By : Matt Jacobs, Director, Strategic Marketing Group
Last weekend I joined hundreds of internet nerds at MIT for ROFLCon III, a two-day convention celebrating internet culture and all things meme. Now a few days out from the numerous panels, lectures and social-outings, I’m left pondering the key theme of the "mainstreaming of the internet" and associated takeaways from the event.
By : Matt Rainone, Manager, Strategic Marketing Group
What is ROFLCon? It's a convention held to celebrate and discuss internet memes and the celebrity that is often created alongside them. Hear Matt Jacobs, AMP's Director of Integrated Marketing, and Matt Rainone, Manager of Integrated Marketing, discuss key takeaways from this year's ROFLCon.
By : Lindsey Davis, Brand Planning Coordinator, Brand Strategy
Despite the wild popularity of music festivals, the online community is undeveloped, which poses ample opportunity for brands. In addition to a strong online presence, the festival scene is also lacking in another area – vending. Festival goers consider the weekend to be a vacation and spend accordingly. After all, “wasting money puts you in a real party mood,” as Andy Warhol so insightfully proclaimed. Most people go with plenty of cash in their pockets and are looking to empty them on new, unique items. I have left several festivals disappointed in the lack of shopping that I had accomplished, due to lack of vendors, lack of variety, and shops running out of merchandise.
By : AMPAgency, ,
AMP recently held a pancake breakfast to support the Life is good foundation and raise funds to support the Playmakers. The Playmaker approach to playfulness provides children with opportunities to feel creatively engaged, safe, loved and joyful. This type of transformative play helps children build relationships with the key people in their lives and enables them to build resilience in the face of life's greatest challenges.
By : Adriann Fonstein, Director, Brand Strategy
Every year at Back to School time, parents head out in droves with armfuls of children attached to themselves in search of the latest and greatest fashion and gadgets. Some spend a lot and some spend a little, but in 2011 parents said they spent about $606, down from $612 in 2010. So, what does that mean? It means Mrs. Smith bought one less three-ring binder than she did the year before. It’s a change that researchers and retailers are extremely mindful of because when you think about all those un-bought binders, you realize just how much they can add up to. But it’s not just important to think about how much money parents spent during this time, it is also important to think about why they spent it.
By : Leah Thiffault, Brand Planner, Brand Strategy
For teens, the ritual of back-to-school shopping is born from necessity. Growth spurts mean new kicks are a must and advanced math class requires a graphing calculator this year. But the BTS ritual satisfies needs beyond practical considerations. What teens wear, the electronics they use, the backpacks they carry are all means of defining their identities – both to themselves and to their peers. BTS shopping provides teens with a unique, once-a-year, opportunity for self-expression and reinvention.
By : Jason Keaveny, SEM Specialist, Digital Media
Google recently announced that in May Exact and Phrase match settings will now include misspellings and plural modifications. For example, the term “red apple” set on Exact match will now match to queries such as “red aple” and “red apples”. The same will apply to current Phrase match settings in that additional keywords may be at the beginning or end of the query and still match to target terms. Read on for AMP's POV on the implications for advertisers and initial recommendations to prepare for these upcoming match type changes.
By : Jason Rivera, Director, Consumer Insights
AMP's Director of Brand Strategy, Jason Rivera, shares some insight on college students' purchase intent and shopping behavior. He discusses how brands can leverage these insights to reach this demographic during the Back-to-School shopping season.
By : Matt Jacobs, Director, Strategic Marketing Group
Music festivals aren't a new venue for brands to market to consumers, but State Farm's partnership with Coachella has taken it to a new level with the live streaming via YouTube (#coachellalive) and the Instagram, Facebook and Twitter integration.
By : Katelyn Stokes, Coordinator, Integrated Marketing
As Lil’ Wayne so eloquently states, “Got money and you know it. Take it out your pocket and show it. Then throw it...” FKi, Iggy Azalea and Diplo are taking Lil’ Wayne’s lyrics to heart with their new interactive shoppable music video, which leverages clickable video technology to create a unique user experience.
