Should Businesses pay to place flattering news in print and broadcast media?

Recently I read an article discussing a new way of advertising taking place in China.

China is a country that censor news all the time especially politically delicate news coverage. Now however, the print and broadcast media in China have been allowing companies to buy coverage for a price.  Many public relation firms and companies in China acts as brokers in buying flattering coverage- which in China is referred to as” soft news or paid news”.  A company recently paid 10,000 a page for a five page feature in the Chinese version of Esquire. 

The journalist who wrote the piece stated that Chinese laws and regulations ban promotional material that is not labeled as such, but the practice is so widespread that many publications and broadcaster have rate cards listing news for sale prices. This practice seem very deceptive to me, we look at articles in our magazine such as Business week, Times and know that the reason that they are featuring this company or this person is that they have created a news product or they have a major accomplishment that is noteworthy. I hope that this pay for new or feature articles does not spread to the US.  If it does it could effect how we see our Business Leaders.   

Do you believe that we should allow businesses to pay for Coverage?

In response to Aislynn's Blog on ESPN for Women Adds A Sponsor Question:

Do you think ESPNW is hitting the right age for their target market or do you think their age range is off? I personally think their should be another channel added to the few that ESPN already has that shows more female sports, what do you think?

I believe that by saying 25+, it could mean any age over 25.  I think today having, two daughters (in their late 30’s and early 40’s) and a granddaughter (age 15) that are very interested in sports, who are: interested in eating right, who eat organic foods and watching their weight, would be very interested in sport channels that are directed to women and that focus on their wants and needs.  There are websites that are specifically dedicated to women’s sports such as:

 http://www.womenssportsinformation.com/

 http://www.womenssportsnet.com/

 http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/home

I think that women today are very interested in their health and how to keep healthy.  Having a channel that helps them discover a sport or sports that appeal and interest them would be beneficial. A women’s sport channel would be good for teenagers too.  Too many girls today want to look like super models so they don’t eat right and have unrealistic ideas about what girls should look like. Being healthy, eating right and striving for realistic body size would be so much better. A women’s/girls sports channel could let girls see what really healthy active girls should look like.   After all you need to eat properly and take good care of yourself, it you want to excel in sports. I think it would help girls gain the proper perspective about how they should look, what they should eat and how they need to take care of themselves.

Having a Sports channel or channels directed to females could be beneficial. Do you think that a Women’s Sports Channel could help teenagers have a more realistic positive view of how they should actually look, and would it help them to stop judging themselves against how models look on Cable?

Do Brazilian Blowout Products need to update their current product labeling and provide salons and product users with clearer, detailed and more truthful information about their products and how to use them safely than they are providing now?

Do Brazilian Blowout Products need to update their current product labeling and provide salons  and product users with clearer, detailed and more truthful information about their products and how to use them safely than they are providing now?

Recently, I was watching Good Morning America, and the topic of deceptive ingredients and how to properly use these hair smoothing treatments, caught my eye.  My daughter uses one of these products and has always assumed based on what her Hair Stylist  and in the information that she was given about the product, assured, that the product did not have the ingredient Formaldehyde and  that it was safe to use and no special equipment would be needed during it’s application.

Elisabeth Leamy, reported on Good Morning America ( 2-29-12)  that five months ago the federal government put out a hazard alert about the hair smoothing product "Brazilian Blowout", warning that it contained liquid formaldehyde which can turn into formaldehyde gas when heated.  She went on to say that they had visited 16 salons and every salon told them that they had no safety concerns. Twelve of the salons said the product contains very little formaldehyde and four were not aware that it had any. All the salons had outdated versions of the product’s literature and bottles, which said   “formaldehyde free”

Now the company’s bottles of solution carry a warning label to alert stylists to the potential formaldehyde risk and the need to perform the treatment in a well ventilated area.

What concerns me is that there many more of these hair smoothing products out there and OSHA says that they may contain formaldehyde or that can expose you to formaldehyde during use, even though they may not list formaldehyde on their labels.  They went on to state that some manufactures list synonyms for formaldehyde on their labels, and they can do  this because when formaldehyde is dissolved in water or another substance the chemical composition is slightly changed giving the chemical a new name.

Consumers and stylists need to know and understand the products they are using and the risk factors that they may be exposed to. Using these types of products could cause future health risks to both the stylist and the consumer.

I think that many of these products are using deceptive labeling, and their advertising could be misleading.  Do you agree?

In response to: John Smiths dilema

I believe that the AMA statement of Ethics does address this issue.It states that one should always do no harm, honesty, fairness, show responsibility and have transparency.

The poll was to gather specific information about whether or not  someone would buy a particular car. I doubt if when taking the poll the poller indicted that they would be disclosing the participants personal information.

The  AMA Statement of Ethics deals specifically with: do no harm, honesty, responsibility and fairness.  Disclosure  of a participants personal information could do harm, would not be honest and there would be a definite lack of transparency.   

In Response to Molly's comment on:Gap-toothed models are they a phenomenon?

Do you think this gap-toothed phenomenon will soon be a thing of the past? or will it stick around and make a name for itself?

It is hard to say if the gap - toothed model is a phenomenon or not, but this would not be the first time a gap toothed model was popular. Lauren Hutton was a very popular model/actress in the 60's- 70's and there was a gap between her two front teeth. 

I think that it is very possible that the industry is looking for something that isn't quite perfect in their eyes right now. But who knows what they will want next week.


I also believe that the consumer is responsive to ads that don't  have super models. It is refreshing just to have everyday people selling products. Many TV ads and many advertisements have regular people selling their products  today.  


I believe that the gap-toothed phenomenon is at the will of the advertising industry. What they think will sell is what we will see. 

Do you think that the consumer will want to see the gap- toothed model more than they will want to see the super model?

Asics Corp. repositions its advertising campaign to focus on running shoes for serious sports performance.

In a recent article in the WSJ (2/14/2012) Asics Corp. the Japanese Sports Equipment maker stated that as a result of its success with its TV advertising market strategy in Spain, which increased their brand in that country by 7%, they had decided to focus their target marketing to Athletes who were interested in running shoes for serious sports performance.

Alistair Cameron, who heads up Asics European Unit, noted that: “more than half the runners in the 2011 NYC Marathon wore the tiger striped Asics running shoe”

Asics was well pleased with the recent marketing results in Spain, given that Spain’s economy has been hard hit in recent years. So well pleased that the company has decided to build its brand of these shoes with a ‘Major TV marketing push’ in Europe this year during the Olympics.  

Although Asics Corp. is a much smaller company than their rivals, Nike and Addidas AG, Asics prides itself on their ability to make “the best product”.  They understand that they have a weakness in establishing sales and distribution channels and have not, till not marketed their products well.

They feel that a stronger media presence will boost sales and brand awareness. 

Do you believe as I do that understanding your weaknesses and their ability to address these issues and move forward with their planned TV marketing ideas will help Asics succeed in building its brand?

In response to Chris Belands Post Regarding Starbucks:

Do you think you will see alcohol sold at your local Starbucks anytime soon? Would you buy a beer or a glass of wine with your coffee? Do you think there will be any problems with people mixing too much caffeine and alcohol?

Response:

I don't think that I will see alcohol being sold at Starbucks anytime soon.  I couldn't see myself buying beer or wine with my coffee. I don't know if mixing caffeine and alcohol is such a good Idea.  People do mix caffeine and alcohol, but I don't see a need for Starbucks to start selling alcohol now. 

First of all there would be legal issues:

Alcohol is a controlled substance. 

There would be legal restrictions and guidelines to follow. 

For each of the 55 countries.

The serving age for employees would become a factor as well

Starbucks states on its website:" Our stores are a neighborhood gathering place for meeting friends and family. Our Customers enjoy quality service, an inviting atmosphere and an exceptional cup of coffee". Alcoholic beverages added to their line of offerings might change the atmosphere in the neighborhood gathering place that they have worked so hard to create.

I don't think  that Starbucks needs to expand it product line and offer alcoholic beverages. 

In the past few weeks  Starbucks has introduced a new coffee, they have already had great success their 30 blends of coffee, with the z-cups,the breakfast sandwiches, teas, their Frappuccino coffee brand and their merchandise.

Starbucks recently released a report that stated 'Total Revenue increased 10% percent to a record 3.4 billion".

I believe that Starbucks has a strong product line that they enhance with new products that they have developed with research and a strong market strategy. These new or improved products enrich their existing product offerings.

By continuing with this marketing strategy they will be able to keep their competitive advantage without venturing into  alcoholic beverages. Do you agree?