LAST.FM: WHY I HAVE FINALLY FALLEN FOR IT..!

lastfm, originally uploaded by garybembridge.

I am going to do a series of postings about sites and tools that I visit and use almost daily, as a way of exploring what seem to be things that have “clicked” and work online. And why I think that is the case.

Often I have found, as a bit of a geek, that I rush off an try out any hot new site or tool that comes along. So it was years ago that I first heard about the hot music site LAST.FM. So I duly signed up, and after a very short time lost interest as I really could not see the point as although I could let it know my current tastes and library I had that on my iPod and in iTunes. I could use those to play on the go or via my computer. So just did not get it and drifted away.

I went back to LAST.FM when they got bought for some zillions of dollars by CBS as it struck me that I must have missed the point again if someone big and fairly conservative like that bought them for mega bucks that there must be more to it. I came away still confused about what the hell all the fuss was about. I tried the recommendations they gave but they seems to em to be small obscure bands that were not that exciting.

I have recently come back to LAST,FM. This time it was sparked for a TV ad I saw for the iPhone. On it they feature as one of the applications a LAST.FM free application. I have an iPod Touch where the applications work when on wireless and so downloaded it.

I am now hooked to LAST.FM and love it. But I realised that the reason that I love it and got hooked is that they have found a way to integrate it much more into what I do generally online and off line, so it takes into account everything I do and adds value to it. And it is easy to integrate and use as a result.

So now I can:
(1) scrobble/ update what I listen to from my iPod/ iTunes. So it is building a much better understanding of my tastes and likes, and so the recommendations are getting more interesting and better. It does not mean I have to incrementally invest a whole lot of time playing stuff on the site but it captures all my music listening easily and automatically.
(2) It does the same when I listen to it streamed on my iPod
(3) There are application and features that connect to my FACEBOOK and also MYBLOGLOG accounts where I do visit every day, and shares automatically my most listened to tracks. Artists and favourite songs. It shares and highlights them to my friends.

I am still not sure that they have got the recommendations game locked down, as you still feel there are marginal bands and artists being recommended – and that better music discovery is still something I hope to have.

Listen to my LAST.FM “station”: http://www.last.fm/user/bembridge

Saying though how much I am into it, I see that they are going to start trying to charge to stream music in some markets (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7963812.stm). I am not sure it is worth paying for.

J&J corporate image and baby

Adage in the USA has reported on the top corporate brand rankings. You can read the article at: http://adage.com/article?article_id=135386.

The top 3 corporate brands are:

#1 Coke

#2 Johnsons & Johnson

They comment in the article: “For 2008, two perennial favorites were lodged in the Nos. 1 and 2 slots: Coca-Cola Co. and Johnson & Johnson, which have remained in those positions since 2004”.

What is interesting about this is not only that the 2 leaders have stayed so firm and fast, but also that in reality the corporate image is driven by one product/ brand in fact.

Coke has many brands and products, but you can bet that the ranking is based on the main Coke product

In the case of J&J, this image is driven by the Johnson’s baby Brand. A brand that only account for a few percentage points of total sales at J&J. The company is mostly a pharmaceutical company, medical and then consumer products company (with baby quite small even in that group). But the company in the mind of everyone is associated with babies and the emotional bonding with mums. This gives a huge halo across the total corporate image. It is something that J&J has in some years invested in specifically, understanding the power of having such an emotional brand and product range associated with the corporate image. So much better to be associated with this than the perceived harsher and more aggressive pharmaceutical world too.

The association with baby and emotion in the mind of everyone also makes it easier sometimes to cause a sensation. For the 2^nd article I read today about J&J was the one with the headline: “J&J baby products under question in China” on Cosmetics news. Although about baby products it straight away feeds into the overall corporate image.

J&J is linked to baby. Although a small part of overall sales, it is what makes J&J be J&J in the mind of everyone. It is competitive edge.

American Academy of Dermatologists conference in San Francisco: consumer brands shout loudest

I attended the American Academy of Dermatologists conference in San Francisco this weekend.

This annual event is a monster of an event, and according the local papers about 19000 people attend the event. The exhibition areas are just vast, and everyone who is anyone in skincare and related issues are there. I suspect you may well be more noticed if you were not there, as people would be wondering why you dared not to be there.

It is clear that some companies want to make a very big statement by taking a large and very visible presence with massive stands and quite amazing displays and talk at their booths. The talks have lines of people waiting to join, though how much is for the gift packs at the end than the content I am not sure. For example the P&G gift back was worth a fortune at retail as had Pro-X kit which retails for 40 dollars, Fusion razor etc.

Johnson & Johnson, L’Oreal, Biersdorf, P&G, Clinique and other consumer brands seem to have the largest stands and presence. Interesting as it feels the more consumer focused the brand is and the more it is advertised on TV in the USA, the bigger the stand was. This may be because they are large brands from large companies and so have the funds. Or they feel the need to shout louder and louder to reassure the professionals that they are interested and focused on them.

In the USA, unlike parts of Europe and Latin America, dermatologists will recommend patients towards TV advertised brands. Something that is not as common in the other regions. Saying that at the European equivalent (EADV) the consumer brands are just as visible, but less so.

All in all very interesting exhibition

What can we learn from counterfeit products?

The other day I was sent a photo of a RoC product that we do not sell. The shipment had been picked up by some alert customs people in one of the markets we operate in.

It got to me to thinking briefly about counterfeits: They are illegal. They are annoying. They are flattering.

From a business perspective they are a concern as they pose a risk to your business on so many levels, from lost sales to lost brand image and credentials. They are also a risk to consumers. In this case the RoC Whitening Cream could be a real risk as whitening creams could have some very aggressive ingredients in that could harm consumers.

It is also slightly flattering that people feel the brand is of such merit to go to all the effort of trying to emulate you. In this case, as we do not operate in the category, they even had to go as far as creating a design and look and feel that looked consistent (something even brand mangers and agencies do not always get right). So to be able to be counterfeited with products you do not even sell, they need to interpret your brand look and codes. So it also means those are clear.

Though in this case while they did a good job at looking like a RoC product at a glance, as it was something we do not sell they just did not quite get it right. The claim that this product will “dispel horniness in 30 seconds” is not something that people buying skincare would probably want... isn’t skincare about “hope in a jar” and making yourself look and feel more appealing to others. “Dispelling horniness in 30 seconds” just doesn’t seem to fit with that...!