Venture capitalists have discovered the power of buzz. Two such Boston-based firms are investing heavily in a marketing services company that specializes in what is commonly called buzz marketing, or word-of-mouth marketing, in which information about a product or service is spread through getting people to talk to others about it rather than through traditional advertising. The two VC companies, General Catalyst Partners and IDG Ventures Boston, are investing $14 million in BzzAgent. Often used in conjunction with television or Web advertising, word-of-mouth campaigns can be done through e-mail or in person. Some firms build community Web sites where consumers …

Starbucks Corp. is taking yet another step beyond coffee drinks and into movie promotion. In a new deal, the ubiquitous chain will promote a low-budget film by Lionsgate called "Akeelah and the Bee" in its stores in exchange for an undisclosed share of all revenue from the film. The movie is about an inner city girl who strives to win a national spelling bee contest. Entertainment deals are not new for Starbucks. The international coffee chain has parlayed successful sales of music compilation CDs into deals for exclusive content with major artists like Bob Dylan and Alanis Morissette. It began …

General Mills is stepping up its competition with bigger rival Kellogg Co. The cereal marketer told investors Wednesday it will increase its advertising spending at a double-digit percentage rate in the second half of its fiscal year in an attempt to regain market share from Kellogg. The company's market share dropped last year after it raised prices to offset a surge in costs of raw materials such as food commodities and fuel. Since then, sales of General Mills' Big G cereals have improved as competitors' prices, particularly on promoted products, have crept up. General Mills also lowered its prices on …

High-definition has come to Super Bowl ads in a big way this year. When the big game airs Feb. 5, TV viewers who own HD TV sets (and there are more of them than ever, according to sales reports) will be able to view more than half the ads in HD, according to ABC, which will televise the game this year. Among this year's are the first HD Super Bowl ads from Anheuser-Busch, the largest advertiser, which will run for five minutes. As more consumers snap up HDTV sets, advertisers are adopting often more costly and complex HD. "High-def continues …

Advertising campaigns that play on consumers' emotions fail to translate into sales, according to new research. A study by the Center for Emotional Marketing reveals that while such advertising often breaks through the clutter of other commercial messages, it is unlikely to change behavior or increase market share. The study covered advertising for a wide range of consumer product categories, from food, health and beauty to automotive and technology. The bottom line was that while purely emotional advertising apparently connects with consumers, it fails to make use of the connection with the credible information needed to change peoples' minds. "It's …

Candy marketer Cadbury Schweppes is coming to grips with the harsh reality of current trends. The bottom line is that chocolate is out and gum is in among calorie-conscious consumers. As a result, Cadbury is developing new products to compensate for sagging sales in chocolate and has spent the last two years (and millions of dollars) creating its latest new product, Trident Splash, a unique, three-layer pellet with a candy shell, a stratum of sugarless gum and a liquid center. It comes in two blends of strawberry-lime and peppermint-vanilla flavors and is one of Cadbury's biggest product launches ever. Trident …

To some, the combination of babes and beer has everlasting appeal.  And that seems to be the sentiment behind a new deal between giant brewer Anheuser-Busch’s Budweiser and Time Inc.’s Sports Illustrated.  The two venerable brands have teamed up for a promotion of SI’s wildly popular swimsuit issue, which will appear this year on Valentine’s Day. In addition to advertising in the issue and on SI.com, Budweiser will also host swimsuit-issue related parties in 50 different markets on Feb. 13, offering attendees the first issues off the press. Budweiser will also support the issue with in-store promotional materials featuring …

Marketers are discovering that when it comes to advertising, simple is better. The latest company to join the trend is the financial services company the ING Group, which is launching a new campaign this week with the theme, "Your future. Made easier." Tricia Conahan, senior vice president for brand marketing at ING, said a Roper survey commissioned by the company revealed that 75 percent of respondents wished financial services were easier to deal with. "And that frustration is a barrier to entry," she said. "This is a relaunch of ING in the U.S. marketplace around a new brand promise of …

Marketers fed up with not knowing whether consumers are watching their television commercials are turning to a new wave of ratings services that offer them some idea of whether anyone is actually receiving their carefully crafted and often very expensive messages. A handful of new services have emerged, such as MediaCheck in Tenafly, NJ, to monitor how audiences respond to ads, both on live TV and in programs taped on digital video recorders. Daily "ratings" of TV ads--tallies of how many people are watching or skipping--from MediaCheck enable advertisers to determine quickly whether spots should be yanked off the air …

Hilton Hotels Corp. has decided that emotions are more important than amenities. At least that's the approach the hotel giant will take in its first advertising campaign in more than ten years. The new effort is its first from ad agency Young & Rubicam, which won the $40 million account last summer. The theme, "Travel should take you places," will stress the personal aspects of the traveling experience. Such a theme is a departure from most recent hospitality industry advertising that concentrated more on the amenities hotels could offer travelers. The Hilton campaign launches on Jan. 15 and will air …