When Olay wanted to revitalize their product relationships with both retailers and women in the United States last year, they turned to MeidaVest for help. The challenge they faced was that when women go to large retail stores like Walgreens, Target and RiteAid for their cosmetic needs, they already have an idea of what kind of product they are looking for, long before they reach the cosmetic department. The brand that a woman is most familiar with and is the most accessible on shelves will ultimately be the brand they decide to purchase. Olay wanted to be that brand.

MeidaVest had two major goals they wanted to accomplish; 1. have women actively seek out Olay products and 2. notice Olay while they were at the store. In order to accomplish these goals, they developed two approaches to improve Olay’s consumer relationship and their store presence.
Continued

Last week, digital media and marketing thought leaders from around the world gathered in New York City for the third annual Internet Week. VivaKi agencies and digital leaders participated in a number of events across the weeklong confab, including OMMA Video, OMMA Social and the Digitas NewFront.

SMGX Chief Investment Officer John Muszynski delivered the opening keynote at OMMA Video. In his speech he challenged digital players to look at the TV market and Upfront process as a framework for the online video marketplace if it wants to properly monetize and distribute content. VivaKi Innovations Director Beth Doyle also participated on a panel at the event that looked at The Pool’s winning ASq model and whether or not choice-initiated ad products benefit all.

Check out John’s full presentation (slides and video) and Beth’s panel at MediaPost.

Continued

In this issue you can learn how to make your own science fiction items with some fake Ikea Assembly Manuals from CollegeHumor. Or you can help undermine the growth of QR codes by spreading these fake ones. Or maybe it’s time to celebrate the classic 90’s video game character, Sonic the Hedgehog? Or perhaps you just want to go a bit further back and remember how awesome McGyver was?

You can do all this and more in the latest issue of Reflecteur. You can even check out Yahoo’s recent interview with VivaKi Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer Rishad Tobaccowala.

Download Issue 85.

Did you know that some people think the Onion is real? And that these people post Onion articles to their Facebooks as if they are true? Or that twice a year the sun lines up perfectly with the east-west streets in New York City causing an amazing display of light called ‘Mahattanhenge”? You will learn more about these things on Page 1 of Issue 86.

Meanwhile, on page 2 you can wonder at what comes out of one man’s mouth as he sleeps. And then you can see what the world would be like as a village of 100 people, but with the same demographic proportions. We bet it will give you some fresh perspectives on our planet.

Download Issue 86.

Digitas recently released their research on the state of the “mass affluent” in the United States: Affluence in America: The New Consumer Landscape. Building on the most recent Ipsos Mendelsohn Affluence Survey, the research examined the effects of recent changes in the economy and markets, including the global recession, on income and spending.

The study found that the term “mass affluent” is no longer entirely accurate when talking about the countries highest income groups. Instead, Digitas found two new categories better described the current situation: Class Affluent and Emerging Affluent. Both groups were set apart from the rest by their intense use of digital media.

For more information about the study check out the full press release and this coverage by AdAge. Information on requesting a copy of the full report is also available on the press release.