Cello Jon

Emptyage: Generation X Doesn't Want to Hear It

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 23:22:33 -0700

Emptyage: Generation X Doesn't Want to Hear It:

Earlier generations have weathered recessions, of course; this stall we’re in has the look of something nastier. Social Security and Medicare are going to be diminished, at best. Hours worked are up even as hiring staggers along: Blood from a stone looks to be the normal order of things “going…

Exclusive: Carol Bartz Out at Yahoo; CFO Tim Morse Named Interim CEO - Kara Swisher - News - AllThingsD

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 16:14:56 -0700

Exclusive: Carol Bartz Out at Yahoo; CFO Tim Morse Named Interim CEO - Kara Swisher - News - AllThingsD

Jersey Shore: Abercrombie and Fitch Offers to Pay 'The Situation' To Stop Wearing Its Clothes - Speakeasy - WSJ

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 13:49:14 -0700

Jersey Shore: Abercrombie and Fitch Offers to Pay 'The Situation' To Stop Wearing Its Clothes - Speakeasy - WSJ:

Brilliant!

I like.

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:08:08 -0700

I like.

Groupon Files for $750 Million IPO

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:03:25 -0700

Groupon Files for $750 Million IPO:

Get it out before people stop caring…

Groupon has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to go public in a $750 million IPO underwritten by Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs.

The filing finally reveals the details of Groupon’s financials, which have long been the subject of speculation. For the full year of 2010, the company’s revenue totaled $713 million, up an astounding 23x from 2009. However, the company’s revenue in just the first quarter of 2011 was $644 million, showing just how fast Groupon continues to grow.

Groupon’s subscriber base has shown a similar growth trajectory, with the company serving its deals to more than 83 million subscribers at the end of the first quarter, up from 50 million at the end of 2010.

The company, which has raised more than $1 billion in venture capital, has paid a price for that robust growth, however, and is not currently profitable. In its filing, Groupon writes, “We have incurred net losses since inception and we expect our operating expenses to increase significantly in the foreseeable future. … We incurred net losses of $389.6 million and $102.7 million in 2010 and the first quarter of 2011.”

Exciting News-- Jennifer Soriano Joins Cello Partners!

Mon, 23 May 2011 17:20:14 -0700

I am really happy to announce the hire of Jennifer Soriano at Cello Partners. She is one of my favorite folks who I have had the pleasure of working with throughout my career— first at Tonic 360 and then again at Visa.

Most recently Jennifer spent the last five plus years at Visa Inc. in Foster City. She began her career in marketing and advertsiaing in 1999 on the agency side, working on integrated campaigns for top technology clients in the San Francisco Bay Area. An extremely driven marketing professional, Jennifer moved up through the agency ranks before moving client side at Visa in 2005.

Proficient in social media, digital and offline channels, Jennifer has worked on promoting a variety of brands rangng from Sun Microsystems, Disney, to Nokia to the NFL.

Welcome her at jennifer@cellopartners.com

Two Straight Athletes Combat Homophobia - NYTimes.com

Sat, 14 May 2011 08:15:25 -0700

Two Straight Athletes Combat Homophobia - NYTimes.com:

Ben Cohen is a world-class English rugby star, and Hudson Taylor is a three-time college all-American wrestler. They live on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. They barely know each other.

But they have something quite unusual in common. They may be the only two high-profile heterosexual athletes dedicating their lives to the issues of bullying and homophobia in sports.

The question that each one frequently gets — besides “Are you gay?” — is why are they involved in something that does not directly impact them, or so it would seem.

That is just the point, they said. In much the same way that the hockey player Sean Avery’s recent endorsement of gay marriage resonated in large part because it came from an unexpected source, their sexual orientation helps the message cross to broader audiences, Cohen and Taylor said. More…

Funny, funny, funny…

Tue, 10 May 2011 18:54:44 -0700

Funny, funny, funny…

Microsoft Near Deal to Buy Skype for Nearly $8 Billion - WSJ.com

Mon, 09 May 2011 20:46:49 -0700

Microsoft Near Deal to Buy Skype for Nearly $8 Billion - WSJ.com:

Something to make MSFT relevant again…

By ANUPREETA DAS And NICK WINGFIELD

Microsoft Corp. is close to a deal to buy Internet phone company Skype Technologies SA for between $7 billion and $8 billion—the most aggressive move yet by Microsoft to play in the increasingly-converged worlds of communication, information and entertainment.

A deal could be announced as early as Tuesday, people familiar with the matter said, though they cautioned that negotiations aren’t yet final and a deal could still fall apart. Including Skype’s long-term debt, the total value of the deal is about $8.5 billion.

Representatives for Microsoft and Skype declined to comment.

Buying Skype—a service that connects millions of users around the world via Internet-based telephony and video— would give Microsoft a recognized brand name on the Internet at a time when it is struggling to get more traction in the consumer market.

Microsoft has invested heavily in marketing and improving the technology of its Bing search engine. While it has made some market share gains over the past year, Google Inc. still dominates the search market with more than 65% of U.S. searches going through its site. More…

Digital Strategy Paying Off for Publicis - NYTimes.com

Sun, 27 Mar 2011 20:35:53 -0700

Digital Strategy Paying Off for Publicis - NYTimes.com:

PARIS — When Microsoft this month awarded a big chunk of its North American advertising account to Publicis Groupe, the Paris-based marketing company, the news felt like vindication for the chief executive of Publicis, Maurice Lévy. In the tradition-bound advertising industry, Mr. Lévy has been one of the strongest advocates of new digital forms of marketing, and he has backed up his words by writing big checks. Five years ago, he spent $1.3 billion of Publicis shareholders’ money to buy Digitas, an Internet advertising agency, prompting rivals and some analysts to sneer that he had paid too much. Yet Mr. Lévy pushed ahead, adding other digital agencies, including Razorfish for $530 million in 2009. Now, as the advertising industry recovers more strongly than expected from a deep downturn, with digital advertising leading the way, Mr. Lévy is not shy about saying “I told you so.” The company’s growth has outpaced the market, he noted during an interview, and the digital skills it has acquired are helping it with technology-conscious clients like Microsoft, for which Publicis will manage more than $600 million in North American ad spending…More

Business & Technology | Netflix locks up rights to its first TV series | Seattle Times Newspaper

Sun, 20 Mar 2011 22:42:43 -0700

Business & Technology | Netflix locks up rights to its first TV series | Seattle Times Newspaper:

So interesting— Bold move. I am definitely routing for them—Can’t wait to see how this all pans out…

Netflix Inc.’s Internet video streaming service will be the only place to watch an upcoming TV series with a high-powered pedigree that includes Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Spacey and the director of an Oscar-nominated film about Facebook.

The deal announced Friday illustrates Netflix’s growing clout in Hollywood as its mines revenue from its 20 million subscribers to create new home entertainment options. In this instance, Netflix will be showing a series that won’t have a scheduled broadcast time. Episodes could be released in bunches instead of just one per week.

“It’s a show people will be able to discover over time,” Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s chief content officer, said in a Friday interview. “It doesn’t have to happen over the first week, first month or even the first year of the show.”…More

Arianna stops by Clorox and talks about becoming fearless, flat...

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 18:59:00 -0800

Arianna stops by Clorox and talks about becoming fearless, flat shoes and the rise of social media. An incredible woman!

Demand Media Goes Social With Customer Forums for Facebook Pages

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 16:34:00 -0800

Demand Media Goes Social With Customer Forums for Facebook Pages:

Love it when two great companies come together. Well done!

Demand Media announced Wednesday that an updated version of Pluck, the social media platform it has owned since 2008, will allow brands to embed customer forums from their websites directly on a Facebook Page.

The new feature is built for the Buddy Media Facebook marketing platform, which eight of the world’s top 10 brands use to manage their fan pages. It allows users of the Buddy Media Platform to drag and drop existing Pluck Forums from their websites to their Facebook Pages, after which participants in a single conversation can view and contribute to it through either the Facebook Page or the website.

Meanwhile, the brand can moderate a single conversation, now taking place on two different sites, with one platform. The Dallas Cowboys True Blue Fan Club is one of the first to incorporate the new feature into its Facebook Page. Fans participate in forum conversations either through Facebook, using their Facebook identities, or on the website, using their True Blue identity. No matter how they participate, their posts show up in both places…More

Warner Bros to offer movies through Facebook | Reuters

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 09:42:00 -0800

Warner Bros to offer movies through Facebook | Reuters:

Is the model being constructed? Google/Facebook/Apple…this is getting interesting.

Warner Bros is making some of its films available on Facebook, opening up a new revenue source for the Internet social network and signalling new competition for online entertainment companies.

Consumers can pay for the movies using Facebook Credits, a virtual currency so far used mainly in social games on the site, according to Warner Bros, a unit of Time Warner Inc (TWX.N), on Tuesday.

Facebook, which makes money mostly through online advertising, takes 30 percent of the revenue from sales by third parties on the website using Credits.

The service will initially be available in the United States, the company said.

The streaming of full-length Hollywood films on Facebook creates a new role for the 500-million-plus member social network, which has grown into one of the most powerful Web players by making it easy to share photos, videos and other content with friends…More

YouTube Buys Next New Networks, a Video Producer - NYTimes.com

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 15:01:00 -0800

YouTube Buys Next New Networks, a Video Producer - NYTimes.com:

Not surprising yet interesting move by Google— Should Hulu and Netflix be concerned?

SAN FRANCISCO — YouTube, the video site owned by Google, formally announced on Monday that it had acquired Next New Networks, a Web video production company, in its biggest effort yet to move beyond short, quirky home videos to professionally produced content.

The acquisition of Next New Networks, which produces original programming and helps video creators distribute their films and make money, is YouTube’s biggest leap into creating its own programming. But that will be minimal, the companies said. Original programming has taken a back seat at Next New Networks, and Google has shied away from producing its own content.

“We want to make as clean a line as possible for us to build the platform on YouTube and then let the content production happen with our partners,” said Tom Pickett, director of global content operation at YouTube…More

Will Facebook replace company Web sites? | Deep Tech - CNET News

Thu, 03 Mar 2011 13:13:28 -0800

Will Facebook replace company Web sites? | Deep Tech - CNET News:

LONDON—A day might be coming when the power of Facebook means that major companies no longer bother with their own Web sites.

That was the startling if self-promotional possibility sketched out by Stephen Haines, commercial director of Facebook’s U.K. operation, while speaking today at the Technology for Marketing and Advertising conference here. Essentially, Haines argued, companies’ interactions with their customers could take place so often on Facebook that company Web sites would fall by the wayside.

To bolster his argument, Haines showed statistics comparing how many times Facebook users have clicked a company’s “like” button with how many times per month people visited that company’s Web site. For Starbucks, a top Facebook advertiser, the ratio was 21.1 million likes to 1.8 million site visitors. For Coca-Cola, it’s 20.5 million compared with 270,000; for Oreo, 10.1 million compared with 290,000; and for Dr. Pepper, it’s 4.1 million compared with 325,000.

Getting My Foot in the Door

Wed, 02 Mar 2011 10:14:59 -0800

This past weekend I had the privilege of hosting the San Francisco Addy Awards. Each year, the top bay area ad clubs sponsor this uniquely San Francisco event to showcase the best creative work of the year and honor the innovators. Sharing the stage with some of this year’s youngest and most passionate creatives took me back to my early days in advertising. It was 1995. I was four years into a Teach for America assignment when I needed some inspiration. And since nothing inspires me more than being broke, I gave my notice without a new job lined up and set out to find my first job in advertising.

My first move was sending a shoe (that’s right, a shoe) to the top ad agencies in the San Francisco along with a note that read, “now that I have my foot in the door.” Sure, it was corny. But hey, I was 25. And even more unbelievable was my sincere excitement to receive a response, any response from an agency, even via rejection letter. To this day, I can’t help but think fondly of the good people at Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Hoffman & Lewis for taking the time to reject me. I was sincerely honored that they even acknowledged my effort.

Fortunately, I did get my foot into the door after a period of tireless networking and the help of a guy named Paul Connolly. An account director at Goldberg Moser O’Neil at the time, I met Paul through his partner who played on my softball team. He kick-started my career with one truly memorable piece of advice: “stop looking for a job and start meeting people.” In other words, for every informational interview I’d have, I needed to ask for three additional interview contacts. So if I had three interviews on day one, on day two I’d have nine more to set up.

It worked. After over forty informational interviews in less than a month, I landed my first job in advertising. I vividly remember walking out of the offices, offer in hand, and looking up at that big brick building in Levi’s Plaza to the sign above: Saatchi and Saatchi. It was probably the proudest moment of my life. Then of course, a week later came my least —having my “shoe” and some colorful commentary tossed my way during a company-wide meeting. Good times.

Fast forward a good 15 years and here I am hosting the Addys. In my heart I am always a student in life and certainly in the ad business. With digital as my passion, the learning never stops and that’s exactly why I love it. This blog is about sharing my experiences along the way and curating what I call “borrowed interest” from my colleagues, comrades, mentors and mentees. Join me here for a look the stories, articles, and insights from the people who inspire me most.

Ad Age Digital A-List: Buddy Media | Special: Digital A-List - Advertising Age

Mon, 28 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Ad Age Digital A-List: Buddy Media | Special: Digital A-List - Advertising Age:

This is great recognition for our friends at Buddy Media. Congrats!

Ad Age Digital A-List: Buddy Media: Succeeding at Bringing Big Business to Big Brands via World’s Biggest Social Network, CEO Mike Lazerow Knows It’s Good to Be Facebook’s Buddy

Back in 2007, when Facebook was only a few years removed from being called “The Facebook” and had a mere 20 million users to MySpace’s 150 million, Buddy Media CEO Mike Lazerow made what seemed a risky bet. Even though it appeared that there would be multiple winners — or at least multiple players — in social networking, Mr. Lazerow went long on the startup from Palo Alto.

Michael Lazerow: ‘How do people vote? With their money and with their time.’

Why? Unlike MySpace, Facebook shared its source code with developers, meaning companies could build real businesses on the platform. What sealed the deal was when Facebook launched “Pages” in 2009, which allowed brands to have a presence on the network beyond individual apps.

“It was by no means a done deal that Facebook would emerge, but that opening would fundamentally change consumer relationships with each other and with brands,” Mr. Lazerow said.

Buddy stopped building apps altogether and started building software. It was a big shift — a “pivot” in startup parlance — but the idea that people would interact with branded apps was flawed. But with “Pages,” Facebook became a much friendlier place for brands…MORE

Great night last night at the SF Addy Awards! A big thank you to...

Sun, 27 Feb 2011 14:30:00 -0800

Great night last night at the SF Addy Awards! A big thank you to the Greater SF Ad Club, AAF Silicon Valley, sfBIG, and AD2SF for putting on such a great show. Also Congrats to all the winners!

Pics by Jacob Dolinsky of Hybrid 808

My mentor, Antonio Lucio speaks of vision and leadership...great read!

Sat, 26 Feb 2011 10:13:48 -0800

My mentor, Antonio Lucio speaks of vision and leadership...great read!:

Lessons in Leadership From a Friend

Political strategist Lord Philip Gould is an idealist anchored in reality who believes leaders are defined by their moral compass

Every now and then, life kisses us on the lips.” So wrote Spanish poet and composer Joan Manuel Serrat to describe those magical moments, or people, that unexpectedly transform our lives. Philip Gould has been one of those enlightened beings who through words, actions and interactions, has enhanced the life of all those blessed by his friendship.

I met Philip six years ago. He was a British representative to an advisory board I chaired. His business card read: “Lord Philip Gould.” He was my first Lord—Baron Gould of Brookwood—so I felt a wisecrack was merited. “We fought a war over titles like these, and we won. So, if you do not mind, I will call you Philip,” I said. That was the beginning of a relationship that help me define the word leadership. More…