Forbes: 2011 Brands Set for a Comeback

Ah, the infamous Forbes "in pictures" article. This one is about the 10 brands that will make a 2011 comeback. Let's check them out...

1. Planter's Peanuts - the Pistachio of 2011

I really love the current Pistachio adds of 2011 with Ocho Cinco and Snooki, among others, cracking their nuts. I am not sure if Mr. Peanut is going to see the same fun revitalization of their image. They have Robert Downey, Jr. as the voice of Mr. Peanut for the upcoming ads, but it doesn't make the fact that he's a peanut with a monocle any more fun. Check it out the commercial here. (The video has been on youtube almost 2 months and I haven't seen it until now.) With that not-so-viral video they aren't looking to a make an Old Spice type comeback for 2011. It just wasn't that fun to watch again and again.

2. Chevrolet - America!

Chevy is a comeback brand for a different reason. They are coming back from the brink of financial ruin and need to change their image in the eyes of Americans post-bailout. With Toyota still limping from their 2009-2010 brake fiasco, they have a chance to gain some market share with their greener line of cars. On the other hand, I think Nissan might give them a run for their money.

3. Infusium 23 - Cult brand, really?

I guess this hair care product has been on the shelf for 86 years! It sounds like all they need is some marketing, any marketing, to remind consumers that they're out there. Their campaign is different for a hair care brand; they're going for a nostalgic feel to remind consumers of when their mothers used the product. It's an interesting take on a product that is mostly advertised using youthful models with fabulous hair, not moms. We'll see if it works!

4. Little Debbie - Worst Snack EVER

Little Debbie tastes fabulous, but i ignore them in the grocery store since they are so unhealthy. Like Infusium 23, they just need to remind consumers of their existence to see a boost in sales. To keep  that going though, they should start offering some low fat or all natural products.

5. Pert Plus - No Marketing, No Sales

Not much to say here. They haven't put money into marketing in last 5 years. It makes sense the people would switch brands or reach for other products in that time.

6. La-Z-Boy - Now in Pink

I think this is will be a really fun and effective campaign. I wish they had thought of it sooner. If anything, it's just a great line extension to a product that is already in many people's homes. I think the tag line should be, "La-Z-Boy, now with less arguing."

7. Levis - For Everyone

Check out their newest campaign, called Go Forth, here. Surprisingly, this is the same campaign that brought us the O' Pioneers commercial last year. I'll be intrigued to see what they do differently this time around besides just air a commercial that wasn't really understood. Here is a link to the newest ad. Additionally, iMedia Connection named Levis one of the best social media campaigns of 2010. Check out the article here with some info on how they managed to nab 2.1 million facebook friends.

8. Sure - Raise your hand!

I clearly remember the Sure commercials from 10 years ago so I'm excited they're bringing them back. I don't know if they'll do the same "raise your hand if you're Sure", but I think it's worth a shot. The commercials were memorable after all. Check out a clip here to remind you what we have been missing all these years.

9. Quaker Oats - Blah to ?

The challenge here: make Quakers Oats less boring. Their ads are going to focus on the healthy aspects of Quaker with an exciting flavorful twist by showing scrumptious Quaker breakfast combinations. One question, is there anyway to make the Quaker less boring? If so, they need to figure it out.

10. Jimmy Dean - Giving up on the Sun guy already?

Maybe. Their new campaign is targeted at mom's. The idea is to keep them from battling their kids in the morning when it comes to breakfast aka the Morning Villains. 

Stickybits: Fun for free?

There is a new way to use your mobile phone while shopping these days. The new phone app, Stickybits, allows you to scan bar codes to win prizes and score discounts on products. Their "Explore and Score" motto mixed with their bubblegum website makes you feel like a kid again. Remember how much we all loved scavenger hunts? This time though, there could beer and more waiting at the end of the rainbow.

To add to the fun, they have created programmable bar-codes that you can leave on products with a message including audio, video, text, or photo. As people find the bar-codes they can leave their own message, creating a stream as the product changes hands. Combine that with geo-tagging and you have a whole new way to communication via product dispersion. It reminds of whereisgeorge.com, but more temporary. (Money is made to last unlike a Coke can.)

While this all sounds very fun and engaging for the consumer, where is the return on investment for Stickybits? According to their website, the app is free and the prizes are free. They still collect your credit card info and shipping address. Their intent with these items seems harmless enough. They sometimes make the user pay shipping and handling and having your address is required to send your free prize.

As of March 2010, Stickybits had received $1.9M in funding (see the Tech Crunch article). The problem is how are these investors going to earn a return on their investment? My guess: they're selling your data. Marketing data is lucrative, but difficult to get. Facebook has been routinely selling data about it's users for years. When the alternative for companies is to engage in costly focus groups and market surveys, Facebook data is gold mine of uninhibited consumer thoughts on products. In a Feb 2009 article from the Guardian, Facebook Lexicon is mentioned as a tool that allows users to track topics and postings on people's walls. Add this to Facebook's advertising revenue and you have a company valued at more than $65 billion. Facebook has laid the path, now Stickybits can use their model to generate revenues the same way.

I think Stickybits will possibly eclipse Facebook in lucrative data, if they can generate enough users. The key is that Stickybits is linking the users with actual products. To the makers of Coca-Cola, Stickybits means they have direct access to how many people are scanning their bar-codes, what they are saying about that exact product on the message stream, and where the products are traveling. If I were a brand manager, I would be jumping with joy. Easy access to data? Yes, please!

Stickybits' combination of products and social networking looks like fun and games to users. To a business, it's a dream come true.