Sprint gets it right….for the most part
In: Uncategorized
26 Apr 2009
I love this new Sprint spot:
Beyond being visually stimulating, the little factoids are also interesting. But, being a curmudgeon, I still have some curmudgeonly complaints.
1) Why not make the factoids true? I think we all know that it’s not true that 7% of all the emails being sent contain the words ‘miracle banana diet.’ Why make the lame joke? Why not be genuine and maintain that level of credibility and sincerity throughout the ad? Two million people are texting during a business meeting (opposed to the only 1 million sending emails)? Come on guys… This article dismisses these numbers as “humorous hyperbole.” I wish I could be so kind. When the whole credibility of the ad rests on the impressive stats and the various tasks available on the network, actual numbers are more effective and appropriate.
2) The copy is off: At the :34 second mark the announcer reads” 233,000 people just Twittered on Twitter.” Do you mean they Tweeted on Twitter? if you are going to name drop the hottest social media app out there, at least get the lingo right. Tweet(ed) has an entry here, Twittered does not. Lazy? Sloppy? Both? Neither?
2b) Why are all the little Twitter birdies saying the word ‘Me’? Come on Sprint, Tweeters arent ALL that narcissitic.
3) Why is everyone the same? All the men on the cellphones at the beginning are the same. All the women exiting the cab at the end are the same. All the dog walkers are the same. I’m not crazy about this homogeneous representation of the world, Sprint.
Still, the ad works and works a storm. Well done, boys.
Is cruelty the new sincerity?
In: Uncategorized
26 Apr 2009I recently took a curmudgeonly look back at this year’s Superbowl ads and noticed an unfortunate trend. For the majority of the commercials aired there appears to be no story, no brand tie-in, no statement of benefits…no anything. Wait, there is SOMETHING in these ads. Typically, it involves random acts of violence resulting in extreme pain for our :30 second hero.
Here is an example. This :30 second Doritos spot by Goodby-Silverstein aired during this year’s Superbowl and earned a place on nearly every top 10 list.
Who is the target market here? Young professionals? Perhaps this is just intended to be a funny spot aimed at the slightly aging Doritos consumer. So, why does there need to be a crystal ball hurled at the crotch of the boss at the end? Were the creatives watching some America’s Funniest Home videos episodes when the ‘A-HA Moment’ struck? I get that the commercial is trying to be irreverent and over the top, but why the sudden turn to such extreme, albeit accidental, violence. This seems to be lowest common denominator advertising to me.
From the same campaign:
In this doozy a Dorito eating man has a ‘Lucky Day.’ He eats Doritos and, for some reason, a woman’s clothes fly off, money shoots out of an ATM, a policeman disappears and…the man gets run over by a bus. What the…? Why is there a need to include that? What is gained? Is this the theme of the campaign? If the commercial is meant to show all the wonderful things that happen when you eat Doritos, why the bus? Is this some unfortunate attempt at ‘Jackass’ like pseudo-coolness? Are they really trying to sell Doritos to 12 year-olds? I get the feeling that the marketing research involved putting members of the target market in front of a tv and seeing what made them laugh. When the Three Stooges came on and laughter ensued, the creatives got to work.
Career Builder doing the same, tired routine:
This is a cute, funny commercial, until the :25 second mark, when someone punches a (fake) koala bear in the face, knocking off its glasses. Seriously.
No, I am not oblivious. I see what they were going for. It’s a light fantasy to begin with, and the bus/crotch impact/koala punch are just little gimmicks to end the commercial with a bang before the product shot. But, why take such a juvenile and ineffective route to that end? These commercials feel like Saturday Night Live skits that don’t know how to end logically, so instead they stop trying and just revert to a joke you might overhear in a grade school playground.
None of this is to say that violence should be left out of commercials on the whole. There just needs to be a context. A good example of this is a recent commercial by Mullen for the Boston Bruins:
When the bear knocks down the guy’s beer and pulls his jersey over his head, it’s funny and effective because it directly ties in with the product. It’s on message.
I am more turned off of a product due to a bad commercial than I am turned on by a good one. Doritos? Haven’t had one all year. Career builder? Pass.
My questions to you are: Has creativity given way to bad jokes and pathetic attempts at humor? Is sincerity in commercials dead? Why would a brand like CareerBuilder resort to showing a koala being punched in the face? How is that on message/relevant to the product? Are all products in the snack category strictly aimed at the cast of Jackass?
As most of us know, a few days ago the Twitterverse semi-exploded as Ashton Kutcher and CNN raced toward a million followers. Beyond the incredible amount of exposure this gained all of the above mentioned entities, this flurry of activity also opened the floodgates to millions of new Twitter users. Sadly, it seems that the influx of new users has spawned a bit of a superiority complex among users who were members before Twitter became front page news.
This clever site is one of the first to pop-up in the wake of the PR tsunami, but it surely will not be the last. Whether you were in before or after Oprah doesn’t really matter. What does matter to me is the unfortunate yet ubiquitous presence of ‘life coaches’, ’social media experts’, shady SEO folks and get rich quick scammers who have signed onto the service in droves. If you build it, they will come. If you build it in the public eye, they will come and try to line their pockets with your cash. My hope is that Twitter remains the invaluable resource and tool it has been.
Don't do it, Twitter!
It has even come to light that this Twitter explosion, a happening that at the time felt like an organic and natural phenomenon, had dirty little roots buried in cash for carry soil.
Ashton has claimed he only got involved in the Twitter race to prove a point and highlight the Malaria epidemic...Maybe. Still, who knew he had an ad campaign behind him? Dishonest? Perhaps. Disappointing? Very.
Many thought they were witnessing a true evolution in communication. One man, albeit a B level celebrity, amassing more followers than a mighty corporation. In the end, it was all just a glorified stunt with a nice mosquito net covered cherry on top. Does a marketing scam that works toward a good cause make it any less of a scam? I don’t think so. I, like many others in the Twitterverse, feel like I have been manipulated by the whole situation.
So, for those of you who are new to Twitter…welcome. But, don’t come looking to me for advice with your @s, #s and RTs. After all, I was here before Oprah.
Dannon gets in on the gross sound effect trend…
In: Commentary
14 Apr 2009Here is the latest from Dannon for their ‘Light and Fit’ line:
Much like a previous commercial I discussed, this commercial makes terrific use of disgusting sounds to completely turn off the viewer.
With access to a pretty much unlimited supply of sound effects, one has to wonder why Dannon would use that particular slurping sound for their ad….or, for that matter, any slurping sound. Using the more simple sound of the collapsing plastic under the suction would have made the point and spared me the nausea.
Why have gross outs, pain (see the numerous crotch impacts abound in ads today) and overall cruelty become so prevalent in ads as of late?
Oh OJ - Tropicana swings and misses
In: OOPS!
10 Apr 2009Tropicana. We all know it, we have all drank it. What do I think of when I hear the brand Tropicana? I think of the arced text of the brand name on the carton, I think of a straw in an orange and I think of drinking OJ as a kid.
Hello, old friend.
Around Januray of this year Tropicana launched its new packaging, which looks (looked) like this.
I like it...except for the vertical text...yuk.
I have certainly noticed the new packaging while out and about. I though it looked fresh and clean. A nice update to a fairly worn out design. I did wonder to myself if the brand was very recognizable as Tropicana anymore. The vertical text makes it hard to read, and the complete absence of the old style of packaging made it seem more like a new product rather than simply new packaging.
For the official take on the reasoning behind the switch, you can look here.
Some snippets:
The design team decided to take full advantage of all of the dimensions of the packaging. A picture of a glass of orange juice spans across the oblique corner of the carton. The idea was to create some perspective on that corner so it is not sharp or angular.
Arnell (head of the Arnell Group) said the team was instructed to use “Obama-esque design language that was clear, simple and profound.” This meant placing the words: “100% orange pure & natural” front and center.
The new packaging has 20 design trademarks and copyrights. It took 30 people five months to develop it. Three alternative designs were scrapped including a revised orange and straw version and a Pepperidge Farm-like depiction of an orange grove.
Well, with all that thought and experience , what was the result?
Within 4 months Tropicana sales have dropped 20%. This leaves one to wonder the most obvious question…What kind of research did they do before rolling out this new design? According to Carol Parish, the new design tested very poorly, but was still put through to the shelves.
It’s hard to believe that, even on the highest of levels, research can be ignored and a redesign can be launched to such pitiful results. According to AdAge, the campaign has cost Tropicana in the tens of millions of dollars. It’s amazing what a package reboot can do for a company, or to their agency. I think it’s safe to say Arnell will not be brought back. Say hello to the new Tropicana packaging!!
Looks a bit familiar...
Here is the trailer for the new Beyonce Movie: Obsessed
I particularly like how the trailer not only gives away every twist and angle of the film, but also the ending. At 2:30, it is unusually long for a trailer and seems more like an actual summary of the film rather than just a teaser or thesis statement of sorts. The whole approach was very familiar.
Also, I think it may have been more interesting to see Beyonce in the stalker role…more of a departure. The woman has sung in EVERY one of her previous films…make her a psycho stalker, not a victim wife. BOO!
I do kind of like the poster…sort of..
What is the significance of the black SSE? Is it a play on the interracial nature of the extramarital affair? Is it a random effect by a designer? Is it to show the rift between the two groups...seperated by color, connected by letters... What do you think?
Just to reiterate the obvious: A trailer is supposed to entice you to see the film, not give you reason to avoid it. Regardless, it should be hitting HBO in a couple of months, perhaps I’ll check it out then…or, perhaps not.
New Worst Commercial Ever?
In: Insider
4 Apr 2009K&G, the self proclaimed ‘Fashion Superstore,’ just popped onto my radar with their latest commercial. The spot disguises itself as an actual 911 call, with the caller’s reported crime being that her money was taken at the department store and all she got in return was a dress.
The main problem with the ad is that there is no logo or any other indicator visible during the commercial to let the viewer know it is not a real emergency call. The only clue is the bad acting on the part of the female caller (the male 911 operator is actually pretty spot-on).
On the surface, this ad seems like a good idea. It gets the viewer’s attention and it is certainly different than most ads we see for department stores. What I find hard to believe is that it actually made it through to the air in the form we see here. The only explanation I see is that the agency executed a clever usage of viral marketing. They knew this ad would create buzz. They managed to generate that buzz without directly offending anyone and without major repercussion.
The agency responsible for this ad, Devito/Verdi, is a very well established and respected firm. They knew what they were doing. Didn’t they? Oh, to be an insider…
EDIT: It seems Devito/Verdi is also responsible for the dreadful Legal Sea Foods ad I mentioned in a previous post. Time to reboot, fellas!
Knocked Up…from memory
In: Insider
31 Mar 2009
What, no labels?
I have seen Knocked Up about 5 times this week, and at least 25 times since it came out.
From memory I will list all the product placements (products, services, etc) in the movie. Why? Because it sounds like fun at this moment.
1) Mr Skin.com - They mention this site when FleshOfTheStars.com is discussed between Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd.
2) Cirque De Soleil - Have you seen the movie?
3) Lego Land - Paul Rudd take his kids there.
4) What To Expect When You’re Expecting - The popular baby book is dropped in this several times. It’s also mentioned in Juno, the movie I watch when I’m not watching Knocked Up
5) Under Armour - Jason Segel wears it throughout.
6) Nike - see above
6a) Puma - see above, again
7) Spiderman 3 - It’s mentioned that Rudd saw it without his wife. Then again by Rogen’s friends when it is about to come on tv. Also, James Franco appears in Knocked Up, and he is in SM3 as well.
8 - Other Movies - Besides the various movies shown during the hunt for nudity throughout the film, the movie Munich gets a special shout out. In fairness, many movies get name dropped in this movie. Including: Murderball, Tombstone, Wyatt Earp, Armageddon, Dante’s Peak, Eternal Sunshine,Total Recall, Back to the Future, Swingers, Wild Things (this one is on tv twice in the film) etc…
9) The E! network - This is where Heigl works.
10)Xbox360 - When Heigl’s sister agrees to buy them a baby crib, he asks her to throw an Xbox360 in.
11) Volkswagen - Heigl drives one (new and shiny)
12) Oprah - In one of my least favorite name drops of the film, Mrs. Apatow drops some knowledge from the big W on ‘training’ Seth Rogen.
13) Lexus - Mrs. Apatow drives one (also new, also shiny).
14) Everybody Loves Raymond - Another shout to this terrible sitcom. (The first coming in the 40 year old virgin in a memorable scene)
15) Red Bull - “How many Red Bulls have you had?” “I have had 4 Red Bulls.”
16) Bands/Celebs - Steely Dan, Al Jarreau, Black Crowes, Cat Stevens, Deniro, Eric Bana, Hideki Matsui, Carlos Delgado, Steve Carell, Jessica Alba, Stephen Hawking… too. many. shout. outs.
17) Treasure Island casino - It’s where the boys stay in Vegas (does the extensive mentioning and visiting of Vegas count?)
18) Seventh Generation - Seventh Generation diapers are everywhere, especially in the nurseries.
….that’s all I got for now
These are all just off the top of my head (the way top, I JUST watched it). Granted, the film takes place in the real world. Real world products are a part of this film to help make it believable. I get it. Still, it’s over the top. Honestly, it is clear some money changed hands here. This is normal and perfectly acceptable. I don’t slight them for this, but I would kill to see a breakdown of who paid how much for which placement. Even if these products were in the script in a natural way, the respective companies may still have been coerced to fork over some cash to remain in the film/not be replaced by a competitor.
Oh, to be an insider…
Wow, what a Sham
In: Uncategorized
30 Mar 2009Vince Offer.
You gettin' this, camera guy?
I thought that was his real name. I really did.
Vince Shlomi
You gettin this, camera guy? v2.0
The greatest TV pitchman of my time (a point that is certainly up for debate) was arrested the other day for punching a prostitute after she bit down on his tongue and wouldn’t let go (allegedly, of course). No charges were filed in the case.
Questions that came to mind when I heard this story:
Why didn’t I realize Vince Offer was too perfect to be his real name?
Who kisses a prostitute?
Will the Sham-Wow suffer for this? ( I saw the things in PetSmart the other day)
For those who havent seen it…Vince’s latest work…
About...
Mike Frizzi is a self-proclaimed curmudgeon. He is also a perceptive, curious and difficult to impress fellow who enjoys criticizing elements of advertising, marketing, social media and anything else he decides is worthy of his attention.
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5 things this Twitterer could do without
In: Commentary
22 Apr 2009Here are 5 things that this curmudgeonly Twitterer could definitely do without - in no particular order:
1) Random quotes of profundity and inspiration.
Examples:
“If you want people to believe in you, be unbelievable! ”
“Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth & you get neither. ”
“The awareness of our own strength makes us modest. ~ Paul Cezanne”
Personally, these random quotes do nothing for me. Ever. Sure, they are nice to look at, but is anybody able to be truly inspired by a quote? I would much rather have a link to some interesting content than a simple cut and paste of a quote that somehow made its way to your fingertips. There is no need to rifle these quotes off into the Twitterverse. Instead of sending off ten quotes, write up an interesting blog post. I guarantee people will respond better to the latter.
2) The sending of automatic DMs upon being followed -
This one has a caveat. Receiving a DM after following someone usually generates a nice fuzzy feeling - even if it is just a standard thank you. Using one of the many available services is an easy way to make sure your followers get a teaspoon of immediate and direct communication from you and it helps them remember you when they start receiving your tweets. However, using these sites to auto generate sales pitches to your followers is a fantastic way to make sure they immediately unfollow you.
No, I am not interested in your PDF outlining the 5 Marketing secrets to overnight success.
No, I do not want in on your 10 tips for highly successful people.
Still, I suppose that those who are slithery enough to implement this strategy should keep on doing it. It helps separate the quality users from the dregs.
Good Auto DM:
Poor Auto DM:
3) Links to music you are currently listening to. What? You’re enjoying listening to Pink Floyd’s The Wall? You have a killer blip playlist? Awesome. I’m glad for you. But, I really don’t care. I mean, really, is anybody going to respond: ‘The Wall? Pink Floyd? Never heard of them! Thanks for turning me on to this band!’ By all means,enjoy your music. But, leave your poor followers out of it.
4) Updates on the status of your blood alcohol level. Examples:
“Sorry for that last tweet! Too much wine….”
“Today’s lesson: Never drink and tweet!”
“Ugh…I shouldn’t have had that 4th shot last night…Starbucks here I come!”
“Question…Does alcohol literally sweat out of your pores? I must research this…”
If you have had too much to drink, do what all adults should do: Call it a night! Don’t continue tweeting, don’t expound on the details. Let’s at least pretend we have had a drink before.
5) Outright requests for more followers and/or RTs: Twitter is about connecting. It allows for the exchange of thoughts, ideas and info among like-minded people. While it is also an amazing networking tool, this doesn’t mean it should be treated as a popularity contest. Generate your followers organically, not obnoxiously. What? You need 132 more followers to reach 5000? You want to see if you can do it by tonight, please RT this?!
Guess what? Now you need 133 more.
The people I choose to follow are on Twitter because they have something to offer and are hungry to evolve - not because they need a large number next to their name.
The same goes for RT requests. Let the quality of your tweet dictate the amount of RTs it generates. Come on people, don’t pander. You’re better than that…aren’t you?