I used some simple online flash tools from a site that is working to build user customized advertising for HP. The ad is for a personal computer. 

Its a fun little exercise and I was pleased to see an interesting version of a mindmap used in the graphical online interface to set up the video ad.

Basically, as I setup the ad, I picked a few things that I use my PC for and they then incorporated those elements into the advertisement itself.

Now, I’m not going to win any awards for being a good looking flash ad actor or anything, but for a quick automated thing it was fun.  We have to take time to laugh at ourselves and goof off on occasion to keep the brain fresh.  All work and no play . . .

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So Microsoft launched the Vista Coupon season a couple days ago.  It like every Microsoft OS campaign before it worked under the principle that if you buy a PC now, you get the upgrade to the new OS when it comes out at the beginning of the year. 

Only problem is there are lots of complications.

There are multiple Vista editions rolling out and multiple existing XP editions.  Some of these ‘paths’ will entitle users to a free upgrade and some will require a nominal fee, but if you want to move from one path to another say XP Home ->Vista Home Basic ->Vista Business then all bets seem to be off.

Zdnet walks through this complexity rather clumsily, but to their defense Micrsoft has created a complex product structure and attempted to link that to a complex new product structure.  Bottom line if you can wait to buy a PC, maybe you should wait!  (BTW that’s exactly what Mossberg is advising too!)

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There’s black gold in online video and in video podcasts and a company called PocoTag is working to provide a service that makes the service more interactive.

PocoTag works with an advertiser and provides them with a special unique five digit code to be used in a video ad.

The advertiser then can offer up in their ad a call to action to the viewer and provide them with the SMS code.

The viewer can then send an SMS message to that code (and the first time include a copy of their email address to establish an account).

PocoTag then performs an email verification and the advertiser can then complete the loop by providing the result of the call to action whether its providing free information, or accepting the answer to a poll question or a number of options.

It basically puts an action cycle in a video that might otherwise just be a passive tool.  Online videos are growing very very rapidly.  Videos are being created by large studios and even individuals like the team from AskANinja that has seen the popularity of their AskANinja series increase to the point where 200,000 people are downloading their videos every day and they are getting 3 million views of some of their videos, its not exactly American Idol numbers, but for a show put together by two guys they are getting a huge bang for their buck.

This tool basically helps advertisers interact with their customers and it also provides some additional marketing program tracking inforamtion using the wireless SMS medium.

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I mentioned this on a different blog today, but I met a great couple of guys at the Podcast Expo.  Bill Fortune and Joe Klein make up a team called The Podcast Voice Guys.  They have a radio background and a half dozen decades in the business between them.

If you are putting together a voice production, an audio book, a Podcast or even a voice ad, you should definitely consider these gentlemen.  They’ve both got great voices and can bring a level of professionalism to an Internet show that is pretty amazing.

Check out their Demos, I guarantee that you’ve heard them before!

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