As a kid thinking about the future, I could say with confidence that it would involve hover cars and holographic teachers or that gum from Willy Wonka that's a full course meal in one stick, but now I can't be too certain. Maybe all of those things are in store for us yet, but I understand that progress is slow and I may never see those things become mainstream in my lifetime.
That's not to say that i don't think they could happen, however. A holographic advertisement would be exceedingly cool, but I can see it going one of two ways. For well executed ads, it could be an interactive experience for the consumers to engage in when they're on the go- very similar to the advertising events that some companies hold today, just more on-the-go accessible. Now, if the advertising is poorly executed, then I'm glad I won't be around to see it because it would be exactly like old DSL internet pop ups just in the real world directly in front of you.
And holograms aren't the only thing ads could tap into- up to this point, ads have grown closer and closer to their audiences up to the point in which today the consumers have full interaction and plenty of control over the message in ads. The future probably holds advertisements that feature interactive sensory activities, things not just to see or hear but to smell and touch. I've got to say, I'm excited to see how ad companies can possibly top the greatest stuff seen today.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Friday, November 30, 2012
In Class Radio Commercial: Trish is living the dream!
Traveling Party Host
SFX: (Disruptive jubilant chatter in the background- "Nicole walks up", sound of heels)
NICOLE: Hey Bob, does Trish need help with the drinks?
BOB: (Confused) Uhhmm.... (Sounds as if looking around room for Trish)
SFX: (Crisp crack of a seal breaking from a bottle of liqueur. Silence falls upon the room.)
TRISH: (Chipper- loudly exclaims) Who's ready for a drink?!
BOB: Count me in!
NICOLE: (Sound of heels, then speaks in disbelief) Is that a drink belt?
SFX: (Shots being poured while speaking)
TRISH: Oh yeah, it's amazing! I've got easy access to shot glasses and whole bottles at my fingertips so I don't need to worry about walking back and forth between the kitchen.
SFX: (Continuing sounds of cheering, chatter, and booze pouring)
MVO: You too can be the perfect host this holiday season with the Booze Belt available at a Target near you.
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Advertinnovation
Getting the younger generation to stop and look at something for more than a split second is a challenge in and of itself, but with new gadgets that allow consumers to skip advertising in most mediums, it's even harder. The world of advertising is one shape shifting tango, and we're constantly having to shift the way we present our products if we want to entice the attention of consumers.
Maybe back in the yester years of advertising people could get away with large blocks of text and minimal imagery, but nowadays if there's no interesting pictures of nifty typography, an ad is doomed to be ignored. But even images can be ignored, and thusly there are two paths that an advertiser can take:
This is an ad for solar energy- and it's extremely effective because it gets the consumers involved with the product before they even buy it. Interactive methods are the best cream of the crop for an ad campaign in this day and age because let's face it- our generation is a pretty self-involved one and we spend most of our time waddle dooin' around the internet. It takes some seriously creative minds to get us to pay attention anymore, and advertisers are just going to have to tap into that.
Maybe back in the yester years of advertising people could get away with large blocks of text and minimal imagery, but nowadays if there's no interesting pictures of nifty typography, an ad is doomed to be ignored. But even images can be ignored, and thusly there are two paths that an advertiser can take:
- Shock imagery.
- Innovation.
Shock and sexual imagery is used an inexcusable amount- especially in printed mediums. The qualm I have with those isn't so much the sexualization- although that is a problem, just for another time- but the fact that advertisers are lazy enough to use the method over and over again instead of being creative and using their heads to produce good work. Hm.
Here's what a I mean when I ask for innovative ads:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Nostalgia Advertising
Nostalgia marketing is, in my opinion, one of the most effective kinds of marketing for established brands. Not only can it be used as a reboot for a company- a way to get something that used to be good back in the game- but it's an effective way to reengage an older demographic. Companies will always be thinking of new ways to get younger people to buy their brand, but that only includes some of the population, and marketing mongers should be on the prowl for more. This is where nostalgia kicks in.
To get an older generation involved with a product that's being revamped for future generations, advertisers need to reconnect with their roots. Day to day products like shampoo or toothbrushes probably wouldn't benefit from nostalgia advertising because no one has nostalgia for those things. No one group of people has a collective memory of their first toothbrush. For other kinds of products like toys or clothing, advertisers have tapped into nostalgia because they realize that "consumers view the past through rose-tinted glasses and are ready to spend on any product or service that can help them recreate the feelings of warmth and security they felt during happier times" (source). And nowadays, "retro" products are highly desirable to young people, so nostalgia marketing actually sells to both generations in one go. The only real problem with it that I can think of is that it can be a slippery slope if the advertisers don't do the old product justice.
Take, for instance, video games. Video games that have been around for a while have desperately loyal fanbases that would do pretty much anything to get their favorite games back- I should know, I've been there. So if you consider games like Pokémon, Sonic the Hedgehog, Crash Bandicoot, or Banjo Kazooie, every time they revamp their games to bring it into the new generation of video games, their old supporters follow. If we look at Banjo Kazooie, we can see the strategy being used blatantly in their advertisements for the new generation. The old games were great, filled with adventure and good game design, and when the time came to bring back the Banjo, the designers knew to feed off of the old games' success.
The commercial stirs up all kinds of emotions for faithful fans, and caused a lot of buzz and excitement for the new game to come out. However, the new game was literally aimed to "broaden the demographic," and broke the fourth wall in the game in order to tell the audience. The thing is, even though the final product was hardly like the original and strayed from the idea given to the fans in the preview, that trailer did get people excited for the return of Banjo. The nostalgia kicked in and devoted fans bought the game left and right, but most of the were disappointed by the results.
To get an older generation involved with a product that's being revamped for future generations, advertisers need to reconnect with their roots. Day to day products like shampoo or toothbrushes probably wouldn't benefit from nostalgia advertising because no one has nostalgia for those things. No one group of people has a collective memory of their first toothbrush. For other kinds of products like toys or clothing, advertisers have tapped into nostalgia because they realize that "consumers view the past through rose-tinted glasses and are ready to spend on any product or service that can help them recreate the feelings of warmth and security they felt during happier times" (source). And nowadays, "retro" products are highly desirable to young people, so nostalgia marketing actually sells to both generations in one go. The only real problem with it that I can think of is that it can be a slippery slope if the advertisers don't do the old product justice.
Take, for instance, video games. Video games that have been around for a while have desperately loyal fanbases that would do pretty much anything to get their favorite games back- I should know, I've been there. So if you consider games like Pokémon, Sonic the Hedgehog, Crash Bandicoot, or Banjo Kazooie, every time they revamp their games to bring it into the new generation of video games, their old supporters follow. If we look at Banjo Kazooie, we can see the strategy being used blatantly in their advertisements for the new generation. The old games were great, filled with adventure and good game design, and when the time came to bring back the Banjo, the designers knew to feed off of the old games' success.
The commercial stirs up all kinds of emotions for faithful fans, and caused a lot of buzz and excitement for the new game to come out. However, the new game was literally aimed to "broaden the demographic," and broke the fourth wall in the game in order to tell the audience. The thing is, even though the final product was hardly like the original and strayed from the idea given to the fans in the preview, that trailer did get people excited for the return of Banjo. The nostalgia kicked in and devoted fans bought the game left and right, but most of the were disappointed by the results.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Harley Brand Community
Brand communities are the ultimate test of loyalty for fans, but they aren't suited to every brand. A community such as the Harley Davidson posse works because Harley Davidson has always advertised itself not just as a motorcycle company, but a way of life. It establishes itself solidly in the lifestyle of rebellion and carefree thinking, which Harley riders can all connect with. Brands like Coach could never hope to achieve that kind of connection with their buyers because that's all they are- buyers. The people who wear Coach don't eat sleep and breathe it, it isn't a lifestyle that they fit into. Sure, the Coach brand might be associated with wealth and status, but that doesn't mean they parade around loudly with the message "I am high class" in the way harley riders zoom around saying "I'm a free spirit".
The Harley-Davidson brand community has the annual Posse Ride which brings the fans together. Every person who participates in the posse ride has a minimum of 1 thing in common (ownership of a harley), and through that, it can be assumed that they probably have more in common on a deeper level because Harley identifies with the characteristics of its consumers, not their wealth. The posse ride is all about the fans showing off the brand rather than the brand showing off the brand. It's about pride in being an individual that's a part of something, and that's what makes it so appealing. Other brands can only dream of reaching this level of connection with their consumers.
Although I think Harley does an unmatchable job of consumer inclusion, they could potentially do more. Not every Harley rider can make it to the posse ride, so Harley could turn the experience into something of a video log- recording snippets of the main events at each pit stop, highlighting the individual people and their stories which would make the experience longer lasting and even more about the people who ride the Harleys than the Harleys themselves. What people will buy into even above good products are good people behind the products.
The Harley-Davidson brand community has the annual Posse Ride which brings the fans together. Every person who participates in the posse ride has a minimum of 1 thing in common (ownership of a harley), and through that, it can be assumed that they probably have more in common on a deeper level because Harley identifies with the characteristics of its consumers, not their wealth. The posse ride is all about the fans showing off the brand rather than the brand showing off the brand. It's about pride in being an individual that's a part of something, and that's what makes it so appealing. Other brands can only dream of reaching this level of connection with their consumers.
Although I think Harley does an unmatchable job of consumer inclusion, they could potentially do more. Not every Harley rider can make it to the posse ride, so Harley could turn the experience into something of a video log- recording snippets of the main events at each pit stop, highlighting the individual people and their stories which would make the experience longer lasting and even more about the people who ride the Harleys than the Harleys themselves. What people will buy into even above good products are good people behind the products.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Badvertising
Coke Zero- which I have to admit I am a fan of- used a campaign in Australia that differed from the campaigns elsewhere by making it more about the everyday person trying to live a carefree lifestyle. Now, the idea behind the campaign is a solid one: consumers respond well to campaigns that are tailored personally to them, but Coke's method was something of a misstep in my book. The Australia campaign was based solely on deception- fooling the average person into thinking that other average people were being positively backed up by Coke Zero, which in reality turned out to be just flat out lies. Coke faked the situation, and in North America or Europe, I doubt the campaign would be received well. Sure, it worked in Australia because, let's face it, there's a lot of backwards thinking in their advertising, but blatant deception doesn't sit well with North America and Europe (at least in advertising).
Whereas I understand where Coke Zero is coming from- word of mouth via the blogosphere and the general public is always the best way for publicity to travel fast- but I think that they were slightly unethical to make the hubbub themselves. The fuel of the advertising industry runs on word of mouth, and it's up to the agencies to make a good enough campaign that people do spread the word. If advertising agencies and brands resort to creating their own synthetic "word of mouth", what's even the point? It seems to me as if their rendering their own jobs obsolete.
Other companies have had their fair share of blunders, but one that stands out to me is Burger King, who has had so many bad marketing campaigns since 2008 we can almost feel bad for them. A notable strategy they've used on multiple occasions (bafflingly enough) was the "king" campaign in which they used their "mascot" as the poster boy for their products, which turned out to be bad decision upon bad decision. The "king" was included in a number of commercials run in bad taste such as "wake up with the king" or more notoriously, "Square Butts," which was a music video involving the king, spongebob squarepants, and butts set to Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Big Butts." It only takes a second to be horrified by the whole ordeal.
Sales were down roughly 6% in 2011's first quarter because of the negative press Burger King was getting, and even those who weren't offended by their variety of advertisements were generally creeped out by the mascot. The "king" campaign was finally put to rest in August of 2011, and we can all be grateful for it.
Whereas I understand where Coke Zero is coming from- word of mouth via the blogosphere and the general public is always the best way for publicity to travel fast- but I think that they were slightly unethical to make the hubbub themselves. The fuel of the advertising industry runs on word of mouth, and it's up to the agencies to make a good enough campaign that people do spread the word. If advertising agencies and brands resort to creating their own synthetic "word of mouth", what's even the point? It seems to me as if their rendering their own jobs obsolete.
Other companies have had their fair share of blunders, but one that stands out to me is Burger King, who has had so many bad marketing campaigns since 2008 we can almost feel bad for them. A notable strategy they've used on multiple occasions (bafflingly enough) was the "king" campaign in which they used their "mascot" as the poster boy for their products, which turned out to be bad decision upon bad decision. The "king" was included in a number of commercials run in bad taste such as "wake up with the king" or more notoriously, "Square Butts," which was a music video involving the king, spongebob squarepants, and butts set to Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Big Butts." It only takes a second to be horrified by the whole ordeal.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
General Redundancy
As time progresses, students are weaseled into spending more and more years in school- years that they could be spending starting careers and earning money to secure a comfortable future. When you look at the current system, our college age students are spending a minimum of two years completing general education, which are essentially repeats of high school classes. Why delegate extra years and extra money into learning the same subjects twice when we can focus our time more efficiently?
I propose that we change the focus of our current school system. High school courses should function more like the general education courses required of college students- a general basis on which to decide general interests. College should be spent broadening our horizons to discover more specific career paths within general subjects of our choosing, not repeating courses that we have already determined our level of interest in. Students should be able to experiment with more career oriented courses in that first year or so when they would normally have taken general education courses.
Make college a place for American students to pursue their goals and leave the GEs to high school.
Actual photo of student bound by general education preparing to explode. Protect your families from combustion. Note how he is studying from phonebooks: how does that make any sense? WHAT HAS OUR COUNTRY COME TO?
I propose that we change the focus of our current school system. High school courses should function more like the general education courses required of college students- a general basis on which to decide general interests. College should be spent broadening our horizons to discover more specific career paths within general subjects of our choosing, not repeating courses that we have already determined our level of interest in. Students should be able to experiment with more career oriented courses in that first year or so when they would normally have taken general education courses.
Make college a place for American students to pursue their goals and leave the GEs to high school.
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