Marketing Category

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Semi-Professional Bull Wrangler; photo by Forum concoursvaches.fr via Wikimedia Commons… Pass the paper bag, I’ve got emotion sickness. I’m perusing Harvard Business Publishing’s website, and a headline snags my eye: “Use the Downtown to Your Advantage“. Hmm, that sounds compelling. What kind of killer advice could the gurus of Harvard Business bestow upon us mere mortals? What I subsequently read makes my eyes roll like rubber dice on a craps table in a 6.7 earthquake.Read More

by Freddy J. Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango LLC + And Guy Who Questions The Answers For all our talk of freedom, we Americans LOVE rules… Our favorite sport, football, has the most rules of any sport on the planet. America poker players make up new rules with every hand (“threes and hearts are wild except for the Queen, which you can pass to the right if someone sneezes during play”). Our institutionalized belief systems — whether Rastafarianism, environmentalism, or even Libertarianism — bristle with rules of what can and can’tRead More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Guy Who Professionally Names Things… Previously here on Atomic Tango… Pizza Hut became “The Hut,” evoking images of Jabba — or worse. Now word comes that another iconic American brand has likewise simplified: Radio Shack is now “The Shack,” evoking images of a giant basketball player. Their new tagline, “Our Friends Call Us The Shack,” makes me wonder what their non-friends call them.Read More

by Freddy J. Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Long-Time Amazon Customer Who Thinks Amazon Should Know Him Better By Now… Amazon’s ability to recommend products based on my purchases usually impresses me. It’s a smart way to get current customers to buy more. But tonight I purchased a product at Amazon and got a recommendation that I wasn’t quite expecting. Can you tell which one it was? Yes, we Mac users are a wild bunch indeed…Read More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Longtime MySpace User… MySpace is losing it. And I’m not talking about its members defecting to Facebook. Last year, the once mighty, world dominating social network that had crushed its predecessor Friendster suddenly found itself splattered on Facebook’s windshield. At first, MySpace responded by copying Facebook features, but copying a competitor is not a long-term success strategy. In fact, it just gives the competition credibility. So MySpace gave up the fight and is fully rebooting by going after a niche market…Read More

by Freddy J. Nager, Founder & Fusion Director of Atomic Tango LLC So you finally found that gadget you’ve been dreaming about — you know, the one with the 60″ screen, built-in WiFi, and ability to make a perfect crème brulee at the touch of a button. Better yet, you found it advertised at just the right price… but you didn’t notice the fine print. Only after getting to the store do you notice the word that causes blistering steam to blast out of your ears and nostrils…Read More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Creative Strategist… File under “What The Hell Were They Thinking?!” A few days ago, Microsoft leaked a new ad for Internet Explorer 8 — though I’m not sure if “leaked” is the right verb. More like spilled, yakked up, upchucked, and Technicolor-yawned it. The ad is nicknamed “OMGIGP,” which stands for “Oh My God I’m Gonna Puke.” Really. No kidding. And it features a woman vomiting in it. See for yourself — if you can… (WARNING: NOT FOR THE FAINT OFRead More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Pizza Addict… What’s wrong with pizza? I love pizza! Yet fast food giant Pizza Hut is dropping the “pizza” from some of its store names and packaging. While still officially called Pizza Hut, the chain will refer to itself as “The Hut” to make it a more appealing place for teens to hang out. Hey, we’re not a fast food joint, we’re a clubhouse!Read More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Guy Who Appreciates A Nice Cold One… It’s no fun picking on Coors now that they’re no longer run by right-wing zealots from a mountain stronghold in Colorado. I did razz ’em for their faux microbrew, Blue Moon. But since Coors became the Molson Coors company, they’re part-Canadian, and Canadians are our lovable liberal neighbors to the north with free healthcare, right? To further confuse matters, Molson Coors joined with SABMiller, the South African owner of Miller Beer, to form MillerCoorsRead More

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Guy Who Enjoys Wine, Film, and Advertising — Separately… So I’m flipping through the Calendar section of the L.A. Times print edition. (Only in Hollywood is the entertainment section of the major newspaper called the “Calendar.” That’s right, we don’t do anything else in this town but entertain or be entertained.) My eye caught the full-page ad for new movie Tetro. The ad brims over with critical raves, with the first quote proclaiming “Francis Ford Coppola, 70, has returned to hisRead More