A few days ago I reported on a Google search that produced a “Steve Irwin Dead On eBay” result from the Google Adsense System. I came to find this is happening with IntelliTXT, those annoying double underlined links on web sites that produce a pop up window.

IntelliTXT is used on the Atlanta Journal Constitution and in this particular AJC.com article about the sudden death of Anna Nicole Smith’s son. You’ll be excited to know you can save 10 - 20 percent off ‘Smiths’ at Target this week (sarcasm). What is a Smith though? These ads are designed to pop up based on common word usage in the body of an article. I’d be suprised if Target is gaining any revenue off the death of Anna Nicole’s Son? Most advertisers simply do not care enough about the quality and accuracy of their ad placement. Most companies are simply looking for exposure and if they want to profit off a kid’s death then let them be idiots I say. The human element of controlling ad placement in contextual based advertising needs to reinstated and not left to a bunch of servers. Check out a company called Mochilla that is doing just that.

NBC Universal is hoping to “increase online revenues five fold by 2009 - from $200 million this year to $1 billion” by treating their iVillage web site in a way that NewsCorp is treating MySpace.

The relaunch of iVillage, aimed at women ages 30 - 50, will have targeted health and beauty advertisements. The smaller demographic audience of iVillage (15 million users a month) compared to MySpace’s estimated 105 million brings up a valid point. NBC is only testing their plan. They hope that bringing streaming video and community tools geared towards women will increase their market share of social networking sites. Although the idea might seem like a last ditch effort for NBC to increase revenue five fold, the relaunch of iVillage might be a success. Whereas sites such as MySpace do not provide enough content for this age group, I feel there is a deep need for women to find a portal such as iVillage online.

The pink and red site covered in women cartoon figures adds a bit of youth to the targeted 30 - 50 age group. In the end making a woman feel young will always win you points.

Facebook is planning on opening its’ doors to any and all in a bid to expand. As the 7th most trafficted web site on the internet, Facebook receives more monthly visitors than Ask.com, Amazon.com, and Disney.com combined. Facebook has forever been closed to college students and only recently opened its’ doors to high school students. Today, the company planned on rolling out an expansion effort but has postponed the change after a recent uproar. The ‘mini feed’ warfare has pushed the introduction of the expansion into early next month. The reasoning, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerbeg expressed was that he wanted to retain users after their graduation.

Facebook’s success and niche (compared to MySpace) was that they connected local students on the same campus with one another. The expansion effort will allow “networks” of cities and areas (totaling 500) to join a network. Get it right Facebook. We don’t believe Zuckerberg’s statement for a second now that he plans to sell the company for an estimated $2 Billion dollars.

The internet has grown tremendously and the newspaper industry is suffering. The classified ads were the first to go when people started to realize you can sell your old junk online (ebay) for practically nothing. Then automakers decided to put their cars online and run their ads “until they sell.” Now, with the suffering real estate market in desperate need of an answer, many agents and agencies are aligning with online portals to sell their listings according to Business Week. Like cars, many potential buyers use the internet to research houses to see what’s available.

This has become a change in sociological behavior than many internet marketers are grasping and encouraging in the real estate market. Many newspapers are attempting to gain market share by putting more efforts into their online newspaper copy and layout rather then their print version. In all fairness, the newspaper industry has a lot of ground to cover before catching up.

Struggling automotive manufactuer chevy is planning on shaving some skin off the top of their advertising budget by hiring college students. The company is holding a contest for college students in which they ask them to submit their commercial ideas for the company’s new lineup of vehicles. The top 5 entries and their creators will be flown to Detroit, Michigan to meet with Chevrolet’s executives and their affiliated ad agencies. The winner will receive the benefit of being involved in the final production of a 30 second television commercial to air during the 2007 Super Bowl.

To me, this seems a little too much like American Idol without the American involvement or vote. If Chevrolet is truely an “american revolution” as their tag line says, then perhaps they should’ve done this a little different. Perhaps they could have aired a commercial to promote the marketing stunt and encourage viewers to visit a website to vote on their favorite. Viewers could go to the website to view the various entries and vote for their favorite. If you’re going to create a commercial by the people for the people, then let them choose!

A hilarious mock version of the “da-da-da” Pepsi Cola Commercial from Asia!

Be warned. The crazy head of Bob Sapp will consume all of your pizza. Proof that Japan loves Bob Sapp, better known as an American kickboxer, mixed martial arts fighter and former professional wrestler and professional football player. Sapp stars in this somewhat weird television commercial for a Japanese Pizza Delivery Service “Pizza La.”

Not all internships are dull and dry. As featured in Business Week, Matthew Zimmerman had an internship with marketing company Sinek Partners in New York in which he had to find a way to increase the daily revenue of a panhandler. The tools included a cardboard sign and a genious mind. Zimmerman was assigned the project on the last few weeks of his internship.

The concept of the experiment: Marketing products through pricing or product features alone results in only one time purchases. However, if a customer feels an emotional attachment to the product, there is a greater chance for repeat buying and loyalty.” Zimmenman discovered most panhandler’s street signs only establish THEIR current situation such as “Vietnam Vet, Homeless, Drug Addict, Unemployeed.” Zimmerman discovered these signs were ineffective because they failed to create an emotional connection with the potential street donater. Zimmerman changed the sign to “Next time you give, think of me” in order to establish a connection with the consumer (or donater in this case). The consumer would therefore have that feeling of appreciation for their own ‘giving’ that day.