Author Archives: MortarMark
April 14th, 2008

Clorox cleans up pretty.

Last year, many of us ("us" being people with pretty hardcore lip balm addictions, or just an unusual interest in mergers and acquisitions) were surprised to find out that Clorox had diverged from it’s normal toxic cleaning-chemicals fame, and bought the natural skin care products company Burt’s Bees. "WTF?" most of us asked. Some feared that the integrity of Burt’s products would be compromised. Others, myself included, wondered if this was a sign that Clorox was taking a turn down a more Earth-friendly path. I was curious to see what the bleach makers would do next. Was there finally a mainstream line of eco-friendly cleaners in store?

This morning, while flipping through National Geographic and enjoying a slice of whole wheat toast with organic blackberry jam (It was on sale. Shut up.) I came across an ad from Clorox, touting their new line of eco-friendly cleaners.

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I so totally called it.

And, Clorox, you guys rock.

Check out the product line here.

April 9th, 2008

Snark Attack.

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Oh, look. It’s a cute little bit of smartarsery posted at All You Knead on Haight.
Ha ha ha! Let’s make fun of the tourists! Hey, no one loves teasing the customer more than us.

One thing to keep in mind – they have the ability to return fire now.
And in this case, there is apparently no shortage of ammo.

Our favorite?

Eve L., who says: "…i found a pube in my fruit. because of that, i have a hard time being impartial."

We’re guessing she went with the "You Suck And I Hate You" gratuity.

We’re leaving 20% to Transbuddha for the heads up.

April 4th, 2008

Ye Olde Advertisorium

A website called Worth1000 is running a contest to photoshop new products into old-timey ads. In honor of our refreshing breakfast lunch whole damn weekend beverage, we’ve included an example below.

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Thank you, Gawker.

April 2nd, 2008

Evangelists 4 evangelists take note. Burger King’s focus on “Superfans” pays off.

In an interview with the Janet Adany at the Wall Street Journal, Burger King’s CEO writes about the power of focusing marketing on the core customer:

At a time when many large restaurant chains are struggling, Burger King Holdings Inc. CEO John Chidsey has managed to sustain the once-floundering fast-food company’s turnaround.

WSJ: What were the keys to your company’s turnaround?

Mr. Chidsey: Most importantly, I’d say it was finding who our target customer was, figuring out who was the superfan and not wasting our time trying to be all things to all people.

WSJ: When you looked more closely at your core customer base, you learned that it’s almost split evenly between males and females. Did that surprise you?

Mr. Chidsey: It was a little bit surprising.

WSJ: But your marketing is more targeted at males, isn’t it?

Mr. Chidsey: If you think about sports like the NFL or Nascar, believe it or not, if you rip the demographics apart, women are humongous NFL fans. Nascar has an enormous female following.

Read the rest here. (Subscription required).

April 1st, 2008

Oh, candy. Sigh.

What is it about candy that so handily lends itself to the bizarre? This trend continues to fascinate me, disturb me, and make me fat. All at the same time.