http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/ A search of MERLOT materials Copyright 1997-2013 MERLOT. All rights reserved. Wed, 22 May 2013 10:28:38 PDT Wed, 22 May 2013 10:28:38 PDT http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/images/merlot.gif http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/ 44 34 http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=80722 Choices II is a useful source of information for marketing and advertising professionals as well as students in these fields. It is an electronic version of Simmons Market Research Bureau (SMRB) Study of the Media and Markets (SMM). Choices II can be used to retrieve demographics and psychographics of product category and brand users and media audiences, rank media according to their ratings, and estimate reach, frequency and frequency distribution of advertising media plans. Search results can be sorted for easy use or exported into Microsoft Excel for report writing.This tutorial will guide you to go through basic search procedures in Choices II. It is organized in such a way that it would be easier for you to practice one topic after another. It takes you approximately 45 minutes to complete the tutorial. Choices II is updated on a regular basis and this tutorial is written based on Choice II Release 6.0c and fall 1997 data. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=77886 This website provides a structured guide for evaluating an agency's proposal in pdf format, an Excel worksheet to use in the evaluation, and a paper on how to select an advertising agency. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=674246 This tutorial introduces students to the different aspects of Media Planning, from the initial process through to the different stakeholders involved in the changing landscape of media and media agencies. The entire process is explained through the use of a real case study about the launch of a new car. Basic data on the media sector and advertisers explain, in a graphical and dynamic perspective, how new technologies have changed the sector in recent years. The case includes exercises and videos with managers from the sector which help students understand the basic concepts in an interactive and practical manner. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=81233 This is a series of lessons on developing advertising slogans. The site includes the 25 key factors in developing a slogan with plenty of examples. The site tries to sell advertising services, but there is a lot of good information here. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=81205 This thought-provoking article appeared in Asiaweek magazine in 2001. The theme is the wisdom of producing commercial Web sites in local languages, rather than in English only. ? Although 85% percent of the Web's pages are in English, only 45% of the Web's users are native speakers of that language, according to research firm IDC, and the percentage is dropping year by year." Using customers' mother tongues is far more attractive to them and can boost sales. Unfortunately companies tend to be put off by the initial costs of good quality translating. There are interesting pie charts showing the percentage of various language users online, and projected figures for the future.