Quebec is different, even for dogs

As a Canadian marketer, I’m aware of the importance of understanding the environment in Quebec.  For many years, I’ve been reminded that “Quebec is different.”  It took me a minute to recognize that this CBC Radio interview, “Montreal bylaw requires dogs understand commands in both official languages,” is a parody, and a really funny one at that.  If you understand the humor in it, you’re probably Canadian.  If not, then you need someone who understands Canada to manage your Canadian marketing programs.

It's definitely worth listening to the clip!

Backwards licensing?

Camaro die-cast cars were always top sellers when I managed the Hot Wheels brand at Mattel and the Matchbox brand at Tyco.  As toy companies, we paid royalties to General Motors for the use of the Camaro trademark and were always excited when new models were released.  In an unusual twist, it’s now working the other way as License Magazine reports that “Chevrolet and Mattel have teamed up to bring the Hot Wheels brand to life with the new Camaro Hot Wheels Edition car, the first full-size Hot Wheels car ever to be offered for sale.”

Coincidentally, I appeared with the Matchbox design team on an episode of the PBS series "Reading Rainbow," where I used a Chevrolet Camaro to demonstrate how we used the concept of scale to make mini vehicle replicas of real cars.  Here's an image from the episode.  If you really want to see the episode, you can search YouTube.

The Hot Wheels license on a Camaro is a great idea!  Kudos to GM and Mattel.

Dogs like toys too!

This summer, I wrote about a university study that "revealed" that kids like toys, as demonstrated by the fact that toys impact their choices in promotional fast food meals.  In equally shocking news, another university study published a scientific look at “Why Dogs Find SomeToys Boring,” with Discovery News reporting that “at least one of the many reasons why dogs make such good pets is that they are renowned for routinely engaging in play, even as adults.” 

I have been fortunate to work with institutes of higher learning to conduct research, assess play patterns, and learn about kids.  Scientific study in these areas can be genuinely worthwhile.  This dog toy study...not so much.

Read the story here.

Do 1.2 million YouTube views matter?

Just over a year ago, I posted my best commercials on YouTube and wrote about it here.  My main goal was to have an online point of reference for my clients and prospective clients in toys and kids’ entertainment.  Since then, Purple Husky’s YouTube channel has had an astonishing 1.2 million views, vastly exceeding my expectations. 

As I work on social media programs for my clients’ brands, I’m always careful to emphasize that it’s crucial that they reach their true target consumers to create awareness or tune in or product sales.  While I’m grateful that Purple Husky’s YouTube presence has generated big traffic, it reinforces how important it is to pay attention to the quality of interactions, not just the quantity.

News Flash -- Kids Like Toys!

The National Post reports that

Children are far more likely to pick a healthier fast-food meal when promotional toys are offered only with those menu options and not with less nutritional fare like burgers, fries and a pop, a study has found.

Read the full article here, including the suggestions that legislation be enacted that would give kids toys only with healthy kids' meals and McDonald's Canada's thoughtful response.

In a statement, McDonald’s Canada said it is “proud of our Happy Meal program. The toy is a fun and engaging part of the Happy Meal experience for kids and parents alike, and we have no plans to change it.”

Disturbingly, it seems like it took a full year for this study, conducted by the University of Waterloo, to be published.  I would be embarassed telling my clients that it would take a year to publish survey results.  Maybe there's more to this than what has been reported.

Presentation Magic with Technology

I take pride in my ability to develop and deliver outstanding presentations and to teach and mentor others in presentation skills.  Despite the fact that I have won awards for my presentation skills, I have to admit that this presentation is among the coolest, most effective, and most inspring I have ever seen.

New iPad magic.

On behalf of Stockholm -- The Capital of Scandinavia and Step2 Communication.

Performed at MIPIM in Cannes by Charlie Caper and Erik Rosales.

Magic with technology.

TED Conference - a speaker's worst nightmare

Everyone's posting TED videos lately, but this one is short, sweet, and entertaining as  NYC group Improv Everywhere becomes a speaker's worst nighmare.

Five Things I Learned at Toy Fair

1.  Dozens of companies, large and small, are launching lines of collectibles.  Most incorporate some form of blind packaging, where consumers don't know exactly what they'll be getting inside.  Some are based on existing properties while others are completely new.  With so much competition in this space, there are bound to be more casualties than successes.  Attractive product, strong marketing (with a social media focus) and a lot of luck will be key to success.

Warner Bros. was handing out this promotional Scooby Doo blind pack at the door to Javits Center.

This is what I found inside.

I don't know the world of Scooby Doo very well, and have no idea who this character is.

2.  Traditional entertainment licensing models for toys based on movies and TV series remain valid, but new models are emerging based on social media properties and apps like Annoying Orange, Moshi Monsters, and Angry Birds, which are all poised to be significant in the world of kids' licensing.  Unlike the traditional movie/TV properties that are quick to be deemed successes or failures, online properties build at different rates.  Hopefully, retailers will judge them differently and not declare them to be immediate failures if they don't perform in the first few weeks on the shelf.

3.  I met many entrepreneurs launching great products at Toy Fair.  One key challenge they face, however, is that they don't know their competition, and don't even know that they should know their competition.  At the risk of sounding self-serving, I know they could benefit enormously by working with someone like me to help them position their brands/products against competition and secure placement at retail.

4.  Most consultants, inventors, and agents with whom I spoke said that 2010 and 2011 were both tough years, but are optimistic that things will be stronger in 2012.

5.  Finally, I used the Toy Fair official website to plan my days at Javits Center.  The tools on the website were quite cumbersome, but I learned that by planning my appointments and booth visits according to booth location, I minimized the amount of times I had to walk back and forth through the five block long convention center, making me less tired and more productive.

Maurice Sendak brilliant on Colbert Report

Maurice Sendak appeared in a two part feature on The Colbert Report this week, and I have to say that he is one of the most entertaining and insightful guests I have ever seen.

In case you don't know, Maurice Sendak is best known as author and illustrator of the 1963 book Where the Wild Things Are.  He was illustrator of the book series Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik, which inspired the Nelvana-produced Little Bear animated series.  I was fortunate to have the opportunity to be responsible for the merchandise licensing program for Little Bear at Nelvana, and was thrilled to see 84 year old Sendak on The Colbert Report.

For his take on kids' literature and more, watch here:

Comedy Central (US) part 1

Comedy Central (US) part 1

Comedy Network (Canada) part 1

Comedy Network (Canada) part 2

This is What Happens When You Give Thousands of Stickers to Thousands of Kids

Working in the Sticker business, I have seen a lot of cool concepts, but never anything quite like this, which comes from Australia:

H/T Colossal Art and Design via Sasha Boersma.