Yes, I want it! I’ve read the reviews, watched the video clips and made up my mind.
The reviews by Wall Street Journal, USA Today and New York Times are all very positive. Who I am to disagree with them then.
So, off to ZAStore, Apple’s retailer. I promptly dialed there hotline number on 0860 027753 to buy mine, or at least order it.
If Steve Jobs wants to sell his 10 million phones by the end of next year, then surely he wants my business too.
Yip, the call centre operator told me, you can have it by end December 2007 at a cost of R 6500 - R 7500 as they cannot provide the precise cost right now.
Anyone planning to buy one this week?
Lemme know where please!

Is human search the next BIG thing? was it not how the search phenomenon started many moons ago?
Mahalo has what they call “hand written” pages 5,000 now and they plan to have 10 000 of them by the end of the year.
Can it give Google a go for their money? They are financed by Sequoia Capital, early backers of Yahoo! and Google and have the backing of News Corporation.
You can also write results pages for them for between $10 and $ 15 a page.
Why not try it and decide for yourself whether it is the way forward.

and I am not talking about the Knysna type but rather the Margate ones!
So, after all the online brainwashing ( thanks to Biz Community )I have finally succumbed to the pressure and decided to see what all the fuss is about.
No, I did not enter for any category (that’s if you don’t count the entering of my credit card in the car, hotel, banquet and airline categories to actually be there).
The “festival” seems to be a good opportunity to learn more about the industry, its people and their ways. See below and The Loerie Awards for more.

FESTIVAL WEEKEND PROGRAMME:

Of course, being a self-employed small company guy, I am not going there just for a jol! Why should I pay just to party in Margate?
So, I really hope to network and come back with insight, new contacts and maybe a lead or two.
So, if you’re gonna be there, let’s meet over a “creme-soda” and talk some “business” or I am dreaming….?

If so, pop in to the ad:tech Interactive Marketing event from 31 July to 1 August.
Topics to be discussed / presented include:

• Extending Your Reach With Affiliate Marketing
• Gamer Nation: Exploring Advertising Effectiveness in the Gaming Ecosystem
• Multi-Platform Marketing
• Cutting-Edge Targeting in a Multi-Platform World
• Redefining Search to Realize Its Full Potential
• Bridging the Digital Divide: Growing Online Brand Advertising Dollars
• Actions Speak Louder Than Clicks: Exploring the New Laws of Relationship Marketing
• The Empowered Consumer: Are We Losing Control of Our Brands?
• Publishing in the Digital Age: Feast or Famine?
• The Next Big Thing: Is Advertising Really the Solution?
• eCommerce Marketing: The Art of Customer Acquisition
• The Path to One-to-One Marketing: The State of Behavioral Targeting
• Aha! - Igniting Your Creative Spark in the Digital Age
• Viral/WOM Marketing: Luck or Skill?
• Search + Video + Contextual Targeting: Is the Holy Grail Upon Us?
• Managing the Power Shift: Consumers, Content, and Control in a Digital World

The same organisation hosts conferences around the world throughout the year. I plan to attend their November one in New York.
see: www.ad-tech.com

So, because Juta thought it a good idea that I hang out at the book fair for an hour in case somebody might want their e of marketing copy scribbled in, I went.
Well, I will never have thoughts of a paperless society again. Never again will I even dare to think that the electronic word can replace the printed word!
Books for Africa, that’s what I saw!
I am still having the debate with Juta whether to make my book available online, even just in part and what the pro’s and cons of such an exercise will be.

The shortlists for Cyber Lions awards at Cannes has been released.
I am so sad to say that there is mere ONE SA company on the list or 323 nominees…and I thought we were up there with the best!
The nominee:
Automotive web sites: Audi TT, Ogilvy Interactive

Well done to you guys and I can only hope that you win in that catergory!

So, as the SA ad agencies start getting ready for the 29th Loerie Awards to be held in Margate next month, the world is focusing on the Cannes Lions 2007, the 54th International Advertising Festival held in the little dorpie of Cannes in that small European country where some major sports event will be held later this year.
The categories include direct, media, promo, press, TV & cinema advertising, outdoor, radio, integrated campaigns and of course: ONLINE!
In the first batch of shortlisted companies (excluding online) some 112 SA campaigns have been mentioned.
The shortlist for the Cyber Lions will be announced tomorrow, 19 June and the winners in that category will be announced on Thursday this week.
The categories are:

A. WEBSITES & MICROSITES:
categories here include food and clothing, automotive, tourism, financial services, public services, beauty, healthcare, etc.

B. INTERACTIVE CAMPAIGNS
3 or more DIFFERENT and SEPARATE interactive online elements for the same concept (e.g. 1 online ad, 1 e-mail, 1 website)

C. ONLINE ADVERTISING
This is basically banner and rich media advertising.

D. OTHER ONLINE ADVERTISING
Mobile advertising, mobile phones, PDAs etc
Interactive tools
Innovative ideas - Other online advertising that doesn’t fit in any of the categories above

E. VIRAL ADVERTISING

let’s hope there are a few SA campaign on THAT shortlist!

At the moment we are busy upgrading longtail’s office equipment, including notebooks and desktops.
We popped into the new DION-Wired store at Cedar Square in Fourways last week to look at what Brands and models they had available. It was rather frustrating as the product assistants didn’t know much about the various product offerings. I asked one of the assistants if I could go to DION-Wired website to find out more and if site also displayed pricing to which he said yes, although I must add he was rather unsure.
I proceeded to surf various electronic and appliance retailer websites including Digital Planet (virtual store), Incredible Connection and DION-Wired.
It was hugely disappointing to see that only Digital Planet sees the internet as a viable channel to market and sell their goods whilst they all sell software to effectively build effective online communication tools / webcams / headphones for skype / notebooks / desktops / geeky gizmos and gadgets etc but don’t seem to believe that the customer actually goes to the internet to research or buy these products, strange isn’t it!

Incredible Connection’s website has a transactional engine and most of the goods are displayed with prices but the site is not optimized at all…don’t they want anyone to find them or are they so confident that everyone knows their domain name that they don’t need to do any online marketing.
The most disappointing is the DION-Wired website, which only displays their current specials, so if you don’t want a special offer then you have no idea where their product range or pricing is at. In fact, if you go there NOW (13:47, 18 June), they don’t have any specials available in any of their categories. So, in other words the site is only there to say; I quote from the site: “DION-Wired is South Africa’s premier consumer electronics & appliances concept store aimed at getting you CONNECTED” except you can’t connect with any of the Brands online.
There is NO integration online to the offline Brand promise and marketing efforts.
Guys what are you thinking where are your online marketing strategies. Sad that the small guys like Digital Planet can get it right….
CIC longtail - Ingrid Rubin

How interesting to see these bedfellows have come to realise that they should compete rather than co-operate.
On the front page of today’s Business Day it states how they may part ways as Telkom considers selling its 50% stake in Vodacom ( for about R 70bn give and take )
Even more interesting to us internet types is how both companies have made it clear that they want a bigger slice of the internet market ( 2 seperate articles on page 13 of the same paper)
Vodacom it seems is ready for some major acquisition and speculation is that it may be Internet Solutions or DataPro that they are after. Vodacom, it appears wants to shed its image as a cellphone company and become a total corporate solutions and communications company. Their new division, Converged Solutions, is a clear indication of their way forward.
Telkom yesterday stated that they wish to make bigger inroads into Africa’s voice, data and internet services. Having recently acquired African Online, based in Kenya and MultiLinks in Nigeria, a company that also has an internet offering, it seems that the internet race for Africa is in full swing!
May it bring greater connectivity, lower fees and upliftment to all!

The big brands are forever spending millions on their brand strategy, positioning and image.
They always tell us at the conferences and seminars how much their brands are worth and how extremely loyal their clients are.
A pregnant mom with 2 kids will walk barefoot through the snow for 2 kilometers to buy Heinz baked beans for her family rather than buy the Rite Value beans at her local spaza shop , they would say. (okay, not that there’s too much snow in Africa…do you get the point however?)
Sure, I like to ride a Merida, (mountain bike ) wear Levi’s, drink Savannah and fly BA (when possible). How much I was wondering, would I endure just to have my favourite brand and how does this affect my online shopping and brand loyalty.
Well, just yesterday I got my answer!
Off I went to my local mall to buy a pair of Levis (at Markham). I knew exactly what style, size and colour I wanted and was not gonna go home without it…or so I thouhgt.
Not in stock! My size is quite average and I guess a good reason why it sells out quickly. Yet, if it is a popular size, why won’t there be more of it in stock? No, I thought, I want these pants and if I have to come back again, I will. So, I politely asked that they get me a pair from one of their other stores. Sorry no, we don’t do that, was all I got.

Well then, stuff Levis, UZZI it will be. I saw the same style and colour in their shop window and thought I’ll just stop be there and get them. “Sorry sir but we don’t have any in size 34, would you like to try one of our other stores?” Of course not, I am here now. Please can you get me a pair and I will pick them up tomorrow? “No can do sir!”

Well, by now I was quite gatvol and had forgotten about the pregnant lady that is prepared to suffer in order to stick to her brand.
As I walked out of the mall, I passed by a Truworths Man shop. There on the shelf was a size 34, same style and colour as the Levis I had originally intended getting. Daniel Hechter it is then. Thanks, bag it!

This got me thinking….( again)
If one man can so easily sacrifice brand loyalty for convenience and instant gratification in a mall, how much easier must it not be for millions of people sitting in front of their PC’s looking for products, services and information to exit a site when they can’t find right away what they are looking for.