Caffeinated posts from a copywriter/adgrunt. I write about advertising, design, astronomy, cooking, and pretty much anything else that strikes my fancy, including random bits of reference info for work purposes. You may also know me as 'that other gal' who helps run Adland. | make contact | RSS Feed | ATOM

Monday, April 30, 2007
[ Brand experiences and social networking ]

+ The LA Times reports on brands creating social networks offline.

Both events are classic examples of "experiential" branding — making the companies into more than just sellers of commodities. Instead, they support and communicate with core customers, creating communities that ideally lead to higher sales.

Leading consumer brands are seeking to deepen this experiential element by creating similar communities, with retailers in particular augmenting events at their traditional bricks-and-mortar stores with online efforts aimed at striking up a "conversation" with customers.

Mark G. Parker, chief executive of Nike Inc., told analysts this year that the new power of the consumer was "the most compelling change we've seen over the past four or five years. They are dictating what the dialogue is, how we're conducting it, and it's definitely a two-way conversation."

While intense attention is being paid to online community building, retailers are continuing what Jeff Smith, head of consulting firm Accenture's global retail practice, says is a tradition of using the store as a focus for delivering "brand experiences."

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, branding, social networking

[ Right Said Fred in Daz advert - not too sexy ]

+ Back in December, I posted about Daz washing powder in the UK using Right Said Fred and a modified version from the one-hit wonder "I'm Too Sexy."

The spot has begun airing but apparently caused some rokus about being "too sexy". The Media Guardian says the ad has been cleared by the advertising watchdog after complaints that it was unsuitable for children.

In the ad, the band - clad in newly cleaned white T-shirts - perform their famous hit I'm Too Sexy, with the words amended to, "I'm too sexy for my whites, so sexy, so bright".

Singer Richard Fairbrass also moved his left hand down his chest towards his groin as he performed the reworked version of the 1991 number-two hit.

Five viewers complained, arguing that the ad was unsuitable for broadcast around children's television programmes, because of the use of the word "sexy" and the singer's "suggestive movements".

Some children were reported to have asked their parents what "sexy" meant.

In its ruling, the Advertising Standards Authority acknowledged parents' views that the ad was unsuitable to be shown around children's programmes, and agreed the singer's movements "could be considered to be mildly suggestive".

But the ASA also noted that the dancing of a female character watching the band in a pub "was humorous, not sexual".

"Young children who saw the ad were likely to respond to the humour, rather than viewing it in a sexual context," the ASA said.

"We understood that some parents may have felt uncomfortable explaining what 'sexy' meant, but we nevertheless concluded that the ad was suitable to be shown without a scheduling restriction."

Watch the advert here:
DAZ COMMERCIAL

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Labels: ad news, adgruntie

[ Slogans Inc. hah! ]

+ From the wonderful mind of Doug Savage.

Labels: adgruntie, fun

[ New Maytag Repairman actor selected ]

+ There were casting calls. There were auditions. And Maytag has now selected its new Maytag Repairman. Starting in May a new campaign featuring Clay Jackson will start running.

Clay Jackson of Richmond, Va., will be the next Maytag Repairman after conducting an extensive, open-to-the-public nationwide search. More than 1,500 people participated in the audition process including professional actors, construction workers, salesmen and stockbrokers. The two-month search included union casting calls, open auditions and mail-in submissions that were reviewed and evaluated by company representatives. According to Jackson, he decided to try out "on a whim" and attended the open audition in New York, focusing on bringing "something humorous and unexpected" to the character.

Having toured professionally after college, Jackson thought he had gotten acting out of his system when he left the theater in 2000. "The opportunity to combine my love of acting with being a spokesperson for the Maytag brand was something I couldn't ignore," explained Jackson, who had been selling real estate for his family's agency for the last several years.

Jackson is the fourth person to portray the brand icon during its 40-year existence - but don't expect to see your father's Ol' Lonely(R). The newly announced Maytag Repairman is sporting a new uniform, a new attitude and is an evolution of the dependable character that was created in 1967.

"The new Maytag Repairman will help revitalize the Maytag brand and its heritage by keeping one foot in our past while putting the other in our future," said Jeff Davidoff, vice president, brand marketing and communications, Maytag. "Clay is perfect for our new take on the role. He's energetic, young-at-heart and outgoing while still being dependable and reliable."

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, campaign

Thursday, April 26, 2007
[ This could be the best landing page ever! ]

+ brandflakesforbreakfast points to a post by usermonkey who clicked on a nicely designed WaMu banner ad and ended up at the landing page below. I LOVE this. Absolutely fantastic. This might be the best landing page I've ever seen...so far.



After you see the above, the block flips around to show more information. When you scroll over the various reasons, more copy "types" out underneath.



This is more great work for this brand. I have to say WaMu's advertising of late has been my favorite bank advertising by far. They aren't afraid to give their bank a human face and use humor well.

So often companies in the corporate world are afraid to take this route. It's refreshing and as darryl at brandflakesforbreakfast says "Acknowledging an ad campaign as an ad campaign takes the edge off the sell." From their tv spots to their interactive work, they definitely do have a nicely cohesive campaign that resonates and entertains while informing. Bravo!

UPDATE: I finally have the info for who is responisble for this work. Avenue A | Razorfish is doing the online creative for WaMu and copywriter Jenn's F-blog gives the inside scoop on the project as well as listing the different banner ads and other bits and pieces. Thanks for posting that Jenn!

Labels: ad review, adgruntie, online advertising, web

[ AWNY Awards ]

+ On Tuesday AWNY held their 10th annual Good, Bad & Ugly Awards Show. See results below from Brandweek:

The Advertising Women of New York honored Dove's "Evolution" with its top prize which showed an average-looking woman morph into a stunning model.

Dove also won the Grand Good in print for "Womanhood." The ad tells of survey results that showed that nearly every woman said “no” when asked if they were beautiful.

The Grand Good in the Internet category went to Nike for Nikewomen.com, from R/GA in New York.

Nike and Wieden + Kennedy were honored with a special 10 Years of Getting It Award in recognition of their history of work.

NBC received a They Get It Award for its long-running public service campaign, "The more you know."

The Grand Ugly in TV went to Pizza Hut for an ad starring Jessica Simpson for its Cheesy Bites pizza. Converse got the print Grand Ugly for its "Get Chucked" campaign, and the Internet Grand Ugly went to Carl's Jr. for a Web site for Spicy Buffalo Wings.

Other TV advertisers honored with Good Awards included: Dove, "Daughters," Ogilvy, Toronto; Dove, "Little Girls," Ogilvy, New York and Toronto; American Express, "Animals," Ogilvy, New York; Truth, "Knowledge Is Contagious," Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami, and Arnold, Boston; J.C. Penney, "Anthem," Saatchi & Saatchi, New York; Nike, "I Feel Pretty," Wieden, Portland, Ore.; Pantene, "Dolls," Grey, New York; and Secret, "I Told," Leo Burnett, Chicago.

A Bad Award in TV went to Swiffer; Bluefly and Go Daddy got Ugly Awards.

Good Awards in print were presented to Harley-Davidson, Carmichael Lynch, Minneapolis; American Express, "Ellen Questionnaire," Ogilvy, New York; Got Milk, "Mariska Hargitay," Lowe, New York; Olay, Saatchi & Saatchi, New York; Gardasil, "Tell Someone," DDB, New York; and Gap, "Keep It Simple," Laird + Partners, New York.

Evan Williams Whiskey and Vaseline received print Bad and Ugly Awards, respectively.

Good honors in online went to MyShape.com, Novasure and Tab Energy. The Ugly in online was given to Carl's Jr., and the Double Standard Award went to Reversa for its "See More Side Effects" Web site.

Labels: ad award, adgruntie

[ Guerrilla usability ]

+ The picture below gave me a good laugh this morning. (Via hi-res, via etre)

Labels: fun, life

[ Lame Tech Mascots ]

+ Wired features a gallery of the Lamest technology mascots. The Creative Suite Jester is just frightening!

(hat tip Clay)

Labels: adgruntie, branding

[ Rugby terminology ]

+ This small space ad ran in the UK in February and was created by Smarter Communications.

Labels: adgruntie, print

[ Marmite and Guinness? ]

+ Wow. What an interesting combination. This print ad is from early March in the UK.

Labels: adgruntie, print

[ Master of all or nothing? ]

+ Jack of all trades or master of none? An interesting question and discussion going on over at ideas on ideas with their post "Focused".

Labels: adgruntie, wisdom, work

Wednesday, April 25, 2007
[ Scratch 'n Sniff Stickers rock! ]



+ Alright, after staring at code for the last couple hours (oh and it was some javascript thing I had tried out for my archive menus that threw everything out of whack), I was going to turn off the computer and go veg out in front of the TV, but as I was checking my rss reader, I saw Jason at kottke.org had posted this:

Confession: I collected stickers when I was a kid. Put them in books. I remember most of these scratch 'n sniffs. Now I collect links and ideas...I wish they scratched 'n sniffed.

So, over to the scratch 'n sniff link I went. And OH-MY-GOD! Jason, I'll admit to collecting stickers as well. Hell, I even had a sticker book to put them in. And in fact, I still have my sticker books and they've got some of these scratch n' sniff stickers in them. Well, they're more buried in my old room at my parent's house. But still. I notice this list is missing rollerskate - and what exactly does space and rainbows smell like? (gah that sounds like some lyrical spam right there!) Maybe we need to create a sticker-collector support group. ;)

Labels: fun, life

[ Huzzah it works! ]

+ Blog layout has been fixed! This should now work in all browsers (well maybe wonky in IE - can't test it in that browser). I went back to the beginning and this time I checked as I went along using dreamweaver, which if I was smart and had thought about it properly, should have done the first time around. Would have saved me this headache.

I'm planning on going through my links and doing a tiny bit o' tinkering - so there will be some minor changes still to come.

Thank you and goodnight!

Labels: Cup of Java

[ I've got topless, I mean tableless! ]

+ Hello! The 3 of you that pop by here will notice a new look for Cup of Java. I figured it was about time to ditch the tables (of which the old layout had loads of) for tableless css layout. There may still be some wonkiness, but now you're forwarned, which is being forearmed. ;)

I am still using the old or classic blogger code rather than figuring out a whole new lingo - at least for the time being. Maybe sometime soon I'll take on that challenge, but too many other things on the plate right now.

If you do see something strange, please feel free to leave a comment.

Cheers!

UPDATE: So like an idiot I didn't check this layout in Safari, which obviously doesn't like CSS as much as Firefox does. I'm guessing the FUBARness of how this looks in Safari is also reflected in how the blog is rendering in IE too. I will take some time to figure this out. Please bear with me. Thank you.

Labels: Cup of Java

Tuesday, April 24, 2007
[ Answer some questions, win swag ]

+Have you taken A List Apart's Design Survey?. I have. ;)

Labels: design, web

[ 1973 Disney VD war video ]

+ This is weird. In 1973, the Walt Disney Company made this educational film about the dangers of venereal disease. The video is a bit long - over 16 minutes.

(via Coudal)

Labels: culture, life, sidetracks, watch

[ Tom Brady - the man for Stetson ]

+ Tom Brady, the quarterback for the New England Patriots, is the new face of Stetson fragrances.

"His allure extends off the football field and he is widely known for his distinctive masculinity and irresistible character," said Coty Chief Executive Officer Bernd Beetz, in a statement.

This quote makes me laugh a bit because of the rumors from March about Brady knocking up his current girlfirend and his ex-girlfriend pregnant (the current girlfriend turned out not to be). TV spots debut in September supported by print ads.

Labels: ad news, adland, campaign

[ It's the idea not the media ]

+Joe Marchese of Online Spin comments on a quote from a recent Reuters article by Peter Griffiths: "Governments have been very slow to do this [expand into interactivity and user-generated content]," said Professor Helen Margetts, director of research at the Oxford Internet Institute, part of the University of Oxford. "If you look at governments across the world, there is very little use of Web 2.0 applications (shorthand for the second, more interactive Internet age), very little opportunity for citizens to generate content."

He argues:

What am I getting at? Say something worth sharing and the citizens will go to work for you. Inspire people. Don't tell people you will be the best candidate; make people believe you are the best candidate. Don't talk about a vision; paint a picture of the vision. Don't just empower people to add to the conversation; make people feel empowered by adding to the conversation. Make people feel something. Make people feel proud, hopeful, grateful, like they belong; appeal to our emotions and inspire us, and we'll use Web 2.0 to spread your message like wildfire.
[snip]
Before you can leverage Web 2.0, you have to have something to say and really know how you want to say it. Of course you want to remember to make it easy for people to share — but even if it isn't easy, an inspired person will go the extra mile. We have all seen a less-than-tech-savvy friend or family member go out of his way to share a joke or story that drew an emotional response. This is why politicians, like brands, must first aim to appeal to people's emotions, rather than simply our logic, if they want people to activate the potential of Web 2.0.

And as Marchese mentions, this philosophy relates to brands as well. To expect that you want to launch something using Web 2.0 is bogus. It is like saying you want to launch a campaign using the color blue or create a website using flash. Well, that's fine, but what is the content of the messaging going to be? What are your goals? What is the key message you want people to walk away with? Just throwing out buzz words and methods of execution of an idea is not the way these things work.

So often this is how viral advertising is viewed as well. Everyone wants to create a viral, but what is the basis for creating that viral? Many "virals" never really become viral. They end up being duds. And a large percentage of the successful virals don't always do much for a brand. Obviously the good ones do, but there have been many things that have been sent around the world numerous times and if you ask any of the viewers of the viral piece who it was for, I bet you'd just get a blank stare in return. Integrating a bit of information that is memorable in something like a viral is vital to its success, not just that 2.4 billion people watched it.

Good advertising and marketing does not caught up in the execution of the idea but the idea itself. A great idea can work its way across channels. A bad one only works in one. And sometimes not even one.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, online advertising, social networking, web, wisdom

[ Jeep wants you to choose your adventure ]

+ The microsite for the Jeep Patriot features 44 scenes of The Way Beyond Trail that are like a the Choose Your Own Adventure books which I loved as a kid. It's perfect for the brand too.
(hat tip HumptyDumpty)

Labels: adgruntie, campaign, commercial, online advertising, web

[ Love or Hate Helvetica ]

+Veer wants to know why you love or hate Helvetica:

To coincide with our bipolar new Helvetica notebook — and to celebrate the wonderful Helvetica film we're involved with — we're holding a contest. Tell us why you love or hate Helvetica (the typeface). Make it an ode, a rant, a paean, a screed, a whatever. Make it up to 200 words long. E-mail your entry to ideas at veer dot com.

Winners get their choice of limited-edition Helvetica film posters, plus two Helvetica notebooks and a Veer T-shirt. Five runners-up will win Helvetica notebooks. Entries close May 7th.
(Via GraphicDesignBar)

Labels: contest, creative, design

[ Blog milestones ]

+ Happy Blog Birthday Wishes to Creative Generalist, whose blog turns 5. This blog turns five next month and another amigo texturl.net's blog also turned 5 this year. I guess 2002 was a big year for people starting their blogs. :)

Labels: Cup of Java, web

[ Philips picks up the phone ]

+Philips Electronics is using its "sense and simplicity" campaign to clear away marketing that bothers consumers and provide product tips via cellphone.

Philips Simplicity Concierge, lets people send text messages to seek information about popular destinations in major cities — restaurants in Boston, for instance, or spas in London — and get a Yellow Pages-style listing of five options, including phone numbers for making reservations.

The recommendations made by the service, which will be available on the Internet and by cellphone through the end of the year, are being drawn from the content of Condé Nast Web sites. Under the arrangement, Philips is paying $5 million to the Condé Nast Media Group, a unit of Condé Nast Publications that handles marketing and sales for the company's magazines and Web sites.

When you're traveling and pressed for time, and haven't had an opportunity to look for resources, you want a trusted source to give you a recommendation," said Eric Plaskonos, director of brand communication at Philips.

Philips, a part of Royal Philips Electronics, makes phones as well as many other consumer products. But the "sense and simplicity" campaign is a conceptual one: the focus is not on pitching the company's consumer products directly, but on promoting the idea of clutter reduction for people's lives.

"People are pretty passionate when you simplify things for them, and that's rich territory for getting people to spend more time with the brand," said Martha Cleary, vice president and group account director for Philips's media agency, Carat USA, part of the Aegis Group.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, campaign, media

Monday, April 23, 2007
[ Goodby and their move to new media ]

+ Goodby focuses on digital media out of necessity according to this article.

Today, most of the Goodby agency's work is nontraditional, largely based on the Internet.

Goodby, Silverstein & Partners is one of the largest and most established agencies to undergo such a wrenching shift. But such change is happening everywhere in the ad industry as agencies grapple with technologies that emerge at warp speed and try to reach consumers wherever they are in the digital world.

When Goodby laid down the law about changing the way creative directors do their work, he told them if they didn't want to go along it was time to leave.

Some did. But most stayed and learned. And, among 109 people hired at the agency in 2006, many have deep interactive skills.

"It's art school all over again," said Silverstein, 57, a product of the Parsons School of Design in New York. "We found a way to take our talent for storytelling and put it on the Internet. It's electric around here."

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, agency

Saturday, April 21, 2007
[ How not to win ]

+ M&C Saatchi Los Angeles has created a campaign for Pala Casino who uses the tagline "So many ways to win", featuring a spoof of the obnoxious get rich quick fellas of informercial fame. The campaign "How not to win" has its own microsite where you can view the spots, order the fake DVD and see outtakes from the shoot. All I can say is that the guy they hired to play Hoyt Monroe sure is annoyingly perfect.

Labels: ad review, adgruntie, web

[ Love this license plate ]

+ Check out this great license plate: CTRL Z

Labels: design, fun

[ Design Linkage on a Saturday Morning ]

+ Typetester lets you preview different screen fonts for the web. You can even compare one font to another with different leading, tracking, word space, and more. Very neato!

The Complete Color Matching Guide provides loads and loads of links to color related sites and information - from to color basics to the top 20 online color scheme generators. Handy.

The web's top 500 free fonts. Some good stuff in there.

Speaking of web design, 7 things you don't see in web 2.0 from web 1.0 is worth a peek.

Is your logo design phallic?

Looking to upload a doc to post to your website? Check out Scribd.com. It describes itself as "Scribd is a free online library where anyone can upload. Use our embeddable PDF player to publish and view documents right in your web browser." Files can be uploaded in ormats: .pdf, .doc, .ppt, .xls, .txt, and more. Could be useful.

DesignersMind looks like a cool blog to keep an eye on with articles like 5 reasons to turn down a client, Choosing the right font for the job, and Are you cut out to be a designer.

(a majority of these links came from TutorialBlog's Links for Web Designers - April)

Labels: adgruntie, design, reference, web

[ Stone to direct anti-war ad ]

+ Oliver Stone is donating his services to direct a TV commercial as part of a campaign by MoveOn.org and VoteVets.org to bring U.S. troops home from Iraq.

"We have leaders in Washington who say they're 'supporting our troops' - but the people who suffer most from their policies are the troops themselves," Stone said in a statement Thursday.

"I decided to participate in this project because, as a veteran, I know that America needs to listen to our servicemen and women. They've been there and they know what's really going on. They need to be part of this debate."

The soldier or family in the commercial will be chosen from some 20 finalists by MoveOn.org members in an online vote. Video interviews of the finalists will appear on MoveOn.org's Web site and on YouTube.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, life

Friday, April 20, 2007
[ Some useful links ]

+ Marketing Sherpa's 2007 Email Award Winner Gallery contains 39 email campaigns of the past year. Includes best B-to-B campaigns, best email newsletters, best retail promotions and even best podcasts from brands, such as Sprint, Olympus, Nickelodeon, Dell, AAA, Doubleday and The Motley Fool.

MarketingSherpa's Special Report: Viral Marketing 2007 - 15 Data Charts, Top Tactics & ROI has some interesting data.

A list of research articles on everything from accessability to fonts to line size from the folks at The Wichita State University Software Usability Research Laboratory.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, data, online advertising, reference, web

[ Want to play God? ]

+ Create your own solar system with this planet simulation. Neat.

Labels: fun, game, science

[ Spidey - Just do it! ]

+ Spiderman 3 - Product Placement is cheesy but funny (Spiderman costume with Nike swoosh on it), spoofing the amount of product placement we see in movies.

Labels: adgruntie, fun, watch

[ The difference between fast food in ads and in real life ]

+ Fast food: ads vs reality shows the importance of a good food artist - or the deception they create compared to the way fast food really looks when you order it.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, life

[ Cribsheets for science. ]

+ Crib sheet on String Theory. Just because you never know when you might need it. Also cool: crib sheet on extinction, crib sheet on the elements, and more here. (thanks Coudal.com)

Labels: reference, science

Thursday, April 19, 2007
[ Why clients are divorcing their agencies? ]

+ Why Agency-Client Divorce Rates Are Soaring takes a look at agency/client relationships. The comments are interesting as well. And I think that there is validity to the point that we are all moving towards an instant-gratification or move on sort of mentality. The world as a whole is becoming less patient. In an industry that is supposed to provide value to their customers through ideas, something that doesn't always happen in the blink of an eye, how do we go about fixing the problem of instant gratification? Quality would be one way. An open dialogue about expectations would be another. What do you think?

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, work

[ Boredom Hurts ]

+ Ford BoredomHurts.com and Design Observer's funny remark.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, online advertising, web

[ Lynx "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" ]

+ On Tuesday, I posted about Axe/Lynx new "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" ads. Looks like the Hidden Persuader found the Lynx versions on youtube.

Teacher


Supermarket


Dentist


Dinner Party

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, campaign, commercial, watch

Wednesday, April 18, 2007
[ Brands as product offerings ]

+ An interesting article on the future of advertising and making more branded services rather than just boring old content.

"Content can be a product," said Torrence Boone, president of Digitas, Boston. "We're thinking less about messaging today and more about content.

"I think the market is moving towards consumer advocacy, but the key is giving consumers a broad range of options through digital so they can get exactly what they want from a brand," Boone added.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, wisdom

[ Cross promotion for Suave, Sprint ]

+ Suave, Sprint Nextel and MSN.com are teaming up for a a series of Web-based videos staring Leah Rimini of "King of Queens."

Called "In the Motherhood," will run on MSN.com starting this week through June and will be supported by a partnership with "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."

The program, the result of a joint initiative between Suave and Sprint Nextel and created by MindShare Entertainment, entails consumers who are moms, who have the opportunity to submit their own ideas for scripts and also do some of the writing for the show, which profiles the lives of three mom girlfriends.

Although the characters and story lines are being developed by Hollywood scribes, the material will come from consumers, who will be encouraged via integrated advertising to describe their experiences in narrative form, not as a script, at inthemotherhood.com. An "online mom" community will vote for the best entries, which the pros will polish and put in the Webisodes.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, web

[ Priceline's new Falcon of Truth ]

+Appparently I'm considered a "special blogger" or "media type" and was sent some "exclusive" footage of the new Priceline "Falcon of Truth" spot. In addtion the info I got includes some behind the scenes footage and some pretty funny Shatner b-roll footage.

The spot:


Behind the scenes:


B-rolls:

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, campaign, commercial, watch

[ Nike thanks Imus ]


+ Nike uses Imus controversy in ad.

The sports-apparel giant took out a full-page ad in the Sunday, April 15 edition of The New York Times, followed by banner ads on several websites that indirectly thank Mr. Imus for bringing the issues of race relations and sexism to the forefront.

[snip]

The ad was done by longtime Nike agency Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore. Its only print execution was in the Times. This week, digital applications in the form of banner ads will run on Flip.com, Cosmogirl.com, Seventeen.com, ESPN.com, FoxSports.com and NikeWomen.com. Each digital application will allow the user to send the ad to a friend.

Dean Stoyer, Nike's U.S. media-relations director, said the company was inspired by the women's team at Rutgers -- which happens to be a Nike school. Nike pays the school's men's and women's basketball teams to wear its apparel, and the company's "swoosh" logo appears on Rutgers uniforms and warm-ups.

"They represent what is good in sports and their accomplishments should be celebrated," Mr. Stoyer said. "We believe the elevated conversations around racism, sexism, inequality and disrespect in America need to move forward and not disappear when the events of the past weeks are no longer front-page news."

The copy of the ad reads:
"Thank you, ignorance.
Thank you for starting the conversation.
Thank you for making an entire nation listen to the Rutger's (sic) team story. And for making us wonder what other great stories we've missed. Thank you for reminding us to think before we speak.
Thank you for showing us how strong and poised 18 and 20-year-old women can be.
Thank you for reminding us that another basketball tournament goes on in March.
Thank you for showing us that sport includes more than the time spent on the court.
Thank you for unintentionally moving women's sport forward.
And thank you for making all of us realize that we still have a long way to go.
Next season starts 11.16.07."

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, media, print

Tuesday, April 17, 2007
[ UPS Whiteboard Commercials ]

+ Mr Kottke really likes those UPS whiteboard commercials. And I have to say I do as well. There's something hypnotic about watching someone draw and especially as they transform one object into another simply by erasing one line and adding another. I had to wonder who was the drawing guy in the spot, and I sort of had a feeling it was either the art director or CD of the account. Turns out my gut was right!. Well whaddya know. :)

This particular nonperformer—the floppy-haired fellow standing at the whiteboard—is named Andy Azula, and he's actually the creative director on the campaign. Azula conceived of these ads as a refreshing change from typical shipping spots, which show trucks and package handlers and businesspeople meeting deadlines. To give UPS a sense of what he planned, he filmed sample spots with himself as the whiteboard guy and with co-workers from his ad agency behind the camera. He never imagined he'd appear in the final versions, but when UPS tested various other actors (and kept Azula in the mix), focus groups consistently picked him as their favorite. Azula's guess is that while the other actors had more charisma and energy, his low-key, unpolished delivery made him seem less like an annoying pitchman. As an art director who'd made countless storyboards, he also had a knack for fast, fun sketching. (Though a professional illustrator was employed on the set to speed things up by redrawing the whiteboard between takes. "He had to repress his skills to imitate my style," says Azula.)

Labels: ad review, adgruntie, branding, campaign, commercial

[ Just when you thought it couldn't get any sexier ]

+ Axe ads turn up the promise of sex appeal according to USAToday.

Axe is rolling out new marketing that hits even harder on its sex-appeal message.

The Unilever (UN) brand's eight body sprays are getting new packaging, an enhanced fragrance and ads that say they offer "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" in every can. ("Bom Chicka Wah Wah" is pop culture slang for a sexual encounter.)

Since its 2002 launch, Axe's theme has been "giving guys an edge in the mating game," says David Rubin, brand development director for Axe deodorants. New TV ads, which began airing Monday, up the ante on that message. They show women who suddenly — and suggestively — blurt "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" to men wearing the spray.

[snip]

While the target age group wasn't even born then, they get the reference, says William Gelner, group creative director at Axe ad agency BBH New York.

"There's something about that type of Starsky & Hutch, retro '70s thing that is very much a part of (today's) pop culture," he says.

Parts of Axe's new campaign:

• TV. Network ads include one in which a patient is turned on by the scent of her dentist. In another, a grocery shopper is drawn to the vegetable stacker.

• Online. Starting May 1, Axebcww.com will feature all-girl music videos, activities and goodies, such as "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" ring tones.

• Live events. This week, Axe will put 60-foot inflated cans in downtown Chicago, Los Angeles and Baltimore. Bottoms will be see-through and inside will be women — "Axe Angels" — jumping on trampolines.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, campaign

[ Adobe media player to launch in summer ]

+ Adobe's new media player "lets you easily download, store and playback Flash videos locally--not just stream them--and integrates a number of features that make it worth a look. The public beta will be out this summer, with a 1.0 release scheduled for fall, according to Mark Randall, Adobe's Chief Strategist for Dynamic Media."

Labels: adgruntie, watch, web

[ David Mamet gets into advertising ]

+ David Mamet directs spots for Ford's Edge commercials set to launch tonight during "American Idol".

The idea of calling in Mamet, known for writing sparse, choppy dialogue, came from Ford's advertising agency, J. Walter Thompson Co., said Barry Engle, general manager of Ford Division marketing.

The spots feature two men sitting in Edges, talking about how their vehicles compare with the BMW and Lexus.

And according to this article, "agency copywriters drew up the dialogue in an effort to mimic Mamet's work, and he didn't change any of the words, Engle said. But Mamet was in charge of camera angles, lighting and the actors' facial expressions."

Labels: ad news, adbiz, adgruntie

[ Marketers and Second Life ]

+ Coke Opens VirtualThirst.com In Second Life.

Diving into the virtual waters, Coca-Cola officially entered Second Life, issuing an invitation to avatars as well as the general public to submit ideas for a portable virtual vending machine.

The design competition invites people to submit designs to www.virtualthirst.com for a chance to win a grand prize of building and launching the ultimate vending machine with the help of 3-D design shop Millions of Us.

Design entries will be accepted through a variety of formats and submission methods, including submissions within Second Life, YouTube and MySpace.

Submission guidelines for each and contest rules appear on MySpace at www.myspace.com/virtualthirst, as well as on "crayonville Island" in Second Life. The entry deadline is May 25.

[snip]

Campfire came up with Pontiac's Motorati Island, where there are participating dealers, auto enthusiast groups, live sponsored concerts, racing events and more. The tie-in with SL was designed to promote the Solstice GXP sports car. Recently, Campfire teamed with Pontiac and Leo Burnett to offer a real-world Motorati experience at the New York Auto Show; big screens at the Show offered an in-world glimpse in real-time.

At Coke, Donnelly noted that the winning design could lead to futuristic concepts of what the brand's real-world machines will look like: "That is part of our strategy. How do we take our old world vending machines and make them relevant to our customers?"

Joe Jaffe, president, crayon, said Coke's approach in SL is understated. Coke held a press conference in-world to announce the competition on Monday. "It's just one event in-world--25 people attended, but it's a seed," Jaffe said. "Our advice was to start small and then build conversation around the small idea. That's the long tail of creativity."

Jaffe continued: "This is less about a Second Life project and more about being able to take the whole concept of thirst and position it as a thirst for meaning, knowledge, love, self-expression and a thirst for an experience."

Labels: ad news, adbiz, adgruntie, social networking, web

[ WPP gets in on video sharing site ]

+WPP Invests in Video-Sharing Community VideoEgg.

Lured by the swelling popularity of video-sharing communities, WPP has made a strategic investment in online video technology company VideoEgg.

Working with VideoEgg, WPP plans to explore various types of video ad-serving methods developed by the technology startup. Founded in 2005, VideoEgg manages an online video ad network--the "Eggnetwork"--along with offering clients opt-in ad technology, which stands in contrast to unpopular pre-roll video advertising.

"Our clients want to understand how to use online communities to build brands and communicate with consumers, particularly younger consumers, who are spending time in these communities," explained Mark Read, CEO of WPP Digital.

Labels: ad news, adbiz, adgruntie, agency, watch

[ Organic clothes get hot ]

+ Putting Green In Vogue: Organic Clothes Get Hot.

Fiber sales are the third-fastest-growing category of all non-food organic products, reports the Organic Trade Association, based in Greenfield, Mass. with sales of $160 million in 2005--up from $85 million in 2003.

"Consumers have the belief that organic is better, and they're looking for all kinds of ways to reduce the impact they have on the environment," says Matt Mole, president and founder of Vermont Organic Fiber Co., an organic wool wholesaler based in Middlebury, Vt. "They want to do that with the light bulbs they use, the cars they drive and the clothes they wear."

Still, those fibers represent only the tiniest percentages of the apparel world. About 1% of the world's cotton is organic, as is about 0.1% of the wool. Traditionally, green fabrics have been more expensive and less practical. And from a fashion perspective? Let's just say organic clothes have been better suited to sincere grad students than to someone like Anna Wintour.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, branding

Monday, April 16, 2007
[ Freelance Switch ]

+ FreelanceSwitch is a resource and community for freelancers of all sorts. There's some interesting information there already and the site is only a couple weeks old. Looks promising.

Labels: adgruntie, web, wisdom, work

[ For some cool illustrations ]

+ Tea Time features vintage Japanese advertisements along with other bits.

Labels: adgruntie, classic ad, design, print

[ Dubois Meets Fugger ]

+ Beglian ad agency DuboisMeetsFugger recently redid their website and the result is great. There are 5 easter eggs to find.

Labels: adgruntie, agency, web

[ Blogger's Choice Awards ]

+ Wey Hey! Adland has been nominated for a Blogger's Choice Award. Cool!

Labels: adland, Cup of Java, web

[ Pepsi makes Mt Dew for Halo 3 release ]


+ Adage.com reports on the Pepsi-Cola North America brand releasing a red-hued, citrus-cherry-flavored, limited-edition Mountain Dew that will carry the name of the much-anticipated "Halo 3" for Microsoft's Xbox 360.

Touted as the first soft drink created for and co-branded with a video game, the new Dew is positioned as "game fuel."

[snip]

Pepsi didn't offer many details either. "Gaming is an important component in the marketing efforts for Mountain Dew," a spokeswoman said. "Our goal is to go beyond traditional advertising by creating initiatives that make the brand an integral part of the gaming experience. We have some exciting programs coming this summer."

But according to one bottler, Pepsi expects the product to be "huge." "The college age is a big market for us," he said. The "Halo 3" Dew is expected to be released in August for about three months.

"To be able to tie in with 'Halo' is a coup for Mountain Dew," said Mark Allenbach, director-interactive media and games at Frank N. Magid Associates. "It is considered the killer app for Microsoft, period. ... There is significant cachet with any product associated with it. If you came to me and said, 'I have soda and want to put it with a game,' I don't think it gets much better than putting it with 'Halo 3.'"

Check out images here.

Labels: ad news, adcreep, adgruntie, branding

[ Crate Labels ]

+ Fruit Crate Art - fantastic collection of crate labels.

Labels: adgruntie, branding, classic ad, creative, food

[ For you Red Sox Fans ]

+ VIDEO: Red Sox 2007 Team Preview, Part 1: The Hitters and VIDEO: Red Sox 2007 Team Preview, Part II: The Pitchers.

Labels: fun, local, watch, web

[ Experience in the eyes of your customers ]

+ Why do marketers rate themselves Highly while customers don't? asks Max Kalehoff.

Julie Katz of Forrester Research this week reported on new research from fellow analyst Cindy Commander that sought to answer this very question. She suggested that "80% of companies believe they're delivering superior experiences to their customers, but only 8% of customers agree."

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, branding, data

[ Animated Car Chase ]

+ A copywriter/producer for Cartoon Network Latin América sent me this is the link for their new promo.

Labels: adgruntie, branding, commercial, watch

[ Great Migration for Air Canada ]

+ Marketel has created an online campaign for Air Canada called "The Great Migration" which features puppet Canadian geese and their attempts to audition for the Air Canada commercials.

The campagin included a blog, pictures of weird bird flock formations at flickr, on myspace, on flickr again, on frienster, youtube, linkedin, and even allrecipes.com.

Starting July 12th, the muppets will be autioned off on eBay with all funds going to the Air Canada Foundation.

Labels: ad news, campaign, online advertising, web

Sunday, April 15, 2007
[ The Landlord ]

+

Labels: fun, sidetracks, watch

Thursday, April 12, 2007
[ Ads for Parmigiano Reggiano ]

+

Labels: adgruntie, campaign, commercial, food, watch

[ 25 Code Snippets ]

+ 25 Code Snippets for Web Designers Part 3 from TutorialBlog. ALso Part 1 and Part 2. Lots of good info for tips and tricks.

Labels: creative, design, web, wisdom

[ 80s TV Theme Songs ]

+ TV Theme Song quiz via neatorama.

Labels: fun, game, life

[ Cube Toy! ]



+ What every office needs - the Bullshit Button. Features 5 different alerts:

* "Bullshit level 5"
* "Oh come on now, don't give me that bullshit, that's bullshit"
* "Warning, warning, bullshit alert"
* "(Bip)That was bullshit"
* "Bullshit detected, take precautions"

Labels: adgruntie, agency, fun, work

[ The Cries of London ]

+ Today's VSL (Very Short List) email points out The Cries of London. Here's their take on it:

The Cries of London performs a remarkable act of alchemy on a bustling 17th-century English thoroughfare, transforming the city's bygone peddlers' shouts into soothing, strangely beautiful baroque music. While Fretwork, a string ensemble, plays the music of period composers, the vocalists from Theatre of Voices sing out the sales pitches of the day ("Chimneysweep!" "Fine white salt!"), creating a sonic combination that's as pleasurable as it is improbable.
Even if you're agnostic on the subject of classical music, The Cries of London could be a welcome escape from a chaotic, disharmonious day. And you'll never again hear a phrase like "I can kill vermin!" the same way.

You can listen to a sample here (windows media player needed).

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, creative, culture, fun

[ New US Passport design ]

+ Hmm. The US State Dept has redesigned US e-passports.

The new U.S. e-passport will incorporate updated security features and a new design. This design will reflect the varied landscapes of our country and each page will include a quote reflecting the hope and success that is the United States of America.

The e-passport is apparently something that is currently only proposed:

The proposed U.S. Electronic Passport is the same as a regular passport with the addition of a small contactless integrated circuit (computer chip) embedded in the back cover. The chip will securely store the same data visually displayed on the photo page of the passport, and will additionally include a digital photograph. The inclusion of the digital photograph will enable biometric comparison, through the use of facial recognition technology at international borders. The U.S. "e-passport" will also have a new look, incorporating additional anti-fraud and security features.

(via DesignObserver)

Labels: design, life

[ Reptilian minds ]

+ 37signals does a write up on the reptilian mind and Clotaire Rapaille from PBS's The Persuaders which first aired in 2004. Read my post on the show here and here.

Labels: adbiz, adgruntie, branding, creative, data

[ Interesting use of Twitter ]

+ I suppose along with the rest of the blog-a-verse, I should do a post on Twitter, but there are already so many out there. This morning one of the featured twitterers is foxdrive who claims to be the executive producer and director of Drive and says he'll be twittering updates during the premiere on Sunday. It could be one way for marketers to use the technology. And if the folks behind twitter get paid for it, could be a way to monetize their venture.

Labels: adbiz, adcreep, adgruntie, twitter, web

[ Execution is King ]

+ Where's the Sausage says to use execution to differentiate by being first, own the idea, and do it with a twist.

Labels: adgruntie, creative, wisdom

[ Politics and Football ]

+ Yipes - political campaigns might consider Super Bowl ad time.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, media, Super Bowl 08

[ Dice-K Fever ]

+ Last night I watched part of the Red Sox game with Dice-K pitching for the first time at Fenway Park. I know there has been much excitement and craziness over the fact that Boston got Dice-K and that he has come from Japan. But what I find over the top and bizarre was the fact that ads behind home plate where in Japanese. Dunkin Donuts modified their entire logo to be in Japanese - no English anywhere - and a local lumber yard had their ad in both English and Japanese.

What I find confusing is why they are doing that. Wouldn't the Japanese broadcasts throw up their own digital billboards over whatever is up for us? Or is there some international law about doing that sort of thing? I just found it strange and a bit over the top, especially for a local store.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, fun, life, media

Wednesday, April 11, 2007
[ Van ads ]

+ Gallery of van advertisements. (Via Coudal)

Labels: adgruntie, print

Tuesday, April 10, 2007
[ Colorfied ]

+ I like color. Play with palettes here at ColourLovers and also a new site I found today via one of my RSS feeds (gah can't find it now) called Kuler on Adobe's site. Both are fabulous and are community based where people vote on palettes and etc.

Labels: adgruntie, design, fun

[ Free design software ]

+ TutorialBlog offers a great list of free software for designers. Worth checking out.

Labels: creative, design, online advertising, web

[ Is your site retro or just crap? ]

+ Check out 10 signs your site is stuck in 1998 - It's brilliant! Go read it now and send it along to your clients! :)

Labels: adgruntie, web, wisdom, work

[ Dice Kream ]

+ It's opening day for the Boston Red Sox. And of course what goes better with baseball and summer than ice cream? While stuck in traffic I was listening to the radio (I know...I'm old skool!) and one of the morning shows had the owner of JP Licks, a local ice cream company, on to promote their giving away a free scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt today in honor of opening day. Freebies are going to be handed out from 11am to 4pm.

During the show they were talking about special flavors for the season and one which honors new Red Sox pitcher Dice Matsuzaka. It's called "rice DICE-Kream" and is short grained rice made into a rice pudding ice cream.

I got to work and while waiting for Outlook to crawl along updating my inbox I checked out some ad news and found that Brighams, another local ice cream place, has also created a new ice cream flavor..."Dice-Kream."

With more than 20 percent of name suggestions all bearing a version of "Dice-Kream," Brigham's judges held a drawing today to determine which fan should be credited for the winning entry. As the talented creator, Eric Tait of Lexington, Massachusetts, will receive a full baseball season's supply of the newly-renamed ice cream, a private tour of Brigham's factory, along with the ultimate baseball fans victory kit, including a Dice-K home jersey and a pair of cushioned seats for the stands. Perhaps even more priceless, the winning entrant will have his name appear on the new packaging, which will be available later this summer.

Though the ice cream will have a new name, the treasured ingredients will remain the same. Like "Reverse the Curse", "Dice-Kream" will feature Brigham's signature vanilla ice cream loaded with chocolate-covered peanuts or "baseballs," chocolate-covered caramel "bases," and swirls of Brigham's famous fudge sauce.

I still have to wonder if anyone is going to cause a fuss over the names being the same. You never know...

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, food, life, local

Monday, April 09, 2007
[ Hot Fuzz ]

+ Hot Fuzz opens April 20th (US) and looks to be rather funny.

Labels: fun, life, watch

[ Jesus is not an authorized representative of Coke ]

+ NPR tells of an Italian movie, "Seven Kilometers from Jerusalem" which includes a scene of Jesus drinking a Coke, while an ad executive exclaims: "My God, what a testimonial!" The soft-drink maker objects, saying Jesus is not an authorized representative of Coke.

Labels: ad news, adcreep, adgruntie, fun

[ GE ad campaign wants to know your kitchen confession ]

+ Today GE has launched a new campaign called "Confessions from the Kitchen" in which they are asking people to create an ad based on their cooking or kitchen secrets by submitting a headline, photo and story.


The campaign was created by BBDO, New York, also includes a series of four print ads. According to Brandweek, "a GE rep said that some of the online submissions would be considered for future print ads." The campaign is used to promote the various kitchen gear and appliances GE makes.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, campaign, consumer-generated, food, online advertising

[ Maybe for next year ]

+ Pimp That Snack makes an oversized Cadbury Creme Egg with full recipe and pictures!

EvilMadScientist makes Peeps from scratch - these are made of meringue instead of marshmallow.

(both via Neatorama)

Labels: food, fun, life

Saturday, April 07, 2007
[ Design Can Change ]


+ The folks at smashLAB have launched a new project that has been 10 months in the works: Design Can Change.

This initiative works on the premise that designers are a critical hub to business, industry and the public; therefore, we have the ability to lobby, inform, and subsequently enable positive change, by working together. Key to this effort is the pledge: a set of guidelines for becoming more sustainable. It gives designers an actionable framework for embracing sustainability and also helps quantify our collective strength as we lobby for change.

There's more background on the project at smashLAB's blog ideasonideas.

Design Can Change encourages graphic designers to pool their influence and impact climate change. In some respects it is a starting point for designers who wish to embrace sustainable practices. It is a resource that contains project samples, reading lists and tools. Additionally, it is a directory that allows conscientious buyers of creative services to connect with like-minded designers. It is a framework that helps enable a sustainable mindset in a designers work. It is a pledge to do our best as professionals who have a responsibility to future generations.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, creative, design, work

[ I heart Twitter's 404 page ]

+

Labels: fun, networking, social networking, twitter, web

Thursday, April 05, 2007
[ Women watch fewer videos online ]

+ How women view online video compared to men is part of recent studies conducted to see how women are using (or not using) the web and online video.

"Getting the female audience engaged is crucial for the success of online video, and over the next few years, marketers and online video content providers will need to figure out exactly how to get that job done," says Ms. Williamson. "They have no choice. They have to."

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, culture, data, media, online advertising, web, work

[ Homer head ]


+ Came across this banner while surfing around at ColourLovers.com. Can't imagine that this company actually got permission to use the likeness of Homer's head illustration - although, it is possible. I mean, it is owned by FUX. ;)

Still, I'm not sure it adds a darn thing to the banner or the line of copy.

Labels: ad review, adgruntie, online advertising, web

[ Die to get out of meetings ]

+ Tired of meetings? Take 5 Minutes to Kill Yourself before your next one. From the folks at AdultSwim.

Labels: adgruntie, fun, game, sidetracks, work

[ Axe and Lynx Ads ]

+ Axe Ads is a blog dedicated to the advertising for Axe and Lynx around the globe. Nice! (thanks claudinho)

Labels: adgruntie, branding, campaign, commercial, print

Wednesday, April 04, 2007
[ Monty Python - Cheese Shop ]

+ Classic!

Labels: fun, sidetracks, watch

Monday, April 02, 2007
[ New Hillshire Farm campaign ]

+ When I say Hillshire you say Farm...Hillshire...Farm. Go Meat! wow. GoMeat.com for Hillshire Farms - the new campaign gets you in the rah-rah spirit. Site includes tv spots, etc.(via Brandflakesforbreakfast)

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, branding, campaign, commercial, creative, online advertising

[ Cadbury Creme Egg wants you to make a film ]

+ Cadbury Creme Egg viral campaign "Goo Off" by CMW Interactive, which uses Youtube like Doritos and other brands have for the upload and sharing of videos.

Labels: adgruntie, consumer-generated, online advertising, watch, web

[ Gromit gets work for HMV ]

+ Gromit of Wallace & Gromit Aardman fame will become the face of HMV in UK adverts aimed at children for the next three months.

Gromit will be pictured sitting next to the HMV gramophone in a reproduction of the original 1898 His Master's Voice oil painting. It has been created by Aardman Studios, the creators of the Oscar winning films. The campaign breaks today and includes national press ads, London Underground posters and an in-store campaign.

Labels: ad news, adgruntie, campaign

[ A lapse ]


+ Surfing around last night I came across this listing at Space.com for what planets were visible for the month of March. I know it's purile, but the description for Uranus made me laugh.

Labels: life, science, sidetracks