Like to see some true 'nail-biting' advertising.
Simple, powerful, no tricks and no special effects.
This one ad put Union Carbide on the map.
Watch the Birdie!

Pay it forward...

Here's a great example of a brand complementing or thanking its followers.
In this case the brand is Australian Singer songwriter Gotye.
He's created a mash-up from YouTube covers of his hit.  It really is a beautiful love letter back to his fans. Have a watch... it's truly engrossing and fascinating...
See Gotye's YouTube mash here...

A recent study undertaken by Millward&Brown on behalf of the UK's Royal Mail wanted to understand if there were any differences in the communication effectiveness of physical (Print, Direct Mail etc) and virtual media (web, digital etc). The results were surprising...
As the report says...there was particular interest in understanding the emotional processing evoked by the different forms of media...
'The research strongly suggests that greater emotional processing is facilitated by the physical material than the virtual' 
It appears that physical material is more 'real' to the brain, it has a meaning and a place and becomes better connected to memory...
It is a fascinating study and one that should be considered by all media/creative agencies. Remember, advertising isn't just about 'reach' but also 'emotional connection'.
For the full Millard Brown case study go here Millward&Brown

Emotions in advertising not only make everything more interesting and memorable, but also help us, as consumers, form a bond with the advertiser. We've all seen funny ads, or tear jerkers...but how about 'creepy' or 'scary'...they're emotions right? But can they be used to sell something? Or change someone's mind? (Let's put political advertising to one side for the moment, that's a whole other ball game).
Have a look at this ad from the wonderful Californian Milk campaign...It's creepy and effective all in one!  http://youtu.be/YZ0x77RAOLE

Not only was it on the sign but the digital screen inside was the same... accidental funny signs make my day...

Digital News Content: To Pay or Not To Pay?

Here's an interesting analysis on the Guardian newspaper and its refusal to contemplate a paywall business model. The writer Gordon MacMillan explores the thinking behind it and how other publishers like The New York Times and The Times have approached this. It's a fascinating, ongoing and ultimately brutal debate:

http://wallblog.co.uk/2012/07/20/29419/ 

Creating talk. Generating Commerce© 

Too BUSY to innovate?

Now and then it's useful to dig into the archive of a favourite information source. In this instance an article published in 2008 by McKinsey & Company, the global management consulting firm. Through an interview with the director Brad Bird, who won 2 Oscars for Best Animated Feature with the Pixar films The Incredibles and Ratatouille, we are reminded that great ideas come from unexpected places. In a world of information overload it's become an expected auto-response that the minute you ask someone how they're doing the response is usually 'busy.' We constantly hear and experience busy people getting things done. Great. Unless what they're getting done is being busy without adding value or purpose. It can be an enjoyable exercise for all of us to sit back at times and ask those questions of both our clients and ourselves. If done without fear of the answers you'll get the best results. Are there ways we can all be more innovative? Are there old ways of doing things, regardless of past success, that could be re-assessed? How are we harnessing and using creativity? These are not new questions but simply questions that we owe it to ourselves to ask. Give yourself permission to take a break from 'busy' and enjoy the read:

www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Innovation_lessons_from_Pixar_An_interview_with_Oscar-winning_director_Brad_Bird_2127

Creating talk. Generating Commerce©

News is…The brand is still alive

I'm currently in New York. And I gotta tell you the city is great (as always) but the free to air TV is crap. More specifically the ads. There's a caveat but I'll get to it in a moment. The ads can be broken down to 5 distinct categories: Death, Fear, Medications, Lawsuits  and Cars.  In other words, you need a funeral plan, someone is going to kill you if you don't  buy this product, you're gonna die if you don't buy this medication, you should sue someone because YOU DID buy this medication and here's a nice new shiny car that  will make you feel patriotic. Simple as that really. The trouble is, after watching TV for  a couple of hours, you feel completely drained.  I'm not kidding - one arthritis medication ad actually said this... 'x' can cause death, blindness, suicidal thoughts and liver failure. Up until the disclaimer I was sold. Then I was just scared.

However, once we moved into a better class hotel that had cable, the shows improved and so did the ads. The Geico 'Puppy' ad, the Audi 'My Dad's an alien'  and Volkswagen's '"Our door's have a firm slam'  were stand outs. Simple, involving, human insights that made me laugh and feel good about a product.  I felt part of the family. I wanted to be part of the family.  No fear and no scare mongering. Just wit.

Why can't all ads be this way?

Creating talk. Generating Commerce©

Well, that's new….

I've heard ads called a number of things over the years, not all them reprint able here…but Skype has come out with a new twist. Obviously in a bid to push advertising (they've got to start making money, somehow) they've introduced display ads on the screen next to your 'video call' screen'. But, wait for it…they've called them "conversation ads'. They see it as an opportunity 'for marketers to connect with hundreds of millions of users where they can have a meaningful conversation about brands in a highly engaging environment'.

Are they serious?

Do they really think that we talk about brands when we're having a chat to our friends or family.  "Must call mum and talk to her about the new diaper ad I just saw…gee it's good!"  or "I'd love you to come to dinner with me, there's something I'd like to ask you...oh wait can you see that tampon ad that I can see…isn't it clever?"

(a creative director needed to say to whoever thought of this:  "get your hands of it")

Please. Brands are important in life, but they are not our life.

Creating talk. Generating Commerce©

Is there a better brand than BBC ONE / David Attenborough?

What do you think?   

http://www.youtube.com/embed/auSo1MyWf8g?rel=0

It's more than just a mark!

We are amazed at the number of people (potential clients and one or two designers) who get confused over 'branding'. They think that branding is simply 'the brand', the trade mark that represents their company.
If only.
But that's not branding that's just a mark. It's an unintelligible scribble until you give it meaning. And it's that meaning that is the real brand.
Want some examples?
In the 70's and 80's when you saw the Volvo trade mark, you immediately thought of safety.
Same as the Nike Swoosh = a determination to be the best (just do it) and the Coke dynamic ribbon means 'refreshment'. A modern brand is an emotion, not an image. It's a promise the consumer can believe in and trust. And with a strong brand, every part of the company's communication works harder, including retail and social media.
Yes, that's right, you need brands in Social Media as well.
From here on in I think we'll stop talking about brands and instead talk about BusinessDNA. That way there's no doubt we're talking about more than just a pretty scribble.
Creating Talk. Generating Commerce©
For more of what we do go here http://www.meandbond.com

 

The Fred and Ginger Syndrome

They made everything they did look so easy. Everyone thought they could do dance just as well. Forget about craft or talent.

Same with ads, some clients, some account service people why, even some 'creatives', think that it's easy to create an ad…actually anyone can do it.A little word play here, a little confronting image there and voila! an ad.  And usually an award or two.But where's the depth of thinking needed to build long time brand values and propositions?

Not saying it should be hard or first thought ads can't be right (they usually are but only after  you've been living the brand for months, long before the final brief arrives). Neither am I saying that advertising is the sole ownership of people in agencies. Sometimes people outside agency world can have an insightful thought/idea. Bravo to them. But it's much like a layman could probably guess where to make the correct incision for an appendectomy.

The best ad men and women are highly intuitive. It's in their DNA, they have a gut feeling for what's needed/right. It may or may not be word play or confronting images. It may be a category changer of an idea, or an idea that's not advertising at all.  They make it look easy because they live and breathe it.

That's what good ad people do…it's a craft they've developed and honed. Much like Fred and Ginger.

Next time "Are there simply too many people in advertising?"

Creating talk. Generating Commerce™

'Creative' - what does it mean to you.

Creative.  It's a word that has been used and misused for many years. When you hear someone say… "She's a creative type…"  do you think they are being disparaging or complementary?  If a client or an agency suit counters with "that's a typical response from a creative" …complimentary or disparaging?  Is a 'Creative' someone who is glib, superficial and vulgarly self-obsessed? Or someone who knows how to bring to life the key benefits of a product or service in a persuasive, memorable, intriguing and entertaining fashion?

A good way to judge your next advertising agency is to go into the 'Creative Department' and ask any of the staff..."What do you do?"

If they answer  "I'm a creative" you may have a problem.

If, instead, they answer "I'm writer (art director, designer etc) who helps sell my clients products with intriguing, relevant and entertaining arguments", you're on a winner.

Don't get me wrong -  Creative advertising is the only advertising... and has built great brands and transformed mediocre ones. It's a mandatory for any business wanting to truly connect with their consumer. The problem is the definition. 'Creative for creatives sake' is blatantly wrong. Creative to get a product's benefits under the skin and into the consumer's brain is patently right!

Agencies and clients make the mistake of writing and approving ads that, more often than not, are missing the one key ingredient: relevance.

Bill Bernbach, the father of modern era advertising, wore a suit and tie to work everyday (just like Madmen) and famously said "if you can't do it between 9 and 5, you can't do it". He was a no nonsense genius who understood that 'creative' describes the argument not the person working on it.

Tomorrow…I want to talk about the Fred and Ginger principle™

Creating talk. Generating commerce™

Tomorrow … I want to talk about the word 'Creative' … it's starting to annoy me.

Why do we compare PR and Advertising? No, really, why?

I've been amazed by ad people over the last so many years. Men and women, both. The sharpest tools in the room, yet they let 'PR' win a battle of relevance and importance in the client's mind. We seemed to lose track with what we were about, the power we had and could also impart to business. Somewhere around the late 80's, early 90's, we all became self-conscious about what we did. Were we secretly ashamed of the big salaries? (in some cases that shame was justified).  Were we embarrassed that we got to have a long lunch every now and then, shoot TV commercials overseas and get paid for 'doing nothing more than have ideas"?  Maybe.  Whatever it was, it was a mistake. And advertising has been paying for it every since.

You see I believe that Advertising (read here 'the art and craft of creating persuasive commercials) cannot and should not be compared to PR or media. They are quite different and necessary disciplines.  But they are not 'advertising'.

Let me explain. A strong strategy, combined with intuitive, engaging creative professionally crafted by experienced writers and art directors is a powerful asset to any company. PR (and please don't write nasty letters they'll only make me cry) is a dissemination of facts to promote a favourable image. It does not and never will build a brand.  Do you think that if in the early 70's an infant sneaker company called Nike would become the behemoth it is today, if they would have only used PR? "Seattle firm launches new range of Sneakers" can only go so far. 'Just do it' went so much further. Memorable, engaging, intriguing, entertaining TV, press, outdoor and cinema…not 2000 column inches... built a spectacular brand. Great advertising transforms businesses. It captures both loyalty and imagination. And although Apple are today's masters at "Whisper PR' we are only interested in the brand thanks to campaigns such as 'Think Different' and '1984'.

We are capable of so much more. Imagine this photograph:  we're close on a basketball court in the middle of an obviously exciting game, the fans in the background are on their feet cheering wildly…in the foreground is Michael Jordan - right hand outstretched, his mighty hand enveloping a basketball. His left arm is like a long air rudder behind him. His legs are walking through the air, 6 feet above the ground. It's another 5 feet to the basket, but we know he'll dunk that ball through the middle of the hoop, as sure as night follows day.The headline could have said

"Air Jordan help you jump higher."

But no. That's too easy. That's the lazy thinking an also-ran brand would come up with. Nike, the market leader, has the confidence to say:

Isaac Newton 0.  Michael Jordan 1.

That's the undeniable power of advertising.  It's a game changer.

 

Creating talk. Generating commerce.™

A plea for more advertising. Who would have thought?

There's a great Op. Ed. piece in the latest Esquire Magazine (Feb. 2012) titled "A short prayer for Advertising - Please bring back great commercials" written by Stephen Marche. It's quite a fascinating observation on what advertising has become and what we've almost lost. "What could be more old-fashioned than actual ads? Everywhere…life has become advertising and advertising has become life". Mr Marche's keen point is that in a time when advertising has secreted itself into every facet of our lives, it has lost its once essential glamour. 'Ads',  those great imposing inventions of the 20th century, reflected our taste and our culture, showed us what we liked and what we were like. In them we found humour and wit, banality and grace. We knew 'what were good ads and good products and what were bad ads and bad products". Now we are increasingly and silently cajoled and sold in a time  when product placement is deemed  as important as brand building.

It's unfortunate that  'advertising and honesty' are seen as a contradiction in terms. (i've always treasured  the term 'the truth well told' but that's another blog). I fear that in the not too distant future, when the 30 second TV commercial is only an oddity dragged out to entertain us during extravaganzas such as the Super Bowl, we may miss the 'honesty' of a well crafted commercial.

Read the full article, you're sure to enjoy it. Either buy Esquire at your newsagent (US edition), or download their award winning app from iTunes.

Creating talk. Generating commerce.™

Social Media - all or nothing at all...

I often wonder why companies get all excited about a social media campaign and then go about it half cocked... they build a weak Facebook  and twitter page and then add lame posts, or rarely post at all, and wonder why it didn't work. To our mind that's like buying a radio campaign and just putting 30 sec of silence to air. You make a start, but don't follow through. Digital and Social media is the ENTIRE gamut. You simply can't do it half hearted and expect great (or any) results.

When we design a campaign for a client we include SEO SEM Blogger outreach, an app (skewed to making a sale), Digital and online PR, Link building, Content building, FB/T/G+ brand pages, Adwords, Online ads, generated content for Youtube, instagram, tumblr, Groupon etc

Any thing less is just a waste of time and money. If you're going to do it...do it all or nothing at all.

The cost of the ad vs the media spend.

I've never understood this. But then, I tend to look at advertising creative differently to most. There's an argument that says the production budget of an ad (and let's talk TV here) is proportionate to the size of the media spend. On the surface that sounds reasonable. But let's think about it.

If the media spend is two million dollars the production budget has every right to be 10-15% - $200,000 - $300,000.  And if the media spend is $100,000 the production budget should be the same %, about $10,000  - $15,000.  So the more or less you spend on media decides the more or less you have to create the persuasive message. The one thing that can transform a business.

Does this seem ludicrous to anyone else? What on earth do the two budgets have in common?  Aren't the real questions: "How much money do we need to  connect with the target consumer/demographic?" AND "How much money do we need to create the best possible, most persuasive idea we can?".  I fully understand company's have budget constraints, but let's make that the decider on the production budget rather how much is being spent in media.

Look at it another way:  A 30 sec spot on the Superbowl costs $1m+ -  does that mean you have to spend $100,000 on production.

No it means you have to spend whatever it takes to connect with the millions watching the event. And you know what, that could be just $40,000, or $10,000 or another $1million.

I've presented creative ideas (both in digital and traditional) and when the client asks the production estimate responds with "But that's almost as much as the media spend!" And even though they loved the idea and thought it would effectively do the job required, have canned it and asked for something less breakthrough/involving/standout. No kidding, I've heard that.

This is not an argument for big production budgets. It's an argument for giving your communication company a realistic production budget, irregardless of what your media budget is.

As we say: Create talk. Generate Commerce.©

 

Creative vs Media - No the argument has not gone away.

It seems the new king of the block ( 'new'  =  'the last 10 years') is media. Traditional or Digital, it doesn't matter.  And it's understandable because  it's all so quantifiable. So predictable. So definitive. "You're talking to these people,  at these times and it will cost this much." and "that demographic will see your ad exactly 4.5 times".  A client will gladly spend millions of dollars when presented with that thinking.  Sure they may tweak the plan at the edges, but more often than not it will get through. Now it's time to remind ourselves of an immutable truth uncovered by Mr Bernbach and his peers some 50 + years ago:  Advertising is the art of business. (Not marketing, advertising). When it is crafted by experts, those interested in their client's success, not their personal success at award shows, there's no more powerful force for business transformation on the face of the planet.  So powerful in fact that when created properly, it can mean less money needs to be spent on media.

Did anyone else hear that pin drop?

Here's a story, it's true and involves the enigmatic Steve Jobs. Before they launched the Apple Macintosh in '84, Mr Jobs and his agency created a spot called '1984'. You must have seen it, it's gone down in advertising folklore and was voted 'best ad ever' by people who know. The point of the story is that the then Apple board, when shown the ad prior to broadcast, demanded that it never be shown, that all copies be burnt and that Steve Jobs question his grip on reality.  But never one to be deterred by old thinking, he managed to get the ad to air. Once. During the Superbowl.

Held as the most effective single showing of any ad, ever, '1984' not only helped redefine creative advertising but also turned the Superbowl into an advertising event more than a football event.

How many times have you seen one bad ad over and over again - wearing you down with its banality - driving you to sticking forks into your eyes?   Time to re-question the industry and decide what we're really doing and how we can do it better,  help our clients spend less, and succeed more.

see 1984 here http://youtu.be/OYecfV3ubP8

 

 

 

Can we do everything?

Boy, I hope not. These days, being a 'Jack of all trades' is a sure fire way to fail. Rather than trying to be all things to all people, isn't it a better idea to be great at one thing and utilise expertise in other fields. (production etc) After all, you don't want your Dentist to also be your mechanic, do you? Take persuasive ideas as an example. From where we stand, the most important part in the communications mix is the idea. (Call me old fashioned, and I'll have my detractors, but it ain't nothin' without an idea!) You need to come up with an important communication idea first, one that will intrigue, engage and entertain your market. One that will fulfil all the stuff we learnt about brands from Messers Burnett and Bernbach. Then you need to translate that across today's different mediums. Impossible? Hardly. If you can make the core campaign idea work across TV and Outdoor, two diametrically opposed media, why can't you also make the same core idea work in digital? A good example is the classic line of the 80's 'Pepsi - The choice of a new generation' That thought was perfectly expressed in countless TV commercials, radio and billboards and no two looked the same. It was cleverly translated into the strengths of each medium. Same rule applies today. Whether you're building an app, a facebook page or TV ad. The salient point that seems to escape most people is - understand the core of the idea. Once you understand that you can express it in as many different mediums and executions as you can imagine.