A & E Television apparently believes that giving the impression of having morals is just as good as having them. Last year, A & E pulled Dog the Bounty Hunter off the air because the show’s main character was recorded using racial slurs. A & E wasn’t forced to cancel it, but it was a respectable decision considering that the show was popular.

Last November, we wrote about the common marketing mistake of accepting a sponsorship package ‘as is’ without customizing it to complement your marketing strategy. As event sponsorships continue to grow in popularity, we are compelled to reiterate some points.

So, Starbucks is closing 700 under-performing stores. That was our recommendation this past spring. But, that’s the easy part of the fix that we encouraged. Now, let’s see if they are brave enough to protect their brand position and end the discounted products and turn Starbucks back into the exclusive social club that it once was.

Are you planning to implement a customer satisfaction survey with the obligatory 15 questions that don't really get to the root of what you're trying to find out?

Despite all of the discussion about digital marketing in this month's Good Vibrations, the most important point for marketers to realize today is that you can't stop marketing. Sure, there are lots of reasons to do so; down economy, less competition, you're at the top, etc.

VI Creative Director, Steve Sturges, has a daughter that one might define as precocious. In her opinion, and somewhat to her father’s dismay, commercials exist ‘because people need bathroom breaks.’ Ouch!

Last month we asked if you felt that there was a significant difference between a man born in 1954 and a woman born in 1983. 98% agreed that the difference is great... For years, our media department has criticized traditional demographic cells as irrelevant.

Last year, two brands left my home state of Oklahoma having been acquired here by competitive brands. These acquisitions were bad for consumers and consequently bad for the image of the state as well.

The media empire is no longer the conglomerate of companies that make up the various TV networks, cable companies, radio stations and newspapers.

You may recall from our November ’07 issue of Good Vibrations that we suggested that Braum’s could drastically improve their sales by merely providing better customer service. Here’s validation to that sentiment:

So, Starbucks performance has looked decaffeinated as of late. Inevitably (ala Apple Computers), they bring back Howard Schultz, the visionary CEO (who made them what they were) to get them back to what they were.

Television is in trouble. Double trouble really. We’ve observed dwindling TV ratings for several years now, which is the trouble. But That doesn’t necessarily doom the medium. In fact, it has actually forced our shop to create some new and creative ways to use it.