much different route with a bizarre skit show, “The Del Taco Super Special Show,” which is clearly aimed at the bro demo. The first episode is chock-a-block with Honeyshed-like oddities, double entendres, scantily clad babes and oddball animations and puppetry. Users can vote for their favorite parts of the show over at Del Taco’s Facebook page. I’m casting mine for Timothy Taco Hands. (See below.) At the very least, this should help Del Taco push down the results for its most popular YouTube video, a clip showing three men scamming the chain out of free food, a stunt that eventually landed them in jail. Doner and Mekanism created the show.