Sheetz Advertising Deemed Offensive

I was looking looking through a local website and I saw this press release come up from WJAC tv, and I felt like it was worthy of being posted.

http://www.wjactv.com/statecollege/15443049/detail.html

The article and subsequent video are about how local customers feel the Sheetz ad campaign that features signs promoting their new "Crispy Frickin' Chicken Sandwich" is inappropriate. The customers feel that the signs promote foul language and that if young people see them they might be inclined to use that language themselves. Sheetz claims that the billboards were not made to appeal to younger children, but instead were targeted to young adults. They also stated that the campaign was doing wonderfully and the new chicken sandwiches are selling well. Sheetz plans on leaving the billboards up at all of the current locations except for the Hazelton location, where the residents were particularly offended by the ads, until the end of the campaign.

The video showed two local, 20-something males who were visibly upset with the campaign. I personally think that they could care less and just wanted to be on tv, but thats just my opinion. I do not think that this is very damaging to Sheetz's image what-so-ever and is just an example of a local fluff story used to fill up air time. It obviously has not effected their sales at all, and the compaign will be gone and forgotten when the billboards come down next week.

Arbitron and Nielsen Co. Drop Apollo

Abitron and Nielsen Co. recently decided to drop the Apollo program, which used Portable People Meters to measure media exposure both in home as well as out of home. It was used to monitor consumer media and buying habits and organized all of the data in one comprehensive database. The program was funded by several notable packaged-goods dealers, including Unilever, SC Johnson and Kraft Foods, but primarily by Procter and Gamble, who desired to use the program for the purpose of designing more productive media decisions. Annually, the company spends two-hundred million dollars globally. They were responsible for a twenty million dollar contribution to the initiation of the program; however that amount has been refuted. The program fit well as a part of their ““connect and develop” approach to innovation through outside partners.” Another contributor, Arbitron and Neilsen, provided another forty-five million dollars to the start of the program. Despite all of this, the program was unable to attract the necessary attention from clients to stay afloat. Hopes for the program were initially high, as its coverage reached both New York Times and Business Week. The decision to cut the program came a week before a final decision on the company was to be made. Mr Morris was quoted as saying that everyone involved knew that the program was an ambitious effort from the beginning. Costs just became too high and the program died before it ever got off of its feet.



Article:
http://adage.com/article?article_id=125341
Written by: Jack Neff

Since When Does Mario Drink Sierra Mist?

Sony is planning to open up its video game advertising platform. In a move that will allow major in-game-ad-serving companies to sell ads on games made for Playstation 3, Sony is altering the exponentially growing in-game advertising marketplace. Unlike competitor Microsoft Xbox 360, whose advertising is brokered exclusively through subsidiary Massive Entertainment, Sony has opted for a more open philosophy that allows for more competition. Companies such as Adscape, Double Fusion, and IGA will be able to strike deals with the publishers that create games such as Ubisoft and Electronic Arts. Although some advertising companies might have hoped to strike exclusive deals to sell in-game PS3 ads, many analysts suggest that the competition will benefit that in-game advertising market in the long run.

The model for video games ads is still in its advertising infancy, a situation similar to what is happening on the Internet. Even though media planners haven’t quite figured out how to utilize or measure advertising within video games (although Sony signed a deal with Nielson over the summer to measure in-game exposures), video game advertising is easily worth over 400 million dollars with an estimated 23% annual growth rate over the next five years.

There are still many questions associated with In-game advertising. How effective is it? Can ads within video games become intrusive? If it can, how much is too much? How much should companies be paying to advertise in games? Is in-game advertising even worthwhile? What demographics are being reached?

Nonetheless, the successful media planners must be innovative and willing to conquer new territory. In this writer’s opinion, in-game advertising holds a wealth of untapped advertising possibilities. It must be noted that media plans are usually inclined to use more traditional, easily measured mediums like Print, TV, and Radio. Thus, newer technologies like video games and the Internet represent a new frontier in advertising. Both are rapidly expanding in use and provide overwhelming potential to reach consumers that couldn’t previously be reached.



Article titled "Game Ad Boom Looms as Sony Opens Up PS3"

(http://adage.com/digital/article?articleid=125318)

Bottled Water for Dogs

This month, Cott Corp. put their new item, Fortifido, on the market. It is a bottled water that is fortified with vitamins in order to encourage healthy bones, skin, and teeth as well as freshen the breath of household dogs. In addition to this interesting new approach to bottled water, Bot Corp. has decided to specialize a line of water all their own, only this time geared toward children with fruit flavored water that doesn't include any sweeteners or preservatives.

These companies are setting their sights on the bottled water market because numbers over the last year prove that it is a growing one, where soda statistics have remained stagnant for the most part over the last few years. Cott's director-innovation wants to remain "ahead of the curve" when pushing new innovative products like Fortifido. He feels as though pushing their way into the $40 billion pet industry is a smart move for their company due to the fact that pet trends seem to often follow closely behind human trends, and in the human world - the bottled water industry is booming with new ideas.

Accordingly, Bot Corp. feels as though their new 12 oz. bottled water will be geared from anywhere "from tots to tweens." Bot's campaign plan includes three commercials and print piece which are geared toward kids as well as their parents.

Both of these corporations feel as though niche products are what is in right now, and if you want to make an impact in the market, you have to create a niche that is all your own... or at least a spin-off of an already created one.

http://adage.com/article?article_id=125312

TV Analog Out- How will this effect the reach to the Hispanic Market?

As of February 18th 2009 broadcasting in analog signals will be a thing of the past. Broadcasters will shut off the signals which means the viewers that still depend on antennas will not be able to watch television. Viewers will have to receive signals through cable, satellite or an analog converter box.

According to Neilson Media Research this switch will actually effect a large amount of viewers.

Surprisingly there are still many homes that rely on their antennas to watch television. The cities that will be effected the most lay west of the Mississippi River. Among these cities are Salt Lake City, Houston, Dallas and Minneapolis.

Most of the homes that rely an antennas are low income or of a minority. Furthermore, research showed that households of African Americans, Hispanics, and those below $30,000 rely on antennas more than anything else to receive a signal.

In fact, Neilson warned that with this switch 13 million homes, or 10.1% of all households, would lose access to most TV signals if the transition happened now.

In my opinion, the market that will be effected the most by this switch is the hispanic market. The hispanic market has seen a tremendous growth over the last decade due to the growing population. In 2000 the hispanic population was 12.6%. It is projected to be 15.5% by 2010.

Right now there are 8.26 million hispanic homes with a TV in this country. This is a large market with a large purchasing power. With everyone upping there ad spending towards hispanics 62% of the spending was in television. That spending totalled up to 2.1 billion dollars in 2006.

Two of the cities that has the largest number of homes with antennas are also inclouding in the top DMA's for media spending in televsion. $58.1 million was spent in TV ads in Houston and $35.5 million in Dallas.

Because these households are of a lower income, I would not be suprised if they cannot afford to purchase a converter box. It will be very interesting to see how agencies adjust to this.

It will be interesting to see if cable companies lower their prices in these areas so that their viewer statistics do not wither.

Sources:

http://adage.com/images/random/hispfactpack07.pdf
http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/media/e3i09b57ed04d938419dc7460c65fdd11a5

Burnett Picks Up Clearblue Easy Global Creative Account

This article is published on February 19, 2008 BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com).

Move Comes as P&G Plans to Ramp Up Home-Test Offerings
The global Clearblue Easy creative account has moved to Publicis Groupe's Leo Burnett, Milan, Italy, as the joint venture behind the brand, which is 50% owned by Procter & Gamble Co., prepares to step up the pace in an already fast-growing home-diagnostics market. The move by the joint venture, Geneva-based Swiss Precision Diagnostics, brings the brand to a longtime P&G roster shop. It follows a review that included a Publicis sibling ,Saatchi & Saatchi ,on the roster of the world's biggest marketer, according to people familiar with the matter.

Incumbent: no reflection on creative
Amalgamated, New York, was the incumbent on the brand, which was wholly owned by Inverness Medical Innovations prior to P&G buying its 50% stake last year. They were looking for an existing Procter & Gamble network that was already set up to do typical, average, lowest-common-denominator Procter & Gamble work. "Our feeling is it had nothing to do with our creative and strategic vision for the brand." Among the edgy work Amalgamated has done on Clearblue Easy was TV ad for a digital test launched last year.

Raising the bar
"Leo is a great fit for the brand with tremendous understanding of the global female consumer," the P&G spokeswoman said in a statement. "They are a global agency, which was important as the scope of the assignment is multiregional. ... Importantly, they presented a compelling solution to take the product from medical device to one that also delivers emotional benefit." P&G has been making strides in its efforts to raise the creative bar in the past year. It was named "Advertiser of the Year" by the management of the International Advertising Festival at Cannes last week, based in part on its print Grand Prix and a Silver Lion for the "Interview" TV ad from Saatchi, both for Tide to Go. The TV ad aired on the Super Bowl earlier this month and won voting in a YouTube contest for Super Bowl ads last week, as two offbeat campaigns for Old Spice deodorant and personal-cleansing products broke from Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore.

Room to grow
But the assignment brings with it considerable room to grow, as P&G is likely to expand the brand globally. It's also unclear whether Leo Burnett will also handle other products launched by Swiss Precision Diagnostics. Inverness Chairman-CEO Ron Zwanziger has said the joint-venture plans to launch one or two home-diagnostic tests per year. Among tests believed to be in the pipeline are ones for strep throat and children's ear infections, said Greg Simpson, analyst with Stifel Nicolaus & Co., last year. Clearblue Easy had been owned by P&G rival Unilever until it divested the brand to Inverness for $100 million in 2001. As a testament to how the business and the importance of the home-diagnostics market have grown since then, P&G paid $325 million for only half the business last year.

As I am a student studying in advertising in foreign country, it is glad to hear this news. Several big advertising agencies, mostly in United States, have been trying to grow as a global agency. The advertising agencies should keep eyes on how this whole world is going on noawdays, and make their eyes to target as more broad and worldwide. The creativeness could be kept in all over the countries, not only United States or Europe, so all we should share those good ideas and push ourselves more on the advertising strategies. In my thought, it is neccessary to have a global mind as an advertiser.

Coke Red Goes Green

Coke is entering the green/ sustainability marketing movement, while broadening the definition as more than only an environmental move. Coke plans on focusing on “sustainable wellbeing” as it moves forward in the green era. This includes informing the public of not only environmental changes, but also efforts of improving communities. Coke has identified their wellbeing strategy as addressing mental, physical, community and environmental perspectives.

This $10 million marketing move evolved from an entirely different focus. Originally Coke planned on a health and wellness marketing push, but was changed after President and General Manager of the sparkling beverage division, Hendrik Steckhan, believed this would put Coke on the defensive. Consumer research also revealed that coke customers were concerned that Coke was not showing that it cared for the communities.

The marketing move will begin with a three page print display in newspapers including; The New York Times, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal. The spread will focus on how Coke has, and will continue to evolve with the needs of its consumers, also introducing a new red aluminum bottle. There will be two more print pieces as well as two T.V. spots in the media plan. The first spot will air this Thursday on American Idol, the second will debut during the 2008 Summer Olympics. The T.V. spots will highlight how Coke supports education and sports programs in local communities.
A spokeswoman identified some of the promises that it has made and plans to keep including the promise to recycle 100% of its aluminum cans in the U.S. Coke has also aided financially in the building of the worlds largest bottle to bottle recycling center in South Carolina.

The one concern is that Coke will need to make sure that the promises, statements and images introduced through this marketing move will be followed with actions.

I believe that Coke is making a good move by broadening the definition of the Green marketing movement to include not only environmental issues but address community concerns including education and sports programs. This positions Coke as a leader, rather than a follower in the Green movement. Although I agree that these perspectives of "wellbeing" should be an element in their message, I hope that they include more than a promise of recycling and support of a new recycling center as their environmental improvements.



http://adage.com/article?article_id=125319

Marketers: We Don't Get How to Do Diversity

Marketers are hiring more talent as well as spending more money to chase multicultural consumers. However, they still don’t know whether they are reaching their consumers effectively and with that confusion, they are often unsure if they are receiving good returns on their investments.

Twenty years ago up until now, marketers are still struggling to comprehend the multicultural market. According to a study for executive search firm Heidrick and Struggles by Brandiosity, 84 percent of markets believe that multicultural marketing is critical to their business while only 40 percent said they don’t know the financial value of multicultural groups to their companies.

Having a multicultural market is very important to the company, yet a lot of companies lack a real companywide strategy to address it.

“The root of this is the lack of awareness at the organization,” said Ms. Palazio. “While the CMO understands it well, they almost have to evangelize the value of multicultural marketing to the rest of the company.”

Not having a multicultural market could be the result of poor structure. Within the study, 44% said their companies were not effectively organized to handle multicultural marketing. As a result, ad-budgets and new hires increases become lost or marginalized in a system that is not structured to handle them.


I feel as though today, this should be no excuse. Our country is heavily diverse and in order to target your product or service, it’s essential that you have a plan to target the multicultural consumer as well. Multicultural marketing will grow if they incorporate a multicultural action plan. Doing this will increase a company’s revenue. The market 20 years ago is different compared to the market now and it is continuing to change. Keeping up with the ever-changing market, while successfully implementing a successful market strategy involves incorporating multicultural consumers in market plans. Although many companies cannot afford to do so base on their tight spending budget, being unaware is not a valid reason.

http://adage.com/hispanic/article?article_id=125320

Weight Loss Companies Reach Customers in New Ways

While most weight loss companies focus more on traditional advertisements for their programs, Jenny Craig is changing their approach to more non-traditional ways. They are testing a new way of reaching customers by going to malls in New Jersey and California and placing special mirrors within them. These mirrors show people what they would look like if they were 10 to 15 pounds lighter. By actually seeing the results of what a weight loss program would help them look like, I feel like people will get a little more incentive to join the club. Jenny Craig is holding sampling events as well so that people can actually taste the food and disprove the idea that diet club food tastes horrible. Since many people believe they won't like the food they allow you to eat in these programs, having them to find out for themselves is definitely a good way to convince them that they will want to eat the food, and can succeed in this diet. Although other weight loss companies aren't exactly using these non-traditional ways to advertise, they are changing their ads on tv and print to be more focused on getting people to look online. This way people who may be interested in these programs can more easily get more information about them, and therefore be more likely to subscribe to their services. I believe all of these new approaches being taken by weight loss companies will definitely help to increase the number of customers.

I read about this in an article from adage.com. This is the link.. http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=125098&search_phrase=Big+Players+in+Diet+Industry+Shift+Focus+to+Online+Presences

Saks Fifth Ave. taking a new advertising road

Saks Fifth Avenue's latest ad campaign "Want It!" is going for a bigger, bolder approach to reach their target. I'll give you a hint, it starts with a "B." A Billboard? No, a Bus! A double-decker bus with "Want It!" ad images plastered across it will be transporting customers around New York from March 13-15. The ads were created by Dutch graphic artist Piet Paris. They are said to practically be a billboard for New York City and given the recent influx of Europeans looking to take advantage of the tanking value of the U.S. dollar, Saks has decided to embark on several tourist-centric initiatives around the launch of the campaign next month. Here's what senior VP-marketing for Saks, Kimberly Grabel had to say about the new concept:

"[Tourists were] really the trigger to think about the bus concept, because they are the first to hop on the bus and do the tour of New York. So we expect a lot of tourists on the bus."

But they didn't just get the bus rolling, they thought of a few more outlets to reach consumers.

"Our guide will not only be dressed in 'Want It!' fashion, but they'll have a script that includes both the trends of the season as well as a little history of Saks Fifth Avenue," Ms. Grabel added.

I think that Saks is definitely taking advantage of a great opportunity with the amount of European tourists visiting New York City. In my opinion, this new concept for Saks is going to do well because of a few reasons. Not only are they going to stand out from competitors by making the biggest and loudest impression, but they are going to have an advantage of recency by reaching consumers out on tour of the city looking to spend some cash. I believe that tourists and New Yorkers alike will enjoy this bold ambient advertising from Saks. They will be seeing messages but also hearing messages from the tour guides plugging the retailer's high-end fashions. I think that making their advertising into a more interactive experience is a great idea for their target. It is nice to see a strong retailer like Saks Fifth Avenue trying to make a creative impact in a big, cluttered area like New York City.

Effectiveness of TV advertising is decreasing

The impact of television advertising has declined over the last couple of years.

That is according to a recent study from the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and Forrester Research, which has revealed that 62 per cent of marketers maintain that television advertising has become less effective in the last two years.

It was also discovered that advertisers were keen to experiment with new ad formats, with 65 per cent saying that they would like to try ads in online television shows.

A further 43 per cent of advertisers said they were eager to try interactive television ads.

Commenting on the findings, Bob Liodice, president and chief executive of the ANA, said: "As marketers embrace the richness of new advertising avenues outside of the traditional TV format, the TV industry is working to address marketers´ issues related to ratings and the changing TV landscape.

"Marketers, in collaboration with the TV industry, will continue to find the most effective and innovative ways to reach their customers through the TV medium, utilising the emerging technologies available to them."


http://www.equimedia.co.uk/Effectiveness-of-TV-advertising-is-decreasing-2008-02-22.htm


This article was interesting because it seems to reveal what we all thought was coming that the internet is going to be if not, already, larger and more influential than TV. For so many years TV ran the ad scene and now I feel that unless newer and more innovative advertising is created, the net will be more of an effective source for advertising.

Guitar Hero: Reaching the Unreachable

http://www.adrants.com/2008/02/guitar-hero-helps-marketers-understand.php#more

The prime task of a media planner in today’s “hustle and bustle”, media-overloaded society, is of course to make a series of decisions identifying what the best combination of advertising vehicles for reaching target consumers would be. This task includes using their recourses effectively and efficiently to reach the largest number of people with the advertising message, using the least amount of money possible. It is very important to find a medium that most relates with the target consumer to have the biggest and best impact in that consumer’s mind. The use of effective media is changing at a breathtaking rate in today’s media world, therefore media planners need to accommodate to that change to be effective. In Erik Hauser’s article entitled Guitar Hero Helps Marketers Discover Product Relevancy, Erik explores the fact that through the product relevancy of Guitar Hero, advertisers can discover and reach entirely new consumer targets that they never expected, and encourages advertisers to come up with new engagement techniques in order do this successfully, and in turn boost sales. Guitar Hero may only be the beginning of this bizarre new way to reach consumers around the country, but there is no telling what the future may hold.

In Hauser’s article, he discusses the fact that playing Guitar Hero, a hands-on interactive video game where users actually “play” an electronic guitar to the sights and sounds of real video game action, stimulates involvement in the consumer, and opens the consumer’s eyes to entirely different products and services that advertiser’s and media planners never imagined. In his article, he uses a specific example in which a 9-year-old boy asked for a Lynard Skynard CD, because he was able to “play” that song on Guitar Hero, and was actively engaged in the process so much, that the 9-year-old wanted a CD from a band that was big in the 1970’s. He implies the argument that this is something that advertisers and media planners never thought possible; a 9-year-old boy making or influence a purchase of a band’s CD that was big in his parents generation. This is something that media planners (as well as advertisers) need to consider in this current day and age, because the impact of product relevance and promotion through that, may just be a glimpse of the future.

Hausen poses 2 main questions that many brand managers face in today’s market; "How do we increase relevancy within a particular market segment, and more importantly convert that new found relevancy into sales," and "How can we drive purchase and purchase consideration by our intended audience - an audience that currently doesn't even know that we exist?" Guitar Hero led a small child to purchase a CD that no advertiser, media researcher, media planner, or marketer could have imagined or foreseen. The fact that the child was able to engage and in a sense control the Lynard Skynnard song, one of many other songs and artists featured on the game, led him to influence a purchase of that band’s CD. This takes on a whole new challenge for media planners today.

Media planners need to find a way to not only reach completely unexpected consumers such as the previous example, but also their target audiences as well in the same manner as this example. There may be many other product tie-ins that can be made out there, other than video games and the music business. What partnerships could be formed that would symbiotically benefit two or more genres, companies, or even industries of products and services? Media planners are given the task of reaching consumers through this new idea of a media vehicle, with perhaps placing different forms of advertising with use of other products. Artists and other products being promoted on video games, TV commercials, and through alternative and non-traditional advertising is only the beginning of it. Media planners could look at this symbiotic relationship as an entirely new component of a media plan and an efficient way to promote their client’s product, and perhaps interactively connect it with demographics that no one ever thought possible. It is important to figure out how take products such as Guitar Hero, and implement them into the market in accordance with the product, including different aspects of markets that the product can represent (the music industry in this example). Guitar Hero blends these markets together, and with the current condition that the music industry is in, this could be partially be a potential savior. What other possibilities are out there? Perhaps we will just have to wait and see

Absolut World: forgot to ad the link to the article

http://adage.com/article?article_id=125137

An Ad School Grows in Brooklyn

This article published Feb 8, 2008 in Adweek. NEW YORK Plans for a new Brooklyn high school focusing on advertising and media have moved forward with the approval of the New York City Department of Education and the identification of a site.The High School for Innovation in Advertising and Media will be located in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn, according to Brooklyn Borough president Marty Markowitz. The school will occupy a building on the Canarsie High School campus and is slated to open in September.The DOE plans to enroll about 108 ninth graders to start and in each of the next three years, which means that within four years, the school's total enrollment will reach 425-450, according to a DOE representative. "This school will go a long way in preparing our very talented and creative communities of color for exciting and very lucrative careers in advertising and marketing."Markowitz has committed $2 million in capital funds from his office's budget toward the project. The school is backed by a partnership that includes the American Association of Advertising Agencies, Interpublic Group, Virtual Enterprises, Microsoft and VCU Adcenter director Rick Boyko, who will lead an advisory board charged with developing a curriculum.Applications for the school will be available this weekend during a recruitment fair for all new city schools, the DOE rep said.

Through reading this article, I think it is a very good news for the students who are dreaming of being an advertiser. I wish I could go to this high school since I've been dreaming to work in advertising field. If there are people who exactly know what they want to study and work for the future, it would be better to study in depth for the area as early as they can. Advertising is the study that just has been established and developed since few years ago. Even when I was looking for college that i want to go in my senior year of high school, there are not that many colleges that have advertising major in this country, moreover, there are only two colleges having advertising major in my country South Korea. For now, advertising is not that popular as much as business or law which are long live study, however, it is obvious that advertising has a bright future and a study which will be developed and keep getting popular and broad for the future.
The effect of advertising toward the whole society has been getting huge as time goes by, the education of studyinf advertising has to be much more expasion and growth .The buying power of African-Americans is expected to exceed a trillion dollars over the next several years, yet they represent less than five percent of the advertising industry workforce. It is necessary to give students to be able to develop their talent and ability of creativeness since they are young. The sooner you do it, the better it will be.

Company Behind Many TV Hits is Sold

Advertising Forensics-


On Friday February 15, 2008, the New York Times released an article about Reveille a company that’s been behind many TV hits such as, “The Office, The Tudors” and many other reality shows, including “The Biggest Loser” was sold by co chairman of NBC entertainment Ben Silverman, to a British firm, “The Shine group” for 125 million. The company Reveille also had the unscripted programs for American Gladiator, My Dad is Better than Your Dad, and Kath and Kim.
Ben Silverman said that he put the company up for sale because he wanted to focus on NBC. He said even though in a “blind trust” of the sale, he still has an emotional connection to t he company.
The Shine group express that they did not benefit from the sale but the value of the company has increased “as a result of raising the purchase price.”

Article by: Ben Stelter.

An Absolut World

Ironically, Alcohol seems to have relevance in almost any circumstance these days. I suppose in an "absolute world" people could fend off the stresses of their job, relationships, classes, what have you with the push of a button or by draining themselves in the depths of a bottle with minimal consequence. However we all know it isn't generally good social practice to bust out a bottle of vodka and start taking shots in the middle of a business meeting. I mean usually we call those people drunks. I don't think that's what Absolut Vodka was necessarily going for either with their new image/ campaign style "An Absolut World"... but all the same, the new campaign (which we talked about in class- with one of the video commercials we posted a few weeks ago featuring the european pillow fight) is causing quite a stir for Absolut in terms of brand imaging and a favorable spike in their sales numbers.
With the brand's breaking from their normal image (which since its birth in 1979 consisted of print-centered ad campaigning whose ads played off of interesting visual metaphors and visual distortions that somehow featured the shape of a bottle of Absolut vodka camouflaged within some other emotionally projecting brand-related image or object), they have solidly embarked a pathway that is for many companies with strong pre-existing brand images very hard to do. They have shed their old image in favor of a continental shift, and supposedly it's working. Case shipments of the vodka have jumped 9%. They also broke the 5 million mark in case shipments for the year for the first time,which is a very credible mark in the alcohol industry. None of this of course came cheap. Sales totals aren't completely tabulated but it's estimated that Absolut spend around 16.3 million dollars for the first 9 months of the new campaign.
To tackle the article from a media-planning perspective - Absolut completely changed their predominately print-based advertising campaign of almost 30 years in favor of cable TV spots like the one we saw in class with the pillow fights. The article talks about just how big of a change this was for the company. To coincide with the change in media venue, and the fact that the new campaign slogan is "An Absolut World," obviously a play on words/the idea of an absolute world where everyone gets what they want, the brand filled airport taxi lines with Porches in Germany, boasted an ATM that actually gave out free money, and wrapped their Vegas casino with the words "Welcome to Vegas. You are now in an Absolut world." Not a bad strategy in terms of ambient advertising and TV spots - indicating not only a major change in media but also one that accurately coincided with the brand's changing image, and IT'S WORKING! I thought this was an interesting example of rare strategic success in an abosutely (no pun intended) saturated market, not to mention the fact that to reinvent a brand image requires the considerations of the brand's history, current market, target market, and changing everything including the planning, to impact real change for advertising, and real change in market value. This is something I think many companies really fail to grasp. It can be the reason why so many of them fail to advertise with effective messages that match the strength of their brand (Coca Cola comes to mind). The other cool strategy is the locations chosen by the company such as Vegas and Germany. Clearly they were going global, going big, and picking the right places - like Vegas (where the new campaign slogan accurately reflects the image of the city as a whole). It's just like our slides: Media objectives are designed to accomplish advertising objectives which must in turn fulfill marketing objectives. Absolut is making that happen across all boards at the moment.

Breaking With Bottle Fires Up Absolut Sales

http://adage.com/article?article_id=125137

In May of last year, Absolut Vodka made the bold decision to change its well known advertising strategy and it has paid off tremendously. TBWA/Chiat/Day, who is Absolut's creative agency, decided to move away from the well-known print advertisements "which merged its iconic bottle with equally iconic art-world figures" and went in a whole new direction. They decided to launch "a global multimedia approach last year themed, "It's an Absolut world."" By doing so, their "global case shipments jumped 9%, and Absolut gained market share in the crowded and increasingly competitive U.S. market" They also broke the 5 million case mark for the first time, last year. Only four other spirits have ever done that before.

This feeling of a need for change was brought on by an outdated campaign that no longer matched Absolut's place in the market. When Absolut was first sold in the U.S. it was virtualy the only "superpremium vodka" and was marketed as such. The print ads with only the bottle and the artwork showed that the brand was made for the upper class. However, since its launch in 1979, many pricier vodkas have been introduced into the U.S. market and have dropped Absolut down to "midshelf status." Their print advertisements were so famous that there was a lot of skepticism in changing them. "We almost looked at [change] as heretical," said Rob Smiley, creative director at TBWA/Chiat/Day, "but consumers really needed to see something fresh."

In May of 2007, the "It's an Absolut world" campaign was launched. This featured spots on tv where police officers had to fend off criminals with pillows for weapons and print ads that showed Times Square filled with classical art work and pregnant men. They also used other creative one time advertisements such as an ATM that dispensed free money and airport taxis that were actually Porshes. They also wrapped Las Vegas's Luxor casino pyramid in an banner that read, "Welcome to Vegas. You are now in an Absolut World."

This type of eclectic approach to advertising broke Absolut out of the shell that they were in as only having upscale print advertisements and really rejuvinated the brand. The brand had been repositioned by the marketplace over the years and the advertising campaign truly needed to be repositioned to match. With this new "Absolut world" approach, they were no longer marketing themselves as the "superpremium brand" that they no longer were and are now using all sorts of different types of media to promote their new brand image. Changing the campaign was a bit risky, but it was done in a smart way and proved to pay great dividends in the end.

Turn Out the Lights

Leo Burnett an advertising agency in Chicago is trying to promote an event entitled "Earth Hour 2008" to build awareness for the World Wildlife Fund, a client. Although Chicago is the front runner city in the US, other major cities are trying to join in on this international effort. Some of the other cities that are willing to turn off their lights for the cause, include Bangkok, Copenhagen, Manila, Tel Aviv, and Toronto. All of the cities are required to turn their light switches off between 8 pm and 9 pm local time on March 29.

Mr. Bernardin, the CEO of Leo Burnett Worldwide said that $1 million worth of free media was donated to help promote the event. The agency has already gotten in touch with the city's power company Commonwealth Edison, police and fire departments, public schools, and the Building Owners and Managers Assocation of Chicago are all involved. Popular attractions in the city such as the Sears Tower and Hancock Building have signed up and more are on their way.

Commonwealth Edison said that there might be an issue in making sure all the lights come back on and making sure that the transitions are managed safely. Leo Burnett has been involved in an event like this before but in Sydney. The event gained a lot of support because of the positive message it sent out. 2.2 million people ended up turning out their lights.

The event will show people that if they act individually that they can create a significant influence on energy saving. It also shows how these individual cities can work together to take a huge stance on one of the greatest threats in our planet, which is global warming. I think that the event will do well because it is calling for individuals' direct help. Leo Burnett is getting their audience involved. Leo Burnett is asking for your help. The message is that if YOU do something as small as turning off the lights for one hour YOU can help save the world. Hopefully Leo Burnett will find some way of getting the message out to everyone in the cities involved. I don't know what I would be thinking was happening if I had no idea about what was going on.

http://adage.com/article?article_id=125129

Avis releases new campaign repositioning the car rental industry

Last week, Avis began a new campaign in an effort to reposition the rental car industry. Avis, previously known as “No.2, but they try harder,” is now the “largest general-use-vehicle-rental company” in the country, as stated in Ad Age. Despite the strong reputation of Avis, car rentals are still seen as a last resort, reserved only for when a car is in the shop, or as an afterthought when planning a vacation.

The current Avis campaign that was released this past week is targeting business travelers who view business trips as chances to have some fun on the side. Their strategy persuades customers to “have an affair” with one of its cars. Avis is encouraging customers to view rentals as a break from the ordinary and an opportunity to trade up their cars for a day. Kim Lewis-Collins, director of brand marketing for Avis said, “We’re trying to make car rental sexier.”

And that they do. The “It’s OK to Cheat on Your Car” campaign contains four 30-second spots directed by Speck/Gordon. Ad Age described the spots as clever and dark, “each portraying a dejected, jealous family car decrying its owner’s straying behavior.” The spots not only provide humor for viewers but also work to promote the signature offerings of Avis. This television campaign is also supported by print, online and out-of-home elements. Ad Age describes this campaign as a major departure in the history of Avis, as well as the category overall, which has normally focused on operational excellence.

This campaign is an excellent way for Avis to encourage the daily use of rental cars. Avis is already number one in the eyes of the public, when thinking of rental cars. This campaign, as different and edgy for the rental industry as it is, will serve to remind viewers of the excitement associated with owning a new car, even if just for a day. It made the rental industry more seductive, almost as a way to escape briefly into a new life with your new car. I believe that this is an excellent branding decision for Avis that will bring the rental market into a new direction entirely, one that does not include simply renting cars for trips to and from the airport.

http://adage.com/article?article_id=124968

DVR's are now good for advertisers

Nielsen began tracing DVR usage back in 2006. More and more people are using DVR’s. Nearly 22% of homes have them. The rise in usage can be contributed to the increased sales of HD televisions because of the nearing deadline to go digital. Most HD televisions now come with DVR capabilities. Nielsen’s research segments users into three categories: heavy shifters, medium shifters, and light shifters. This is in reference to how often they are watching a program at a time it wasn’t actually aired. Nielson found that middle-income women are the heaviest time-shifters. In contrast, the types of people who don’t watch too much TV are high-income earners who don’t have time for it. These light viewers are doing 10% of their TV viewing off of programs they have recorded on their DVR’s. When the DVR technology first came out it was projected that commercial viewing would decrease. The research shows that it didn’t have as much of an impact as expected. The figures have remained stable because heavy TV views are watching more than before, and light TV viewers have the opportunity to actually increase their view time. They can now watch shows at their convenience.
For people who watch a lot of TV, advertising can become clutter and not impact them as much because they see a lot of it. With light viewers watching more and more TV, thanks to DVR’s, this opens up a new door for marketers to reach a target that wasn’t easily reached before. I feel that Nielson’s findings are just what advertisers have been waiting to hear. It was first seen that DVR’s were going to damage the advertising industry, but with these new findings and the ability to reach a whole new demographic, it’s not as bad as first thought.
http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=125113

Anomaly, New York ventures into viral videos for Jawbone

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/news/tech/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003705822

Last week, Brandweek discussed the use of viral video by Jawbone, a company who is trying to brand their top end mobile headsets. The videos were created by Anomaly, New York and feature outrageous incidents like, for example, a group of rowdy frat boys rugby players entering a bar and creating a lot of noise. One of the patrons receives a phone call and by using her Jawbone noise reducing headset she is able to slice through the yelling dudes and take the call. In the process she misses two of the fraternity brothers rugby players making out and ripping each others' clothes off.

The videos were obviously made to shock and prompt people to forward them to their friends but let's take a look at that strategy. The spots are crude- maybe too crude. This type of humor is most appealing to a younger generation- college-level, at the most. High school and college students are also the most likely age group to forward funny videos to their friends. Is this the age group you want to target an $89.00 mobile headset to?

In Jawbone's defense, Brandweek states that the some headset models sell for as little as $50 but that still seems a little pricey for younger generations.

In addition, the viral video audience is fairly small. There is no guarantee that your target will see it and, if they do, there is no guarantee that they will watch the whole thing and/or forward it. In the case of Jawbone's films, the pace is a little slow in the beginning and viewers can easily become bored with the video a few seconds in. So is this a good use of the given media? I'm pushing towards no. If the creative was tightened and refined and they placed the ads right I think they would make better TV commercials but they still might be focusing their sights too young.

Jawbone short films can be seen at www.jawbonefilms.com

Strike's End Marks Fresh Start for Forever-Changed TV Market

http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=124970

Since the writer's strike began in November, my relationship with television has strongly weakened. I no longer wait anxiously for Monday nights and the latest episode of October Road nor do I drop anything and everything to catch Grey's Anatomy's most recent development. My television habits in general have strongly decreased. I have been relying on my DVD player and laptop - not to mention good, old-fashioned social interaction. It's easy to understand the impact of the strike on my media habits, however, I never thought into the huge change it has brought to advertisers. The Steinberg articles mentions three major predictions: more reality TV, fewer programs, and a staggered series of show launches...all in which create the need for marketers to readjust their advertising.

If you take a look at the reality shows currently on air, they all consist of a limited range of plot elements. Whether it's a physical challenge or the search for love, reality shows are lacking in diversity. There isn't anything that makes us want to watch one over the other - which often leads us to not watch at all. I am much more likely to turn off the television and find something else to do rather than watch the absurdity that is Flavor of Love.

With the rising cost of TV production, networks are going to strongly reevaluate the performance of shows. They will be in no hurry to put every show back on air which inevitably leads to less programs and the loss of certain audiences.

In the past, new seasons kick off in the fall but with the huge chunk of the season taken out by the strike, show ends and launches are going to be staggered. The majority of the audiences are going to be loyal watchers, rather than the many of us who know to jump on the bandwagon in the beginning of September to catch the newest season of popular series.

The moral of the story is that the writers strike is strengthening the fact that advertisers need to stray away from the basic television commercial. Television viewership is progressively declining and the strike is only speeding things up. I believe their best bet is to jump on board with network websites. I have been catching up on a lot of television via ABC.com. The mini commercials that happen throughout the streaming episodes are definitely getting a lot of bang for their buck. There is no fast forwarding and only a 30 second time frame, making there no opportunity to leave.

The writers strike is proof that marketers need to stray away from the inconsistency of television. The future of advertising needs to be interactive and the best way for that happen is via the internet.

Moooove over, Advertising coming through!

If you ordered a hamburger and the patty was purple, it would mean one of two things; 1) There is something very wrong happening at the restaurant or 2) the meat came from purple cows. However, there are no purple cows, right? Wrong!

GoldenPalace.com, an internet casino, has redefined the nature of advertising. After winning an eBay auction that granted them certain abilities, they decided to paint 100 cows purple and allow them to graze near a major highway in Florida. The idea of purple came from a literal interpretation of author Seth Godin’s “purple cow” marketing analogy. The analogy brings forth the issue of advertising clutter, relating them to a field of grazing cows. The only way you will stand out is to make your cow purple.

For those who have issues with this and feel as though advertisers have taken this too far, you should know that PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is backing the campaign completely. Why? I believe it is a business deal between PETA and GoldenPalace.com. It is made evident by GoldenPalace.com’s obligation to place the phrase “Go Veg” on some of the cows.

Information received from www.send2press.com, and CNN.com

What do I think?

Coming from some one that is studying and pursuing advertising; I think that advertisers need to limit their advertising for maximum effect. I think that there should be regulations to the amount of medium a campaign can use to help eliminate clutter. We should not have to resort to using our animals to advertise for us. Next thing we know, companies will be training birds to fly banners around the skies.

Old Navy attempts re-positioning

According to Ad-age's interview with VP of marketing, Michael Cape, about revamping Old-Navy's image. While many people, myself included, enjoyed their previous "family friendly,"often campy campaigns, it's easy to notice that they may not have been reaching out to the right audience. Over half of the clothing in old navy is geared towards young women, so advertising to everyone could be seen as a bit of a waste.

So, while Old-Navy continues to court parents via circulars, radio, and direct mail, this spring their Television and online advertising will be aimed directly at twenty-somethings. When the campaign begins of February 14th, they will reveal a new logo and a new, "sexier" image. Cape claims that this new campaign will be fully integrated, meaning it will be seen in-store as well as in television and print.

Mr. Cape had this to say about their previous tactics, "We were trying to be all things to all people before," he said. "We really need to resonate with who we're going after." While this is true, I believe Old-Navy is taking quite a risk by changing their tactics. I've never shopped at Old Navy much. Besides the fact that their pants never fit me and seem tailor made for Amazon women who are eight feet tall, the clothes are simply more conservative than what I would wear. Their image does not equate to "fashionable." It is, however, synonymous with "affordable," at least in my mind. It's clear they're trying to seem more fashion-forward to try and capture a larger part of the market. But if their new customers are slow in recognizing this, and they lose the "family" aspect by focusing too much on sex-appeal, they could end up doing real damage.


here's the link: http://adage.com/article?article_id=124924

Digital and the Renaissance of TV

As most of you are aware, with the increasing emergence of DVRs and internet competition, advertisers have feared that TV is going to become an obsolete venue.

But, new data from the UK may help to put advertisers at ease with the future of TV.

According to the Broadcasters' Audience Board, which measures in-home TV viewing in the UK, commercial viewing has reached an all- time- high of 2.25 billion a day in the UK. Average to upscale households and 16-24 year olds, which are two key audiences for advertisers, have increased their ad viewing by 3.6% and 1.5% respectively. 

There is no doubt that DVRs and internet competition are growing rapidly, so how exactly is that commercial viewing is still rising?

As far as the DVRs, industry observers think that people are forgetting that they are using them and forgetting to fast-forward through the channels. As for the internet, Tess Alps, chief executive for Thinkbox, says that people are using the internet to do things they used to do in the real world (like shopping, socializing, etc) and that internet has not diminished the demand for the relaxed entertainment that TV offers. 

The article notes that this increase in commercial viewing is partially due to further digital-TV penetration ( now in 85% of UK homes) and increased viewing of digital channels. 

Ms. Alps said, "This is historic news for advertisers. . . TV advertising had an impressive 2007: increased impacts, a creative renaissance and new commercial opportunities on the emerging platforms of TV. . . TV has new ways for brands to reach audiences, who can be as engaged with TV advertising as they are with the programs."

Les Bunet, European director of DDB Matrix, said, "Digital is making TV even stronger, and it is becoming more cost-effective for advertisers." 

______________________________________________________________

I think that this data shows great hope for a venue that people thought was going to become obsolete. In fact, after reviewing the facts, I tend to agree with Mr. Bunet and Ms. Alps. I think that with digital we could see the rebirth of TV. It think it is very probable that TV will become stronger and more cost effective. 

What do you think?  

Nielsen Buys Into NeuroFocus

Did you ever feel like advertisers and companies are doing everything they can to "get into your head"? Well, in the case of the Nielsen Co., that's exactly what they are trying to do.

Last Thursday, Nielsen announced plans to join forces with NeuroFocus, a company that focuses on applying brainwave research to advertising and messaging. The company is based in Berkeley, California and will use EEG (electroencephalography) to directly measure the brain's reaction to stimuli. This "strategic investment" by Nielsen will help the company to gauge the feelings and attitudes of the viewers as they watch their favorite programs and intermittent advertisements.

Although term were not disclosed, the plan is to use specially designed baseball caps that NeuroFocis has planted wires in to monitor brain activity and track neurological responses to the programs being watched. They also intend to use other psychological tools such as eye tracking devices and galvanic skin response, which monitors the skins reactions to emotional arousal. The focus will be on bringing to market new "science-based products, services and metrics to clients in consumer packaged goods, television, film and emerging media." This will help to understand exactly what each type of consumer is most attracted to and what types of media are most engaging.

Having a bit of a Psych background myself, I think this will be an interesting study that will give marketers and researchers valuable data as far as what engages that brain, but I also feel that there may be a data overload. No two people think or feel exactly alike and therefore, researchers will have a hard time drawing conclusions about their findings. It may be difficult to divide people into accurate categories because of these inherent differences, thus making it difficult to know exactly what appeals to different viewer groups. At the same time though, I think it will be interesting to see what finding the teams come up with.

Chicago Cubs = Advertising Stupidity

It seems entirely normal to see the Chicago Cubs and stupidity in the same sentence. After all, for a team that hasn’t sniffed a World Series since 1908, the Lovable Losers from the North Side have become synonymous with words like "incompetent" and "bone-headed" (see: 2003 National League Championship Series for just one of many, many examples).

Well, it appears that our consistent friends from the Second City recently realized that if they screw up so often on the field, then the next logical step would be to screw up off the field. And did they ever hit one onto Waveland Avenue with this marketing gem.

Take a look at this picture …

That is Kosuke Fukudome, a Japanese baseball star that is getting $48 million to be the new right-fielder for the (surprisingly) defending champions of the NL Central. And that picture is part of the advertising campaign that the Cubs organization put together for their newest addition. Looks clever? Right? Looks harmless? Right?

But, as Penn State's beloved Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friends!”

According to always-trusted, never-wrong Wikipedia,

"The Rising Sun Flag is the military flag of Japan. It had been used as the ensign of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the war flag of the Imperial Japanese Army until the end of World War II. It is also presently the ensign of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and the war flag of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.

This flag is often considered offensive in countries which were victims of Japanese hostility, particularly China, Australia, United States and the Koreas, where it is seen as alarming, nationalistic and hostile."

Pretty bad, huh? Oh, it gets worse – much worse.

According to the blog, With Malice,

“Some of the responses declared it ridiculous to equate the Rising Sun to the Swastika. It’s amazing that people with absolutely no idea as to how this would be received in Japan/Asia feel qualified to issue judgment as to how offensive it is. “…to equate anything with the nazi flag is just an emotional appeal.” and “I would be shocked if anyone besides bloggers are “offended” by this image…”

Well, prepare to be shocked. The ‘nazi flag’? Actually, that’s a pretty accurate comparison. Most people in Japan hold this particular symbol in the same regard as Germans hold the symbols of nazism.”

The morale of the story? Think a little and do 15 minutes of research before you create an advertising campaign. Otherwise, you'll get something that is potentially offensive to millions of people. Or you get the Naomi Campbell-dancing lizards-Thriller fiasco.

Magazines: The best place for advertising.

Marketing Evolution's preformed a study that showed how using magazine advertising was more effective then TV or online advertising. Their study showed that by using magazines the consumers had more brand awareness, more brand familiarity, more brand imagery, and higher intent to buy then they did with TV and online advertising. This study shows that it is more worth while to put your advertising budget primarily towards magazine advertising instead of TV advertising.

I do understand how this does work. If you think about it with the Tivo and DVRs some people do miss the commercials. Even without that, people tend to do other things during the commercials just so they don't miss part of the show. So I see how some money would and is lost by using TV advertising.

Online ads can be just plain annoying. There are those that just pop up on your screen and you never can find the close button. Or you have the ones flashing and distracts you from what you're really on that site to do. These things can turn a consumer off on whatever product the advertiser is shoving into their face. There also is money lost there.

In magazines though, the consumer knows the ads will be there. The advertiser needs to learn to create an eye catching ad to get the consumer to actually stop and look or even just glance at the ad to get the gist of it. Also magazines are usually around for a while. They always seem to be everywhere. But with TV and online ads they change very frequently it can be hard to find that as again if you don't know the product name or company name.

I do agree with this research. I feel that, by looking at the research results, magazine advertising is a great way to spend your advertising budget. It produces the most results in terms of the consumer remembering anything about your product. Also magazines are longer lasting, so the consumer can go back and find the ad at a later time with a lot less ease then with trying to find a TV or online ad.

Stereotyping Generations

Stereotyping can be defined as a perception made solely by the most common characteristics of certain groups of people, yet most tend to be destructive to one's image. Stereotypes can be seen anywhere you go, for example schools, governments, institutions and even within families. The damage this can cause to those who believe in stereotypes can be more damaging than to those groups who are being classified under a certain description. The website AdAge provides an excellent article, which can be used as an example. The article is titled, "The Misunderstood Generation," and states that there are 78 million "baby boomer's" in the country who have the buying power of $3 trillion.
A new survey was conducted from Edelman Boomer Insights Generation Group, which proves that marketers "are failing to connect with consumers born between 1946 and 1964" (Hupp). The survey confirmed that this generation is being generalized as a whole, therefore discarding them as individuals and diverse consumers. Many of those surveyed do not consider themselves "baby boomer's." Marketers and Advertisers may stereotype those surveyed as "baby boomer's", yet they do not identify themselves with that description, causing failure to any advertisement directed towards this demographic. Such advertisements are not appropriately recognizing the changes that people make throughout time in order to fit into a growing, modern society. For example, approximately 50%-60% (baby boomer's) do not remain loyal to brands in order to economize purchases.
Edelman described a group found within the "baby boomer's", which he refers to as "Bulls- eye boomer's...[they]are typically wealthy, highly educated, actively engaged socially and tuned-in politically... [and]carry a lot of influence." He advices marketers to focus on this influential target. In order to do so marketers must realize the magnitude to which "baby boomer's" feel alienated in the industry. For example 54% feel neglected by Advertising Industry, 91% by the media and entertainment industry and 76% from politicians. Stereotyping can not only create a distance and resentment between society but also within the industries. Research is the main focus for marketers, especially for those who attempt to reach "baby boomer's." We must properly identify the target while avoiding misrepresentations.

Article from which I based my blog- http://adage.com/article?article_id=124865

Super Bowl Brings Benefits to Other Parties

The Super Bowl on last Sunday night broke the rating records --- an average of 97.5 million people watched this game. More interestingly, there were about 107.5 million viewers watched the last half hour of the contest, during which the Giants scored a game-wining touchdown to upset the Pats’ previously undefeated season. There is no doubt that the Super Bowl is really a bid-audience perennial. According to Nielsen Media Research, Super Bowl matches account for 17 of the 20 most-watched TV shows in terms of total viewers. Not only had the Super Bowl earned its own popularity, it also brought huge benefits to other related parties. GoDaddy.com, the internet domain-name provider that regularly runs raunchy ads during the contest and its commercial during the game urged viewers to go watch the ad that Fox (which aired the game) had rejected. According to the CEO of this company Bob Parsons, the website had received right at 1.5 million visits before the game was over and they had a whopping 2 million visitors for that day. And this company only had 500 thousand visitors to their website during the last year. At the same time, My Space which is owned by News Corp. released a statement saying that its Super Bowl “profile” contains opportunities to look at the ads that ran during the event, and it received more than 14.5 million views the second day afternoon. Meanwhile, I noticed that the lionmenus.com here at stat college also added a new category on its home page named “Super Bowl Special Offer” last weekend. I think it's a wise choice for the advertisers to relate their own products with the big event. To do the promotion at this certain time period can help the company to get twice the result with half the effort as they can reach much more audience than usual.

Writers' Strike Possibly Changing Broadcast Advertising

The recent months have been an interesting time as far as the media industry is concerned. The writers’ strike which began in November of 07 has yet to be concluded and has the possibility to continue on for weeks. In the forefront it’s easy to just see the ramifications it has on us as the viewers. No longer can we curl up in front of the TV each week and be entertained by the witty comedy on the Office. Almost all network shows have come to a standstill and moved to running reruns.

The reality of the situation is that we may be witnessing the beginning of a new era. While broadcast advertising has yet to see a large hit from the strike due to pre season bids on ad times the ramifications for next year’s shows have yet to be seen. The strike is giving the networks an opportunity to change the way in which they present shows during the year. It is possible that over the next couple months we may see a switch to cable style broadcasting which runs 8-13 show series at a time as opposed to the network’s 22.

What does this mean for advertisers? It could offer them the opportunity to run more fluent and directed campaigns throughout the year. As network TV’s shortcomings become more apparent many have already begun to switch to cable to make up for the loss especially as some analysts say that it is probably too late to salvage the network’s current season. The networks are scrapping their large media pushes to marketers and switching to smaller more focused pushes to single agencies who are weary to jump on board what could be a sinking a ship.

Some advertisers have already begun a switch to cinema advertising which according to Ad Age saw a 15% rise last year. An article in Ad Age mentions Media Vest moving 100 Million dollars in broadcast ads to the cinema for the coming year. The movie industry gives advertisers not only the ability to direct ads at more focused targets but also to do things like extend promotions to the lobbies and hallways of the theatre. Regardless of its benefits though, the cinema can’t compare to the reach of broadcast television.

Although we can predict, no one knows for sure what the next couple months will hold for us. It is possible that we will see big change and also possible that things will remain pretty much the same. In my opinion though if something isn’t broken why fix it? The strike is not a permanent and things will eventually return to normal. I think that if the networks change just to cater to the current advertising needs they may shoot themselves in the foot for the future.

Movie goers vs. Non-movie goers media consumption

According to an article in Advertising Age (http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=124804) about who consumes more media: movie-goers or non-movie goers, research has shown that movie-goers have a " 'Voracious appetite' "What we found here is that they look for those opportunities to consume media no matter what happens," said Tamara Gaffney, director-client services, IMMI. "They seem to have a voracious appetite that doesn't end -- the extent to which they're consuming media is surprising." " It is interesting to study the consumption between the two groups especially since the obvious assumption would be that non-movie goers have more time to consume more media than those who attend movies frequently. The consumption of movie-goers ages 13-24 may be suprising but it is a reflection of their lifestyles. I think this study shows something that may have been flying underneath the radar for some advertisers. Movie-goers usually send red alerts to media planners because this audience is choosing a medium with limited advertising exposure (besides product placement). It was emphasized throughout the article that the target audience (age 13-24) are easily entertained but hard to judge. Therefore, this is necessary information/research to media planners because they know they have an attainable audience but their advertising messages must be efficient and effective because of " a short attention span" for this age group. This research has also presented an obstacle for advertisers because now they need to reach that passive audience of non-movie goers. This can be a problem because this audience is not consuming one of the most highly publicized outdoor mediums (movies). Is it because they are avoiding advertising? Why are they not actively participating in a medium with limited advertising(besides product placement)? How does one reach such a passive audience that possibly have more leisure time? The exposure of this information maybe presenting new focus for some advertising campaigns. Utilize the K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) method for those with that "voracious appetite" because you may have their attention but not for long; and find out how to innovatively reach a passive audience that are not easily moved despite the theatrics of the cinema.

Quiznos vs Subway

Rivalry is part and parcel of competition, and it is also what keeps the competition going. Marketers have often sportingly used advertising to bash the competing brand, as in the cases of Pepsi and Coke, Bud Light and Miller Light.
It is on these lines that Quiznos designed its advertising to break into rival Subway's market share.Starting with its own Subway-bashing commercials, Quiznos invited the public to submit homemade commercials that depict Quiznos sandwiches as being "superior" to Subway's. Subway promptly sued Quiznos for slandering its brand.
At a time when popular contests are generating a lot of publicity for brands like Doritos, KFC, Canon and Dove, Quiznos' contest kills the fun by making the consumers look guilty of mud-slinging. In my opinion, it is not only a misuse of media and creativity, but also highly unethical. Negative publicity may generate a temporary buzz, but it will never generate a positive brand image, which is indispensable for a brand's sustenance.

Chrysler Bows 'New Day' Campaign

Although there is an extreme amount of hype when it comes to the Super Bowl, Chrysler decided against purchasing a television spot for the big game day on February 3. We know that in reality they do have the revenue to be able to purchase something as big as an approximate $2.6 million, 30 second spot but why did they decide against it?

Chrysler had launched their "New Day" campaign today, February 3, by placing a visible Chrysler brand flag during the game. According to Deborah Meyer, vice president, CMO at Chrysler, "Our intent is to be very strategic with media and online initiatives by being where high volumes of people will go prior to, during or after major events to create a dialogue." The Super Bowl XLII is not the only event this year that these brand flags will be seen, but also; Super Tuesday, which is the Tuesday following the Super Bowl, the 50th running of Daytona 500, on February 17, and the Academy Awards, which will be held on February 24.

Another advertising gimmick they intend on is running an animated "umbrella spot" that is sponsoring twelve different vehicles; Chrysler Sebring, Dodge Caliber, Dodge Avenger and the Jeep Commander. Last, the company will also intends on an "exclusive" sponsorship of the new NBC Nightly News, on the web. The support from online companies list; AOL, Yahoo!, MSN and Google.

The amount of spent money was not disclosed, but either way I believe that this was not only a intelligent route but an interesting one. Chrysler decided to not go down the same road most companies do to introduce a new product or service, but might have spent around the same on their advertising. The one very good thing about this is that they didn't just purchase a 30 second spot, but the flags during these highlighted events will be shown throughout the whole show (which is more than an hour). Also, they purchased a few other advertising techniques that was beneficial to them because they gained variety.

Industry looks for better TV audience measurement

Advertisers are constantly looking for better ways to reach their specific target audiences. With today’s technology and web outlets, there are numerous niche magazines and TV channels which help advertisers target a specific group of people. Along with this idea comes smaller more concentrated audiences. This can have a great effect when companies pay TV networks for a measured number of people who watch a particular program. This is why more time has been devoted to providing a more detailed picture of the average viewer.

Deals between ad agencies, media buyers, TV networks and cable operators are geared toward collecting data on audience behavior. Companies want a strong grasp on how potential viewers of commercials watch TV. “It’s moving beyond the pure impression,” said Michael Kelley, of PricewaterhouseCoopers. This new idea wants to capture what the audience is doing second-by-second, whether they are actually engaging in the ads, and what makes consumers stick to one program. This week, CBS signed on with TiVo to use this new second-by-second technology of TV ratings. Also, TNS Media Research and DirecTV unleashed the formation of a panel of 100,000 satellite carrier subscribers whose viewing patterns will be measured in the same way.

This whole idea is to help advertisers better target their audiences. They will be able to create ads that will be more relevant to their audience’s lives. As technology continues to advance and consumers start to have the ability to interact more and more with their TVs, creating new strategies like this becomes necessary. This second-by-second data provides much more detail about viewer behavior than Nielsen’s average minute-by-minute data.
Tracey Scheppach, video innovations director at Starcom, said that this new technology is “more accountable and it should morph what we use as a currency because it is unacceptable to use a 14,000 sample (as the Nielsen Television Index does) to tell us how to spend $70 billion” on TV ads.

CBS Teams Up With TiVo

"CBS and TiVo have formed a research partnership in which the TV network will use TiVo's Stop//Watch service data to help it determine how to best structure its commercial pods going forward and how it can use interstitials to keep viewers, both live and time-shifted audiences, involved during commercial breaks." - MediaWeek

I think this was a pretty smart move on CBS's behalf. The DVR industry is still in its infancy and will continue to grow in popularity with its users. The ability to record shows and sitcoms gives the user a tremendous amount of freedom in regards to time usage. They're no longer restrained to the couch just because their 'can't miss' show is on. However, this relatively new entertainment device also 'allows' the user to simply skip through the commercials.

I say 'allow', because it has been found that a majority of the users don't skip the commercials. I would imagine that those who record the shows use the commercial breaks in a similar fashion as those who watch the show as it airs; making runs to the fridge or bathroom. If I were to guess, I would imagine the real reasoning behind CBS partnering with TiVo is not to better accomodate the user, but to reassure those who spend alot of money buying the commercial spots that their ads are still being viewed. I thinkDVRs could lead to large changes in the way companies approach putting advertisements in the TV medium. Will the spots on the shows that are found to be most DVR'd fall in price (as companies fear their spots will be simply forwarded through)? Will the medium return to having entire segments sponsored by an individual company, as opposed to the several spots placed throughout? It will surely be interesting to see what will happen.

With Louis Vuitton's Big-Screen Turn, Print No Longer Exclusive

According to an article that will be published Febuary 4th in the Advertising Age, Louis Vuitton could be heralding a new direction in luxury advertising and away from print. As the category once thought invulnerable to the economy starts to show signs of strain, the upscale fashion marketer is breaking with tradition to launch a 90-second spot on cable and satellite channels, including CNN and BBC worldwide and in cinemas Feb.15.

Television is a mass medium, and it is talking to an audience that is different from their core audience, but the fact is luxury brands need to be thinking about new media and new ways to communicate their message. One of the few luxury companies that has embarked on a similar campaign in the U.S. is Chanel, which launched a two-minute spot in 2004. Louis Vuitton executives declined to comment on the cost of their ad but did say it represents an increase in total spending for 2008.


According to TNS Media Intelligence, $35 million was spent in measured media (excluding outdoor) on the Vuitton brand through November of last year -- virtually all of it in print. The TV and cinema effort, by Ogilvy & Mather, New York, will be translated into 13 languages. The effort does not pitch product; instead it shows dreamy landscapes while text rolls on the screen with questions such as "What is a journey?" and "Where will life take you?" The ad is meant to embody the idea of self-discovery and personal journey. Every year, Louis Vuitton tries to reinforce its advertising share of voice, and this campaign is the right tool to do so. The campaign is supposed to touch our clientele and viewers in a new, unique way that perhaps other media will not touch. Maybe not, but a shift out of print could surely be a touchy issue for the magazine industry. A lot of luxury advertisers are looking at their advertising spending and whether they're getting the value for their buy. "Fashion will always run in Vogue, but they'll see some pressure. People are being much more selective and targeted about the magazines they select."

In my opinion, it could be misdirected plan but it is obvious for us to see luxury labels thinking beyond print. As I'm one of people extremely interested in fashion, I've alwasy hoped to see many fashion commercials , especially of luxury brands, in TV spots. We could see those ads in the typical fasion magazine most of time, moreover, most of them seem similar without that much of creative work, just showing a good shot of famous model. Television is a mass medium and the media which most impacts to audiences. Also, it could definately approach to audience diffently from the print ad as long as they would have less limit to express their own brand in TV spot. It should be important for them to elecate the visual expression of their brand and have a synchronicity across all consumer touch points as going through TV. I don't know if this test is going to work or not, but it is good to see some innovation and I really look forward it.

Super Bowl Advertising- Always worth it?

As we gear up for the biggest sporting event of the year, it is common knowledge now that the Super Bowl isn’t just about football; it is also about some of the best, and certainly the most expensive, ads of the year that come with a price tag of a whopping $ 2.7 million for a 30-second spot.

This brings us to the question of whether it is really worth it. The answer is yes and no.

There is no denying that the Super Bowl today is the biggest stage for advertising. And with marketers struggling to get noticed, advertising during the Super Bowl seems like a good bet. But today, more than ever before, marketers need to do much more than just air a 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl, to break the clutter. While Super Bowl advertising has become an event in itself, marketers need to be wary of their investment turning into mere “branded entertainment”. A platform like this should be used as a launch pad for a bigger campaign, like Apple did in 1984, or to achieve some short term sales goals. To use it for brand-building is a waste of advertising dollars (unless one has the budget of A-B). So while Super Bowl advertising is a great option for some marketers, it isn’t the same for everyone.

Starbucks Customer Experience Strategy

According to a January 30^th article on adage.com, Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, has been discussing future strategies to increase the company’s sales. As many are aware, Starbucks has recently started a new advertising campaign which includes television spots. The article said they are still waiting to see the results of that campaign, but they have positive expectations. In the mean time, the company plans to focus on customer experience while in the store, in hopes of rewarding investors in the long run. They are planning on testing out a $1 coffee, a similar deal to what McDonald’s already offers. Many in the market are likely to have negative feelings towards the company’s new plan.

I think working on customer experience while in the store is a great idea for helping with the company’s brand and image. However, testing out the $1 coffee seems confusing to me because it contradicts their current branding image. When I think of Starbucks, I don’t think of a dollar menu. I’m not sure that current Starbucks users are all that concerned with have a $1 coffee option. Still, the $1 coffee may attract new people to the brand and end up helping the company achieve their investment goals in the future. It will be interesting to see if Starbucks' image changes as a result of this new customer experience strategy.

This article can be found at http://adage.com/article?article_id=124753

Microsoft offers 44.6bil to yahoo!

According to the Adweek article published on Feb 1, 2008, Microsoft has offered to buy Yahoo! for 44.6 billion dollars. To me this seems like a terrible idea for Microsoft. The article says that this is a move by Microsoft to “make gains in the online war for ad dollars.” Maybe I am not so intuitive to realize what Microsoft could bring to the table in order to improve Yahoo’s market share for advertising.

Their action is to counter the fact that Google continues to grow while Yahoo! remains stagnant. According to the article Google has a 59% of the United States search market while the proposed buyout of Yahoo! by Microsoft would only create a 32% market share.

Is it really worth it to pay so much money for something that could turn out to be a flop? The article sites Google’s loyal user base, advertising, and publishing is creating a “virtuous cycle” of continuous growth. This cycle is the most significant obstacle that Microsoft/yahoo! would have to overcome in order to make their buyout profitable. Microsoft cites that with the acquisition they have the means to bring innovating breakthroughs for consumers and advertisers. Is this really the way to draw and draw consumers and advertisers to your search engine? The amount of Google faithful users will not decrease dramtically if Yahoo! and Microsoft do emerge with a slightly superior Yahoo! The amount of users that Google has access to will continue to draw more advertisers than Yahoo! and Microsoft together. It will take a website that is far superior to Google to change advertisers perceptions as well as consumer’s.


(In my personal opinion: This seems to be a lot to overcome considering they just released an operating system that had most people downgrading within days. Mixing up two companies who are loosing users in an attempt to gain market share and increase profits seems like a bad idea to me. Yahoo! should refuse Microsoft’s offer and continue to find ways to improve their market share.)