So it appears that swine around the world are very upset to have the latest media-craze-slash-virus named after their genus. It’s a guilt by association thing, I suppose. Sort of like when Snapple was upset when the media uncovered that their own lemon tea beverage was the preferred favorite of Osama Bin Laden. Have there even been any actual, confirmed, reported cases of swine actually having this virus? No. And yet we have Egypt culling pigs across their country. Not to mention that Swine Flu is a fraction of a percent as common and/or deadly as the plain, ole, boring, everyday flu-that-we’re-used-to. Nevertheless, here in the US of A, the pork industry is raising cain about the bad press their cuddly pigs are receiving. And even the President of the United States is now calling Swine Flu “H1N1”…to preserve the pride of the persnickety porkers. People…seriously…

Mojoloco will soon have a new address at Highland Village. We’ve enjoyed our space here on Old Fannin Road, but as stategy shifts, so do needs (not to mention the whole landlord-who-doesn’t-take-care-of-the-building thing). Highland Village is a premier location in the Jackson area, and we’re excited to be a new tenant. Our build-out is underway, and our move-in date is scheduled for July 1. We’ll have an open house once we move in, and we hope you enjoy our new digs!

I continue to be surprised at the thick-headedness of the newspaper industry. Why, when their business model has been broken several times over, do they continue to fight vehemently to keep it? It’s puzzling, really. But the bigger issue is: why didn’t these newspaper suits see this coming in the first place? You’d think they would. If they had, they might’ve been able to grow and evolve with their market, rather than be left behind. But then, category leaders rarely perceive when a sea change is occurring until it’s too late. That’s why it’s the laughable upstart that grabs the market and leaves the leader in the dust. This is a consumer-centric society. Successful brands give the consumer what they want, how they want it, and when & where they want it. Brands that cling to an outdated model and expect the consumer to bend and bow simply because they’re an “established market leader” are losing ground.

We’ve been retained by St. Joseph Catholic School to update their concept and web presence. This is the latest in a string of web projects here at Mojoloco here lately, and we’re happy to throw our energies behind the Bruins. Our goal in this project is to establish some creative standards and standardized protocol for maintaining content. The folks at St. Joe have been wonderful to work with throughout the discovery process and we’re excited to get started…this will be a fun one!

Highland Village, one of Jackson’s premier shopping destinations, has retained Mojoloco to overhaul their web site. We’re very excited to take on this project. From a brand perspective, one of Highland Village’s primary brand drivers is personality. The web is the perfect medium to convey this. In addition to the branding aspects of the project, there is a real opportunity to upgrade functionality and provide a feature-rich CMS that allows the on-site management team control over the content. This project should be a true win-win, and we’re looking forward to a long and successful relationship with Highland Village.

Ok, so the libertarian in me cringes at the thought of the federal government regulating- or even attempting to regulate- what private citizens can and can’t say about products they try. Even more ridiculous is the prospect of the federal government suing a company for the testimony of a consumer.

Let’s lay all of that aside, however…this really comes down to the difference between a brand-centric approach and a consumer-centric approach. The old model, which tends to be brand-centric, believes that the consumer will follow, in a quasi-pied-piper-esque view of the market, if only the brand speaks loud enough, clear enough, or with the right words. The new model, which tends to be consumer-centric, believes that Mr. and Mrs. Consumer and their Consumerlings are smart and cynical and that they can only be truly engaged through a positive, authentic, and relevant experience.

I do not agree with the FTC’s solution to the issue. I do, however, agree that the issue is real and should be addressed.