Only a couple days after the keffiyeh kerfuffle as the Rachael Ray debacle has been so nicely dubbed, I have stumbled upon Hill Holidays new print ads for Dunkin Donuts and their iced coffees. Now, I happen to be a big fan of Dunkin Donuts coffee. I would prefer a cup of their brew over other places any day. On occasion, I have even bought their ground coffee to make for myself at home. Secondly, iced coffee may possibly be one of the best drinks on Earth (again, my humble opinion), as it not only delivers me the caffeine jolt I need and the flavor I love& but it comes without the risky concern of burning my tongue. So, I say this with much sadness, that this new print campaign just doesnt do it for me. Though it is nicely executed, if anything, it makes me want the thing that is flavoring the coffee more. Just look at those blueberries - imagine a nice cobbler now. Yum. And this is also coming from someone who is a huge lover of Hazelnut Coffee. But seeing those actual hazelnuts, sorta ruins it I guess. And considering I have liked most everything else that HH has done for the brand, this almost comes as a slight shock (Remember the spot making fun of coffee size names& awesome). What do all you people in ad land think? Yay or nay?

Technorati Tags: iced coffee, flavoring, Dunkin Donuts, caffeine, caffeine addiction, advertising, Hill Holiday, print, marketing

I am currently on a road trip across America and I have encountered some interesting brands along the way. One of those brands is Bong Spirits is a Vodka in a designer bottle that looks like a bong. I saw it on the shelf at a small bar in Dallas, TX. The company know their target audience, which they call the Tribe. The tribe includes artists, athletes, musicians and cool people in general according to Bong Spirit. The company has a separate site to highlight the tribe, www.spiritofthebrand.com. Heres what they see it: Its an interesting niche brand with a unique packaging. Some of their more creative customers have already found alternative ways to use the bottle.

We have heard this issue before. The ban on tobacco which is responsible for a lot of health risks and deaths all over the world has been a hot item anywhere today. Places have started to ban smoking in general places and to push it to another level, advertising a ban on tobacco products will be the focal point on World Tobacco Day.

The way to do it is to orient and show the people what effects tobacco does bring and how it can ruin lives. Many of us know already the harmful effects but choose to disregard it. Perhaps this time around, they can leave their eyes open to the advertising efforts for their own good.

To avert the threats of the use of tobacco by young people, Ms. Wellington said this years tobacco day would focus on banning all forms of direct and indirect tobacco advertising, including promotion and sponsorship by the tobacco industry.

Tobacco is said to be the only legal consumer product that killed one-third of its users with victims dying on average of 15 years prematurely.

Ms. Wellington said nicotine used in the manufacture of tobacco was an addictive substance, which made users dependent on tobacco for their lifetime and called for a ban by policy makers to halt the practice.

(Source) Modern Ghana

Technorati Tags: tobacco, world tobacco day, advertising, smoking, deaths, health risks, smoking

Taco Bell is the latest in the trend of large companies embracing and co-opting internet memes for their advertising, and this most recent one is one of the most apparent/blatant. While many are crying rip-off, its definitely embracing the characteristics of the internet drive thru meme and eventually coming full circle, exposing more to the idea and yielding a recent rise in drive thru raps popping up on youtube.

Heres the somewhat dumbed down and sanitized version injected with a few tantalizing food shots that Taco Bell spot currently airing:

And one of the older Taco Bell Drive Thru raps with a substantial amount of views on Youtube from last year:

And just incase you didnt have enough, this is one of the first (and highest viewed) of the drive thru rap memes from 2006:

Its pretty obvious that the Taco Bell spot is a pretty close-to-carbon-copy of the internet videos. So is it just heavily influenced? or is it a rip-off, as many are questioning? Does it make a difference? Co-opting internet memes seems to be a fairly successful tactic, and this instance is no different. The resurgence in popularity of drive thru rapping seems exemplary of the success of the spot. Makes me wonder whats next.

Dell, the nations number two pc provider has found themselves in a bit of hot water.

A court in New York has found Dell guilty of false advertising and fraud.

The company engaged in abusive debt collection practices, misled consumers about the financing terms for which they had qualified and failed to provide consumers with promised rebates, according to court papers.

Get the full story here
My favorite part is that theyd be abusive and persistent collecting the debts but would never answer the phone if you have a problem, youd think you could combine the two phone banks.

Its easy for computer companies, especially big ones like Dell to take advantage of people, since theyre not necessarily technically savvy. They want a computer that can check e-mail, surf the web, maybe a nice graphics card, and thats about it. Like anything else, it helps to be educated. If a deal or financing sounds too good to be true, even with brand name computers, it probably is.

I remember when companies cared about their image and business practices, and tried their best to disassociate themselves from people who generated bad press or might get the company in trouble.
Physician, heal thyself.

Technorati Tags: Dell, fraud, Andrew Cuomo, false advertising, karma is a bitch

This summer, Hellboy 2: The Golden Army hits theaters. Much like we saw earlier this Spring with Indiana Jones and their promotion ties, Hellboy makers are making sure not to miss a marketing opportunity, Universal Pictures and Dark Horse Comics have teamed with Adidas to create some limited edition Originals with Hellboy colors and insignia. Word on the street is that a small number of the shoes will be available this July, perfect timing for the films release on July 11. Of course, this isnt the only marketing techniques they are employing. After the success of The Dark Nights viral campaign, Hellboy is following in the steps (hopefully we wont have 33 sites again& that was nuts). It appears that HETFET.org as well as BigRedSqueakyClean.com are both sites for the movie and HETFET is updated often adding stanzas to a poem. With all these viral campaigns for the summer blockbusters, I started to wonder, whatever happened to making awesome trailers and hoping people go see your movie? It may just be me (in fact, Im sure its just me and this could be because Im not a comic book reader) but you may make cool sites but I dont know how much that will affect my opinion on wanting/not wanting to see a movie. So, comic kids out there& can you spare any enlightenment on the subject? Do the viral campaigns help these movies out? Inquiring minds are dying to know.

Technorati Tags: Hellboy, Dark Horse, blockbusters, summer movies, movies, advertising, viral marketing, promotion, Adidas, Universal

 

 

Well, not exactly. Dunkin Donuts has recently pulled an online ad featuring their bubbly spokeswoman wearing what could appear to be a keffiyeh - a traditional Palestinian scarf that has come to represent terrorism. The banner ad, made by Starcom of Boston, was only meant to advertise and promote their iced drinks for the warmer seasons. While according to many of the news articles circling around it was simply a black and white scarf with a paisley pattern, DD decided it was better to just pull the ad to avoid any confusion and further misunderstanding. It all seemed to start with a post from Michelle Malkin last Friday. For those who dont know who she is, Malkin is a syndicated conservative columnist& so pointing fingers towards possible terrorist ties doesnt come as a surprise to most.

 

Malkin posted online that, has come to symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad. Popularized by Yasser Arafat and a regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking videos, the apparel has been mainstreamed by both ignorant (and not-so-ignorant) fashion designers, celebrities, and left-wing icons.     

Dunkin Donuts responded by stating the scarf was picked out by a stylish for the advertising photo shoot and that it was never meant to represent or symbolize anything. Hey, check out a catalogue or most any store right now. I can almost guarantee youll find a similar looking scarf. Nonetheless, the ad is gone. Looks like the fashion industry might be under scrutiny next, if they keep designing things that may look like something it shouldnt be&? What are your thoughts on the ads removal?

Technorati Tags: Dunkin Donuts, Rachael Ray, Michelle Malkin, Fox News, conservative, politics, iced coffee, terrorism, Palestinian, scarf, fashion, advertising

Branding is a part of marketing but it is also the other way around. Without a brand, marketing personnel will have a hard time coming up with advertising campaigns that can more or less help boost the market awareness of a certain good or service since the absence of a brand that can be recalled and placed into mind would exist.

Just take a look at the successful brands we have today. Most of them are associated with a certain commodity.

1. Marlboro – Cigarettes
2. Sony – Electronics
3. Kelloggs – Cereals
4. Hewlett Packard – Printers
5. Nike – Sports Shoes
6. Shell – Gasoline
7. Budweiser - Beer

If you will notice, they have established their brand already and at times, you may even hear people calling the brand rather than the product. Successful branding cannot be achieved overnight. Just look at these brands, it took them years before positioning themselves to where they are today.

COMPANY branding is not just a logo. Its all about perceptions, how your customers or clients view your company and the products and services you provide.

(Source) News.com.au

Technorati Tags: branding, marketing, marlboro, budweiser, shell, sony, kelloggs, hewlett packard, nike, advertising

I like it, but Im not madly in love with it.

Perhaps youve seen the talk show spots:


I like the concept of the talk show, theyre going to use it to launch new products, I dont mind the guests (supermodel Heidi Klum, pop and TV personality David Hasselhoff, Star Trek’s Leonard Nimoy, NASA astronaut Richard Searfoss, Napster inventor Shawn Fanning and former basketball coach Bob Knight), or the obviously scripted banter meant to forward the main selling points as put forward by VW&.

The people want to be safe: In March 2008, Volkswagen officially became the first non-luxury car manufacturer to provide an Electronic Stabilization Program (ESP) as standard equipment across its entire 2009 offering — a full three years ahead of the national mandate. ESP works in conjunction with Anti-lock Braking and other safety systems and could save over 10,000 lives per year according to the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration (NHTSA).
· The people want to be kind to the environment: In mid-2008, Volkswagen will introduce the paradigm-shifting TDI Clean Diesel engine option in its 2008 Jetta sedan and SportsWagen models, which is the first 50-state legal diesel engine to provide extremely high fuel efficiency and class-leading carbon emission reductions.
· The people want to celebrate their individuality: 2008 marks the 10th Anniversary of the New Beetle, a pop culture icon, which began selling in the U.S. in March 1998.

Heres my primary problem with the spot: I think the people want the old Beetle back, and this is going to remind them of it.

The new Beetle doesnt have the versatility (removable/customizable shell), and from what I can gather, doesnt have nearly the sales numbers or the nostalgia factor of the original. So why put out one of your most popular products that is no longer available to remind people that they cant get it anymore or to remind them that your company tried to put out a newer version and ticked people off? Coca-Cola will never celebrate the anniversary of New Coke. Could this not backfire and embitter people towards the newer model of the Beetle?
If the new Beetle is a pop culture icon, why is the new Beetle not hosting the show?

Perhaps it will eventually, in a Leno-for-Carson type way, that certainly was a smooth transition&well, maybe not.

But overall, anything that can bring more Cindy Blackman to the people cant be a bad thing. She has great comic timing in a couple of the ads.

Technorati Tags: Volkswagen, VW, Max, Das Auto, Heidi Klum, Bob Knight, David Hasselhoff, Beetle, Leonard Nimoy, advertising, marketing, Cindy Blackman

Ive stumbled across this campaign a few times this week, and Im still not completely sure how i feel about it, but it takes an interesting perspective on the pro-bono education PSA. The Ad Council, The Lumina Foundation for Education the American Council on Education and Publicis NY are teaming up for the second year of the KnowHow2Go campaign. Foreign Languages, Algebra II, and Biology are looking for opponents in a cage-death-match-esque battle.

From the release:

The KnowHow2GO campaign encourages low-income and first-generation students in grades 8 through 10 to take the steps necessary to prepare for college. The new television, radio, print, outdoor and Web PSAs stress taking on the tough classes as one of those important steps.

An interesting strategy that automatically puts it at a different level than the usual PSA. The program itself is fairly broad, but these spots certainly do a good bit to draw interest to the program itself. Its an interesting take on education, on reaching a young (8-10th grade) audience, and on the PSA.

The full press release, including the print and radio spots, can be found here at the Lumina Foundation site.

As far as modern marketing is concerned, branding has been totally left astray. Many of us, particularly the ones coming from business schools, have been oriented and educated on how branding plays an integral role towards the marketing mix we all know of today.

Much of the problem lies on focusing too much on building rapport and hype. Much ballyhooed ad campaigns in both print and TV advertising have increased the pressure for stores today to deliver and live up to its name. Sadly, while the marketing aspect of things may have been addressed, a lot of elements as far as living up to what people perceived has been totally overlooked.

The final results? Brand failure due to inability to deliver what products have bargained for in the consumer world today.

One of the tragedies is when a company has very hip advertising for a store, but a consumer walks into the store to discover its not all that hip. In 1990, Kmart had price-winning advertising — it was very hip and cool.

But when you moved into the stores, they were dirty and out-of-stock. People reacted along the lines of ‘how can they tell us its such a fabulous place when it is actually not? Its important that the advertising and the experience one has in the store, match up.

(Source) Business Standard

Technorati Tags: branding, marketing, brand failure, advertising, TV advertising, products, marketing mix

Much like professional wrestling, we in the industry are very protective of our trade secrets, but in Australia, they are airing a 10 part series on advertising and the strategies behind certain products, how to market, and what is and is not effective.

From The New Zealand Herald

The Gruen Transfer is the brainchild of talk-show host Andrew Denton, who wants to give people a deeper understanding of the ads they see each day.

Named after the point when a consumer starts to lose awareness and be sucked in by things like lighting and music, it features regular industry panellists and guests discussing how to sell products.

The first episode looks at the way advertisers market beer, the second addresses underwear and the third banks.

& Advertisers put their skills to the test and show how they can make the seemingly unsellable appealing, such as whale meat. How do you make celibacy sexy, or portray Baghdad as a holiday destination?

I have to find me a copy of this show after seeing one of the promotional ads, satirizing the skin care industry.

Technorati Tags: Gruen Transfer, advertising news, Australia, Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain

Best commercials are produced by using minimal words. Summing up your message in a couple of words or less to allow people to get the message is the best way to gauge on what message/s you are trying to get across.

Global warming in this case simply needs more awareness and that is what most commercial public service announcements (PSA) aim to provide. It is something that does not have to be savvy. The occurrence is clear. You just have to voice out reality and send the messages and meanings loud and clear to the viewers who will be watching that ad.

Technorati Tags: global warming, PSA, public service announcements, awareness, voice, messages

No matter how old you are, you never seem to grow out of them. Some creatives at Leo Burnett must think the same thing. Kelloggs All Bran cereal, must like sister-cereal Special K, has a 10 Day Challenge. But unlike Special K, this challenge is to eat All Bran for 10 days in order to become a more regular you. So whats the spot? Well, its a construction worker testimional chock full of bathroom humor. I honestly dont even know if I heard everything the guy was saying other than being regular& I was too busy laughing.

As a side note on All Bran - when did they come out with so many flavor options? And crackers? And& drink mix??? I think I need to start paying more attention to my grocery store aisles. Oh, and listen to John McEnroe, hes the spokesman on the website.

Technorati Tags: All Bran, Kelloggs, cereal, advertising, 10 Day Challenge, John McEnroe, commercials, construction, bathroom humor

Two months ago, as part of our Culture Crash lecture series at VCU Brandcenter we heard a few perspectives on ethics. The panel of speakers included American Advertising Federation president Wally Snyder, Omnicom vice chairman Tim Love, and former P&G global marketing and government relations officer Bob Wheling. I recorded about thirty minutes of the lecture. There are some good examples of powerful messaging at the end of part 1 and the beginning of part two. I especially liked the Argentinian Election ad and the Amnesty International ad, which are located a few seconds into the second video. Overall, it was a good lecture.

In one of the latest spots from Apple, promoting iTunes, we get a 30 second clip of Coldplays second single from their upcoming Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends album, out June 17, 2008. The two have teamed together in a cross-marketing campaign that not only features the commercial but exclusive digital downloads. For instance, if you preorder the entire album, youll have access to this single. But the catch? You have to preorder through iTunes. The spot, in true Apple fashion, features some pretty cool animation. This time around, the animation is in sync with the song, letting you see the sounds you are hearing. In case you havent seen it yet, check out the spot below. For all you Coldplay fans out there, consider checking out the single, its a pretty solid song.

 

Technorati Tags: music, iTunes, Coldplay, Apple, animation, singles, tracks, albums, digital downloads

I guess its a Saatchi & Saatchi sorta day for me. However, this time, Im writing about new print ads from their Singapore office. The campaign, for the Aware Hotline, aims to show women that verbal abuse can be just as terrible and painful as physical abuse. The images are visually stirring and get the point across quickly and I think pretty effectively. The expression in the faces of both the men and the women are amazing and truly convey the anger/hurt of the situation. Overall, I think its a very good campaign for something that is such a sensitive subject. We can only hope that women do reach out and get help.

 

A few weeks back, the video of Kobe jumping an Aston Martin in his Nike Hyperdunks created quite a buzz, and certainly succeeded in increasing interest in the Hyperdunk.

Well, as anticipated, the Aston Martin wasnt the only thing to be jumped in a pair of Hypers. This week, the next viral video was released, featuring Kobe and the hyperdunks in all their glory, paired beautifully with the snake-pool-jumping crew of Jackass. Not the first pairing that would pop into my mind, but one thats definitely yielding additional hype.

Kobe, Hyperdunks, Aston Martins, and Jackass. They seem to have most of their bases covered (not to bring in a baseball reference), but its certainly drawing more interest, showing up everywhere from auto forums to sneakerhead blogs to jackass fan sites. I suppose thats exemplary of a good viral. and an interesting promotion for a pair of shoes.

Being the hot teenager model and actress that she is at the moment, controversial actress Lindsay Lohan has to be one of the top choices when you want quality endorsement that will certainly get attention instantly.

Especially if you are advertising feminine products, it would be best to get the popular female personalities today and Lindsay Lohan is definitely one that fills everything perfectly. Proactiv is a brand that promotes dermatology treatment for acne and whom other than actresses would want to always look good on and off the big screen?

Naughty as she may have been, it is her looks and overall popularity that is needed. If you are the focus of attention, it should not be surprising why Lohan is a wise endorser to choose.

Technorati Tags: lindsay lohan, proactiv, dermatology, treatment, acne, brand, model, actress, endorser, personalities

As many know, Olay has a line of anti-aging creams and whatnot, available throughout the world. Recently, Saatchi & Saatchi in London did a campaign for these products and the idea behind it? Hide your age& by camouflaging it with Olay products. The first of the three that I saw was the tiger ad. I must admit, I had to stare at it for a very long time in order to see the 40 in the animals stripes. The snake and leopard were easier, but that may only be because I already figured out the tiger. While its a very simple solution, I feel that perhaps the execution could have been done better, but only because it took so long to see. I know others that didnt see it at all and had to be told. It could hurt the campaign if the consumer just doesnt get it.

  

This of course brought to the mind the Olay ads from a couple years ago that Saatchi & Saatchi also did, but this was in Sydney. The campaign where the big 4-0 was creeping up on you and you should start taking precautions towards keeping it hidden - those precautions being the use of Olay products. Now, of course the strategy behind these two could have just been different enough, but when it comes down to it& Sydney did it better and pulled in the emotional tie. Thats not to say that I dislike the new campaign, like I said, its just too hard for me to see. Sorry, London. Better luck next time?

 

Technorati Tags: Olay, skincare, anti-aging, women, beauty products, Saatchi & Saatchi, advertising, print, campaigns