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Celebrate Feb. 2 with a plate of groundhog
Aw yeah, take a look at what’s about to claim a place alongside my coveted Alex Bogusky commemorative plate. This limited-edition homage to Pennsylvania's Groundhog & Shadow tourism campaign continues Red Tettemer’s impressive track record of bizarre promotional gimmicks—sausage foosball, cemetery toasters and topless staffers, just to name a few. If you weren’t one of the elite marketing bloggers to receive the groundhog plate, fear not. There’s one for sale on eBay. And judging from the fact that bidding was at $51 with eight days remaining on the auction, mine might be soon to follow. —Posted by David Griner |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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Yes, there's a football game on Sunday, too
Who will Americans be rooting for to win the big game on Sunday? The answer may depend on whether they're real football fans. Among the public in general, a USA Today/Gallup poll finds respondents split almost evenly, with 31 percent preferring the Cardinals, 29 percent the Steelers and the rest indifferent. Among people who identified themselves as pro-football fans, though, the Cardinals beat the Steelers by three field goals (44 percent to 35 percent, with the rest not having a preference). If the Cardinals get creamed, as many people expect, does this mean disappointed football fans will tune out early? Advertisers who bought time late in the game will certainly hope not. —Posted by Mark Dolliver |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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Sir Martin discovers new passion: blogging
Sadly, as in years past, I had to miss Davos this year. Bummer. Luckily, WPP CEO and Davos fixture Martin Sorrell is blogging from the World Economic Forum for the Financial Times. That social-media tutorial is coming in handy. So far, he's posted three entries—and one inscrutable photo of himself wearing an Obama ski hat and standing with a dog in the snow. What's clear is that Sir Martin doesn't like crowds. In fact, I get the distinct impression he doesn't think many of his fellow attendees are important enough to be there and make him wait on line. This is how he began an entry yesterday, ostensibly about a chat the Chinese premier gave: "Far too crowded. Probably 500 people over the top. Last year 2000 was heavy, 2600 is too many. Some can't attend sessions even having tried to book online from home. Participant numbers should be reduced. Security is also very tight, aggravated by the crush. There are heavy lines and queuing, especially early in the morning." —Posted by Brian Morrissey |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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Canada spurns infidelity ad for Super Bowl
ESPN isn't the only sports-related entity that has shunned infidelity-dating service Ashley Madison. CTV, the station that will beam the Super Bowl across Canada this Sunday, is barring this 30-second Ashley Madison spot from the broadcast because, it says, it doesn't want such adulterous filth running alongside work from "quality brands." Well, maybe not filth—it's hardly a racy spot—but it is more blatantly immoral than, say, a beer commercial. Maybe Ashley Madison president Noel Biderman should spend less time feigning indignation and more time sandblasting the scammers and webcam girls off his precious Web site, just in case one of his stupid ads doesn't get blackballed. —Posted by David Kiefaber |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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Sony's living mannequins swarm Manhattan
Mannequins take Manhattan! Today! With Sony VAIOs! New Yorkers have ad shop 180LA to blame for what sounds like a pretty creepy campaign. Press materials ask us to "picture 10 mannequins sitting at a cafe, IMing, blogging, updating their Facebook pages and tempting onlookers to check out the beautiful new [VAIO P Series] device." Imagine it? I can't get it out of my head! The "living mannequins" are premiering this morning at Grand Central Station, no doubt to the delight of commuters who haven't recovered from that "world's biggest wheel of cheese" promotion there a couple of years back. Sony says the big dummies will "circulate throughout the city's hottest neighborhoods." Thank goodness, SoHo won't miss out. There's a Fashion Week tie-in, as the mannequins have been dressed by young designers. "Imagine going about your day when suddenly you see something out of place: It's a strikingly beautiful mannequin. She's alive. And she's holding the VAIO P Series, motioning for you to join her." Frankly, I think I'll buy a Mac. You guys are freaking me out. |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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It's looking bleak for Super Bowl Single Girl
Oh good, more desperate singles pulling undignified advertising stunts! This time it's Amy Borkowski, a New York comedian who's been trying to raise $3 million to air her own personals ad on the Super Bowl. With two days to go, she's raised $6,205. (Where's David Armano when you need him?) "Dating is basically a numbers game," Amy says, "and I figured getting myself in front of a captive audience of 60 million men would increase my odds of meeting Mr. Right." As opposed to, you know, developing hobbies and interests through which she could meet like-minded people. Yes, we know it's a joke. Via Deadspin. |
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Published on January 30, 2009 | Permalink
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Cliff Freeman the IM bot is ready for a chat
Cliff Freeman & Partners might not be the agency that springs to mind when you think of cutting edge. Still, the shop wants to get in on the trend of having conversations with customers. Its new Web site takes this perhaps a step too far. It turns its eponymous founder into an IM bot that supposedly "learns" as it converses more. Maybe. I confess a slightly irrational antipathy for bots, which remind me of 2002. It's hard not to feel like a moron carrying on a conversation with them. Anyway, give it a whirl. Maybe you'll have more luck. On top of that, agency employees will chat away with the public through an AOL Instant Messenger integration. I didn't have any luck reaching a human. —Posted by Brian Morrissey |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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McMahon, Hammer head to the Super BowlIt's either a watershed moment for pop culture, or a sure sign that Western civilization has completely gone to pot: Ed McMahon and M.C. Hammer will appear together in a Super Bowl spot this Sunday for Cash4Gold.com (not to be confused with CashForGoldUSA.com, which encourages you to steal from old people, not listen to them). McMahon rapped last year in a heinous campaign for FreeCreditReport.com in an effort to pay off his debts and not lose his home. We'd hoped he wouldn't have to debase himself like that again, but here we are. Cash-strapped Hammer, who may have less street cred than his octogenarian co-star, sold millions of albums in the '80s and early '90s, a fact we'd all rather forget, but the Poobah of parachute pants just won't let well enough alone. The spot, called "One-Up," was shot at McMahon's home in Beverly Hills, so at least we know he isn't living on the street just yet. Euro RSCG Edge created the ad but goes out of its way to share the blame with Havas sibling Arnold and director Bryan Buckley. The clip's under strict embargo, but I've seen a preview. Be afraid on Sunday, America. Be very afraid. —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Barbarian fighting the good fight on Twitter
It's not hard to find bad news about the media industry, whether it's the plummeting ad revenues for newspapers, the layoffs at magazines or the full-blown ad recession. It can be a real bummer. But what bleeds leads, as they say. A self-described bunch of "concerned PR professionals" have set up a Twitter account called TheMediaIsDying to chronicle media-industry layoffs so that fellow flacks know who to take off their spam—I mean contact—lists. It has attracted more than 10,000 followers. The Barbarian Group's Rick Webb, a firm believer in awesomeness of the Internet, has had enough and, with colleague Noah Brier, begun a rival feed: MediaIsThriving. The feed aggregates evidence of media doing quite well, thank you very much, such as the growth in cable-TV jobs, French movies doing nicely and the Financial Times growing readership after hiking subscription rates. UPDATE: Add another optimistic media-focused Twitter feed to the mix: TheMediaIsHirin. —Posted by Brian Morrissey |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Dry-cleaning ads are not usually this catchy
I hadn't heard of Erin Ivey, the "urban folk sweetheart" of Austin, Texas, before seeing this bizarrely perky new dry-cleaning commercial for some joint called Reid's Cleaners. Ivey is certainly a natural at laundry-related advertising. She writes on her blog: "i sold my soul to the sultans of clean. haven't actually seen the ad yet, but i had a blast recording the jingle (written by the brilliant John Mills) and taping the tv commercial in Austin. i kept a video blog through the whole process and will post that here soon. thanks for all your texts and emails about it. it's really me." She's on Twitter, too, for those immediately besotted. —Posted by Tim Nudd |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Giant city of cards is no match for Lexus ES
Think your job is stressful? Try being Bryan Berg, the world-record holder for cardstacking. Berg was enlisted by Lexus and its ad agency, Team One, to build a cityscape of cards on and around a Lexus ES for the ad above, to show how smoothly the ES engine runs. The automaker's idea was to "put the ES in the most fragile and unstable environment imaginable." It took Berg 18 days and 108,864 cards to create that environment. Viewers might not realize that the cardstacking was done for real, so at the end of the spot, they're directed to Lexus.com/cards, where a behind-the-scenes video explains the whole process. It must have sucked when the driver closed the door and caused the whole thing to collapse. —Posted by Tim Nudd |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Who'll win the game of endorsement deals?
Which of Super Sunday's players are likely to end up sought after by marketers for endorsement deals? Noting that much depends on how the game itself goes, a bulletin from Dave Brown Talent (which toils in the endorsement field) points to some plausible candidates, even while conceding no player on either sideline figures to reach Peyton Manning status as an endorser. Among players on the favored Steelers, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and safety Troy Polamalu are singled out (the latter has already done that Coke Zero spot for the game), with wide receiver Hines Ward and running back Willie Parker also mentioned as possibilities. Of the Cardinals, quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald are obvious endorsement-deal candidates, with wide receiver Anquan Boldin and running back Edgerrin James also in the mix. The talent firm cautions, though, that a great performance on the field doesn't necessarily translate into success as an endorser—a point it illustrates by pointing to Dexter Jackson, who won the MVP award as a Tampa Bay Buccaneer in the 2003 Super Bowl but made little impact in the marketing realm. —Posted by Mark Dolliver |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Late to Twitter? Brands may be out of luck
A few months back, I made a pleasant discovery: The popular social site Twitter would release inactive user names if you asked them to. This was great news for brands (and anyone else) who showed up late to the microblogging party and found their preferred name already taken. Sure enough, I made a request for a name that hadn't been used in two years and got it without a hitch. But now Twitter has decided to stop granting almost all similar requests. "Due to high ticket volume, Twitter Support is no longer releasing inactive user names unless in cases of trademark or copyright violation," an automated e-mail response told me when I requested another long-unused name this week. "We are working on releasing all inactive user names in the future, however, we will no longer manually release them on an individual basis." While I understand the reasoning, it's a shame that Twitter has left users (and potential users) in an awkward purgatory by refusing to release individual names or delete all inactive accounts. Brand-name stewards might still have a chance if they can argue "trademark or copyright violation." So, if you're lucky, you could get maliciously brandjacked, and then Twitter might listen to you. —Posted by David Griner |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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The undead could use some decent therapy
These posters by Grey, advertising a medical center's psychological counseling services, are pretty cool and disturbing. They might actually some viewers to need psychological counseling, so they work doubly hard for the client. The tagline, "Look inside yourself," is interpreted in creepily literal fashion in two iterations. One shows "Simon," the another "Roxana." Maybe they're different sides of the same twisted psyche? Actually, they appear to be more possessed—or dead—than disturbed, more in need of an exorcist or a mortician than a therapist. (That's also true of rocker-turned-insurance-ad-superstar Iggy Pop, who looks positively corpselike these days, and can do probably do that same gross trick with his eyes.) These ads are from the goth capital of the world, Romania, land of vampires and Whopper Virgins. Via Ads of the World. —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Spirit flight attendants despise apron logos
Spirit Airlines, which has courted controversy in the past with its "Many Islands, Low Fares" (MILF) ad campaign, is stirring the pot yet again by putting Bud Light logos on its flight attendants' uniforms. Critics of this new measure—many of whom are Spirit flight attendants themselves—claim that, in addition to turning them into "walking billboards," the logos make everyone's job harder by encouraging in-flight drunkenness. Spirit has turned a deaf ear to their concerns, mainly because they've gone too far to stop selling out now. With the overhead bins, tray tables, ticket jackets, cups, napkins and boarding passes auctioned off to various sponsors, there isn't much ad space left. And while this promotional tactic is certainly coarse, people who get loaded on airplanes usually plan on doing so before the beverage cart comes around. |
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Published on January 29, 2009 | Permalink
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Virgin sues Adrants for posting a parody ad
In a baffling act of litigious bullying, Virgin America has filed a lawsuit against the popular advertising blog Adrants for posting and commenting on a parody ad. The spoof ad showed a picture of that US Airways jet floating in the Hudson River, alongside the message "Fly Virgin America." Adrants initially noted that the ad's "origins are suspect," and later updated the post to make it clear that the ad was a parody from someone outside Virgin. Then Adrants pulled the item entirely. But that apparently wasn't enough for Virgin America, which on Monday filed a "complaint for trademark infringement, false designation of origin and false and deceptive advertising, trademark dilution, false and misleading statements, dilution in violation of California law, and defamation." (You can read the 14-page court document over on Cityfile.) Adrants scribes Steve Hall and Angela Natividad are wisely avoiding public comment on the issue. But it's hard to take this kind of threat seriously from the Virgin brand family, which has exploited a young girl's picture on Flickr and spun other people's PR disasters into profit. UPDATE: Adweek talks to some lawyers about the case. One believes Virgin has "a fairly weak case." And another wonders if the lawsuit, if not the parody ad, is part of a "brilliant viral marketing PR campaign" for Virgin. If so, it's not so brilliant. |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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Cutwater's Ray Ban virals get more randomCutwater had that big hit in 2007 with the "Guy catches glasses with face" video (below), which has gotten about 4 million views on YouTube. Now, the agency is back with some more virals for the sunglasses brand, although this time the product is much less central. Four videos have rolled out in the last four weeks, the most popular one being the sloppy "Cow gives birth to a dude" (above). The adult-size, slimy newborn emerges with sunglasses on—that's the extent of the product connection. Still, the thing's gotten almost 1.7 million views, so there's a market for this stuff. The other three new videos, "Disco Ballers," "Green Screen Guy" and "Tallest ice cream," don't feature any halfway believable stunts or nasty birth footage, so they might not do as well. |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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Prythee, canst thou make that logo bigger?
Bringing it in true old-school fashion, a rare surviving example of a 16th-century design portfolio, of the kind used by Medieval bookbinders to show off their typefaces, has been discovered in England. The Macclesfield Alphabet Book is more than just a prop for ye olde job interviewe. It features 14 different types of decorative alphabets—including anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and foliate alphabets, and two sets of borders in remarkably preserved colors and gold. The British Library is eager to acquire the book, and so far they've raised £340,000 of the £600,000 purchase price from the library of the Earls of Macclesfield. The book's been sitting there since 1750, as it appears the Earls are busy creative-director types who have completely overlooked the portfolio sitting on their desk for the past few centuries. Via Boing Boing. |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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Guinness World Records joins 21st century
The Jim Pattison Group, parent company of Ripley Entertainment, bought the Guinness World Records franchise in early 2008, and was determined to wipe the dust off the old book and breathe a little life back into the whole enterprise. Thanks to a dose of modern marketing and some sweet co-branding, they've done it. There are now two Guinness editions: the basic 2009 edition, complete with its shiny foil cover and replete with all-new 3-D photography; and the 2009 gamer edition, coordinated with Twin Galaxies, the world's official video-game scorekeeper. Don't want to just read about it? You can play Guinness World Records: The Videogame (trailer posted above), now out for the Wii and DS, or head over to watch videos of the latest records on the Guinness World Records YouTube channel. All of which should help Guinness keep its own record as the best-selling copyrighted book of all time. Not bad at all for a 54-year-old brand. Via Underwire. |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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NBC, won't you please take PETA's money?
Sure, companies have groused about their spots getting banned from the Super Bowl for years. But this year it's full-blown PR-stunt mania. I've gotten releases about a half-dozen such ads, and I've seen a few more on the Web. Were these commercials really submitted for approval? Who knows for sure. Publicity's what their makers crave, so I won't mention any names. Well, one name: PETA, because its spot—though clearly designed not to air—is way better than most of what will actually appear during the game. That is one lucky stalk of broccoli! Anyway, instead of being prudish, I wish NBC had accepted the ad, charged PETA $3 million and put those whining whale watchers outta business when they couldn't pay. Then we could all wear fur coats, eat veal and watch football in peace. —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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T-Mobile gets to bottom of butt dialing issue
This T-Mobile spot for the BlackBerry Flip posits that a cell phone call can be made using one's buttocks. It's an intriguing concept, and if it works, it would save time and effort, allowing those of us who are too lazy to work a keypad the old-fashioned way to dial without removing the phone from our pants. Unfortunately, like so much of what you see in commercials, it doesn't work that well in real life. I know because I've tried it. In fact, I'm wiggling all around on my chair as I type this very post. Frankly, I'm getting sore. And my co-workers are looking at me funny. It's research, people! |
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Published on January 28, 2009 | Permalink
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The most awful Super Bowl video in history
It's hard to top Microsoft Songsmith for absolute grating terribleness, but the Southern Food Brokerage definitely holds its own. This retro Super Bowl-themed disaster, based on the Chicago Bears' infamous "Super Bowl Shuffle" from 1985-86, is truly something to behold. I especially like the dedication at the end, as if the participants were island villagers sacrificing themselves to the pride-devouring gods of Nabisco and Del Monte. |
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Published on January 27, 2009 | Permalink
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Crispin dips into the past for Coke Zero ad
The ubiquitous Crispin Porter + Bogusky has remade Coca-Cola's famous 1980 "Mean Joe Greene" commercial for the Super Bowl on behalf of Coke Zero. Pittsburgh Steeler Troy Polamalu takes over the role of the surly, injured player on his way to the locker room. Presumably, there's also new pre-teen kid who offers him a Coke Zero, as the original actor would be getting a bit long in the tooth. (When a 40-year-old guy follows an athlete around the catacombs of a sports arena, we call it stalking.) But you never know. The client promises an unexpected twist that illustrates how the product delivers "real Coke taste and zero calories." So, there's a surprise in store. Does Polamalu tear off a false face to reveal Mean Joe, still surly, beneath? (Joe wouldn't stand for that Coke Zero swill, by the way. He'd demand the "Real Thing.") Maybe the original kid actor, now grown up, appears to tell us all to stop fixating on overhyped pro sports and commercials and get a life. In the trippy Coke universe, anything's possible. UPDATE: Phil Mooney, the historian/archivist for Coca-Cola, has posted some behind-the-scenes footage from the spot on his Coca-Cola Conversations blog. —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 27, 2009 | Permalink
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Carnival enlists fun director who directs fun
As part of its new campaign from Arnold, Carnival Cruises has introduced a "fun director," though he doesn't seem like much fun to me. This dude's tightly wound and intense, a high-school track-coach type who puts guests and himself under extreme pressure to enjoy themselves. His catchphrase is, "Buckle up, buttercup," which for various reasons is the last thing passengers want to hear on an ocean voyage. His appearance makes me wistful for the ultimate cruise director: Julie McCoy, portrayed by uber-perky Lauren Tewes on The Love Boat, who never hesitated to upgrade guests to Captain Stubing's table for dinner if it would further the cause of '70s-era piña-colada-fueled love. Another thing that bugs me about the fun director: He sorta resembles Gopher. —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 27, 2009 | Permalink
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E*Trade's talking baby is ready to rise again
Waaaa! That's not the sound of E*Trade's talking baby crying from hunger or diaper rash. (It's a talking baby, after all, so it could simply say, "Jeez, am I hungry!" or "Ow, this diaper rash is a pain in the ass!") That's me crying, because the insufferable brat is back in another Super Bowl spot by Grey. I know these ads are popular, but I can feel my brain cells dying each time that stock-savvy cherub pops onto the screen. This year, the crib-based assault is spilling over like a bottle of formula into Facebook, Twitter and online videos. Waaaa! That's the sound of everyone who's tired of this cutesy, lowest-common-denominator approach and longs for something better—like another spot from GoDaddy, which is high-concept by comparison. It's also, alas, the wail of countless investors, from E*Trade and elsewhere, who are seeking a few hours of escape by watching the Big Game only to be faced once more by that precocious preschooler looking to pick our pockets as the market continues to slide. Waaaaa! —Posted by David Gianatasio |
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Published on January 27, 2009 | Permalink
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