Kibbe on Marketing: Of the CWBA and the NFL

I had the pleasure of attending the grand opening reception of the Center for Women’s Business Advancement at Southern New Hampshire University on Feb. 3.

The transformation of the Women’s Business Center into the Center for Women’s Business Advancement is an exciting step forward in building entrepreneurship in New Hampshire.

When the old WBC closed in 2010, a huge void was left in the Granite State. Few other organizations did more to work with the smallest of small businesses and help women – and a few men – launch healthy and successful businesses.

The new CWBA, like its predecessor, is funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, but this new iteration has found a new home – and new support – from SNHU. I believe the affiliation has resulted in a firm foundation from which the CWBA will flourish.

MaryAnn Manoogian, CWBA’s executive director, deserves much credit for taking on such a role at a time when many worthwhile programs can no longer be sustained due to economic belt-tightening.

I am really looking forward to see the exciting things MaryAnn, CWBA, its clients, and all its stakeholders create in the years to come. As MaryAnn herself said at the event, “We plan to be here for a long, long time.”

And I know a certain new entrepreneur that needs some serious hand-holding in preparing her business plan…

For more information on the CWBA, call 603-629-4697 or visit cwbanh.com.

*****

I couldn’t let the opportunity go by without saying a few words about the Super Bowl commercials. The game – not so much.

I have to tell you, I really wasn’t all that impressed with the commercials this year. Speaking as a consumer, none really engaged me. In fact, most I had to research which commercial went with which product. One or two were just plain weird. (What was the Elton John thing with the voice dubbing all about anyway?)

I’m not a drum-banging feminist, but Go Daddy’s ads, particularly the ones they run during Super Bowls, thoroughly repulse me and have me so turned off from the company, I will never do business with them and I encourage others to shun them, too.

The “Ferris Bueller” parody with Matthew Broderick for Honda was hugely hyped, but I thought it fell flat. I liked the gravitas of the Clint Eastwood spot. Its juxtaposition with all the comedic ads played well, but again, I had to look up after the fact that it was for Chrysler Group.  Now you can’t even do that, as the NFL has made the carmaker take the spot off the Internet.

Jerry Seinfeld’s commercial for Acura and Volkswagen’s Star Wars cantina were by far the most entertaining.

The Pepsi/Doritos Grandma and Baby spot was cute and was perhaps the most effective for me as far as remembering that it was selling Doritos. The rest were largely forgettable, and none inspired me to learn more about a product let alone go and actually buy it.

Like the New England Patriots, better luck next year, Super Bowl Advertisers.

Cindy Kibbe is owner of Cindy Kibbe Creative Communications, a writing services firm based in New England. She was an editor for a regional business publication for nearly a decade. She can be reached at cindy@kibbecreative.com.