The ‘original’ Spyware company closes its doors?

Gator, Claria, JellyCloud (love that name!) finally going out-of-business?  Perhaps, check the ValleyWag story here.

Yahoo Search Marketing revs engine, jumps shark

Jumping the Shark is a term used to describe television shows that are:

typically deemed to have passed their peak, since they have undergone too many changes to retain their original appeal, and after this point critical fans often sense a noticeable decline in the show’s quality.

More specifically,

Jump-the-shark moments may be scenes like the one described above (Happy Days character Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli jumps over a shark) that finally convince viewers that the show has fundamentally and permanently strayed from its original premise. In those cases they are viewed as a desperate and futile attempt to keep a series fresh in the face of declining ratings

The term can apply to anything that has changed to the point of being, in a sense, of rapidly declining value and utility. As of today, I think that Yahoo Search Marketing’s editorial processes may have ‘jumped the shark’. Read more

Authenticity is the key

Over on Revenews, Jeff Molander has posted an article which I think anyone performing marketing on the Internet should read. The essential point is authenticity, “being real” and trust are the cornerstones to building a community around your marketing and your brand. It is a way of reaching customers who are increasingly unresponsive to tradition marketing approaches. Promotions that feel ‘forced’ just don’t cut it… anyone remember WalMart’s MySpace knock-off, “The Hub”? Fortunately, it was put-out-of-it’s-misery 10 weeks after launch… in spite of the money thrown at The Hub, no one believed it, because it wasn’t ‘real’. Authenticity is the key.