Enjoy a crazy, groovy holiday at RadioShack

I wasn't that fond of the first batch of RadioShack ads from Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners that launched over the summer. I thought they tried too hard to be cool (like my AdFreak posts!) and generally missed the mark (like my … well, never mind). The Shack's holiday messages, however, are sublime—supremely silly and superbly scored with dance-floor grooves. Click here to see seven spots. They effortlessly fuse sound, vision and fun, and at 15 seconds each, they leave you wanting more. Hey, nothing says Christmas like transvestite Sugar Plum Fairies bearing smartphones (above), a rotund rapper with a Nikon fixation, break-dancing astronauts and—most especially—a nutcracker DJ with a creepy ballerina/doll chorus. Forget "White Christmas." The soundtrack to this year's techno-consumer holiday is: "I've got a laptop, baby. … I make music with my friends!"

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on December 8, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (4)
Filed under Butler Shine Stern, Electronics, Gianatasio, Holidays, RadioShack

Lots of scoffing over RadioShack nickname

As everyone knows by now, RadioShack is calling itself "The Shack" in a new campaign from Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners that was panned before a single ad aired. You know you're in trouble when The Christian Science Monitor wonders if the nickname "The Outhouse" was taken. (I thought Christians were supposed to be forgiving!) The campaign arrives today, taking cues from Crispin Porter + Boguksy and Microsoft by basically throwing everything at the wall in an effort to be wacky and/or hip and hoping something sticks. The Shack (that feels so wrong to type) lets fly with a dozen spots that play like second-rate Monty Python animations. There is something unintentionally funny about the spot above, because it sure didn't take a truckload of Einsteins to come up with this campaign. A "Netogether" event places 17-foot laptops in New York's Times Square and San Francisco's Justin Herman Plaza. These mammoth PCs present prime opportunities for porn hacks, but that would just grab headlines and encourage The Shack to plan more stunts, so let's hope nobody tries.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Over on BrandFreak:
Hey, RadioShack, maybe it's time to bring back Howie and Teri

Published on August 6, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (2)
Filed under Butler Shine Stern, Electronics, Gianatasio, RadioShack

Shatner back, still going strong for Priceline

A lucky couple live the dream in this new Priceline spot from Butler Shine Stern & Partners: They get kidnapped by William Shatner so he can find them the best travel deal in a lousy economy. Hey, it's my dream, OK? Shatner is as self-consciously hammy and earnest as ever, an elite old-school pop-culture icon whose appearances always please. At 77, Shats is still mining a level of mass appeal that's probably impossible for current stars to attain in our media-fragmented landscape. He's like the salt vampire from Star Trek's first aired episode: ancient, alternately frightening and ridiculous, but thoroughly unforgettable and possibly the last of his kind. A different actor will portray James T. Kirk in the upcoming Star Trek prequel. Priceline will have a new pitchman one day. But there'll never be another Bill Shatner. That's probably a good thing.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on January 13, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Filed under Butler Shine Stern, Gianatasio, Priceline

Time to get cracking on that potato patch

Everyone wants to know what the economic downturn tsunami cataclysm apocalypse will mean for the average consumer. Ed Cotton of Butler Shine Stern & Partners takes a crack at it with an interesting list of what comes next after we wake up to a tough truth: that the era of high living on cheap credit is over. Cotton proposes some brands that could benefit—software like Quicken for budget planning, stores like Costco for bulk-buying 80-ounce jars of mayo and Home Depot/Lowe's for DIY home improvement, etc. As David Burn at AdPulp notes, though, Cotton's most intriguing thing to watch is the rise of a grow-your-own-food movement. The part that shocked me was this stat: Americans have an average of $50,000 of annual food production potential on their properties today. Really? I'm a New York City apartment dweller, so count me out (beyond some basil in the window sill). $50K? Forget about the coupon clipping—get planting, people!

—Posted by Brian Morrissey

Published on October 10, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Filed under Butler Shine Stern, Finance, Morrissey