Tag archives: msn

Can you index the way people think? The New Thinkers Index does just that.

Can you index the way people think? That’s the question that was sought to be answered over on the New Thinkers Index.  Read more…

File under: hyundai, Jonathan Oliver, Kevin Spacey, msn, New Thinkers Index, New Thinking

Iconic Britain looks pretty flat

To fight back Google Image Search dominance in image search on the Web, Msn has launched in the UK “Iconic Britain“. The website encourages visitors to upload images that better portrait UK culture, architecture and tradition. Users are also (and more importantly) invited to search the Web and look for the images that best fit into the concept.

I have contrasting feelings about this campaign. I think the Iconic Britain concept, althought it isn’t very new, could have been an interesting starting point for promoting the Live Search feature. Unfortunately it looks like MSN took a quite creative idea and developed it with the flattest look & feel and interface possible. To me this website even works negatively for the MSN brand not intentionally (of course) communicating to the users MSN isn’t a cool brand at all. What do you think? Am I too critic with this campaign?

File under: live search, msn, uk

MSN kills the SMS

In Austria, MSN and the mobile operator 3 are running an co-marketing campaign featuring the message “SMS ist tot – MSN am Handy lebt” (which means, SMS is dead - MSN on the mobile is alive). As you can quite easily understand, the goal of the effort is to make young users understand the potentials of instant messaging via mobile using the MSN application, and of course, the same MSN passport identity used on the web. Even if site homepage looks gloomy but nice, the site hasn’t got much to offer when it comes to interactivity: a very basic advergame (click “spiel”) which, strangely enough, is not even connected to a competition.

File under: 3, austria, msn, online campaign

The FIFA fever

AdFreak reports Yahoo! and MSN are getting ready for the 2006 World Football Championship in Germany. Yahoo is sponsoring the official FIFA website, while MSN has signed some top players (Brazil’s Ronaldinho, England’s Michael Owen, Italy’s Gianluigi Buffon etc…) to post their diaries online. Furthermore, MSN will integrate World Cup content into MSN Messenger and launch an interactive soccer game.

File under: fifa world cup, msn, Yahoo!

MSN, the ethical search engine

Who said MSN is the bad guy online? In Spain, they are about to launch a project called “Buscador Solidario”. The idea is to provide users seeking information on drugs, child abuse and depression, with relevant links to charities that help fighting such problems. For example, if a surfer looks for “abuso infantil” on MSN.es he will get among the very first results the link to associations like Save the children.

File under: buscador solitario, ethical marketing, msn

Sprite: spray it, don’t say it

Together with MSN, Sprite has launched a branded entertainment website. The site targets teens and challenges them creating a graffiti design using pre-designed stencils and backgrounds. Graffiti can designed in 25 different locations and can voted by other users. The Refreshing Wall also offers a downloadable screensaver that displays, in real time, the newest graffiti designs that users of the site are creating. The Refreshing Wall is the second part of a co-marketing initiative online since April with a music site dubbed “The Scenario,” which featured Sprite’s character Miles Thirst. Mediapost reports the news and the opinion of Gayle Troberman, MSN’s head of branded entertainment:

Experiences on the Web -they can’t be passive-they need to be active, particularly when you’re looking at the teen audience. That’s very much at the heart of what the Wall is.”

File under: branded entertainment, msn, sprite

The football search quiz by MSN

MSN has launched an interactive quiz to promote its search engine. The idea in the “Search Supremo” campaign is to challenge users to find answers to a set of football-related questions by using the search engine. As Netimperative points out, there is also a competition that will give away football tickets to the fastest player answering the questions. Jim Coleman, account direct at MRM Worldwide (UK) explains: “The objective of the campaign is to drive consumers to the MSN Search site in a creative and engaging manner whilst at the same time reminding them that MSN Search delivers relevant results, fast. We believe the football themed quiz will generate a significant response.”

File under: msn, search engine quiz, search supremo

MSN Spain supports Madrid 2012

Where will the Olympic Games take place in 2012? London, New York, Paris or Madrid? To promote candidacy of Madrid, MSN Spain has created a special section where visitors are asked to write a supporting message which will be forwarded to the Commission. The Olympic MSN buddies look really nice!

File under: madrid 2012, msn

The Emmessennys Winners

MSN has named in Europe the best interactive campaigns of the year giving away the The Emmessennys Awards. The Nike MSN Messenger football game created by MindShare/ mOne and creative agency Framfab received the ‘best in show’ prize for the most outstanding creative overall. In the Automotive category, Atmosphere BBDO (Belgium) won the second prize for the Mercedes C campaign, while Magic Response (Germany) received the third prize for the Audi Q7 Globe campaign. The first prize hasn’t been assigned.

Read more…

File under: advertising awards, Emmessennys Winners, europe, msn

MSN explores RSS marketing

MSN and Fox Sports are targeting sport fans with an opt-in service which allows users to receive scores and news alerts via RSS and MSN Messenger. DMNews explains this idea will allow MSN to offer advertisers with extremely targeted marketing opportunities. The technology will be provided by MessageCast which has already reached extremely positive results delivering beauty ads to L’Oreal’s subscribers in Britain and Germany.

File under: fox sports, msn, rss, rss marketing