IMKTG REPORT August 6 2001

opportunities monday, august 6, 2001

how YOU doin'? you're probably
wondering how i get all my info.
i cull over hundreds of e-news-
letters i receive, review dozens
of industry sites, chat rooms, &
message boards, & any magazine i
find, buy, or "borrow" & pick out
info i feel is legit, intelligently
investigated, & useful. true, you
may not see the same info i see as
useful, but that's why i also give
my "bottom lines", which tell you
what i'm thinking. it's expensive
consulting for free, using real
world examples.

as CNBC says, profit from it.

********* al berrios e-ads *********

E-ADS: this is why i'm in business
for myself. some marketing "pros"
just don't understand what online
marketing is really about. after
the failure of Pointcast to deliver
TV-like ads online, some company
called Amicada is trying to do the
same w/the same offer of proprietary
tech. the tech seems to work & may
deliver what they promise, the full
emotional impact delivered by TV
broadcasting via the internet.

bottom line: how many failures will
it take to realize that the internet is
a technology that allows maximum INTERACTION
& surfers want interactive experiences,
experiences that they become loyal to
b/c they are so extremely user-friendly
& convenient that they don't even realize
how great it is, yet continue to use it.
this is the sign of a powerful brand.
look out for the day when marketers
acknowlege that all they really have to
do to successfully communication w/their
aud is integrate content into publisher's
sites or, better yet, seamlessly blend
the ad into the experience. every suc-
cessful experience (& brand) allows the
user to be in control of their experience.
they will always come back to your site,
& your advertiser's message will be
better received.

read more:
Advertising Age, July 30th

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********* al berrios media *********

MEDIA: it's not enough that media
planning/buying agencies are con-
solidating (opportunities july 23rd)
now it seems that the next trend is
for the media companies themselves
to consolidate. the whole point,
on both sides, is to have more clout
when buying and selling. i'm refer-
ring to AOL buying Britain's IPC (over
100 mags). Advanced buying Golf Digest
Companies, Primedia buying EMAP USA,
to publish 280 niche mags now. and
G+J, corporate cuz to BMG music, bought
Inc. & Fast Company.

bottom line: as consolidation commo-
ditizes media buying into just a cost
issue, readers will be forgotten for
the sake of tightening costs & making
more money from ever value conscious
media buying agencies. and let's not
forget increasing shipping rates, a
consolidating paper supplier & mag dis-
tribution industries, & the plain &
simple fact that anything you can find
in a magazine, you can also find online
for free. readers will also get turned
off by poor editorial content, resul-
ting from layoffs of countless writers
as dept's do post-acquisition staff cuts
& proceed to send you unending requests
(read: harrassment) to subscribe to
sister mags. this is the perfect time
for independent online publishers to
stand out above the rest by providing
quality content, @ affordable pay-per-
article subscriptions, & advertising
in context, meaning, new advertising
opportunities strategically placed w/in
your content to demonstrate to your
readers that it takes second tier to
them & the content they come to your
site to enjoy.

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********* al berrios management *********

MANAGEMENT: w/the shakedown that's
occuring in all industries, layoffs
are a no longer a big deal. clear
the unnecessary to make room for the
necessary. but the real interesting
trend is how managers are offering
valuable employees new incentives to
stay at the company. stock is also
no longer a big deal, & EVERYONE has
benefits. the real key is in creating
new fancy titles that never existed
w/in the organizational structure be-
fore just to please an ego. managers
justify by saying clients like working
w/higher ups. the newly promoted
justify by saying that they've taken
on added responsibilities (since every-
one else got fired.)

bottom line: just b/c someone got a
fancy new title, doesn't mean they got
fancy new skills. they still know and
do the same things they did before,
but worse yet, they have less ppl
to order around, so chances are, less
will get done anyway. next time you're
dealing w/ an executive director-manager
of internet services, just remember this
person probably used to be some middle
manager trained to chat in chat rooms
for clients.

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********* al berrios travel *********

TRAVEL: did you know that the travel
industry is worth about $582 billion
dollar industry? ok, but did you know
that leisure travel accounts for ALL
the growth this year? turns out that
although the economy sucks, ppl just
can't stop going on vacation. and to
accommodate, travel agencies are con-
solidating, too.

bottom line: anyone that travels for
fun, spends. and since they're spend-
ing $582 billion, it's worth putting
your products in front of them. if
you're looking for atleast $300 million
exposure right away, let me know, i got
the hook up.

read more:
Crain's NY Business, july 30th-aug 5th edition

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********* al berrios humor *********

HUMOR: "CALL ME NOW", urges the
infamous ms. cleo, w/her friendly
demeanor & reassuring free psychic
readings. but her marketing cam-
paign is about the only reliable
thing you can count on from this
mysterious company operating out
of a drop box address in Florida.
Going by the name Access Resource
Services, & 17 other names, ms.
cleo has been charging dead ppl,
ppl that never made calls, & ppl
that they call just to have them
on the line long enough to bill them.
since 1998, ARS has been using
extremely heavy-handed extortion-
like, mafia style tactics to collect
payments. ms. cleo & ARS, are curren-
tly being sued by the attorney
generals of missourri & arkansas,
w/ny, penn., fla, n. carolina, &
tenn. probably following on atleast
94 different counts of fraud &
consumer protection acts' violations.

bottom line: if you can't trust ms.
cleo, who can you trust? first
telemarketers, then spam, now this.

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********* al berrios iMarketing *********

Disclaimer: The recommendations, commentary and opinions published herein are based on public information sometimes referenced via hyperlinks. Any similarities or likeness to any ideas or commentary from any other sources not referenced is purely coincidental. al berrios & co. cannot control any results occurring from advice obtained from this publication nor any opinion(s) conveyed by any reader of this publication.

(c) 2001-2005. All Rights Reserved. al berrios & company, inc. Published by al berrios & co. This Report may not be reproduced or redistributed in any form without written permission from al berrios & co., subject to penalty.