First, in an attempt to get Google’s new FTTH service, Topkea officially named itself “Google, KS” for the month of March.

Today, Google renamed itself “Topeka”.  A Company (Google) I once didn’t much like has now won me over 110% for showing that Social Media works and that they are willing to play along and aren’t too full of themselves to have fun.

THIS IS JUST AWESOME!

Corporate Headquaters for "Topeka" f/k/a Google

Proper usage of "Topeka" as a verb for search activity

In their official Blog, Google states: “Early last month the mayor of Topeka, Kansas stunned the world by announcing that his city was changing its nameto Google. We’ve been wondering ever since how best to honor that moving gesture. Today we are pleased to announce that as of 1AM (Central Daylight Time) April 1st, Google has officially changed our name to Topeka.”.  Read more at their official Blog: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/different-kind-of-company-name.html

This is a video assignment in our Viral Marketing Class for my Internet Marketing Degree.

Week 1: We were assigned a fictitious company. I chose GIft Baskets for All.
We created a Discovery Brief on that business in week 1.

Week 2: We the had to develop a Creative Concept Brief, describing the outreach concept of our Viral Marketing Plan.

The goal of the marketing plan was to reach new market segments and increase sales/revenues throughout the year, trying to level the peaks and valleys of the prime selling season that evolved mostly around the holidays and purchases for Women (birthdays, Mother’s Day, Easter, etc).

Week 3: Where we had to create a movie as the outreach product of the Marketing Plan.  The goal of the movie was to speak to the new market segments we wanted to reach.

I decided to target two verticle segments: College Students and Men – neither of whom receive many gift baskets, but both of which would benefit from them.

The emotional hook I tried for was that men were suffering the lack of gift baskets, and knew that certain favorite items would be easy to put in along side other premium items that would surprise them. The gift baskets for college students evolved around “care baskets” – students cannot survive on pizza and cafeteria food entirely – they need fruit and – well yes, even candy!

I admit, I am NOT a movie producer, but I did my best -with the help of my friends (whose names I promised to keep to myself) to get the point I needed to make across to the audience. LOL

Google’s new Street View Snowmobile!

Just in time for the 2010 Olympics, Google announces their Street View Snowmobile.  I love this idea!  So many years I’ve wished for a more “community-centric” view of the Olympics – more visuals of the snowy peaks and the villages.

This year, we will be able to become even more immersed in the Winter Olympics than in years past!  All the thanks goes to Google’s newest addition to Street View – the Snowmobile!

This is such a great idea, it makes me wonder if they are working to retrofit a BOB with video equipment for the Summer Olympics!

That, too, would be a new perspective!

The BOB - a personal submarine!