How to calculate public relations’ ROI (return on investment), superhero movies versus westerns, Entrepreneur Barbie, the Powerpuff Girls return, and a powerful spot that reinforces that music is a universal language. ★
• It’s a phrase that strikes fear in the hearts of many marketing and PR folks: “What’s the return on investment (ROI) for that?” It’s not always cut and dry, but you should make an effort to figure it out. The steps detailed in this article are a good way to start. [Spin Sucks]
Pet-peeve alert: It’s insanely frustrating to hear PR and communications people say things like “I went into writing/PR/marketing because I’m bad at math.” Seriously? That’s a choice, and it’s not representative of the entire profession.
• It’s the third or fourth time in the last few months I’ve seen an article comparing the genre filmmaking of superhero movies to that of westerns, and this piece succinctly presents some key differences. [Film School Rejects]
• As a kid, I loved my Barbie dolls, and I think it’s cool that the “career of 2014” for the long-running series of job-related Barbies is an “entrepreneur.” I’m also impressed by the range of fields represented by the entrepreneurial women participating in the project. [Fast Company, Barbie.com]
• The Powerpuff Girls will return to Cartoon Network in 2016. [Variety, ICv2.com]
Even though I’m not totally sold on the new animation and look, I’m still excited about the chance to see Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup on a regular basis!
• This appeared on the advertising sites a while ago, but I was saving it for Father’s Day… and forgot. It’s still wedding season, though, and I dare you not to cry while watching this commercial. The spot is in Japanese, but you’ll probably understand it even without reading the translation because of its powerful storytelling and because music and the emotions provoked by it are universal. [Ad Age: Creativity Online, Tosando Music on YouTube.com]