Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Nope, you read correctly. This is my real post. This isn’t a draft copy. The passage is called Lorem Ipsum. When designers and writers say, “Greek it in,” that’s what goes in. It means putting in dummy or placeholder text where actual text will someday reside. It’s a centuries-old practice, literally, potentially dating back to the earliest days of Johannes Gutenberg’s  printing press in the 1500s. Back then and through today, we use dummy text because it allows us to concentrate on the design of a piece. Or it was created by a lazy writer who couldn’t get his job done by the time the designer finished his.

Are you saying that Greeks write dummy text?

Firstly, it isn’t Greek, as the expression would have you believe, but rather, Latin. And secondly, it isn’t dumb at all. In fact, the origin of text has been traced by Richard McClintock of Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia to one of the most famous Romans ever to don a toga—Marcus Tullius Cicero (pronounced Ki-ker-o). If only Cicero—a statesman, lawyer, political theorist and philosopher—knew how his text was being used today.

Let me provide a very brief history lesson. When Cicero was kicking around—sounds better spoken—roughly 100 BCE to 50 BCE, he wrote “De Finibus Bonorum et Malorum” which loosely translates to “About the Purposes of Good and Evil.” The passage began: “Neque porro quisquam est qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit.” The bold part indicates today’s Lorem Ipsum text. Someone along the way, swiped part of that passage and produced Lorem Ipsum—the now-standard text for designers across the world.

But what does it mean? Literally, “Neither is there anyone who loves grief itself since it is grief and thus wants to obtain it.” Not exactly the light, fluffy text you imagined? So the phrase, “Greek it in” means to drop in dummy text that isn’t Greek and isn’t dumb. It’s Latin and was written by one of Rome’s brightest minds.

From a modern-day communications perspective, this practice provides insight into the mind. We’re told a picture is worth a thousand words. And yet, our mind is so determined to process by reading that when showing designs and images, professionals place in foreign sentences. Maybe after all these years, a picture is worth a thousand Latin words—which as we know by now, are not worth the same as English.

In communications, there are things we think we know that in reality, we don’t. Most people think they know what “Greek it in” is and what it means. Most are wrong. And then there are others who think the text is gibberish and has nothing to offer. They too are wrong. So is the lesson that we’re all uneducated? Not quite, but close. The take away is to keep asking questions because everything has meaning.

Every economic expert may not agree that we are in a recession, but most concede that one is certainly on the way. The economic downturn will likely have an impact on a wide array of business sectors and will certainly have a psychological effect on most Americans. So, how is a marketer to act in these uncertain times?

There are no hard and fast rules for recession marketing. But one overarching principle that applies in tough times and prosperity alike is – “Show them that you care.” The ubiquitous “them” we refer to here is, of course, the customer. And there’s something to be said for some empathy and caring when marketing in a recession or any time.

We can learn a lesson on the subject of recession marketing from – of all places- a classic ‘80s movie Mr. Mom. I take many more life lessons from Mr. Mom, but that’s a story for a whole different time.

In the movie, Terri Garr plays Caroline, a house wife who goes back to work at an advertising agency when her husband is unexpectedly laid off. When all the ideas for the big Schooner Tuna campaign fall flat, Caroline draws on her experience as a house wife and suggests that Schooner Tuna needs to show the women it is marketing to that the company is not “out of touch.” She says Schooner needs to show women “we care”. And with that comes the concept of Schooner Tuna, the tuna with a heart.

In the commercial that follows, the President of Schooner reads a statement in front of an American flag with “Glory, Glory Hallelujah” echoing in the background. He says that Schooner Tuna cares and “during this period of economic crisis, Schooner will drop the price of each can of tuna 50 cents. When these difficult times are over we will return to our regular pricing, but until that, remember, we’re in this together.” As Caroline puts it, it’s a return to Americanism when Americans need it most.

So, am I advocating blanket price slashing as a recession cure-all? No.

But in a recession it is critical to remember your customer, remember to show them that you understand their plight and show them that you care. And like Schooner Tuna remember that we’re in this together.  After all, this is 2008 and going for the heart is not just for tuna anymore.

If you had to describe your car – the driving experience, its look and feel, the emotions it evokes – in just one phrase, what would it be?

For Toyota’s Scion, the buzz phrase is surprising – if not outlandish: “21st-century chariot of the soul.” 

In a crowded industry, Toyota’s Scion is banking on this departure from the norm to engage its young, hip target audience. Its new campaign, Scion Speak, taps into this quirkiness to encourage personalized ownership and inspire a cult-like following among Scion owners.

The crux of the new campaign is a design website, scionspeak.com, that lets Scion owners design their own personal coat of arms. The site offers hundreds of graffiti-inspired symbols from which to develop a personalized crest. Drivers can then have the designs painted onto their cars or made into a window decal for a fee).

To be clear, the concept of “personalizing” a car isn’t new (think: VW Beetle flower vase), nor is the idea of a “car culture” (think: Mini mania). But Scion does a great job of merging these two concepts not just as a thinly veiled advertising/PR tactic, but as a way of ramping up excitement and passion for the Scion brand among current owners.

Now if I could just get over the way the Scion looks…
  

While I’m no psychologist, I constantly find that my profession overlaps with the psychology realm and how we derive our emotions, motivations and decisions.  I’m not the only one who sees this overlap.  In their new book, Neuromarketing, Patrick Renvoise and Christophe Morin discuss the most recent advances in brain research.  These two authors suggest that people make emotional decisions whether they are in aisles of their local drug store deciding between different brands of toothpaste to buy or in the boardroom making executive decisions.  Because decisions are based on emotions, our job is to diagnose the pain.  In other words, raise the right questions and pay attention to clients’ answers since real pain usually rests below the conscious level.  Word of caution: be ready to expose pain your clients didn’t even know they had.  Once you diagnose the pain, it’s much easier to craft a message that concretely shows how to eliminate it.

After all, no pain, no gain.

Okay, it’s Friday. More on this next week…

You can’t deny this – Paris Hilton has somehow morphed into an A-list celebrity. Maybe because of her parents’ riches; maybe the infamous sex tape “leaked” to the press; and maybe it’s her ability to capture fans and audiences across the country by flirtatiously mouthing the words “That’s hot.” 

That’s old news by now, but the bottom line is that she’s created a brand for herself and – in contradiction to what many people she could have ever accomplished – she’s been successful at doing so.

This brings us to the recent news that Georgi Vodka has announced it is considering using Ashley Dupre, NY’s ex-governor Spitzer’s now “famous” call girl, as its annual “Butt” the brand posts on the back of New York City taxi cabs and buses. Martin Silver, the CEO of Star Industries who also owns rights to Georgi’s brand, say they are offering Dupre a six-figure contract and believe the new face, er “butt,” of their brand will increase Georgi sales and profits this year. 

Dupre’s offers aren’t ending there.  Pose nude? Star in porn films? Appear on Jay Leno and David Letterman? Rumor has it she’s even been offered a contract nearing a million bucks to tour with the upcoming Girls Gone Wild brigade.  Her face is splattered across every local and national newspaper, and many media mavens believe her story will sell for millions.  

Can she follow in Paris’ … um … footsteps… and turn herself into a brand?

Rewind to 2005 and the new Carl’s Jr. branding initiative.  The company chose and bravely stood behind Paris Hilton as the face (and body) for Carl’s Jr.  Do you remember the buzz Paris’s sexually driven car wash commercial drummed up for the popular burger joint?  Parents and watchdog groups complained the commercials were far too sexually explicit. Still, the commercials drew thousands and generated more of a media blitz than any regular old dud soaping up a Bentley could have.   Regardless, it helped catapult Paris into the stratosphere.

So, can Client 9‘s call girl become a celebrity?  How long will she garner public interest?  Is this a classic case of fifteen minutes of fame – or is our society really ready to dub an ex call-girl its newest “It girl”?

However it turns out, it’s a helluva way to brand yourself.