Dear {FirstName},

We hope you've been enjoying your Monday Morning Motivator. If you've received this issue for the first time - welcome aboard! It only takes a couple of minutes to start your week off right with the MMM! Be encouraged by the success or great ideas of others in your business community.

The Internet & Outernet Convergence

This week we take a glimpse into the future of how our Internet and TV viewing patterns will meld into one. The following message from Harry Gold showcases how that technology is currently being tested and developed.

For years, we've been hearing about how one day television and the Internet will come together and your set-top box will act as a gateway to Web-based content and services in addition to your favorite shows.

That day is much closer than you think, and for many people, including myself, it's already here and has been for quite a while. If it's not happening for you yet, it will. You're most likely already being trained to use your remote control as a mouse. Do you have cable? Just look at the remote. A typical remote these days has buttons that include "up," "down," "left," "right," and "OK" (great for navigating a menu screen), as well as selections that include "menu," "guide," and more.

One of the companies driving TV/Web integration and the remote's evolution into a mouse is Verizon. The Verizon FIOS remote control is literally a remote, mouse, and even keyboard, equipped to surf, interact, and transact with content and sites that are served via the Web. See it for yourself, watch Verizon's Demo on its interactive guide. Its potential will become clear to you.

Verizon describes its remote by saying, "Navigation is intuitive and can be done with the remote control's arrows and 'OK' button or by using the remote's shortcut keys." (Kind of sounds like a mouse and keyboard, right?)

It also has a button for widgets that serve up, weather, traffic, and other local information via the Web. The Verizon widgets have been around since 2006 and truly represent a melding of Web-based content with the television screen. Verizon's site describes its Web-based widget service like this:

Now Verizon's cable box/Web integration rollout is really starting to propagate and there are enough people getting enabled with the technology that it should start to present some pretty amazing marketing opportunities that can be facilitated with pretty standard Web technology.

In a Verizon press release issued last week, Shawn Strickland, VP of video solutions, said, "Our new interactive media guide is the latest exciting development from FIOS TV...We've capitalized on our investment in an ultra-fast, highly responsive fiber-optic network to deliver a customer experience that marries the best interactivity of the Web with the highest-quality programming experience in the marketplace. The interactive media guide erases the lines between TV, Internet and personal media, and makes it easy for customers to personalize and enjoy media throughout their homes."

That's a pretty amazing statement, especially "The interactive media guide erases the lines between TV, Internet and personal media."

What does this mean for online marketers and advertisers? It's an opportunity to truly integrate off and online in ways we've never done before and to yield unprecedented results for a standard TV spot.

It may also mean Pay Per Click rates for cable ads, on top of the insertion fee, and other revenue opportunities for the cable operators. (Could Verizon end up generating a huge amount of PPC revenue like Google does?)

Imagine this: You watch a TV commercial, and it prompts you to visit a site on screen by clicking "OK" on the remote. You press "OK" and your show pauses (as with a DVR). You request info or even click to order a product, then continue watching your show. As for billing, the charge could show up on your cable bill or be charged to the credit card the cable provider has on file.

This will open up an incredible response mechanism that will add a whole new dimension to :15, :30, and :60 sec TV spots. It will certainly revolutionize long and short form Direct Response TV. Soon, you'll literally just click a "more" or "buy" button on your remote to get products or information delivered to your front door or e-mail inbox. Television spots will have the same level of accountability and tracking potential as Web ads.

Think it sounds far off in the future? From what I can see, the technology's ready to go right now. All that's missing is a critical mass of users to spur advertisers into action. However, if Verizon and the other cable providers have their way, that situation won't last long. We'll see some pretty amazing interactive advertising campaigns come though our TVs.

To find out more about how to make the internet and outernet converge, give us a call. We're here to help.

Have a great week unless you choose otherwise.

Drago

PS - We have created a series of new ads for one of the largest Dodge dealerships in Canada, Sherwood Park Dodge. The ads were done in a manner to reflect the dealerships simple approach of doing business. You can view them at AdamAdGroup.com our favorite is the Ad Guru spot, go figure.

PPS - When the developers of Auguston, a unique residential building project in the Sumas Mountains approached us, they were clear that while they wanted the "features" of the project to be presented, they did not want the same old pretty picture type advertising that is common in the industry. Understanding that consumers need to find a way to place themselves in the environment, we proposed a blend of the traditional style of brochure type video, with POV, or point of view cinematography.

Auguston was filmed with RedCam, the best "cost effective" Ultra High Definition technology currently available today. Click here and enjoy! 

We also wanted to say Thank You for allowing us to meet with you every Monday Morning. The MMM has experienced incredible growth with a subscriber base of 16,694 people. We are truly grateful and humbled by the positive comments we receive weekly. If you enjoy the MMM please pass it along and let others know about it. To see our newsletter archives Click Here !

Success Profile

This week we would like to say a very big Thank You to Kevin MacDonald and Shelley MacDougall for treating our MMM subscribers to a fantastic workshop last week, "The Star Within".

Some of the comments from those in attendance were that "this was the best workshop they had attended and could'nt believe it was complimentary, more enjoyable than Tony Robbins." To find out more about how Kevin and Shelley can help you and your business vist www.thecoachingdept.com .

The Adam Advertising Group is proud to play a small role in the on-going success of many of the companies featured in the MMM.

Can The Adam Advertising Group help your business, or do you have a success story we should hear about? Contact Drago Adam at drago@AdamAdGroup.com
or call 604 937 -8886 or 1 866 923 - 6477

PS : We wanted to say Thank You for sharing your Monday Mornings with us. The MMM started three years ago with 35 subscribers, today's issue is going out to over
16,694 Weekly Subscribers.

Click Here for our newsletter archive.