Thursday, August 20, 2009

Some Wisdom From Our Escape Pod Friends



This was written by Vinny Warren at our Chicago "Sister Agency" The Escape Pod.
It's a piece about online and why Burger King is and will be kicking McDonald's ass.

Burger King gives McDonald's a digital Whoppin'

For several years now Burger King, once one of the worst accounts in advertising, has been exemplary in its use and exploitation of new media. Or as we call it: media.

In partnership with agency Crispin Porter Bogusky, Burger King has dived deep, doing everything from branded content to (truly) viral efforts as well as some brilliant advertising for the Whopper. If you’ve eaten their fries lately you’ll have noticed that they, quite rightly, even treat the fry box as a medium. Giving the diner information and matey chat. Everyone could learn a lot from what these guys have done.

We were talking about this recently with someone whose opinion we value highly who happens to work at Google. And he made the point that BK’s experience in the digital area qualifies as a legitimate asset at this point. It’s worth money and is a competitive edge. And conversely McDonalds’ much more tentative steps in the digital arena will someday bite it on the rear end.

Similarly, agencies that have been hesitant about embracing the possibilities of digital/online will, and are, having a rude awakening. Because actual experience is golden here. You can read all the blogs and Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin books in the world and go to all the conferences but nothing subsitutes for doing something. And the great thing is that, unlike traditional advertising, it doesn’t necessarily cost a fortune to try something in digital land.

If you look at the BK work, a traditional TV mass marketer might criticize it as being “all over the place”. And it is. CPB is constantly launching new initiatives and ideas whose commonality is often merely tone. They are having fun. And they know from experience that the best way to approach the online world is to try a lot of things and see what sticks. Because nobody, not even CPB, can be sure of that. It’s a bit like the record industry model. Throw out a bunch of stuff and something will hit.

It’s a much more free-form approach. And one that understandably would make some marketers nervous. Not BK. What’s the biblical quotation? As ye sow so shall ye reap. Yup.

You can find more wisdom like this at:
http://theescapepod.wordpress.com/

Meanwhile In Japan...

Japanese men working for big corporations are called "salarymen". These salarymen work hard all week and hand their paycheques over to their wives, who then give them an allowance.

Japanes agency UltraSuperNew used this custom for a campaign to promote Philips raizors.

It's fun, effective and a bit weird. Just what we would expect from Japan.



You could got to the campaigns website www.kokekokke.jp but you probably can't understand a thing of what's going on.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Will Burger Kings Angry Whopper Come To Europe?

Too bad Burger Kings is so focused on it's American/Candian/UK operation that they often forget about us folks on "the old continent".

Or do they think we are a boring bunch "who just wouldn't get it"?

Come on BK, wake up and bring us the angry Whopper and it's fun campaign. We want to watch angry people and we crave to send some Angry Grams!

(send your angry gram via http://www.bk.com/en/us/campaigns/angry-gram.html)

It's Art, But It Should Have Been Advertising. Done By Us. (Damn!)







One of those "Why the F#$R$##$$% didn't we think of this ??!!" moments.

2 artists claim to want to send a letter to everybody on the planet and have decided to start with the small Irish village of Cushendall.

Goal was to create a buzz, but all the letters together make a masterpiece even without the buzz.

Damn why didn't we think of this!?!

Got Carbon Footprint?



Supermarket giant Tesco has become the first UK retailer to display the full carbon footprint of milk — one of the top-selling products in its stores.

From today, all Tesco own-label full-fat, semi-skimmed and skimmed milk ranges will display the carbon footprint label as part of an on-going drive to help shoppers make "green" purchasing decisions. It has pledged to "footprint" 500 products by the end of the year.

read the rest at http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/aug/17/tesco-milk-carbon-footprint

We Are Getting Kind Of Tired Of Stuff Like This...




Yes we do think it's creative. We may even call it clever.

But we have 2 big problems with stuff like this.

The first is: advertising is using everything these days, and it is becoming more and more intrusive. If we as an industry keep going at this rate by the year 2040 the only place that is free of ads will be the bodom of the ocean (and we even have seen a billboard down there for a diving school)

The second is much more important tough. This kind of advertising is Thinking Small. Instead of having fun with a bridge, wouldn't it be better if a brand actually built a bridge? Sounds ridiculous? There you go thinking small again...

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

If You Are Going To Do TV, Do It As Good As This (2)

Watch and learn European marketers, because this American absurdity would certainly work just as well over here. First brand to do it over here would grow like a baby elephant in a hay stack.

If You Are Going To Do TV, Do It As Good As This

We think TV is often the lazy marketer's choice. There is often a much more effective way to spend the budget.
But sometimes TV is the wisest choice. And when you do TV, make sure you do it all the way. Like Skittles and Starbust. Very smart agency + incredibly brave client equals pure genius, indeed.












Polaroid Isn't Dead It's Just Sleeping


You can't revive Polaroid these men have been told. But they come from the land that is actually lower than sea level, and it has been said you can't live on the bodom of the sea as well. (in case you didn't get it yet, they are from Holland where Lateral is based)

They intend to relaunch Polaroid in 2010. Suppport these brave men on: http://www.the-impossible-project.com/

Monday, August 17, 2009

Women Won't Buy From Prettier Women


At Lateral we are interested in everything that has to do with women. And we have a great excuse: we want to know about them, because we want to sell them stuff.

Here is a piece of new research on women's shopping behaviour we enjoyed today:

Sexy shop assistants discourage women from making purchases, new research claims.Employing sexy shop assistants can be intimidating to women and put them off making a purchase , a new study claims


Researchers found that women were less likely to buy a product if they believed that the female staff member was more attractive than them as they were considered a direct "social threat".

Unlike celebrity endorsements, which were seen as positive role models, beautiful female shop assistants appear to be a little "too close to home" and direct competition to the purchaser. Potential purchasers may be even put off entering the shop altogether.

read the rest at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/6027746/Sexy-shop-assistants-discourage-women-from-making-purchases-new-research-claims..html

Monday, August 10, 2009

Do All Your Twittering On Monday So You Can Actually Be Productive For The Rest Of The Week


Why wait for stuff actually to happen to you and Twitter about it, when you already know what you will be doing the whole week?

Just do all your Twittering on a Monday morning and get it over with. People will never notice and continue to see you as Mr. Sociable (or Mrs).

And if they ever do notice, they will think you are really smart, efficient and internet savy.

How? Visit www.tweetlater.com

Albert Einstein Robot

Exciting? Scary? Watch the video and decide for yourself.
via dutchcowboys.nl

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

CCTV's Architect's Latest Trick

This fall construction will begin in Bangkok on "Maha Nakhon", a 77 story building designed by Ole Scheeren, the architect who gave the world the CCTV building.

From a distance it looks a little like an unfinished building, but we like it.

(via interiordesign.net)



The GM Skateboard. We Want One!

On Consistency




via swissmiss