Ad news and views from around the Web

FTC rule changes, agency/social media clash, Yahoo! in India, Mad Ave. on Sesame St., the end of advertising and more

Federal Trade Commish revises endorsements and testimonials rules
File this one under “good to know.” Agency Spy reports that the FTC has come up with new, tougher guidelines for endorsements and testimonials. Transparency, Media Bistro’s secret spy notes, is the key. And an infringement could cost you 11 grand. AdFreak offers its own take. Look out, Jared!

Agency/social media culture clash
Writing in Social Media Explorer, Jason Falls discusses how agencies are still not getting it when it comes to social media. “Their problem,” he writes, “is that there exists a culture clash between ad agencies and social media marketing. The difficulty is the result of both philosophical and tactical problems. The good news is, problems can be solved.”

Yahoo! buys full page ad in the Times of India
TechCrunch reports that Yahoo!—that’s us—has bought a full page ad in the Times of India newspaper to support our new “It’s you” campaign. We sure did. And it’s got some pretty awesome creative, if we do say so ourselves. Think of it as a free case study on blending traditional and digital media.

Targeting the “one percenters”
“One-percenters,” says Church of the Customer blogger Jackie Huba, are those creating much of the most trusted content on the web, influencing what people buy. In her keynote address at the MIMA 2009 Summit in St. Paul last week, Huba talked about who these one-percenters are, why they are important, and how you should target them. For a succinct synopsis, see Adam Singer’s write up over at TopRank’s online marketing blog.

The end of advertising as we know it
You remember that catchy old R.E.M. tune, “It’s the End of the World as We Know It,” right? Well, IBM has published a study about the end of advertising as we know it, written up in Social Media Today. The write-up features a “Mad Men”-themed graphic. But it’s a good read and, you know what? I feel fine.

Sesame Street does “Mad Men”
Speaking of “Mad Men,” it’s no secret that the biggest fans of cop and lawyer shows tend to be cops and lawyers themselves. So it should come as no surprise that ad folk are glued to AMC every Sunday night to see the next office drama in that topsy-turvy world. Now, says Advertising Week’s Ken Wheaton, Sesame Street has gotten into the act, producing a “Mad Men”-based Muppet schtick. But in this board room, the kids “learn the difference between mad, sad and happy.” Best line: “Good work, sycophants!”

— The Team