Launch PR

Zinio offers digital versions of your favorite magazines

Today’s generation is driven by instant gratification. Transitioning magazines into the growing digital world provides customers with an efficient way to read what they want, when they want. Thanks to Zinio, consumers will now be able to read the latest issues of BusinessWeek or Cosmopolitan from their laptops and iPhone’s for a fraction of newsstand prices before the magazines even appear on newsstands.

Digital Publishing Company Zinio is the forerunner of online magazine subscription services. The San Francisco based company is targeting the growing number of consumers who are getting their news and information online and on-the-go. By creating digital editions of over one hundred popular magazines, Zinio is also appealing to a younger generation called “screen-agers” who prefer to download their information and read it on the Web.

"We aren't trying to erode print systems, but give publishers another way to redistribute their content," says Richard Maggiotto, CEO of Zinio. "It gives readers what they want in media formats they are increasingly using, such as iPhone, iPod, PCs," he says.

Zinio is also partnering with Barnes and Noble to sell digital magazines and books on the store’s Web site, along with offering free “digital classics” such as Moby Dick and Great Expectations.

Zinio’s paperless magazines even support popular environmental efforts to “go green.”

“We're saving publishers’ money and the forests trees,” Maggiotto says. “It can’t get much better than that.”

Will you, too make the shift to online reading as more and more everyday tools become accessible online?

Burger King and Sean “Diddy” Combs announce extended hours awareness campaign

It looks like Burger King’s (BK) brand promise is heading from “Have It Your Way” to having it your way past midnight. Last year, BK required all franchises to be open until midnight, and starting June 5, U.S. BK’s will be open until at least 2 a.m. from Thursday to Saturday. Who better to announce this to late night club goers and concert fans than the king of the night, Sean “Diddy” Combs?

Appointed the “Late Night Ambassador,” Diddy launches the extended hours awareness campaign in a TV spot entitled “Diddy’s Way.” The commercial is directed by the acclaimed Spike Lee in New York and features Diddy discussing late night hours with the BK CEO (played by an actor). Diddy then announces to late night crowds that “BK® IS OPEN LATE” and watches the restaurant fill up immediately.

"Diddy is synonymous with late night and is a natural fit for his role as our 'Late Night Ambassador,'" said Russ Klein, president, global strategy, marketing and innovation, Burger King Corp. The company aims to raise its profile among the music and entertainment crowd and is finally taking advantage of its 2006 multi-year partnership with Diddy.

BK will continue its launch this summer through an aggressive grassroots campaign. Promotions will include sponsorships, music festivals, distribution of BK ™ Crown Cards and presence/onsite advertising in bars and night clubs in select markets.

Currently, BK is the world’s second largest fast food chain. Will its new extended hours give BK an edge in its competition against leading fast food giant, McDonalds?

NEW SERVICE POST: Zoomorama

Launch Date: December 2007

There are lots of places online where you can share and compile your photos, but while the site name changes, the format on each is usually fairly similar.  On December 11, 2007, Zoomorama presented its service at LeWeb3 conference in Paris, France.  Zoomorama strives to make photo-sharing an easier and higher quality experience for Web users.  Zoomorama President Franklin Servan-Schreiber said the following at the LeWeb3 conference:

Sharing photos is a huge part of the Internet experience, but it’s an experience that is disappointingly like sharing snapshots out of a shoe box, and in low resolution at that. Instead we think it should be like telling a story, sharing the emotions, and also enjoying your 5 to 10 mega pixels to the max…  We aim to offer a platform for visual blogging, mixing full-resolution photos, videos, and text of course.  We are convinced we have a 10 times better solution for sharing images online, and we have a way to monetize that solution.

In Zoomorama, you can create a photo collage and zoom in and out of specific photos that are all located on one page.  Zoomorama is also planning to incorporate video sharing within their photo montage capability (as seen in the example below), but this feature is still in the lab.

As of now, you can download and use the Zoomorama service for free.  Want to know more?  The site has a helpful FAQ page outlining specifics regarding media formats and the ease of content sharing so you can learn more about all things Zoomorama.

We are looking forward to seeing how Zoomorama develops its services.  What do you think of this new approach to photo sharing?

NEW SERVICE POST: Google Street View Launches in 8 New Cities

With Google Street View, there is really no excuse for ever getting lost again. If you are navigating the streets in any one of the 23 cities now included in the service, you have the option of viewing street-level photos along with traditional maps. Google initially went live with the service on May 29, 2007, and today it launches in eight new cities.

Now, if you want to visit the Launch PR team at Schneider Associates in Boston, you can use the Street View feature in our city.  Along with Boston, other cities included in this new launch wave are Dallas, Detroit, Indianapolis, Fort Worth, Minneapolis, St. Paul and Providence.

Do you find the Google Street View service helpful?  Have you ever used the service when you were exploring a new city or trying not to get lost?

Unhappy Airline Customers Seek Retribution

Online chat rooms have long been forums for users to meet new people, discuss their interests and give advice. Now, the power of the chat room is being harnessed by disgruntled consumers to get the attention of giant corporate entities. Airline customers in particular have been harnessing the power of chat rooms and blogging to talk about their negative experiences, as customer service has been dwindling in the wake of cutbacks.

United Airlines in particular has had its share of customer service complaints, and customers are starting to fight back using the internet. Blogger, Amy Levine- Koman, points out how the chat rooms are getting noticed by airline executives, who even go so far as sponsoring events for FlyerTalk members. FlyerTalk, the leading site for airline complaints, is grabbing the attention of airlines like Continental Airlines. According to Continental, costumer service representative executives would be crazy not to pay attention to a site like FlyerTalk because of the insights it provides into how customers currently really feel about their airline experiences. Flyer talk is not alone though, and various sites such as Airline Complaints let customers chose an airline and specific category where they can post their grievances.

While these sites harbor a concentrated amount of negative feedback, it is an opportunity for airlines to target how their customers feel and what services they need to improve. These sites give the internal public relations department the ability to address the most common concerns and most vocal complainers. It is also a rallying call for the Department of Transportation to improve their complaint process, so that people will more willingly go though that avenue instead of publicly uniting against the airline.

Fries Please and Hold the Trans Fats

As America's waistline continues to expand and blood pressure readings go through the roof, fast food franchises in the United States are feeling a different kind of pressure. Resulting from an ordinance passed last month, all New York City restaurants are banned from using artery clogging trans fats, and have until July 1 to make the switch to trans fat free oil. Locally the township of Brookline in Boston is also considering making it illegal for any restaurant to cook with trans fat.

This demand for change is not coming solely from state legislators. Consumer groups, such as the Center for Science in the Public Interest have been pushing popular restaurant chains to use healthier cooking oils. Guilty of lowering good cholesterol and raising bad cholesterol, trans fats may increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other complications. “To get rid of this one problem improves their customers’ health automatically, without the consumers doing anything,” said Michael Jacobson, the group’s executive director.

To comply with the New York City ordinance, companies including McDonald’s Corp., Starbucks Corp., Wendy’s International, Burger King Holdings Inc. and Yum Brands (representing Pizza Hut, KFC, and Long John Silver’s) have revealed plans to remove trans fats from all products throughout the country. "Adding nutrients to junk food is all about marketing," says Margo Wootan, nutrition policy director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington. "Nutritionally modified junk food is better  than regular junk food, but it's not going to turn cookies into apples."

With over three quarters of Americans trying to eat more healthfully, the negative sentiment associated with trans fats marks the beginning of a trend toward making consumers more health conscious without the pain of making different choices.

This trend is also causing PR pros to cook up a wide variety of strategies for quick service restaurants (QSR’s) to be responsive to this change. Removing trans fats, or adding vitamins does not transform fast food into health food. Remember, consumers are being bombarded with so many health claims they are starting to get smart about which of their favorite drive through delights say they are healthy and those that are really good for them.

Mexican Cuisine in the Northeast

Mexican restaurants operating in the Northeast are experiencing success in both downtown and suburban communities. From quick service to full service establishments, sales are on the rise and demand is growing.

The demand is for flavor. Mexican cuisine is intense and varied in flavor and spices. The style of cooking is one of the richest in the world: both with respect to diverse and appealing tastes and textures; and in terms of proteins, vitamins, and minerals. Most Mexican restaurants are also family friendly, the atmosphere is colorful and exciting for young kids and the food is different from traditional pizza and pasta offerings. 

Exemplifying this trend is Blue Moon Mexican Café, a restaurant that launched in Manhattan over 20 years ago and has been successful in both the inner city and in suburban markets. With the recent formation of Blue Moon Franchises LLC the company is hoping to see continued growth and success as it expands from New York to other northeast cities and communities.

Besides food quality, the key to Blue Moon Mexican Café’s success will undoubtedly be its continued focus on neighborhoods and community based marketing. They support non-profit, community, sports, school and church organizations by donating 20% of the total bill back to the organization if you gather and eat at Blue Moon. Now that is community focused. I hope to see Blue Moon launch in Boston soon.

Consumers Demand Product and Service Innovation

The constant quest for “new” requires product and service companies to be continuously generating fresh ideas, concepts and practices. No matter what your industry, innovation and change are the keys to success. An example of industry-wide consumer driven change is in the food service industry, which is evolving to keep pace with consumer needs.

This year we helped our client Baskin-Robbins introduce a new concept to their venerable 60 year old brand. Baskin-Robbins unveiled a new look featuring a new logo, brighter colors, and fun in-store murals. They also added a sundae station, a lower dipping cabinet and step up bar so kids can see the delicious ice cream.  Baskin-Robbins updated its look to stay contemporary, but was able to stay true to its ethos. The focus is still on their 31 flavors of ice cream and on making people happy with a simple treats.

Another client of ours, Bertucci’s Italian Restaurant, has updated its menu to offer more choices to its Italian food lovers. Bertucci’s stayed true to its roots by introducing new authentic grilled dishes – Bertucci’s Grilled Italian Favorites. This is the biggest launch in Bertucci’s history and an exciting addition to their traditional fare. 

Both of these changes show how the food service industry is evolving to delight their consumers. Baskin-Robbins is making its ice cream shops more interactive and fun for children while Bertucci’s is expanding its menu to tantalize the consumer who craves high protein dishes. The important lesson is that both companies were able to make changes for the direct benefit of the consumer while keeping their values and brand essence in tact. While the colors at Baskin-Robbins are more vivid, and the menu at Bertucci’s is broader, at the end of the day, both firms know the importance of staying true to their brand and consumers.