My TiVo Gets Me

[TiVoPony]

We have a new marketing campaign starting today, check out the preview of it at:

www.mytivogetsme.com (http://www.mytivogetsme.com)

One caveat - not everything on the site is *just right* yet, but you'll see the direction we're headed. The ads should be up in a bit. But you can get your photo up there now!

Figured you all would appreciate a first look. ;)

Enjoy!

Pony

[jsmeeker]

I heard Danny Bonaduce doing a radio ad this morning for this new promotion. During the Adam Corolla Show with Danyy Bonaduce on L.A.'s 97.1 FM.

[visionary]

I like it. What ever happened to the Tivo Ambassidor and that painted car and all that? Maybe you could put that in with this, would seem a good fit.

[mportuesi]

Nice to see you guys beefing up on marketing and advertising. Best of luck.

[bidger]

Ditch the blonde on the end. What's with the 'tude, girl? Almost expect her to say, "Talk to the hand!".

[windracer]

So when will the TiVo Guy antennae be available on TiVo Rewards? :D

Is it just me or does the bottom of the page (where the profiles are listed) seem cut off? I'm using Firefox.

[Shawn95GT]

So when will the TiVo Guy antennae be available on TiVo Rewards? :D

Is it just me or does the bottom of the page (where the profiles are listed) seem cut off? I'm using Firefox.
The top is cut off for me, also in FireFox.

Looks like a fun contest.

[ah30k]

Looks fine for me in Firefox (ver 2.0.0.3)

[Bai Shen]

Ditch the blonde on the end. What's with the 'tude, girl? Almost expect her to say, "Talk to the hand!".

+1

I thought she was funny, but then I'm not the target audience.

[Bai Shen]

So when will the TiVo Guy antennae be available on TiVo Rewards? :D

Is it just me or does the bottom of the page (where the profiles are listed) seem cut off? I'm using Firefox.

What's your resolution? I'm running FF 2 at 1280x1024 an' it works fine.

[CrispyCritter]

Bottom is cut off for me in Firefox 2.0.0.3. The top may also be cut off just a little; I haven't checked what IE gives.

[mrmike]

First impression? Sites with Flash-based nav are annoying. I can't do an "open in background tab" on one part while I'm browsing another part. Bad multitasking. It's also quite slow, but that's likely because every TCF person is poking around on the site at the moment.

[edit: That sounded really negative. I didn't mean it to. I like the idea, it's cute and it has a good hook, but the execution isn't my favorite]

[ZeoTiVo]

Bottom is cut off for me in Firefox 2.0.0.3. The top may also be cut off just a little; I haven't checked what IE gives.
Bottom is cut off on IE 6 - it is the resolution (mine is 1024x768) most likely and not the browser

[Rucker]

My initial thought was that "mytivogetsme" was a bad Soviet Russia joke. Maybe I need to get out more :)

Anyway, good concept, and nice website except for the size issue. If you're running at 1024x768, you should be able to put the browser in full-screen mode (F11 in FF and IE) to see the whole thing. The flash is just too tall for many people.

[Bai Shen]

My initial thought was that "mytivogetsme" was a bad Soviet Russia joke. Maybe I need to get out more :)

Anyway, good concept, and nice website except for the size issue. If you're running at 1024x768, you should be able to put the browser in full-screen mode (F11 in FF and IE) to see the whole thing. The flash is just too tall for many people.

I guess they should have used midgets. :)

[Bierboy]

Bottom cut off for me, too. FF 2.something...

[TiVoPony]

As I mentioned, it's not quite finished yet. The team knows that scrolling is required. Thanks for the feedback on that. :)

Pony

[Bierboy]

Scrolling doesn't fix it, though. I have no scrolling option even with the bottom cut off.

[TiVoPony]

Scrolling doesn't fix it, though. I have no scrolling option even with the bottom cut off.

My poor use of language is to blame here. The team knows that a scrolling option is required.

Cheers,
Pony

[TiVoShanan]

and i wouldn't be your tivo elf if i didn't give ya these, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1iM4ZUt3Ms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDb6UefP32M

[jsmeeker]

cute. :)

I need to maximize my TiVo potential by buying a new TiVo. :D

[bilbo]

gotta love it when you can get Gene Shalit to endorse your service

[mrmike]

Who's going to TiVo's Bar-9 (9th/34-35th) event this Friday, 10-12? http://www.mytivogetsme.com/mailer/local_events.html

Someone needs to tell them that Los Angeles isn't a state (Or isn't in Louisiana) :D

Los Angeles
Date: May 6 (Sunday) 5-7 pm
Location: Cinespace
6356 Hollywood Blvd, LA
Phone: 323.817.3456

[stevel]

I found that some of the animated people "clips" on the front page played slowly or stuttered. I'm at a hotel with decent wired network access. It looked to me as if the videos were being streamed from a server and not preloaded in the Flash video.

[nlsinger]

I wanted to like it but I didn't. I thought the characters way too stereotypical and annoying. What's with the guy on the end, he's really creepy... shudder. Gene Shalit was by far the best.

[stevel]

But was that really Gene or just someone who looks a lot like him?

[TiVoPony]

But was that really Gene or just someone who looks a lot like him?

That is really him. ;)

Pony

[BlackBetty]

that blonde was very milfy.

I like the new "My TiVo Gets me" Slogan! Well done!

[davezatz]

The profile is fun stuff, but the manual approve process is tedious! I hope TiVo hired some college interns for the drudgery. Having said that, here's what I'd like see in v1.5: I'd like my personalized URL available to me to give out without sending an email message (to myself), I'd like to somehow tie this into my Now Playing list, add friends, and then share suggestions. And if you give me some sort of little badge, I'll even put it on my blog.

[dianebrat]

great concept and tag lines,

however they really should be careful about showing an Series 3 while talking about and showing folks transferring videos to a PSP and ipod, I didn't see a single disclaimer.
(#1 guy on the left has the back of an S3 pictured while they plug in the wireless adapter, then they ramble on about transferring things)

that bugs me...

[mportuesi]

they really should be careful about showing an Series 3 while talking about and showing folks transferring videos to a PSP and ipod, I didn't see a single disclaimer.

that bugs me...

Agreed. This is the sort of thing that class-action lawsuits are made from.

[Bierboy]

and i wouldn't be your tivo elf if i didn't give ya these, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1iM4ZUt3Ms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDb6UefP32MOutstanding Shanan! Great marketing!

"...and I can pause any time!"


BTW, the screen cutoff is fixed in FF.

[Stu_Bee]

I have to agree with the Dianebrat ...they should remove all references to "tivo to go" unless text on screen displays "not available on all models" at the sametime.

ps. On the positive tip...nice web ad design.

[redtape]

First impression? Sites with Flash-based nav are annoying. I can't do an "open in background tab" on one part while I'm browsing another part. Bad multitasking. It's also quite slow, but that's likely because every TCF person is poking around on the site at the moment.

[edit: That sounded really negative. I didn't mean it to. I like the idea, it's cute and it has a good hook, but the execution isn't my favorite]

Oh, it's in flash!, That's why I get an ugly blue-green blank page!
My work computer doesn't have flash... someday I'll need to find out why...

[TiVoPony]

great concept and tag lines,

however they really should be careful about showing an Series 3 while talking about and showing folks transferring videos to a PSP and ipod, I didn't see a single disclaimer.
(#1 guy on the left has the back of an S3 pictured while they plug in the wireless adapter, then they ramble on about transferring things)

that bugs me...

I'd hate for people to suggest that we're intentionally trying to mislead anyone here. That's not the case, and it would be the exceedingly rare individual who would recognize a Series3 from a fleeting glimpse of the backpanel of a box. The Series3 is not mentioned, nor is the front of a Series3 shown. It's just our production team choosing a clean shot of a usb cable going into a usb port.

Thanks,
Pony

[yunlin12]

and i wouldn't be your tivo elf if i didn't give ya these, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1iM4ZUt3Ms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDb6UefP32M


Thanks, liked the baseball video better than the other one. I like the fact on the web site that it shows that wishlist can search for a local team. To me that's one big advantage over the cable co DVR, that can do only search for MBL Baseball. This is not quite so clear in the video, bu it's still good.

That other video's got the "mine is bigger" feel to it. It's kinda like the cell phone ads with the guy who's always shoving it in his friends' faces that he gets 5 bar, annoying, and bordering on being a d***. In the Tivo video, having 3 guys comparing how they can maximize their Tivo implies that there's a learning curve for Tivo interface, and it may be just for the geeky type.

[Bierboy]

Well, I thought the screen runoff issue was fixed; it's fine on FF on my Mac at home, but still runs off on FF on my PC at work.

[morac]

I actually saw one of the "My TiVo Gets Me" ads on Comedy Central during the daily show last night.

[windracer]

I saw a "My TiVo Gets Me" vertical banner ad on, of all places, a torrent site. :D :rolleyes:

[dianebrat]

I'd hate for people to suggest that we're intentionally trying to mislead anyone here. That's not the case, and it would be the exceedingly rare individual who would recognize a Series3 from a fleeting glimpse of the backpanel of a box. The Series3 is not mentioned, nor is the front of a Series3 shown. It's just our production team choosing a clean shot of a usb cable going into a usb port.

Thanks,
Pony

shucks! I was hoping that just meant we were going to get a surprise of MRV and TTG this summer when the ad campaign kicked into high gear :D

Diane

[sriggins]

Next up - My TiVo Stalks Me - See Suggested Recordings. heh

[sriggins]

The second commercial was hillarious.

[Stu_Bee]

I'd hate for people to suggest that we're intentionally trying to mislead anyone here. That's not the case, and it would be the exceedingly rare individual who would recognize a Series3 from a fleeting glimpse of the backpanel of a box. The Series3 is not mentioned, nor is the front of a Series3 shown. It's just our production team choosing a clean shot of a usb cable going into a usb port.
Thanks,
Pony

So all the places in the Ad's that say Tivo can download shows to your laptop or Ipod, new potential customers know that it doesn't apply to Series 3's?

I guess that when the word "Tivo" is mentioned it should never considered to be a Series3 model unless it is explicitly stated as such. I just don't think people that don't have a Tivo will pick up on that. It's a subtle nuance that will probably be missed when a user clicks the "buy tivo" button and chooses the S3.

[sriggins]

I'd hate for people to suggest that we're intentionally trying to mislead anyone here. That's not the case, and it would be the exceedingly rare individual who would recognize a Series3 from a fleeting glimpse of the backpanel of a box. The Series3 is not mentioned, nor is the front of a Series3 shown. It's just our production team choosing a clean shot of a usb cable going into a usb port.

Thanks,
Pony

Pony,

However in general, the TiVo site information on what does and does not work on a S3 is kinda poor. I had to dig through 4 links about TTG before I found something that said it requires a S2. It said "this will not work on a DirecTiVo" but never mentioned "nor Series 3 receiver"

[sriggins]

I just don't think people that don't have a Tivo will pick up on that. It's a subtle nuance that will probably be missed when a user clicks the "buy tivo" button and chooses the S3.

Agreed. I found it very confusing myself and I am a fairly knowledgable geek.

[mick66]

Keep in mind that these people at Tivo aren't necessarily the brightest bunch. They're charging at least 6 different rates for the same service and claim that doing so makes it easier for the customer and they think we believe them.

Regarding the "my tivo gets me" concept. It's dumb. The only thing that a Tivo does that isn't directly chosen by the user is recording suggestions. That's the one and only thing that makes sense for the slogan. Take away suggestions and a tivo is just as intuitive and as likely to "get you" as a Victrola phonograph, doing only what it's been told to do.

As for the website. Can you say "how the F&^% do you navigate w/o having to start from the begining?" When they get a dozen pages of profiles and you click on one that's on page 12, the only way to get back to page 12 is by going back to page 1 and then 2 and then 3... and what's the point of having to approve profiles when you are approving copyrighted material used as a profile pic not to mention people using the same pic of a pet twice for different profiles? It's a joke and a waste of our money.

I'd hate for people to suggest that we're intentionally trying to mislead anyone here. That's not the case,

It's called advertising and it's exactly what you are doing.

Claiming that a TiVo (used as a general term and not specifying the S2) does something such as MRV and TTG is outright deceptive when you know D@#^ well that anyone can go out and buy a S3 Tivo that can't do it. Not to mention the many S1s that are still out there.

[HDTiVo]

The NYT today is estimating TiVo's budget at $15M for the campaign.

[peteypete]

I like the TV ads... funny!!

Much better ad campaign than that edgy, line art thing Tivo did back in 2003-4 ish. That was a bomb. I think that ad agency got dumped big time.

Hopefully, Tivo will sell a couple boxes on this one.

I agree with Zatz, why the manual approval on the profile thingy? Part of the power of social networking is supposed to be that its kinda loose and free. Guess the powers that be want to control the PR a bit.

FYI

Bottom cutoff fixed in Firefox, but top is still cut off.

[DancnDude]

Article on the new ad campaign: http://news.com.com/Avoiding+ads+with+TiVo%3F+Not+these%2C+TiVo+hopes/2100-1024_3-6181136.html?tag=fd_nbs_ent&tag=nl.e703

[RoyK]

Blonde with waving horns sticking out of her head tells us "I don't have time for silly things..."

Give me a break.

[TerpBE]

I want my Tivo to get me...a beer. Can you put that into 8.4?

[BlackBetty]

Keep in mind that these people at Tivo aren't necessarily the brightest bunch. They're charging at least 6 different rates for the same service and claim that doing so makes it easier for the customer and they think we believe them.

Regarding the "my tivo gets me" concept. It's dumb. The only thing that a Tivo does that isn't directly chosen by the user is recording suggestions. That's the one and only thing that makes sense for the slogan. Take away suggestions and a tivo is just as intuitive and as likely to "get you" as a Victrola phonograph, doing only what it's been told to do.

As for the website. Can you say "how the F&^% do you navigate w/o having to start from the begining?" When they get a dozen pages of profiles and you click on one that's on page 12, the only way to get back to page 12 is by going back to page 1 and then 2 and then 3... and what's the point of having to approve profiles when you are approving copyrighted material used as a profile pic not to mention people using the same pic of a pet twice for different profiles? It's a joke and a waste of our money.



It's called advertising and it's exactly what you are doing.

Claiming that a TiVo (used as a general term and not specifying the S2) does something such as MRV and TTG is outright deceptive when you know D@#^ well that anyone can go out and buy a S3 Tivo that can't do it. Not to mention the many S1s that are still out there.

S3's are just a matter of time. And for the S1's....eh who cares about them old geezers :D

[rdrrepair]

I want my Tivo to get me...a beer. Can you put that into 8.4?No, but for around the price of an S3 with 3 years service you could have one of these...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3ysomqy86U
It's clean. It was on Letterman.

[sriggins]

Haha!

[mrmike]

Bah. The new newsletter is headlined "My TiVo gets me my own antenna!", but it's just the virtual ones on the website. False Advertising! I want a silly to spend my Rewards points on.

[TiVoShanan]

Bah. The new newsletter is headlined "My TiVo gets me my own antenna!", but it's just the virtual ones on the website. False Advertising! I want a silly to spend my Rewards points on.


Sorry to mislead, Mike... But maybe we'll have some "real" antenna in the future...?

[mrmike]

Sorry to mislead, Mike... But maybe we'll have some "real" antenna in the future...?

I'll forgive you this time. Just don't taunt me again ;)

[Bai Shen]

That reminds me. I told a friend of mine that you posted on her Shanan an' she didn't believe me. :(

[ZeoTiVo]

Sorry to mislead, Mike... But maybe we'll have some "real" antenna in the future...?
will they come in different sizes depending on the amount of TiVo reward points you have ;)

[mrmike]

will they come in different sizes depending on the amount of TiVo reward points you have ;)


Warning: Users with more than 50,000 TiVo Rewards Points are cautioned to avoid areas with low-flying planes and/or High voltage Wires. TiVo Inc. is not responsible for damage to necks, egos, or chandeliers. Offer void where prohibited. Your mileage may vary.

[TiVoShanan]

That reminds me. I told a friend of mine that you posted on her Shanan an' she didn't believe me. :(


Tell her she must BELIEVE! :)

I'm just a little shy in the Bulliten Board universe.

The marketing team thanks you for all the nice words on the new campaign. Can't wait to see the MyTiVoGetsMe.com site continue to grow and grow...

Almost looks like we should have our own Theme Park, eh? ;)

[sriggins]

Shanan, while I understand the appeal of Flash, it sure stinks for web integration with password managers (seeing it has no forms) :)

I think it will make people less likely to visit, update profiles, or use any other services you might add later if they have to go hunt this information on every login

[sriggins]

Shanan, the contest rules page has the wrong character set, causing ?'s to display. Changing the charset to:

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />

fixes it.

The offending page is: http://www.mytivogetsme.com/contestrules.html

[TiVoShanan]

Shanan, the contest rules page has the wrong character set, causing ?'s to display. Changing the charset to:

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />

fixes it.

The offending page is: http://www.mytivogetsme.com/contestrules.html

you are so on it!

I'll let "the right people" know.

[javabird]

I found that some of the animated people "clips" on the front page played slowly or stuttered. I'm at a hotel with decent wired network access. It looked to me as if the videos were being streamed from a server and not preloaded in the Flash video.

The audio is so choppy, I can't understand it at all. (I have a broadband cable connection and usually have no problem playing web video. )

[mick66]

S3's are just a matter of time. And for the S1's....eh who cares about them old geezers :D

But they can't do it now and that's the whole friggin' point.

I'd like to take the time to thank all of the people who have responded positively to this whole ad campaign. You have rekindled my belief that the average American consumer is dumb enough to believe anything as long as enough shiny sparkles are used to cover the turd.

[Bai Shen]

Shanan, while I understand the appeal of Flash, it sure stinks for web integration with password managers (seeing it has no forms) :)

I think it will make people less likely to visit, update profiles, or use any other services you might add later if they have to go hunt this information on every login

Adobe Flex is a flash based technology that would let them do the password integration, etc. We've been playing with it at work an' it's pretty cool. Kinda like AJAX, but with flash.

[Bai Shen]

Tell her she must BELIEVE! :)

I'm just a little shy in the Bulliten Board universe.

The marketing team thanks you for all the nice words on the new campaign. Can't wait to see the MyTiVoGetsMe.com site continue to grow and grow...

Almost looks like we should have our own Theme Park, eh? ;)

-chuckle- I'll show her this post.-grin-

[BlackBetty]

But they can't do it now and that's the whole friggin' point.

I'd like to take the time to thank all of the people who have responded positively to this whole ad campaign. You have rekindled my belief that the average American consumer is dumb enough to believe anything as long as enough shiny sparkles are used to cover the turd.


:down: :down: :down:

[Adam1115]

But they can't do it now and that's the whole friggin' point.

I'd like to take the time to thank all of the people who have responded positively to this whole ad campaign. You have rekindled my belief that the average American consumer is dumb enough to believe anything as long as enough shiny sparkles are used to cover the turd.

Everyone in the ad compaign has a series 3 and multiple tivo's that need to transfer shows to?

Chill out, it's just tv.. some of us just sit down and watch a show in our living rooms and don't get all bent out of shape because we can't watch tv on our computer screens. My computer is for getting work done, my bedroom is for sleeping, and my living room is where we watch tv.

[samo]

But they can't do it now and that's the whole friggin' point.

I'd like to take the time to thank all of the people who have responded positively to this whole ad campaign. You have rekindled my belief that the average American consumer is dumb enough to believe anything as long as enough shiny sparkles are used to cover the turd.
And what did you expect TiVo to say in a ad? Something like:
"This feature does not work on our high end, flagship HD unit shown in this ad. If you still want this feature please buy our standard definition unit."
Or did you expect a small print at the bottom, like car commercials do?

[morac]

I saw a TiVo ad in the theaters before Spiderman 3 which surprised me.
Unfortunately the audience appeared apathetic towards it.

[mick66]

Everyone in the ad compaign has a series 3 and multiple tivo's that need to transfer shows to?

Chill out, it's just tv.. some of us just sit down and watch a show in our living rooms and don't get all bent out of shape because we can't watch tv on our computer screens. My computer is for getting work done, my bedroom is for sleeping, and my living room is where we watch tv.

The S3 not having the advertised features has very little to do with the bad ad campaign that ya'll are drooling over.

[mick66]

And what did you expect TiVo to say in a ad? Something like:
"This feature does not work on our high end, flagship HD unit shown in this ad. If you still want this feature please buy our standard definition unit."
Or did you expect a small print at the bottom, like car commercials do?


Whether they show the S3 in an ad or not, they can't be saying that TiVo has the MRV and TTG features w/o knowing they are being outright deceptive about it. That's not really the problem I have. The problem is Pony coming here and trying to play mr. goodguy by saying they aren't intentionally being deceptive. Why did he do this? He thinks you people are dumb as rocks consumers that will believe him and most of you are proving him right. and that's just sad.

[mick66]

:down: :down: :down:

I'm sorry you feel that way.

[mitogirl]

I am sad that I still haven't been able to add antennae to my photo. I keep going back to the site, tried 2 computers, FF and IE 6, no joy. Is there a known issue with this feature? I click 'edit' and nothing happens. :(

[Stu_Bee]

Despite the S3 Tivo2go 'confusion' in the commercial's it is nice to see some slicks ad's out there. The 'Tivo gets Me' campaign was in full effect at my local mall, where Tivo had a booth setup. Later, I saw a little kid running around the mall with Tivo antenna on, so they must have been giving them out.
Next time I'm there I'll try to take a snapshot of the booth.

[davezatz]

Next time I'm there I'll try to take a snapshot of the booth.

If you or anyone else does, I'll be happy to blog it with credit. :)

[treaty]

I think the new Ad campaign is "cute"... and I'm definately glad TiVo is finally cranking up the marketing machine... but the whole "my tivo gets me" thing isn't really telling me how cool TiVo really is... at least based on the one Ad I've seen on TV to date. How about an Ad campaign that tells everyone how TiVo has been able to do everything Apple TV can do for some time now (pictures, music, unbox) - plus some! (that cool OneMedia sharing thing)

"Hi, I'm an Apple TV"
"And I'm a TiVo"

Now we're talking! ;)

[dmdeane]

Hey I just wanted to add my two cents; I like the new advertising campaign. I have been seeing a lot of it recently on Fox Soccer Channel, both the "mine are bigger" ad and the Gene Shalit ad. Good stuff. FSC is certainly a good choice; soccer fans are obsessive dvr users (check out the BigSoccer web forum; TiVo has ads there too, or did recently) recording for instance multiple English Premier League games and UEFA Champion's League games every week.

Not being a 'EuroSnob' I also record multiple MLS games every week. :)

If TiVo wants to expand their soccer advertising footprint, there is also GolTV and Setanta, though Setanta is only currently available on DirecTV, it should be expanding soon to Dish and Comcast.

Edit to add: oh and they also showed the baseball guy and his girlfriend ad, as well, on FSC. Weird note to add: FSC has started showing a blue, TiVo-style program grid on some of their channel promos, showing upcoming games and when they are scheduled to air, etc. Confused me for a sec, I thought my TiVo was doing it at first, and not FSC.

[dmdeane]

I think the new Ad campaign is "cute"... and I'm definately glad TiVo is finally cranking up the marketing machine... but the whole "my tivo gets me" thing isn't really telling me how cool TiVo really is... at least based on the one Ad I've seen on TV to date. How about an Ad campaign that tells everyone how TiVo has been able to do everything Apple TV can do for some time now (pictures, music, unbox) - plus some! (that cool OneMedia sharing thing)

"Hi, I'm an Apple TV"
"And I'm a TiVo"

Now we're talking! ;)It isn't TiVo's job to provide free advertising for Apple TV. :)

I think the ads do a good job of explaining some of the things TiVo can do which other dvr's can't do. A 30 second spot can't explain everything. As long as the ad causes the viewer to inquire further about TiVo it has done its job.

[jlb]

Saw the ad during the trailers before Spidey 3 this weekend.

I would like to get some of those ears/antennae.....or at least see a picture of Shanan with the ears/antennae

[TiVoShanan]

I am sad that I still haven't been able to add antennae to my photo. I keep going back to the site, tried 2 computers, FF and IE 6, no joy. Is there a known issue with this feature? I click 'edit' and nothing happens. :(


Hmm... so you've successfully created a profile, but just can't add the antenna?
Email me at smc@tivo.com with the link to your profile....