Sunday, December 28, 2008

BLAB's New Year's resolutions

I am currently away from tiny Malta having a 1-week long break. There is so much more to revisit before the end of the year, but it'll be done in 2009. Before closing off the 2008 BLAB chapter I'd like to recommend the 'Top 50 Have-Yous' as a good start to some reasonable and useful new year's resolutions. I stumbled upon the free download on the Tom Peters website. The document is only 5 pages long and contains 50 questions in my opinion any team player, at the top or very bottom should question. Tom defines them as “practical stuff,” which is more important to the short- and long-term health of the enterprise, tiny or enormous.

My favorite of them all is the following:
44. Have you in the last … two hours … stopped by someone’s (two-levels “down”)
office-workspace for 5 minutes to ask “What do you think?” about an issue that
arose at a more or less just completed meeting? (And then stuck around for 10 or
so minutes to listen—and visibly taken notes.)

Locally, we could be more open to sharing ideas, whether or not they fall within or outside our primary area of responsibility. Sharing may end up in having your idea 'stolen' by some other guy in the office, but more often, discussion leads to a clearer picture of where we want to get to. To some extent, it is worth risking giving away your idea because the benefits out weigh the risks.

I hope, this BLAB, and others which should follow in 09, provide a discussion starter for many other ideas which we have stocked safely in our brain.

Best wishes for 2009.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Christ.mas

With all the new dots (.coms, .nets, .mts, etc.) we've seen in 2008 it's worthy to wish you all a happy Christ.mas. The dot makes the name even more meaningful!

Some more blogs should follow before the big 09 starts reading BLAB!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Vodafone showcases myIdeas initiative at University

Over the past year Vodafone has been working on an initiative which allows the man in the street, be it student or not, a Vodafone employee (like me) or not, to propose any ideas which they want. Vodafone will in return assist the idea originators to implement their ideas if the Innovation Committee deems the ideas successful. more info: http://www.vodafone.com.mt/page/whoarewe_myideas.html

20 Million for Industry...A blessing in a downturn?

Malta Enterprise has been entrusted by the Managing Authority for Structural Funds as an Intermediate Body responsible for administering six European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Grant Schemes. The Schemes focus on: tapping new international markets, encouraging start-up initiatives which have been around for less than 3 years, providing incentives for the introduction of innovations in SMEs, improvement in Environmental Performance, investment in e-Business solutions and grants for R&D initiatives.

Sounds like a big blessing in a lot of economic negativity, crisis and downturn. All this also goes in line with what Vodafone is doing about innovation (more about this in my next post)

Read more at 20millionforindustry.com

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Quick blab: Competitor Intelligence

It has been almost a month since we blabbed in this space and a lot has been happening in our personal lives and the local market. Some things which I hope to be blabbing about soon:

The recent NSO news releases about Use of Internet and Communications
Some new names in print: Style (on Sunday), Phase
and some interesting initiatives online: blog.com.mt, youall.com.mt, superstoremalta.com

Finally, I will tomorrow exchange some of my thoughts on Competitor Analysis and Intelligence at the University of Malta. More about this later.

Friday, November 21, 2008

12,000 euro tax credit to go online

ICON has recently sent us some good news (posted below):

The Malta Enterprise E-Commerce Tax Credit Incentive, aimed at online businesses, will be in place until the end of the year. The tax credit is equivalent to 100% of the eligible costs as approved by Malta Enterprise, up to a maximum of 12,000 euros per project.

The incentive will be awarded under the de minimis aid rules in terms of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1998/2006 on the application of Article 87 and 88 of the EC Treaty to de minimis aid. Eligible costs must be directly related to the creation, development, or aqcuisition of a new or significantly improved electronic commerce system. These costs must be incurred within 2 years from commissioning the new electronic commerce system and should be specified in a maintenance contract, agreed to at the time of the development of the system.

Applications to qualify for the 12,000 euro grant must be submitted to Malta Enterprise by the end of the year!

Go to Malta Enterprise Website or read full post on icon's website

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Agency Insider: Daphne Caruana Galizia about Taste

This is the 9th Agency Insider blog post. In this post, we chat with Daphne Caruana Galizia about Taste.com.mt and the whole Taste project, conceived in November of 2004(4 years ago this month)

KG: Taste turned 4 last June. How has the project changed since 2004?

DCG: Taste magazine has changed a great deal, growing from 64 stapled pages to 144 burst-bound pages at its largest. We’ve changed the paper from matt to a high quality semi-gloss, and now have the cover laminated. We’ve got more cooks, more features, and lots of interesting information, but we’ve kept to the same policy of keeping an advertising-to-editorial ratio of around 60% editorial and 40% advertising. In the vast majority of magazines published in Malta, it’s the other way round. We’ve also kept to a policy of keeping overheads to an absolute minimum, which frees up revenue to invest in editorial content. After all, readers don’t care how many staff you have; they’re only interested in what lies between the pages.

KG: Taste is a magazine for those who love food and drink...Who loves food and drink (who are the readers of Taste)?

DCG: Taste readers, we were amazed to discover, come from all walks of life, all ages, both genders and several different nationalities. We’ve even had enquiries from people who’ve seen a copy while on holiday here and want to know whether we run a subscription service. We don’t. It’s not feasible as the postage is too expensive and the administration is cumbersome. That’s not our main area of business.



KG: 4 months ago Taste also evolved online? Why and what was the feedback?

DCG: People don’t throw Taste away. They keep it, use it as a reference because of the recipes and features, and try to source back copies – which, incidentally, have run out at our end. We were receiving repeated enquiries about an index, but then said – hang on, an index is the old-fashioned complicated way of doing things. It makes much more sense to have an on-line archive, and it’s easier for people to use, too. They just key in the recipe they’re looking for and it comes up. Once we were going to all that trouble, we thought we might as well add on features like facilities which allow people to ask questions about food and food products, and a ‘blog’ which would allow us to communicate news like publication dates and so on. Further features will be added. The feedback has been very good. Lots of people now keep a laptop in the kitchen, so you can read your recipe straight off the screen while preparing it.

KG: Taste as the printed magazine and taste.com.mt? What's the relationship between the 2? How do they complement each other? How has this changed the lifetime of your magazine's content and its consumption?

DCG: The two are very different. The concept is different. Many people thought that www.taste.com.mt would be an on-line version of the magazine, like the on-line versions of newspapers, but of cours,e it’s not. The internet is not a substitute for the print media. It’s a different medium altogether and not necessarily a complementary one. It has to be approached with a different mind – not in terms of putting your magazine on-line, which would be the equivalent of developing a company website by putting its corporate brochure on line. No, people don’t throw the magazine away because they have access to the site. If anything, the site has built more demand for the magazine. The magazine and the site were conceived differently and are used differently. Also, people like to keep magazines that are beautifully illustrated, and thanks to our wonderful photographers and designers, Taste and its sister magazines Flair and Town look very good indeed.

Sunday, November 02, 2008

Which is the largest retail store locally?

Strategy 2.0 (post no. 1)
Without trying to be too 'online' oriented my answer to the above question is Amazon.
- It has at least 16 million products on sale
- A very large chunk of the occupied households can access it (walk in) all day long
- This implies they can review (window shopping), purchase and evaluate (recommend)

If your answer is not somewhat similar to the above you probably still perceive the online world as an interesting topic, a very effective medium for companies in other markets and a 'nice-to-have' channel which in the real world locally is not key. This does not exclude your interest in experimenting with it sometime in the future, when business is running smoothly and you have some cash and time to waste on an online website.

If on the other hand you agree with my answer, then you must already be exploring new ways and means to reach out to your customers, either by partnering or by competing with the Amazon store. As I do, you probably realize that the largest connected community locally consists of 347K mobile subscribers, that at least 24,000 locals have a facebook profile, and that when each of these post, poke, tag or even comment on a popular social site (news portals incl.), they are speaking to a mass audience of approximately 200 other locals at least.

Finally, whether you agree or not with my answer, you will have a very hard time to debate Amazon's global success. And if Amazon is successful online, then it is also successful offline (a.k.a. the real world). Hence, all the above has serious implications on your current business processes whilst redefining the market you currently operate in.

The above discussion is drawn from '(B2C) Strategy 2.0', a presentation given out by Karl Galea at the 6th MCA Annual Conference. Presentation slides will soon be made available at mca.org.mt.

Friday, October 31, 2008

iDay today


Apple has just launched the new MacBook and MacBook Pro. I was initially disappointed to see what seemed like a black and white MacBook but a closer look at the new model revealed the new notebook has a solid aluminum casing. Much more like the original MacBook Pro on the keypad, and a lot like the iMac on the screen part. It's nice too see Senior Vice President of Design John Ive describe the new MacBook design.

In the meantime, back in tiny Malta today is iDay, the day when Vodafone introduced the 3G iPhone in Malta. Vodafone is also holding an iPhone 3G open weekend this weekend. Those who have not yet lined up to feel, touch and get the new iPhone may do so at any Vodafone outlet.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

FELTOM has a new website


FELTOM commissioned web development agency ICON to build a web portal which is its central tool for relations with the international market. The site is creatively structured to accommodate the complexity of having a federation of language schools communicating a single message: "Learn English in Malta". The web portal features a number of ICON applications which we hope to be able to review soon. Applications include ICON.snap (a content management system), ICON.access (a Members Area) and ICON.banner which is a novel Banner Management module giving FELTOM the opportunity to generate revenue from advertising on its own website.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

The most beautiful cruise ship in the world is now online

This morning I came across the new mscfantasia.com. A clean site with a visual feature about the MSc Fantasia Cruise Ship dominating the home page. Even though the website still lacks any touch of community it does include some fun features such as the navigation gallery where anyone can 'navigate' the cruise ship and visit the various sections of it; a virtual personal assistant and a Q&A section.

Locally this is the second cruise service to go online this year, the first one being that of SMSTravel which we had reviewed as well.

Monday, October 27, 2008

MySpace still leading in the US


The above chart is taken from an article run by emarketer.com about Social Media Advertising in the US. Locally there are at least 24,000 users subscribed to the Malta network on Facebook. This excludes people who have not joined the network but still have a facebook profile, others on Hi5 which seems to be the most popular network locally, MySpace and social networks in general. Avoiding the local online community is like not being present in a very successful and highly attended trade fair.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

68, St.Lucy Street


Dreams become reality in small steps...not big ones as we (or I) might think! This weekend I visited Alexandra Pace's exhibition in Valletta. The exhibition marks the launch of the redprints online gallery. Alexandra is exhibiting 4 collections which grace different parts of the old house in St. Lucy Street. All 4 collections, and the whole redprints project (house re-innovation included) are Alexandra's small dreams becoming a real exchange of artistic photography.

The redprints exhibition confirms some of what I disussed in my presentation at the Annual MCA conference last Saturday: There's nothing like online or offline, they've converged nicely! An 'offline' exhibition is launching the redprints online gallery at redprints.com! (more about this in my future posts and in trendwatching.com's September briefing)

The above image is just a test print of what you will really get if you pop by at the redprints exhibition. The exhibition is open for all until the 11th November between 10:00 - 12:00 and 14:00 to 20:00. Get a sneak preview of the exhibition before actually getting down to St. Lucy Street: redprints.com

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Book your iPhone


Vodafone has publicly launched an online booking form for the iPhone 3G. We've said a lot about the 3G iPhone since day 1, now it's time to stop BLABbing and actually get the gadget! More info at this link: http://www.vodafone.com.mt/jsp/iphone/index.jsp

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

BLAB is one year old!

A year ago we sat down to discuss BLABinteractive.com. The original plan was much more ambitious yet some surprises were still in store for this humble blog. I am currently working on Recap 365!. The idea behind the project is a resume of BLAB's first year. Apart from including the main highlights of this past year, I also hope to be able to provide some info. about BLAB's future content and initiatives. Whilst reminding all of you about BLAB's first birthday, I don't want to rush the Recap just for its birthday date.

Over the coming week I also hope to be able to highlight BLAB's top 12 contributions (1 for each month of the year), BLAB's most popular article, the most visited day (I am almost sure it was May 11th!) and more. In the meantime, an informal thanks for reading / contributing to BLAB through blogger, facebook, BLAB's network on Ning and anywhere else!

Friday, October 03, 2008

Blackberry is here...thanks to Vodafone!


Vodafone has today launched Blackberry in Malta. I currently own a great Nokia E61 which is a fantastic tool coupled with Vodafone's Push Email, and a very good taste of the term 'mobility'. Now Vodafone's Blackberry solution further enhances 'mobility' in many ways, combining useful applications which literally reduces your office to a simple device. Oh yes, I am biased, very biased indeed...but then again, it's Blackberry and it's Vodafone we're blabbing about!

More about Blackberry: click here

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

What to do when your web-menu is getting too big!?

From time to time my desktop wallpaper has to feature something that triggers some form of creativity and fun. Whilst searching some images in Google I also stumble upon this website. As you may conclude, the subject of the site is not my primary concern at this time in my life, but the way an extensive menu has been presented without involving sub-menus and further sub-sub menus is worth a blab. So feel free to judge:http://whatareyouwondering.com/


In the meantime, I have above posted the image which is currently residing on my desktop. The concept is really the idea of the same people who designed the innovative web menu.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

fmlifestyle.com


Locally, it's probably the third print magazine to expand online following Taste and ME magazine. The web launch for FM (Femme Magazine) took place at Misfits some time in early September. The interesting thing about the website is that it classifies itself as a 'lifestyle website' which really offers endless and diverse content which could fit in and make the site what it aims to be. fmlifestyle.com also includes blogs such as the one by life coach Claude Camilleri. Another interesting feature is the FM Directory which includes contact details and listings related to Women's Fashion, Health and Beauty, Home and Living amongst others.

Friday, September 19, 2008

The first ever YCN Live waits for a bus in Sliema!


Have you seen some more colourful bus shelters recently? The above is the proof that spaces can also be used to promote creativity and ideas...not simply sell messages! The first ever YCN Live consisted of 'A huge amount of events staged on numerous, world-wide platforms including illustrations in bus shelters in Malta (pictured), Sand sculptures on London's south bank, installations in Helsinki and Stockholm and a whole host of exhibitions and professional practice portfolio reviews in studios'.

YCN Live stems from ycnonline.com, which was established in 2001 and exists to inspire and showcase emerging creative talent in design and visual communication. ME design mag has been involved in the above project and were kind enough to let us know. We in return, promised a BLAB or two!

Monday, September 15, 2008

NuvoleFashion.com: Who needs online anyways?!

I've recently come across a very good insight about online vs. offline customer traffic. In history many were the big revolutions that changed the way we do things. On of them, online, has certainly changed the way customers consume brands and products.

Some would have thought that online is for techies and the mainstream consumer will not be interested in this geeky stuff. Others have proved that the mainstream consumer is really online by Google stating that if Internet users were to make up one continent, they would make up the 5th largest one. But a new breed of thought has recently featured in a number of blogs and related articles. The next best thing is the total convergence of online and offline. Consumers need both! It's quite obvious and common sense...but in a tiny market such as our local market, the use of an online space may be underestimated, especially in the fashion industry.


Nuvole has recently launched its online website. The website, designed by Lab1977, exposes Nuvole's fashion collection whilst providing basic info. such as store location, contact details, etc. Strategically enough the website does not include an online store. And yes, I do find this strategic.

The traditional approach would be: Nuvole customer wants to buy some new clothes, drives to Birkirkara (or any other Nuvole Store location), passes by 4 other shop windows, possibly refrains from entering the alternative fashion stores, enters the Nuvole store and does the purchase if he/she finds some interesting clothes.

The new purchasing method should be: Nuvole customer is notified that new collection is in store, logs onto online website at the click of a button, reviews collection, likes the products, drives straight to a Nuvole store and does the purchase!

So should Nuvole refrain from developing an online store? Not necessarily, but the point is that Online complements Offline (seamlessly)...and local brands like Nuvole seem to be getting to that.

Thursday, September 04, 2008

Google Chrome is here


Google has 2 days ago released its neew web browser. The launch of Chrome came as a surprise, even for the people at Google! Some guy at Google pressed the send button to early and sent to the public a comic of Google Chrome depicting the new product features. I will not get into the techy stuff of why Google Chrome should be better than IExplorer, Firefox, Mozilla and Safari but considering it came after them all, it should have the best of all as the Google blog proclaims.

In the meantime, to add a more geeky touch to this blog post, below are some stats. about browser share for visitors of this blog. Internet Explorer leads the way, and Mozilla follows considerably (check for yourself)

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Nike wins FPM Best Olympic Themed ad. - I beg to differ!

FPM stands for Fourth Place Medal and is a series of awards given by a group of bloggers on the Yahoo Olympics Sports page. One of the awards recognizes the best Olympic Themed Ad. Nike's ad proclaiming "All that you need is inside of you" is the winner of the FPM Medal for best commercial.

The advert is motivating and well in line with the Olympics spirit but side-by-side, Visa's GO World advert stands out nicely. Whilst Nike's 'Courage' campaign revolves around the individual, Visa's 'GO World' puts the spotlight on the community. Nike's campaign seems to forget the social aspect of man, whilst Visa promotes that strategically.

Having said that, Nike's video out-performed Visa's online. The video has managed to capture 315K views whilst Visa's 'GO World' attracted some 65K views. Both videos are complemented by a dedicated online site. Visa's 'GO World' site also allows the public to tell their stories about how this year's Olympic Games inspired them. Athletes and spectators alike are the focus of Visa's campaign because they all make part of 'the world' of which Visa chooses to be the number one fan this year.

All the above arguments lead me to showcase one of Visa's GO World stories. Enjoy, it's very authentic and inspiring:

Friday, August 22, 2008

Agency Insider: Inside ME Magazine

Some time has passed since the last Agency Insider. In this issue we chat with Art Director Jon Banthorpe about ME design magazine, its local online presence and the local print industry...and promise this discussion will not end here!

KG: So ME was previously Modern Elegance and had been published for some time. The magazine worked and was one of the coolest around from the very beginning, but then there was a silent phase and a big come back which brought us the magazine as it is today...what happened?, what changed? What didn't?

JB: M.E. was initially a sold magazine based solely on Fashion. With the advent of more free magazines, local magazines with cover prices were very badly affected -even today not many people are considering producing a local magazine with a cover price.

The silent phase you are referring to was our redesign period. We wanted to broaden the magazine's base and take it away from just fashion, concentrating on design and lifestyle as a whole. If you compare today's issues to the past I think you'll find almost everything has changed apart from a few core elements. The main drive has been towards quality - of images, of editorial, and of journalistic content.

As with any changes, we made adjustments and responded to their success or failure, but magazines are very time based and changes must be gradual. The 2008 M.E. is the closest so far to our ideal publication, not that there aren't still adjustments to be made.

KG: The local print industry includes some 25 free magazines
distributed with established networks...does this worry ME magazine?


JB: There are a lot of free magazines, and we pay attention to all. But honestly I think there are only a number of magazines I would recognise. I would love to be in a position where we don't have to pay attention to anybody but that would just be complacency. Though I do think we lead the field in certain areas, and we plan to improve these and more.



KG: Who is in your opinion the typical ME reader?

JB: It's difficult to pin down a typical individual, we approach the magazine from so many levels. Ultimately our ideal reader is one that seeks quality in all things. This could be quality in products, but equally this would also be quality in ideas and execution.

KG: ME's editorial team includes contributions from around the world...is it the same with its readership, and how this fit in your online strategy (medesignmag.com)?

Our distribution is purely local, so other than foreigners in Malta that read the magazine, our readership remains locally based. We do send a lot of issues abroad to contributors, potential interviewees and others and always receive a positive reaction which is encouraging.

As for the website, all websites must have an international outlook, as is their nature. Our viewing figures tell us we receive a lot of foreign and local hits, and this is largely due to the breadth and quality of the subjects we cover. Ultimately I'd like medesignmag.com to be the most viewed site in Malta - once a month is not enough for the amount of material we generate.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Best Non-Fiction of the Year So Far

I've just received a list of Amazon Best-Sellers. I will not simply reproduce the whole list but I'd like to highlight this particular book. I love political campaigns, especially when these are seen from a purely marketing perspective. Hence, if you're into this as well, you may find this link quite interesting: read more

P.S. this is not a sponsored recommendation!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Baidu played home and made it away!

Baidu is often described as 'the Google of China'. Numbers show that Baidu manages to capture over 62% of Search in China and places 19th in Alexa's overall site ranking. Being a leading search engine and being in China, Baidu has come up with online services dedicated to the Beijing Olympics which unfortunately, I had to translate using Google Translator!

Whilst being big in China, Baidu has also placed 8th in Adage's Digital A-List. Baidu is experimenting with search and moving away from basic text search. You see...it's not all Google as yet, even though we love them.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Google at the Olympics


Since Google has set out to conquer the world it could not miss out on featuring the World's Olympic Games! The Google doodles (logos) featuring next to the search box are only a small part of Google's initiatives related to this year's Olympics.

Amongst these initiatives one can mention iGoogle's Olympics Gadget featuring the latest results and game information. The same information featuring in the gadget is also available on mobile via Google mobile. But this is not all, users can get the latest results, events and stadium locations mapped out within Google Maps. The Google Maps widget has been embedded on Google's official Olympics site (below).


Google's Olympics website is available in 66 countries and 31 languages.

Friday, August 15, 2008

An urban initiative by MINI


During the next 15 days you can spend sometime pondering on the 'Creative use of Space' and come up with a cool and appropriate design for minispace.com expressing your thoughts about the subject. Apart from getting the chance to feature your artwork on mini's site, you may also win some interesting goodies (including a 32GB iPod touch). More details here

If on the other hand you are too busy to participate, you may still want to have a look at this creative initiative from MINI

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

'Made by LAB1977': Creative to say the least!


It's August and the business world will soon be on shutdown, yet Lab1977 keep opening new online venues which are pleasing to the eye. The latest has been a brand new website for SMS Travel. Following the busy pre-summer months during which everyone was planning his/her vacation, SMS must have dedicated some time to refurbish their online space.

The website is animation based which for a corporate brand such as SMS may initially look strange. One would expect an informative, cluttered website full of the latest offers and all, yet the new SMS Travel website is an online journey, "inspired by travelers and their belongings" as Lab1977 put it.


I am no fan of heavy animated website and must admit that I tend to question their flexibility when it comes to website maintenance,updating and direct links. Yet brands such as XFM (Malta) and SMS Travel seem to be managing well with them (both sites were designed by the crew at Lab1977).


A humble constructive suggestion from our side would be to eliminate the flight rates in pdf and provide these within the animation, or at least in PDF. In my case the PDF document took sometime to load and had I not been interested, I could have moved away. A simple but useful add-on are the Social Networking functions at the bottom of the site. An further improvement to that would be being able to post direct links to specific web-pages on my social profile / or simply send the link via email.

Finally we cannot not comment about the Apple products which feature frequently in the animations (iPhone in this case) Why is it that we all want those cool gadgets around, even on our virtual desks?!

Read more: Related news from Lab1977, SMS Travel website

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Vodafone Soundbites and some other red snippets

July has been a relatively quiet month on BLAB and we need some catching up on a number of interesting stuff happening locally and abroad. Starting off I'd like to introduce Vodafone Soundbites:



The site has been launched just last Sunday and is being run together with MTV networks. This is not the first initiative Vodafone has done within the international music scene. Vodafone's Music site is another very good example of how interactive Vodafone intends to be. The good thing about it all is that the network is as big as 26 countries and hence should bring much more to its customers than anyone else...but oh yes I am biased and very loyal to this brand.

Locally, and whilst I was on my way to Australia, Vodafone launched yet another interactive service: Breaking News Alerts in conjunction with TimesofMalta. This is no secret since the service is open for all mobile phone users for free.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

BLAB Australia

I am currently in Australia with Salt. There is limited blogging time but a lot to BLAB about and so I promise to come back with a number of interesting posts related to Australia, the WYD Media Related Initiatives and advertising related ideas I come across whilst in transit, inflight or running around!

In the meantime SALT has also gone interactive for this 3-week trip. You can read all about our gigs, experiences and time in Australia on timesofmalta: http://www.timesofmalta.com/blogs

We're also be uploading snap shots and videos on the social nets (Salt's Facebook page and YouTube)

Until then please do email back your ideas for future contributions on BLAB. Recently we have had some positive feedback which we definitely plan to follow up!

Sunday, July 06, 2008

New Media at the Digital Arts Expo

This week I had the pleasure of presenting a seminar about 'New Media' at the first ever Digital Arts Expo locally (MIDA 2008). The seminar explored successful new media initiatives taking place globally within Vodafone companies and why digital media players such as MySpace and Yahoo are teaming with Vodafone.

Apart from the Vodafone seminar there were a number of very good seminars / workshops:
Allied Newspapers shared their redesign of their daily and weekly newspapers;
A number of seminars / workshops related to Apple's range of products (Final Cut, iLife, etc.)
A selection of practical seminars related to the printing industry (Metal FX, Canon)

Other highlights at the expo were the Digital Artist Gallery Zone and the Advertising Agencies Gallery Section. A Mac Lab was also set for attendees to get their hands dirty on one of the 25 iMac on show.

In one of my future posts I plan to draw up a wish list of what BLAB wishes to see at next year's expo.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

The tradefair is back


The Internation Fair of Malta is back, this time at the MFCC in Ta' Qali. The new location is a first for the 'tradefair' which for years has been taking place in Naxxar. BLAB will review the stands at the tradefair over the next week. Amongst the new brands at Tradefair is Banif Bank.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

BLAB (p)reviews the new Town Magazine

The first issue of Town magazine will be out on the 29th of June but Daphne Caruana Galizia of Proximus has kindly allowed us to preview it a week before.

According to the books, a business is like a person, with its ups and downs, struggles, achievements and moods. So when one tries to identify the people behind a particular business venture, their story is as personal as business can get. High level business knowledge falls by the side and makes way for real life stories about people.

According to Proximus, Town will focus on "new faces and changes in Maltese business, with a particular interest in people who have built up their own successful businesses". The magazine "aims to bring business and an entrepreneurial culture to the average reader, in a way that makes it interesting and far from tedious"

But will Town be just another free magazine distributed with a local newspaper? Judging from the teasers BLAB has been provided with, we feel that this 'personal touch' to business is not as popular locally and should attract a wider audience. Apart from that, Town is the latest addition to a range of successful publications which do not go unnoticed with a Sunday Read. In fact, Proximus already publish Taste and Flair magazines. Both magazines carry a similar combination of quality design, professional photography and fresh writing.


More info:
Town magazine is out on 29 June with The Malta Independent on Sunday, and the following Thursday with The Malta Business Weekly. It will be published quarterly at first, moving on to bi-monthly. Town is produced and published by Proximus.

e-top-up from Vodafone

Vodafone has over the past week launched a new top-up voucher card which comes along with lower calling rates. The nice thing about the '30 Bonus Card' is that it has been launched specifically for online customers.

Admittedly I am a loyal Vodafone fan but the online initiative makes sense even when one considers the latest Eurobarometer survey in which 44% of Maltese customers said they used the internet to make a purchase in the past year.

More about Vodafone's Bonus Card: click here

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Summer Reading: The Dip Book

With summer round the corner we'll make it a point to draw up BLAB's Reading Wish List. (suggestions are welcome)

#1: The Dip by Seth Godin: A little book that tells you when to quit and when to stick!

Seth Godin has been on my list for some time. The little I've read about The Dip makes me think I need to first of all be able to outline 'dips' and tackle them accordingly. As Seth Godin suggests, "It's a mind grenade, a little bit of insight that will help you see what's causing your organization (or you) to get stuck." Therefore you don't have to be in sales to experience dips...and it's always useful to avoid getting stuck!

More about the book: click here

Saturday, June 14, 2008

eInterview with eBusinessMalta.com


'eBusinessMalta.com is a consortium of Malta's leading eBusiness organisations, namely company & fiduciary services providers, hosting & co-location facilities provider, e-payment solution provider and a recruitment agency / portal'

BLAB caught up with Jonathan Dalli and eInterviewed him about the whole idea behind this eVenture.


KG: It seems to me as the perfect one stop shop for any company in the eCommerce industry...how did it all come together and how do you ensure it really remains a one stop shop?
JD: The consortium, made up of Malta's leading eBusiness organisations, came together following the close business relationship that exists between the various consortium partners. The various partners within the consortium have been involved in e-commerce / e-business for the last 6 years, particularly since the inception of online betting / gaming in Malta. The aim of the consortium is to assist foreign companies relocating to Malta with a range of services enabling them to streamline their ebusiness operations. The main scope of the consortium is to have one single brand particularly when exhibiting in international conferences / trade shows / expos. However, the consortium is not limited solely to exhibitions but also focused on online marketing efforts and referral marketing.

Services offered include Company Set-up & Incorporation; Regulatory & Licensing Consultancy; Directorship & Management Services, Accounting & Secretarial Services; Back-Office & Support Services; Fiduciary & Trustee Services; International Trade Mark & Patent Registration; Personnel Recruitment; Relocation & Residency; Bank Accounts & ePayment Solutions; Internet Bandwidth, and Hosting & Co-Location Services. The partners within the consortium make sure that it really remains a one stop shop by means of periodic meetings that are both product development focused and also marketing / sales focused.

KG: The website lists various events where partners in the consortium attend and promote the brand but how do you ensure presence in key online websites/blogs/etc.?
JD: Key online presence is mainly ensured through Search Engine Optimisation, in order to ensure that the brand (also in the light that it is a .com brand) is present online as much as possible. Furthermore, such online efforts are also complemented by posting our press releases on a number of media / news sites on the net which also help to direct traffic to ebusinessmalta.com. Finally, advertising in various ecommerce publications (print and online) also complements online marketing efforts.

KG: Do you see other partners joining your Ebusiness shop in the future?
JD: This is not excluded by the present partners, as we're always on the look-out for prospective strategic collaborations with new partners, especially those in the financial and online banking sector.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

When Steve Jobs 'endorsed' tiny Malta

"next time you're in Malta and you need an iPhone 3G, it'll be there" - Steve Jobs (watch it below 2.46s)


Everyone is speaking about the new 3G Iphone but really and truly something better happened last night (CET): Steve Jobs mentioned Malta in the key note speech launching the 3G Iphone at WWDC '08. As a result Malta gets the best free advert on Forbes.com, biz.yahoo.com, endgaget.com, pcworld.com, etc.

It seems Malta is not anymore the Mediterranean's best Kept Secret!

Sunday, June 01, 2008

Alexandra Pace's Top 5 Projects

It is not the first time that Alexandra Pace was mentioned on Blab, but this time I've asked her to choose her top 5 favourite works...a very difficult task for any artist. What follows is her contribution to Blab.

My Top 5 Projects

These are my favourite 5 projects. I wouldn’t say there is any order of preference; they all represent important and special parts of my life and career.



Slideshow of Alexandra Pace's works

1. Aquarium: Aquarium is a collection that was photographed at the start of this year. The Aquarium collection has just been chosen to be exhibited at EUROPEAN NIGHT – Photographical Identities of Europe, consisting of a night of photographic projections on a public industrial site in Arles, France. This event is being organised by "Rencontres de la Photographie d'Arles" and will be held in July 2008.

The project is a series of photographs depicting urban life created using a plastic fish-eye lens film camera. This collection is made up of urban scenes, abstract creations and movement. The concept behind this project is that of pseudo fish bowls depicting different scenes from city life. As an outsider looking in, the viewer is invited to look into these little windows of other people’s worlds.

2. Reza Deghati: Last summer I had the pleasure of photographing National Geographic photographer Reza Deghati together with his wife and two lovely children. I met Reza at an exhibition of his works which he exhibited here in Malta. I invited him to visit my studio where I offered to do a set of family portraits for him to commemorate his visit to Malta. Unfortunately we had less than an hour to do this portrait session since he visited my studio on his way to the airport to fly back to Paris; although the result of this session was a set of lovely character studies of Reza and his family, all photographed on black and white negative film.

3. Niki Gravino: One of my favourite projects of 2007 was working with Niki Gravino on his album “Politics of Doublebeds” launched in November 2007. Besides designing all the artwork for the album itself as well as all promo material that went with it, we also did a photoshoot of Niki Gravino and his band The Vile Bodies.

The location used for this photoshoot was none other that the studio of the fantastic Maltese artist Raymond Pitre. The concept of this shoot was that of placing the band members “within” Pitre’s installations as if they were joined together.

4. London Eye Collection: The London Eye Collection is all about the interesting world of the London Underground. This project was done quite a few years ago but still remains one of my favourites. I literally spent the best part of two weeks hopping on and off trains and going from station to station on the Tube.

The collection was exhibited as a collection of hand printed silver gelatin photographs and consists of studies of the architecture, trains, people and details found in the London Underground stations and trains.

5. UNHCR assignment: When Dr. Katrine Camilleri, Assistant Director Jesuit Refugee Service Malta, was awarded the prestigious UNHCR Nansen Refugee award, I got a call from the United Nations office at Geneva requesting me to create a photo documentary of Dr. Katrine Camilleri, her family and her work.

This award, now in its 53rd year, is given to an individual or group for outstanding services in supporting refugee causes. One of the main functions of this assignment was visiting a number of refugee camps around Malta and amidst all the suffering and hardships seen in these camps there is nothing more beautiful than the happiness I saw appear on these refugee’s faces when they see Katrine and her crew coming to visit them.

more info: Alexandra's Website and blog

Saturday, May 31, 2008

The Stone Soup Story

I think this story justifies in a few lines why professional people should blog, share and not build their own 'political silos' at the workplace:

Many years ago, three soldiers,hungry and weary of battle, came upon a small village. The villagers, suffering a meager harvest and the many years of war, quickly hid what
little they had to eat and met the three at the village square, wringing their hands and bemoaning the lack of anything to eat.
The soldiers spoke quietly amongst themselves and the first soldier then turned to the village elders. "Your tired fields have left you nothing to share, so we will share what little we have: the secret of how to make soup from stones."

Naturally, the villagers were intrigued and soon a fire was put to the town's greatest kettle as the soldiers dropped in three smooth stones. "Now this will be a fine soup," said the second soldier; "but a pinch of salt and some parsley would make it wonderful!" Up jumped a villager, crying, "What luck! I've just remembered where some's been left!" And off she ran, returning with an apron full of parsley and a turnip. As the kettle boiled on, the memory of the village improved: soon barley,
carrots, beef, and cream had found their way into the great pot, and a cask of wine was rolled into the square as all sat down to feast.

They ate and danced and sang well into the night, refreshed by the feast and their new-found friends. In the morning, the three soldiers awoke to find the entire village standing before them. At their feet lay a satchel of the village's best breads and cheese. "You have given us the greatest of gifts: the secret of how to make soup from stones," said an elder, "and we shall never forget." The third soldier turned to the crowd, and said: "There is no secret, but this is certain: it is only by sharing that we may make a feast." And off the soldiers wandered, down the road.

The source (which I plan to blog about next): http://www.cultbranding.com/viewpdf.php?file_id=4

In the meantime, Alexandra Pace's top 5 favourite works and an interview with Jonathan from EbusinessMalta are waiting to be put up in the next BLABs!

Saturday, May 24, 2008

An interview about dreams, cars and Paqpaq

It has been a quiet week on BLAB but I found some time to get to know more about the Paqpaq initiative and its ever increasing popularity both with car enthusiasts and advertisers. In the next few lines, Tonio Darmanin, a Marketing lecturer by profession and the man behind this initiative, honored us with a few 'blabs' about Paqpaq:


Picture: Car review on Paqpaq; Source: paqpaq.tv

KG: Classic question: How did paqpaq begin? Was it the passion for cars or a community of car fanatics?
TD: Paqpaq started off as a dream. I always loved cars and used to watch foreign programmes but I was never involved in television. Then one day I sat down and scripted what I would include if I had my own car show. It developed from there, I tried to sell the idea to a number of people and finally convinced a production house and PBS to accept the programme. I distinctly remember the first filming sessions where I was provided with a cameraman and a mike and I had to improvise and learn by trial and error. This was six years ago and the technical quality at the time was quite different from what it is today. What was the same was the genuine passion for the subject, something that made Paqpaq acceptable even if not of the highest technical quality. Yes there are numerous enthusiasts here in Malta but what I have learnt over the years is that many are quite focused on their area of interest say, offroading, drag racing, hill climbing, classic cars, bikes, modified vehicles, the list is endless and in some instances are not bothered with anything else.

KG: There were/are many who review the latest in Car products and launches, but paqpaq has something different? Do you agree? Why?

TD: As a profession I lecture marketing and my involvement in the media gives me the opportunity to practice what I preach. The very essence of Paqpaq is to be different. Different from anything that happens on the local media and different also from what happens internationally. Apart from the passion for cars, bikes, boats, speed, travel and adventure, I strive on creativity. I spend hours with my close collaborators discussing, planning and generally dreaming then we try to turn those dreams into reality. What pride can you get out of copying others? Within the parameters and realities of the local scenario, I strive to create and be innovative. I am generally copied but I can live with that, I actually take it as a compliment. What distinguishes Paqpaq is professionalism, credibility, quality, experience and a genuine passion for what we do.


Picture: Christina Aguilera on Paqpaq; Source: paqpaq.tv

KG: Who makes up the Paqpaq audience? Is there a similar audience for the online website and magazine or are they different segments?
TD: Initially, Paqpaq was more of a niche programme aimed at the car enthusiast. These 6 years on air have seen an evolution and whilst still retaining the interest of the enthusiast, we have tried to widen the appeal even to those who are not keen about cars but, for example, are in the process of buying a new car or are interested in learning how to care for their investment. We are as inclusive as possible and rotate features to try and include as many different aspects of the motoring hobby as possible. We cannot satisfy everyone and often get told off because we are not including enough classics or do not give enough coverage to local motorsports, but we sincerely try our best. One message it took me a bit long to get was that sent to me by bikers and for a long time I gave little importance to this sector, primarily because I was not even licenced to ride a bike, having been brought up in a family where bikes were taboo. On the other hand, I do not know how to do things in half measures so less than a year ago I sat for my bike licence. I have since ridden every bike I managed to get my hands on, and I can assure you that the list is long and varied, I organized and filmed my first overland adventure on a bike, have covered and featured the biggest new bike show in Milan and the most prestigious custom bike show in the UK, and have generally set new standards in terms of quality to establish Paqpaq as the benchmark even in this sector. Incidentally my current ride is a beautiful Suzuki GSX 1400 with which I am madly in love.

Regarding audiences, I feel that the audiences for the TV show, the website and the new print publication are different. There will always be a percentage of viewers/browsers/readers that are common, and these will probably include the keen enthusiasts. On the other hand, there are people who visit the website regularly and are amongst the many thousands that receive our electronic newsletter every week but rarely watch the programme. The new publication will again hit a number of persons who do not watch TV or do not have access to the net, but will find the supplement interesting.

KG: What about the latest Paqpaq print initiative?
TD: The print initiative is the natural progression of what we have been building up to. We are a professional outfit that teams up only with other professional partners to make the best of the synergies available. In this case, Media Maker is an ideal strategic partner with the experience and expertise necessary to retain the perception of quality in the print sector which our brand already enjoys on TV and the web. In today’s business environment, it is important to offer our customer as wide a spectrum across all media as possible.

Today, Paqpaq is a force that cannot be ignored. Apart from offering our customers an interesting media mix, being involved in the different media helps strengthen our own position and cross-media exposure. The name we gave the publication, namely Paqpaq – Motoring and Leisure gives a clear indication of where we are heading. Cars and great but so are bikes, boats, the latest accessories and gizmos, travelling, a healthy lifestyle and adventure. This is what Paqpaq is all about.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Cool blabs: Interview with Director of YouTube's Best Short Film of 2007

I got to know about Shelton films whilst going through the winners of this year's YouTube awards. Shelton Films won the 'Short Film Category' and my curiousity led me to briefly interview Ben from Sheltonfilms.com, the producers of the award winning short (online) film 'My Name is Lisa'. The film placed third in 'YouTube project: Direct' and aims to raise awareness about Alzheimer Disease.

Picture: Ben Shelton

Interview follows below:
It actually started with a flair for film making but the web took it to another level?

Yes. When I was 13 years old, I started making short movies and I knew immediately it was what I wanted to do. It may be seen as an unrealistic "dream" to become a filmmaker for some, but my uncle was a filmmaker, so I knew it was a possibility. My uncle Ron wrote and directed Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump and Tin Cup.

Now, if I wanted to be a professional basketball player, that would be somewhat unrealistic, but that's because none of my relatives are in the NBA... Except for my dad's cousin's husband's nephew, but I've never met him.

When I was a kid making movies, the internet didn't exist yet, so I had no idea HOW I was going to get my movies shown, but I knew that it was what I wanted to do. After college I started submitting short films into film festivals, but I got no response. Once YouTube came around, the internet became a place to share my movies to millions of people without having to go through all the film festivals or mailing out DVD's. It's all one click away now. It's great!

What is the most important...a well-produced & well scripted movie or a strong presence in a successful online network?

The most important thing to me is to create something I'm proud of. I want to tell stories, make films, and share my art with an audience, and the internet has allowed me to do that. If your question is: "How do I get my work shown by millions?" The answer is to create great work. Now, there are always cheap tricks and gimmicks to create an online community. I'm sure if you make "shock" videos or "nude" videos, you will get more views, but there's no integrity in that, and I'm not a fan. At the end of the day, great work will get noticed, but you have to work hard and get it out there.

What about the MySpace Deal and the Paul Brogan character?

What about it? We made the first Paul Brogan video after about 100 takes. We wrote it, re-wrote it, and all the focus was on making it great. After we finally enjoyed it, we posted it on YouTube and it just started to grow in popularity. Next thing you know, we're in the MySpace offices signing a deal. Since then, we've made 5 more videos that have been featured on MySpace.com and one of them was shown on the Super Bowl pre-game show. But it all started with us being perfectionists and making sure the first video was as funny as it could be.

"My Name is Lisa" is one of your latest successful productions which again has made it big on established online networks. Was this production specifically made for the online audience?

I made the film for YouTube Project: Direct, so I knew it was going to be seen on-line first. It was in my consciousness, and so I added the video-log to the story because I knew that that was what people are used to looking at. That's the only thing that was related to watching it on-line. And I probably would have had the video blog anyway, because that's just the world we live in today.

How does an online video become so popular? Is it just posting it on the net?

It's never just one thing. It's always a combination of a compelling story, great acting, good writing and just the right amount of luck.

Watch the film:


Get to know more about SheltonFilms

Get to know more about 'My Name is Lisa'

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Apple Mac Music Video!

You may be asking is this an advert or a music video!? This and many other blog posts prove it's both!



Video: Digital filmmaker Dennis Liu
Music: “Again & Again”, The Bird And The Bee
Programs used: Microsoft Word, Notes, Photo Booth, iTunes, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, Time Machine, iMovie, GarageBand, Finder, Quicktime, Spotlight, Widgets...(and more)
Desktop machine: Mac (any doubt about that?!)

Photography, Wine, Coffee & Fashion going online

New, Clean pcutajar.com.mt
As your Sunday Times may have pointed out to you, the local PCutajar trademark is undergoing some careful re-branding. The re-branding also includes PCutajar's online channels, starting from its main website, and I presume, its sub-sites in the coming months.



The new PCutajar logo is clean and simple, featuring a classic font and the text 'Malta - 1865' underneath. The logo further amplifies its indigenous origin through its colour scheme. Both logo and new website were designed by BRND WGN which I believe are also new to branding locally.

LoveIsFashion.com
Another addition to the online directory is what is probably the first online fashion store locally. Photography for the site's online catalogue as well as web design were done by briangrech.

Friday, May 09, 2008

5 weeks of Facebook Chat


5 weeks ago, Facebook discretely launched its real-time chat service. The concept of chat within social networking is a first (at least for the big networks I hold a profile in and my blabnet experiment). The idea, as Josh at Facebook puts it, is very simple immediacy: extending what has so far been messages, pokes and notification anytime you log-in, to real-conversation. Even friends' News-feeds will be incorporate in a real-time conversation as they happen.

from Facebook's blog post:
"The Wall and Inbox have been the primary ways to communicate, but when more immediacy is necessary—for example when making plans for lunch in half an hour"

I am particularly fascinated by the discrete way in which this new feature is being launched, unveiled slowly slowly in select network, without any need to download any applications or add-friends. The new Facebook Chat sits there...waiting quietly to "pull features of the site into the real- time Chat world", enhancing the Facebook experience.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

There's some re-branding going on...


The excellent re-branding of the BAY brand preceded the revamping of Bay's (slowish) colourful website. As is with any other website, one has to see if the site is going to be updated regularly and if radio listeners are going to follow. The new bay.com.mt also includes Abel&Elinor's new blog. There's a lot going on in their radio show and it is worth extending its lifetime by posting snippets of it online. Sadly enough, following the first post last Thursday, nothing else has been added to the blog.

The slogan for the BAY brand remains the same one, yet the trade mark features a new, fresh font which in my opinion will soon be the 'new helvetica' of mainstream design.

The Times Newspapers


Even the popular Sunday Times and The Times (daily) have lately been given a new look. The Times ran a double page spread outlining the changes on Saturday. I will below relate to you some of its contents:

Front Page: More are dedicated to news and a smaller 'navigation' area. The crest which features in both logos has been redesigned and will feature in all media.

Page 3: This will now become a content page. A 'Quick Find' section will also be added to page 3 (on Sunday) and page 2 (any other day).

Consistent Sections:
All sections, including the very useful Classified Supplement, now feature consistent headers

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Waiting for the new Heineken Viral


Check out Heineken.it in a few hours as Heineken plans to launch its new spot. Its preview hints it's going to be a viral! Countdown continues...

Monday, April 14, 2008

New Vodafone ad....colourful!



You may have seen this but it's really coming out of the oven, the new Vodafone ad. Enjoy!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Food and... Cars


Thought this might interest some people.

Friday, April 11, 2008


WEB DESIGN INDEX BY CONTENT.03, published by Pepin Press and Agile Rabbit Editions has featured website of photographer Alexandra Pace as one of the top 500+ websites from all around the globe. This book, which is a thrid in a series, has become the industry standard in tracking trends in web design. It is considered an invaluable reference for web designers.

This full screen website features an innovative video background, which changes randomly on repeat visits. This website has already received numerous awards and mentions but being featured in this publication was definately a highlight.

Incidentally, even Lab1977 have launched a new website

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Business in Art [2]



From email invite:

Artistswantit will be organising the second in its series of seminars. As always, it shall be held in a very informal approach where the participants will be able to stop and question the speaker at any time.

This week's seminar will be addressed by Prof. Richard England, an architect by profession, but also an artist and owner of an art gallery. His expertise on the topic should really give the attendees an deeper insight into how to tackle their art entrepreneurially.

Sunday, April 06, 2008

Gmail on Mobile is great

I recall punctuality is not learnt at Uni (University of Malta) and
hence I am currently on campus waiting for a friend who had to be here
40 minutes ago...but hey I am enjoying all this waiting thanks to
Nokia E61, the University WLAN and Google's mobile Gmail which
together are enabling me to blog.

Gmail on mobile is as simple as the online version and functions very
well on my new device. The mobile version allows access and search to
contacts and all mails...

more about this and Vodafone's WAP push email service later

--
Sent from Gmail for mobile | mobile.google.com

Sunday, March 30, 2008

2007 YouTube Video Awards


Avaaz promotional video entitled "Stop the Clash of Civilizations" has won the Best Political Video in the 2007 YouTube Awards. Other contenders in this category included a spoof of '1984' promoting Obama's website. The Avaaz video was posted in March and has so far enjoyed more than 2 million views.

The Human Tetris Project, (also featured on BLAB), won the YouTube Video Award in the Creative category. Laughing baby won the 'Adorable' category whilst Potter Puppet Pals in "The Mysterious Ticking Noise" won best Comedy video after having gained close to 39 million views in the past 12 months:

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Creativity is just the beginning



IBM has recently launched this commercial. The statement IBM is trying to make sends out a tough message to the creative community, clearly distinguishing creativity from innovation. As Tom Peters puts it: "Creativity is the thinking, Innovation is the doing".

Around 2 weeks ago, I blogged about the first session of ArtistWantit, A student project which aims to empower artists to make a living out of their art. The first session tackled Business in Art. Allow me to play with words and turn the title round so as to read "Art in Business".

If the business community is in great need of innovation, and the artist is full of ideas (or rather 'ideating'), isn't the bridge clear?! Artists and Entrepreneurs should join forces on the doing and there you have it...innovation!

Monday, March 24, 2008

Females are outnumbering us online!

It is an accepted fact that our University produces more female graduates than male. It seems, the female majority is also being reflected online. According to eMarketer females make up 51.8% of the US population.

I was curious enough about this statistical snippet that I had to double check it with the local Facebook community. In fact, excluding users who failed to specify their gender details, 52% of users who joined the Malta network so far are female.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

A week in print: Press Digest #2

Following the election period, brands got back to work and some which had been absent during election week, started shouting for attention once again. The following post reviews some of the brands featured in the local print and online press.

Dhalia shouted the most this Sunday:
The Great Dhalia Sale featured prominently in the press today. Apart from a full page ad on Classified and other prominent colour ads., Dhalia also distributed a promotional catalogue and launched a dedicated micro-site. BOV is also offering a home loan package for Dhalia’s Great Sale.

Out this week:

The Economic Update
This issue of the Malta Economic Update also included a Property Guide featuring brands such a Tigne Point, Remax, Middle Sea in its advert pages.

Pink
We believe this issue was honored with being the first local publication to feature a Tommy Hilfiger advert for the new store at Baystreet.

Flair
The 14th issue is as colourful as all the previous ones. We got to know about this online store (www.prestigeinteriors.com.mt) from a small coloumn ad. on this magazine:



Others:
Benetton Promotional Magazine, Alfa 147 Ducati Corse Flyer, The Dhalia Sale Catalogue

Coming Soon:
Home Interiors Supplement, 9th April (The Times)

Tommy Hilfiger: 1st ever print ad. in Malta

On Saturday, Pink Magazine featured what is probably the first ever print ad. of the Tommy Hilfiger brand in Malta. We initially thought this should go into the weekly press digest but then again it deserves a blab of its own! Below is the behind the scenes of the shoot.



source: tommy.com

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Okaidi open Sliema outlet


This week, clothing brand Okaidi opened its Sliema retail store (behind Magic Kiosk). The opening was also complemented with front page ads on the daily and Sunday newspapers.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

onmydesk.com



(personal blab):

Lately I've been wondering what I can do to make my desk (and work space) inspiring and motivational. I will be thinking hard about this over the weekend. In the meantime, you may get an idea of what can be found on the desks of other creatives, designers and artists. Feel free to send photos of your desks/work space.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Press Digest #1


Since BLAB is about media and marketing, one would expect BLAB's own press digest to focus on nothing but the brands that make up the local market! We hope you'll find this digest useful.

Brands that shouted the most this Sunday:
Celebrating its 80th Anniversary, Gasan's automotive brand occupied the front inside full page of today's Sunday Times. Other full-page ads. in this newspaper included Sound Machine and U-BET's Programme. Automotive Brands who opted for a full-page also include BMW, SEAT and Citroen. eWorld and KLIKK both occupied a full-page in The Malta Independent IT Supplement.

Front page ads. featured the Miss Selfridge Mid-Season Sale (Sunday Times), Fino's March Living Room Event (Malta Independent), Credit Europe Bank (MaltaToday and Il-Mument) and HSBC's Home loan ad. (Classified)

Atlas Insurance, Sanex Products, BOV Personal Banking and Home loan occupied the back-page of MaltaToday, Malta Independent, Sunday Times and Classified respectively.

HSBC's Yachting Financing & Leasing advert occupying an innovative 'L-Shape' space definately deserves a BLAB.

Most prominent online banners this Sunday included The Coca-Cola - Idea Casa DreamHome Competition (Maltastar & Di-ve), Credit Europe Bank & AirMalta (TimesofMalta.com), JMFS (Maltarightnow.com).

Brands that got a mention:


CCDK's new fashion collection featured in today's papers in relation to next Tuesday's open-day at TheFashionHouse in Fgura. The open day will also offer free hair, make-up and nail art.

In retail, Tommy Hilfiger announced its first store in Malta. The store will join the long list of international brands and Baystreet Shopping Complex in St. Julian's.

From the branding world, TurqouiseBranding and ANG won Benchmarks Best Telecommunications Brand Award for GO's re-branding exercise.

The Fiat500 is not the only automotive brand to get a mention in this Sunday's motoring sections, yet we particularly like the Fiat500 Optical Mouse, won by 10 lucky attendees at the Fiat500 launch.



Out Today

First Magazine (Malta Independent on Sunday)
FM Magazine (Times of Malta)
Solaris and Bernard's Real Estate Promotional Magazines

Coming Soon
Below are the publication dates of some local magazines:
Pink Magazine, 22nd March (Times of Malta)
Weddings Supplement, 30th March (Sunday Times)
Flair Magazine, 23rd March; and Manic Magazine, 6 April (Malta Independent on Sunday).

Saturday, March 15, 2008

prettyuglyfurniture.com

International brand BoConcept has come up with a pretty good campaign. The campaign encourages prospective customers to take a photo of the most ugly piece of furniture they own, submit it and enter the draw to win new design furniture worth up to €5000 or a runners-up prize worth €1000.

To win, the participant's furniture item has to be voted by the public as the most ugly. Voters may also win prizes worth €200 to buy new design from BoConcept.

Schweppes Burst: We love it!



Product : Schweppes
Agency : George Patterson Y&R, Melbourne
Editor: Jack Hutchings @ The Butchery
Executive Creative Director: Paul Catmur
Creative Director: Ben Coulson
Music Supervision: Level Two Music
Track: To Build a Home, Cinematic Orchestra

Friday, March 14, 2008

Nomads Magazine

Today we got to see the new addition to the local print family: Nomads magazine, distributed free with The Times of Malta and published by BMA Ltd. More about BMA in BLAB's 'Agency Insider #1'

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Tomorrow: Business in Art [1]


In my University days I had dreamt about a project which would empower artists to make a living out of their art. SIFE, which stands for 'Students in Free Enterprise' had adopted this project and following the good feedback it received from other SIFE members world-wide, decided to take it forward (even now that I am totally out of it). I am glad to blog about the first of a series of sessions related to Artist Want it. From the press release:

Artists Want It is an initiative that tries to bring closer the often conflicting worlds of art and business. Through a series of seminars we seek to instill in artists, hailing from all the creative fields, a sense of entrepreneurship. Your passion for art can be sustainably transformed into a real money making business, and as surreal and platonic as they may sound, we truly believe that all forms of arts offer such an opportunity.

The first of these seminars will be held this Thursday 13th March, starting at 7:00pm sharp at Q Bar (Valletta Waterfront) and to show you how nice we are, its even FREE!

Bookings are open as from today, so now all that's left for you to do is decide who of your friends you're going to take with you and give us a call on either 79065256 or 99274674 or if its easier for you just drop us an email on sifeumt@gmail.com Otherwise should you need more details you could visit our website www.artistswantit.com