Time to 'Toot Our Own Horn'

Awards season is in full swing and Axiom is proud to announce we have won 3 awards for the Mr. Bubble campaign.  We have been awarded two 2011 MarCom Awards and a Davey Award.

• A Platinum MarCom Award for the Mr. Bubble media kit

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

• A Gold MarCom Award for the Mr. Bubble 50th Birthday Bash

• A Silver Davey Award for Integrated Campaign for Mr. Bubble

We are honored by the recognition and glad to have a great team to pull it all off!

 

 

 

 

Barnes & Noble declares Nook-lear warfare on Amazon

The Nook Color tablet/e-reader from Barnes & Noble was a very successful product for the bookseller giant this year. Not only that, the Nook Color was the one major leg up B&N had in their ongoing e-reader battle with Amazon and its Kindle line.

Obviously, that playing field was leveled with the Kindle Fire announcement a few weeks back. And with the Kindle Fire officially hitting the market in a week, many have been waiting for B&N's next move.

B&N fired back in a big way this morning with several impressive announcements:

• Nook Simple Touch price reduced: Much like what Amazon did with their Kindle price reductions, B&N started their chain of announcements by knocking $50 off of their Simple Touch e-reader. The new $99 price tag puts the Simple Touch in direct competition with the ad-supported Kindle.

• Nook Color price reduced and updated: B&N also dropped the Nook Color by $50, bringing it to a same-as-the-Kindle-Fire $200. Additionally, the Nook Color will be getting an OTA update that will bring Hulu and more music-streaming services to the device.

• New Nook Tablet: The biggest announcement is clearly the unveiling of the new Nook Tablet. While physically the device resembles a slightly thinner and lighter Nook Color, the device boasts a dual-core processor for much snappier performance. More impressive, however, is that it will come bundled with Netflix and Hulu right out of the box. Priced at $250, B&N is anticipating people will pay the extra $50 compared to the Kindle Fire for a device with better specs.

More important than the devices and price reductions themselves is the way B&N announced them. B&N CEO William Lynch pulled no punches when comparing the Nook Tablet and Kindle Fire, taking several direct shots at Amazon's approach to tablets.

That being said, both devices adhere to the same path in giving consumers a media consumption device rather than a tablet aimed at replacing a computer.

At this point it's tough to say who will win the war, but we do know that this holiday shopping season has gotten a lot more interesting.

Hyundai Reaches to "Thinkers" With Digital Campaign

In an original attempt to create an impressive viral campaign, Hyundai is inching away from "car-talk" into "personality-talk." Launching off their brand motto, "new thinking, new possibilities," the automotive company launched an international digital campaign called the "New Thinkers Index." It centers around 22 four-minute videos that highlight the thought processes of actors, musicians, sports stars and other creative thinkers. Viewers are also invited to take a test to see where they fall on the thinker's index. (Are you a "word smart," "self-aware," "musical," "visual," or a "natural thinker?")

Jonathan Oliver, senior digital strategist at Microsoft Advertising, which developed the campaign with Hyundai, said, "We're not shifting cars, we're shifting thinking -- moving the needle on people's perceptions of Hyundai as a brand. Everyone knows the brand, but Hyundai needs to increase the brand love. This isn't shouting it from the rooftops, it's aligning the positioning to desirable content in a subtle way."

I'll admit, it's a beautiful campaign that highlights great thinking and collaboration among talented individuals. The thinker's index test is also a fun component. However, will consumers be able to see the connection between the campaign and the brand? Do they even need to? Some may end up questioning where the auto and consumer relevance is. While others may believe it's a good thing that brands are stretching their identity. I believe Hyundai is doing what marketing is all about; connecting with the person. They're not just selling a car, they're getting your attention.

What do you think?

Follicular Fashion Is Growing For a Good Cause

Guest post by @davesniadak

Despite our best efforts, finding a cure for cancer is going to take a lot more than affixing ribbons to our jackets and going on long walks. Funds need to be raised all year long so research can be done by scientists around the world. How are we at Axiom doing our part? The answer is right under our noses - literally.

Myself, along with a few colleagues and friends across the country - reaching from Minnesota to Texas and Tennessee - have created Team Axiomoustachers, which is just a small part of the Movember Movement. For the month of November, we will be rockin' our best Handle Bar, After Eight, Rock Star, or Fu Manchu mustaches to not only generate awareness for prostate and testicular cancer, but hopefully raise some funds as well.

The Movember Movement is an organization aimed at raising awareness for these two forms of cancers that impact men of all ages. According to the US National Library of Medicine, prostate cancer is the third most common form of cancer in men, and the leading cause of death among men 75 and older.

And while none of my teammates fall under the category of someone at risk for prostate cancer, these forms of cancer don't discriminate. Truth be told, there's only so much we can do to fight cancer, so forgoing the trimming of a few facial follicles is a small sacrifice we can all make to generate awareness for a great cause.

Wordless Wednesday: The Buzz On Social TV This Week