links for 2008-12-15

"I started collecting ReTweets a few weeks ago and have collected just over 84,000". Stats on how retweeting works.

"From the brand-centric perspective of the airline, this makes sense. Consistent brand messaging and brand integrity is their job and this runs directly counter to that. It sabotages all the work they’re doing to build a brand that doesn’t rely solely on price. I understand that. But here's what I would say to the marketing people - 'Imagine that someone walks up to one of your ticket agents at an airport and says they're looking for a discount airline to fly them to Phoenix. You fly to Phoenix. What would you do? Would you show them to the Southwest counter, saying you're not a discount airline? Or would you say that your prices are competitive with Southwest's, and in addition you offer preferred seat selection?'"

"The main flaw is that the test subjects had to watch the video to the end. A true test environment would have been a You Tube style menu where they could have had the ability to video-surf at any time they wanted, as well as a number of other distractions in the background. That after all is often the challenge marketers face..."

"What sets the Telegraph apart is that it is a standalone business - it does not have Sky TV or Northcliffe newspapers or the Scott Trust to ensure its longevity no matter how deep the slump. It has to make a profit to survive."

"…and it is this: they do not become part of an online community."

Manages to drag the rioting in Athens into the article as if it was somehow the product of a similar set of circumstances to the UK, which I think is a bad misreading of the situation.

One of the highlights of the findings: "The Daily Express and the Daily Mail are the only UK papers with more female than male readers."