172 posts tagged “marketing”

When I started this blog, I was doing all reportage and no origination of material. But over the months, it occurs to me that I have a lot of stories built upon some 30+ years in marketing and allied fields. I've been letting a few of these seep out from time to time.

Monitoring some 250 RSS blog feeds, I have been astounded about how many pros do not understand the basic history of the field we are in, how many think that because they didn't know something that the revelation they have had is something new to the world. They do not understand the foundation of their industry and in ignoring it are building their professional lives on shifting sands. I'll not mince words (see the post following this one) where some idiots finally got a clue that the access to the boss is controlled by an assistant of some type. Well, at least they got it. Anyone want to make a bet that another firm won't post the same "look what we discovered" drivel again in five or ten years?

Here's a short bit, another blogger posted that because of all the ear buds running at high volume, being in the hearing industry would be a good thing. HELLO! Anyone home? If that same thought did not occur to her the first time she could hear some car's amped up stereo system from a hundred years away, then she is late to the party. Finally here, but later than hell. Costco went into the hearing centers for that reason. For more than eight years I've been telling people that were I 30 years younger, I would head that way because of the loudness these kids were subjecting themselves to.

Well, rant off for right now. I guess this is a bit of Marketing Canapes served with attitude.

Perceptions of a products quality based on country of origin strikes yet again in some research. "Fewer students gave Japanese brand Lexus top ratings when they mistakenly thought it was a U.S.-made car," according to Anderson Analytics as reported by BizReport. BizReport also says, "while students love the latest fashion labels and covet the newest technology, they have no idea of where in the world it originated." No kidding? Perhaps the survey takers should have included some questions on US geography if they wanted to see something really scary.

I get a newsletter from Amy Corr as well as the RSS feeds for Out to Launch, well, Amy launched herself into the ranks of stupidity in a big way and I hope someone in the organization got video of it and put it on YouTube. What was so stupid? Check this bit (I lost the links to the video - but the written words I've bolded/underlined are the offensive stuff):

Two TV ads for San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park promote how close visitors can get to the animals. "Masai" features a group of tribesman who are either pining for pogo sticks, for they're jumping in place, or they're trying to get a better look at something, namely a group of giraffes. Watch the ad here. A herd of wildebeests run into a pond, then abruptly leave, in another ad. Turns out, there's a stranger among them: two guys in a wildebeest costume trying to get a closer, or even just one, look --  how much can the guy in the rear see, anyway? Click here to watch the ad. M&C Saatchi Los Angeles created the campaign and Round2 Communications handled the media buy.

Next time, Amy, before you try to sound funny, why not call the Wild Animal Park or the agency and find out what the behavior is before writing something insensitive to the people portrayed - or go back to school and take National Geographic 101.

I'll have to look for this one as was reported by It's a Pleasure. Evidently, Sam Adams challenged some home brewers to enter a contest to develop some beer that would be suitable under the Sam Adams' brand. A six-pack gives you three different beers to try. Additionally, they point to another site indicating that this beer group is developing special glassware to enhance the beer experience. My word, the snobbery of it all. Beer drinkers willing to look and sound like winos. And that glass? It looks like a coke bottle that went to Gold's Gym or went on steroids. Four for $30. What's next? Miler going back to the "Champaign of Beer" and serving it in your favorite champaign glass?  A different set of four glasses for lagers, for ales, for pale ales, top or bottom fermented? The mind boggles.

BostonLagerPintGlass

Cool Hunting links to a surfboard with lights in the rails, fin(s) and logo. Really cool for the early or late surfer.

LightWave

Found a link to these critters at Public Relations Blog (removed link). He thinks these were made for office party fun. Got news for you, bubba, these were made for hungry college and high school students so they do not have to dine and dash. "Let's see, we'll get a free breakfast at . . ."

P13577A

Here in the US, we have the milk mustache campaigns promoting milk drinking. Here's a look at the approach appealing to kids by Promolac in Chile. Found at Adpunch.

Promolac3_25

Long lasting whiteness - Colgate. Found at How advertising spoiled me, this is a simple and eloquent execution from Dubai. 

Boxing-Ring

Stephen Denny at Note to CMO writes about this point and ends his short post with this:

> There is one thing more important than all the rest in whatever you're making, marketing, and selling. Do you know what it is?

> What is the thing that makes people cringe about your product category? How do you design around it?

Even a band you cannot stand (and I can) can put together a brilliant marketing campaign, multimedia, multi-modal, teasers, punk, guerrilla, viral. . . Cory Treffiletti says, "This is a true digital marketing concept that has no regard for boundaries or paradigms. This is not an Internet promotion. This is far beyond an integrated promotion. This is unlike anything I have ever seen, . . ." Give a healthy read to the comments at the end of the article at Online Spin. There are bits of gold there.