Thanks to Corante's very own New Media Marketer blog for this very cool heads-up: Check out Nike's Run London site.

I'm a runner, so the value of this kind of online ap is absolutely without compare. Wow. It lets you find running routes - or better yet, create and post your own. The interface is simple as 1-2-3, the maps couldn't be clearer, and what you end up with is a killer resource that any runner living in London (or planning a visit) will be sure to bookmark and visit often.

Think pull-through. Think gateway. Think grassroots viral blitzkrieg. Oh yeah.

Simply brilliant. Now if Nike would just create one of these babies for Greenville, SC, I would be in heaven. (I expect that something similar will hit the US pretty soon, so I may get my wish.)

I look at what Nike has accomplished with this simple little site, and I wonder why more companies aren't doing stuff like this. It isn't rocket science, really. Imagine if just 10% of the companies and brands we run into quasi-daily came up with truly helpful ideas like this one. Imagine your company, or some of your clients being in that brilliant little group.

It boggles the mind. (Okay, so... who's next?)

If you want to find out more, read the AdWeek piece about Nike's site here.

In stark contrast with Nike's innovative spirit, Microsoft has decided to become the next big name in an already crowded field of online classified ad providers. Read all about it on Shel Holtz' "A Shel of my former self" blog. Here's a taste:

Now, as if the field isn’t crowded enough, Microsoft is entering the fray with Windows Live Expo.

To compete in this field, you’d better offer something different and compelling. Expo (in beta, of course) is linking its free classified service to social networks. According to Expo’s product unit manager, Garry Wiseman (quoted in a ClickZ News item), “What sets Windows Live Expo apart is that people can set their own search parameters for goods and services. They can define their own marketplace universe.”

I guess we'll have to wait and see who wins the rat race. Too bad Microsoft couldn't come up with anything radically different. Oh well.

On a completely different note, Mary Schmidt wrote a very interesting piece on the difference between the value of a product as seen by its producer and value of that same product as seen by the consumer.

Early on, Mary makes a crucial point:

"If I’m going to buy asparagus, I’d much rather pay $1 a pound than $4, since supermarket asparagus is all pretty much the same. And, the organic stuff doesn’t taste significantly different. So, it’d be difficult to pitch “artisan asparagus” to a mass market."

To a mass market, yes. To a specific market, no.

Although... Nike could probably figure out a way to do it. (I'm only half joking.)

Finally, speaking of targeting specific markets, check out Diva Marketing's review of Pink Magazine.

Obviously, the magazine made a heck of an impression. Find out how here. (Read it now, thank us later.)

Still wondering if knowing your market better than your competitors can help you capture their interest (and adulation) better than any traditional, one-size-fits-all strategies? Still wondering if innovation (not just when it comes to actual products) can really trump out tried-and-true marketing campaigns?

Really?

If you're an asparagus farmer, maybe not. But then again... the answer just may be right under your nose.

Have a great Thursday everybody.