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Continental Airlines Teams up with Winstar Interactive to Display Third-Party Ads on Continental.com

We all know that airlines are struggling financially.  Apparently, charging passengers for baggage, taking away meals, and adding all kinds of fees isn’t enough even though fuel costs have fallen significantly from a year ago.  Still, those airline companies are feeling a pinch.  What to do … what to do?

Never fear!  Naturally, someone came up with a way to bring in some revenue.  Don’t worry, you won’t be charged for the oxygen you use while onboard.  Although, don’t rule it out.

Continental Airlines hopes to make some money by displaying third-party ads on its Web site.  The company is teaming up with Winstar Interactive to monetize its site through ads that will complement the site and feed into the travel/buying mode of Continental.com visitors. But what does this say about the Continental brand?

What say you?  Brilliant or pathetic?

What do you think of Continental.com’s strategy to sell ad space to third party advertisers?

I wonder what’s next.  Selling ad space on the inside and outside of airplanes like ads on subway trains and buses?  Or maybe flight attendants should wear uniforms covered in sponsors logos like NASCAR drivers?  Should I be charging for these ideas?

How do you think airlines should try to bring in additional revenue?  Leave a comment and share your thoughts.  Don’t be afraid to think out of the box.  When they bait you like this, it’s hard to resist.

News Corp Wants to Block Google

newscorpRupert Murdoch and News Corp came out swinging this week with eyes on Google.  It’s not a secret that News Corp has been struggling along with many traditional news organizations.  It’s just easier to hop online and get the latest news than it is to pull out a newspaper where you’ll only find news that’s already old.  News Corp has been losing ad revenue, and earlier this year Murdoch announced the potential for News Corp to charge people to access news on its Web site in the future — a move that flies in the face of the future of communications and information sharing.

Now, Murdoch wants to ban all News Corp content from Google search results claiming that Google is violating fair use laws by republishing titles and snippets without permission.  My first reaction to this was to actually laugh out loud.  I’m just glad I wasn’t drinking or eating at that moment or I could have been in serious trouble.  Again, News Corp is failing to see the long term evolution of information sharing and communications.  Blocking content from online searches is the equivalent of keeping your company’s phone number unlisted decades ago.  It’s laughable.

Of course, one can speculate that Murdoch would be happy to allow Google to republish its content titles and snippets in return for a fee.  No one has come out and said that yet (as far as I know, correct me if I’m wrong), but I think it’s safe to assume that’s what’s coming.

The problem with this strategy for Murdoch and News Corp?  I doubt Google cares.  Not only that, but I doubt many consumers care either.

Instead of embracing new forms of communication and information sharing and finding a new business model that will actually work for the next 10 years, Murdoch and News Corp are relying on a bullying tactic.  Actually, it’s more like a tantrum (“we’re losing, so we don’t want to play with you anymore”).  Unfortunately, it’s not going to work and it certainly doesn’t put the News Corp brand in a positive position.

Your thoughts?

Image: Flickr

Motorola Droid says iDon’t to Apple’s iPhone

Today is the day!  Verizon Wireless is rolling out the Motorola Droid with the hope of winning back market share from customers who defected to AT&T Wireless and the Apple iPhone.  With the Droid, backed by Google, Verizon Wireless just might have a chance.  Where the Blackberry Storm failed, Google and Droid might succeed.

Verizon Wireless is certainly attacking the iPhone head-on with its new Droid ads.  Check out one of the commercials below.  There is no doubt what the message of this ad is.

Of course, it’s just Day 1, so the verdict is still out, but smartphone consumers have been waiting anxiously for Verizon Wireless, considered to have the best network in the United States, to catch up to AT&T and the iPhone.  Can the Droid on the best network compete with the coolest phone on a substandard network?

Keep in mind, Verizon Wireless had the opportunity to be the “it” wireless carrier.  The company was given the chance to pick up the exclusive iPhone deal with Apple, but the company passed.  The result?  AT&T stole some market share and Verizon Wireless hasn’t been able to recoup those customers yet.  Without its superior network and the continued hold on the business marketplace by RIM’s Blackberry, Verizon Wireless would really be in trouble.

Fortunately, Verizon Wireless realized that the clock was ticking.  The Storm might not have delivered (although rumors of a new version of the Storm leave some consumers hopeful of improvement), but the Droid just might.  Let’s face it.  There seems to be a battle to take over the world in terms of brand dominance.  For the tech-related world, Google and Apple are leading the pack but in very different ways.  Now, they’re poised to battle somewhat directly.  Who will win?  This should be fun to watch!

And that brings me to my question — what smartphone would you get?  The Droid on Verizon Wireless’ network or the iPhone on AT&T’s network?

Effective Corporate Ethics — More Than A Code Part 1

Crises in the global economic and financial landscape reached seemingly epic proportions. Once again there is a focus on ethics–

Failed Leadership Caused the Financial Crisis

We need to do more than fix the crisis; we need to fix the mindset that got us into it. …They should be authentic leaders, focused on serving their clients and all the institution’s constituents, rather than charismatic leaders seeking money, fame, and power for themselves.

Bill George, professor of management practice at Harvard Business School, US News November 19, 2008

Despite lessons learned during the Enron era, government regulations, and companies’ codes of ethics,  surveys indicate problems with ethics.

  • The Edelman Trust Barometer indicated that trust in business fell below those of the Enron era
  • Surveys by Integrity Interactive Corporation and Alt­man Weil, and CFO Europe Research Services (free registration required) both showed that most companies do not go much beyond issuing codes of ethics
  • Compliance Week’s 2009 Global Integrity Survey indicated “…Accord­ing to the findings, 43.3 percent of respondents don’t measure the integrity performance of management at all. Of those companies that do, 29.9 percent grade their management through an employee review process, followed by 26.8 percent that tie compensation to integrity. Only 11.5 percent of respondents said they grade integrity performance through internal benchmarking.”

…there is a gap between the existence of explicit ethical values and principles, often expressed in the form of a code, and the attitudes and behaviour of the organization…two basic reasons appear to be at the heart of the problem: ineffective ethics programmes and deficiencies in corporate culture…corporate ethical values requires well-designed ethics policies, sustained ethical leadership and incorporation of ethics in organisational processes and strategy as part of an ethical culture at all levels of the organisation.

Corporate codes of ethics:necessary but not sufficient
Simon Webley and AndreaWernern Business Ethics: A European Review Volume 17 Number 4 October 2008

Perhaps the key reason is that most companies don’t realize that ethics must start with “the tone at the top”. Board and C-Suite members must be visible in promoting ethical behavior and putting in place an ethics program that promotes an ethics culture. This takes considerable effort and time since it must be embedded in the existing corporate culture. Perhaps this deters most companies.

Here is an example from the Bell System (old AT&T) before the 1984 divestiture. The Long Lines unit had a culture that promoted employee safety. Some elements included–

  • Every employee had to attend a monthly safety presentation on a variety of topics
  • Employees received desk drop materials
  • Safety posters were displayed in public areas
  • If there was an accident, a report had to be completed and sent to head of the department within 24 hours
  • There was an annual event for employees and their families
  • Even at the annual off-site middle to upper management conference, there was a safety presentation before the agenda started.

This is the type of effort that is needed to ensure that all employees know that they must be ethical in all matters.

There are some current companies that do understand that ethics must be promoted every day. These companies will be profiled in future posts.

Corporate Communications and Social Media: Genie Will Not Return to Bottle


Aladdin

Google’s new Sidewiki application lets web visitors share their opinions right next to any online content.  Visitors who turn on Sidewiki (which has to be downloaded from Google) can see what other Sidewiki users have said about the site they are viewing.

There’s a lot more to it, but the first main point is—it’s caused quite a stir in some quarters.  The estimable Jeremiah Owyang titled his post Google’s SideWiki Shifts Power To Consumers –Away From Corporate Websites, and outlines a scenario about what’s to come (and what social media strategists should be doing about it).

Media strategist John Zappe follows up with Google Gives HR Something New To Worry About.  Salient quote:  “Just imagine the mischief a disgruntled job seeker or employee can wreak by posting their story directly to your site. Side by side with your video of happy employees talking about the fun and interesting work they do is a post — or multiple posts — from current and former workers denouncing your message as bogus.”

The concept of community commenting is not actually new—there have been boutique apps that provide the same functionality.  It’s just that Google has such a huge reach.  And Sidewiki integrates with the popular Google toolbar.  So the potential impact really is worth considering . . .

If you’re wonk-ish, the Doc Searles Weblog offers a good start at outlining the debate with Whose Side(wiki) Are You On?

It’s interesting that the Sidewiki launch came along just days after a post in which HR thought leader John Sullivan declared:  Your Employer Brand Is No Longer Owned by Your Firm.  His picture is a lot bigger than just the potential impact of Sidewiki—and the title conveys the one fact everyone needs to be aware of.

In two words:  Done deal.

Did companies ever have the control over messaging they imagined they did?  Probably not.  But that doesn’t matter now.  What matters is that Genie has left the bottle, and won’t be going back in.


(The luscious illustration comes from Aladdin und die Wunderlampe, a German children’s book by Ludwig Fulda, with illustrations by Max Liebert.  Thanks to Project Gutenberg for making it available.)

Corporate Blogging? Make It Great, or Don’t Bother


Grand Canyon

Hard to believe it’s been over a year since I bookmarked this post on the Sitepoint blog:  15 Companies That Really Get Corporate Blogging.  But now that I’ve come across it again, the information is still interesting.  The author referred to a then-recent Forrester study that looked at 90 blogs from Fortune 500 companies, and found that “most corporate blogs are ‘dull, drab, and don’t stimulate discussion.’ Sadly, two-thirds hardly ever get any comments, 70% stick strictly to business topics, and worse 56% just republish press releases or already public news.”  I would imagine there has been a little improvement since then, but I doubt it’s much.

Anyway, I went looking for the report, found that it is paid content and the original post got its information from a Wall Street Journal article that is no longer available.  But I did find a newer—and freer—Forrester paper on corporate blogging, which you can get with a fairly painless registration.

Highlights:

“Only one in six consumers trust company blogs.”

“Like any other marketing channel, blogging can work. But it’s not about you; it’s about your customer.”

“Honest and transparent blogs will get noticed.”

So–what’s special about those 15 companies that “get it”?  The answer is absurdly simple:  They provide interesting/useful/meaningful content.   Or as Sitepoint put it—“informative, fascinating, and a joy to read even for people who aren’t die-hard fans of the company.”

I actually visited every one of the 15 companies, although not every one of their blogs, which would have added up to dozens.  I covered at least 20 blogs, though, and at each one, I applied a simple test:  “If I were thinking about a career at this company, would their blog(s) encourage me to apply?”  Here’s what I decided:

Yes, in almost every case.

At Southwest Airlines, I found “BlogSouthwest,” with some great Halloween posts extolling the fun quotient of that SWA-perfect holiday.  (I can testify—it’s all true.)  At Lenovo, I discovered a smart, wide-ranging blog called “Design Matters,” which I would probably subscribe to if I had any time left for more feeds.  BBC has a substantive blog called “The Editors,” offering a behind-the-scenes view of current events.  The “Fast Lane Blog” at GM looks like paradise for a techie auto junkie.  And it was oddly seductive to read the supposedly inner thoughts of Marriott’s apparently tireless CEO at “On the Move.” Even Quicken’s “What’s the Diff” was fairly charmful, with its mission of “exposing the gap between average and excellent.”

At a couple of companies, the blogs seemed perfunctory—lacking enthusiasm and/or substance.  A couple of others offered blogs so super-technical that I couldn’t make a connection (though they probably have appeal for their target audiences).  But on the whole, my cruise through this group of corporate blogs was more interesting than I expected.

And I’m sure there are many other good examples out there.  Plenty of bad ones too, though!  So I’ll close with another highlight from the Forrester paper:

“If your strategy is to create a blog about your company and its products, give it up.”

But if your strategy is to offer something of value to readers—information, ideas, insights, inside intel, or just plain fun–then it’s worth the effort.


(Thanks to Jason Rogers for sharing his trip to the Grand Canyon.)