This past weekend I was talking to a good friend of mine who is reviving a skate company that had been around in the early 2000’s but folded due to normal business circumstances – undercapitalization, lack of resources, increasing competition, etc. I had always liked the brand and I know most people did as well. So when I heard it was coming back I was immediately stoked.

I then asked my friend the million dollar question (in my mind at least), which was, “what are you guys going to be doing for marketing”? He then proceed to tell me that they were going to sponsor a few pros and run a few ads, that was it. Now… working in the skate industry for many years I do understand the importance of pros and print ads. However, I do believe we are entering a new dawn where there are numerous ways to increase a brands presence outside of Print and Pro’s.

It should be noted that this is the exact same strategy that the brand used up until they closed for business close to ten years ago. Does that strategy still work? Will it work again? Are they looking for different results? I think of it like this… the core consumer ten years ago is now in their 20’s and may or may not still be skateboarding. Their new consumer is online and on their phones all day long. Being proactive online is not even an option. It’s also very inexpensive and often free. My suggestion is to build and maintain their online properties first and foremost. Here is a really good article I found on the New York Times about marketing a small business on Facebook.

Here is a bit of outlook… as I write this blog I have my screen split in half with Sesame Street playing on one side and this blog post on the other, 10 seconds ago I was checking twitter updates on my iPhone and yesterday I watched a new skate video that was recently released only online and I am not anywhere near as savvy as the tween market when it comes to the wonderful world of web.

Print and Pros are important yes, and they always will be in this industry, but the times they are a changin’, is your marketing approach changing as well?

TM~

Common Threadz a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has partnered with Action Profiles to create the Design For Good campaign to benefit orphans and vulnerable children in South Africa. Action Profiles will be hosting a design contest with its action sports community to create a new shirt design for Common Threadz’s line of stylish, eco-friendly apparel. The theme of the contest is “hope”. Common Threadz will sell the winning designs, with 100% of funds raised going to the orphans; no funds will be diverted for administration.

“Common Threadz is one of those rare non-profits that is extremely effective in their mission while staying relevant to youth culture,” explains AP Co-Owner Jesse DenHerder. “Action sports athletes are creative by nature and ActionProfiles is a perfect venue to harness it.” Zac Folk, founder of CommonThreadz added, “It’s great to be working with Action Profiles on this project and to witness how the nonprofit and private sector can work together in a win-win fashion. We’re excited to see the designs and hope to make this an annual contest.” AP has also put together an elite team of judges who will be announcing the winning design including:

Monica Staniec - Board member of WIAS (Women in Action Sports) and VP of Marketing at iMa, a marketing and PR agency that targets the actions sports, art, music and fashion markets. Monica is also an active Snowboarder and enjoys surfing.

Luiz Calado - Photographer, writer and award winning editor, Luiz’s work has been published in many US and Brazilian publications including Thrasher, Tribo, SKT, Veja, and Yeah! Magazine. With degrees in Communications and Photojournalism, Luiz blends insight and ingenuity in his reporting, while remaining true to his skateboarding roots.

Wendy Burkman - Co-Founder/producer of the Wanda Show and media personality for ActionProfiles.com. Wendy is also a talented singer/songwriter and model.

The Design For Good T-shirt design competition kicks off on Nov. 1st. Submissions are welcome from November through December 23, 2009 and we encourage artists from all over the world to submit their entries. The winner will receive national exposure as an artist/humanitarian, and a generous prize package from our sponsors, including watches, headphones, apparel and much more. Presentations to the winner and commercialization of the T-shirt designs will take place in January. For more info go to: www.actionprofiles.com/designforgood or www.commonthreadz.org

About Common Threadz:
Common Threadz is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that is working to build and fund sustainable projects that help save orphans and vulnerable children living in extreme poverty in Africa and other developing nations. They employ a holistic approach to their programs that aid the children and their caretakers, with an emphasis on education as the building block for sustainable change and the key to breaking the cycle of poverty.

About Action Profiles:
ActionProfiles.com is a leading online Action Sports network for riders, quality brands, and worthy causes. Communities include Skateboarding, Snowboarding, Surfing, Wakeboarding, Mountain Biking, BMX, Motorcross, Skiing, Kiteboarding, as well as a new Filmer and Photographer network. AP merges cutting edge social media with on site event marketing to create an environment that effectively engages both consumer and brand. AP is owned and operated by riders with award winning talent and proven business chops.

Jesse Den Herder
Co-Owner | CCO
PH: +1 231.590.3583
FX: +1 928.441.3583
jesse@actionprofiles.com
www.ActionProfiles.comn

When it comes to marketing the time to get started is now (or yesterday depending upon your level of sarcasm). At this time of year most companies are putting the lid on their marketing dollars for the next 12 months. I am often so surprised to see where those dollars go and why? Usually the answer is if its worked in the past, it should work in the future. For some brands the past may be 20, 30, 40 years. I’m sure no one needs to be reminded of the fact that we’re entering into an entirely new day in age where digital reigns supreme. The smart phone keeps getting smarter and we are relying more and more upon it. Anyone that disagrees is living in denial (opinion).

A question I have for you brands out there is – how has your marketing budget grown or shifted to incorporate increasing your presence in the digital space? For many companies out there having a website and a Facebook fan page is about as much time and effort goes into their online marketing. It’s a start but far too little.

I’d venture to say the number one reason few brands dump big dollars into marketing on the digital platforms is because they’re unfamiliar/uneducated on how to go about it, what types of results they should expect, what kinds of budgets should be spent, how to facilitate it and much much more, am I right? Even if this is true, it’s still no excuse not to be pioneering what we all know will be the new frontier in marketing.

Its like the story of the Two Peach Rule – Once a kid discovered a tree in his town that gave the best peaches, but there was only one tree in the town. So the community said every household can only get 2 peaches per week. This way everyone could have some. But the people were industrious and they took the seeds and started planting more and more trees and eventually there was an abundance of peach trees, yet the two peach rule still applied. The children asked why can’t we have more peaches? Peaches are rotting and we’re still only allowed 2 peaches per household per week. The Parents said, “because this is the way is has been for many years”.

My point is start plucking, there’s an abundance out there…

TM~

A few days ago a good friend of mine called me and said that Tony Hawk had just stopped at his local skatepark. It was on one of Tony’s Underground tours. Apparently Tony is Twitting now and he’ll randomly stop at skateparks and announce it via twitter, which is awesome by the way.

Now, my friend is 32 years old and he called from Missouri where Tony had popped in with the Birdhouse team for a Guerilla demo and my buddy was as happy and stoked as a 10 year old. He proceeded to give me the full run down of every trick that Tony and the crew threw down, but he mostly talked about how Tony demolished the place. It was rad to hear a true skool street tech ledge skater of 90’s upbringing rant and rave about Tony Hawk.

Granted we were both Huge Tony Hawk fans in the 80’s (Animal Chin days). Then it hit me, man… 20 years later Tony is still killing it and i’m still stoked. We’re all still stoked.

A day later I watched the Flip Extremely Sorry video and one of my favorite parts belonged to none other than Lance Mountain. Then I realized McGill’s still ripping and we all know Cab doesn’t let up. I’d like to take my hat off first to Tony for putting together a truly unique and authentic event. Secondly to the OG Bones Brigade Team keep up the good work, we’re still here and we’re still fans!

TM~

I’ve been thinking about this all weekend and I just had to get it out. I recently read an article on Christian Audigier in LA Magazine (article posted a few months back). First off let me say the guy is a marketing guru (there, I said it). There was a reference in the article that says, “what Christian does is imbue a $6 t-shirt with $98 worth of desire”.

That got me thinking - it is all about desire. True, other factors are important such as quality, durable materials, fresh design, innovation, etc, however without desire you simply have a product sitting on a shelf. So what is desire if nothing more than a longing for something that you perceive will bring satisfaction or enjoyment. I’m sure we’ve all bought something we’ve desired only to forget about the item in a few weeks/months. That goes to show how desire can drive someone to simply on impulse and want.

I am often approached by start-up brands for guidance and direction. I always start by asking who “wants” your products? You can’t bend someone’s arm backwards to buy your products, not the distributor, not the retailers and definitely not the consumer. The job of the brand is to inject desire into the products through their marketing efforts. Case in point… I just found out that if I drink Vitamin Water I’ll look like 50 cent!

TM~

Our phone has become more than our daily companion. What started with the IPhone and Apple’s App Store has transformed the way we access information as an always-on consumer item. On top of that, it has created a new marketing opportunity for companies to introduce their own applications and engage consumers wherever they are now.

Now let me tell you about a technology that will work hand-in-hand with your phone and will increase marketability even further.

The technology I am talking about is offered by SolidMedia Inc. and is no bigger than a home base DSL Router. Installed in a retail environment, at an event or within a trade show, it will establish contact with a consumer’s phone as soon as they steps foot into the store. If the consumer chooses to activate (opt-in) the feature on their phone, they’ll have access to everything the location (event, trade show, retailer) wants them to know: individually matched products, special offers, raffles, special services for mobile users, promotions, downloadable mp3’s … You name it, the possibilities are endless. In today’s world of applications, this technology can add significant value to reach customers and learn as much as possible about their spending habits through various tracking methods offered through SolidMedia.

Additionally, the technology will keep track of each consumer as they walk through the store, logging in every step so the retailer knows exactly where and in front of which product the consumer spends his/her time in the store and so forth. The node can also be used to direct a consumer to a special in-store offer or suggest products while walking through an isle to completely enhance their on-site experience.

SolidMedia’s Node presents an exciting marketing opportunity for brands, retailers and other businesses. The technology is not competing with phones or applications, it will simply add a new way to engage the customer, who is always on their phone anyways.

It’s time for you to grab your iPhone, video camera, and friends and get off the couch and onto the streets. You’ve already seen Erik Ellington and Geoff Rowley Battle it out in a game of GOSK8 now its time to show us what you got. Upload a video of you playing GOSK8 solo or with your friends, send us the link, and get a chance to win some sick prizes from Flip.

Prizes
1st Place – Flip deck, t-shirt and stickers
2nd Place – Flip deck
3rd Place – Flip t-shirt, and stickers

All three videos will also be placed on our website.

Terms and Condition
Many will enter and compete in the contest, but there can only be three winners. Judging will be based on trick/level difficulty and video production/presentation, so bring your best.

All entrants must have the GOSK8 iPhone application, which is available on iTunes and submitted videos must show the trick on your iPhone before the trick is attempted.

Contest begins October 15th and ends November 15th 2009.

Footage MUST be continuous and videos need to be uploaded to youtube with the link sent to the info@gosk8app.com email.

Emails must be sent via a valid address with contestants shipping/mailing address included in the email.

A friend of mine made a comment the other day that has been resonating with me since. He said “people will go out of their way to be cool. If they perceive something as being cool they will spend money on whatever it is. They will even go as far as to waste and lose money on being cool”.

The next day I was having coffee with a different friend and he said something similar. He said, “People will make themselves look ridiculous for the sake of being cool.”

Granted these are two very opinionated people and the context of each conversation was more in-depth than I have explained here, however the point from both ends was that “Cool” is very important to people. Cool is so important that people will go to great lengths to acquire what their perception of cool is. I have been guilty of this in the past, I mean who remembers the Baggy pants of ‘92? I’m also guilty of spending $10 on a beer at a “cool” club when I could have went to the local dive and bought that same drink for $3…

Searching for Cool isn’t something new. In my opinion the desire to be cool comes from the need to belong while at the same time differentiate.

As a brand you need to understand the consumers desire to be cool and tap into that. My question for you is how do you factor “Cool” into your marketing strategies?

TM~

What better way to kick off a Monday than with some creative inspirtation? From the Ukraine nonetheless… Enjoy!