The Blogging Experience

I had a lot of fun working on this blog, and although I lost consistency there for a while, I still learned a lot. I’ve had to maintain blogs in the past for school, but they were very restricting with rules and requirements (i.e. poetry review for an English class where we had to critically analyze every piece, and summarize the structure with class terms and – oh yeah, a summary on our interpretations on how the author might have felt at the time of writing). For this assignment, I got to learn about things I actually cared about, and I enjoyed being finally able to play around with more mature themes. I really enjoy assignments like these, because they give me time to research what I want to research; I simply don’t have the time to take out on my own to surf the internet for my own interest during school.

Someday I would like to become an avid blogger, but I feel I have a long way to go. Many of the blogs I’ve come across in my travels have authors that are so funny, suave and witty – and they get hundreds of views a day – even on hole-in-the-wall sites (I think my top day was 12 views).  Everybody’s gotta start somewhere though, I guess. Needless to say, I’ve enjoyed sharing my discoveries and have enjoyed reading those shared by others in return.

Zimmer’s 12 Causes of Advertising Failures

I just came across an interesting article by Zimmer Creative Services entitled the 12 Causes of Advertising Failures that could be used as a helpful list of guidelines to think about:

1. Desire for instant gratification: Ads promoting urgency and immediate response tend to be forgotten as soon as the offer expires.
2. Attempting to reach more people than the budget will allow: Most media mixes have too much reach and not enough frequency to stick with their audience’s minds. “Will you reach 100% of the people and convince them 10% of the way?  Or will you reach 10% of the people and convince them 100% of the way?”
3. Assuming the business owner knows best: Business owners tend to try to describe themselves from the inside out to people on the outside looking in. In fact, too much product knowledge sometimes results in answering question no one has asked.
4. Unsubstantiated Claims: Claiming to have what the customer wants, but failing to provide evidence. Prove what you say in every ad!
5. Improper use of passive media: such as newspapers and yellow pages often only reach people actively searching for the product.
6. Creating ads instead of campaigns: single ads cannot tell a whole story.
7. Obedience and unwritten rules: like making ads look and sound….like ads!
8. Late week schedules: Making efforts to reach markets on Thursdays and Fridays before they go shopping, instead of less-competitive days like Sundays and Mondays.
9. Overconfidence in qualitative targeting: the importance of qualitative data has been “grossly overestimated.”
10. Event-driven marketing: special events should only be judged by its ability to help define your market position.
11. Great production without great copy: Too many ads today are creative without being persuasive.
12. Confusing ‘response’ with ‘results’: The goal of advertising is to create clear awareness and some advertisers evaluate their ads based on comments they have heard around them.

False Advertising

On a daily basis we are bombarded with advertisements (especially now on the internet) stating “Make $1,500 a week from home!” or “Lose 20 pounds by next weekend!” While some advertisers are more blatant with their empty promises, others choose to put in a little more effort to try to swindle you. The following are examples of some straight-up lies brought to you by commonly – known brands:

Listerine: In 1921, Listerine had advertised its popular mouthwash as a cure-all for sore throats, coughs, dandruff, and also as an anti-shave tonic and a safe way to protect the skin from cuts or bruises. It took until 1975 for the Federal Trade Commission to step in, forcing the company to spend $10 million on corrective advertising.

Amoco Gasoline: In 1996, the U.S. was going through a clear trend revolution; Pepsi was clear, Clearly Canadian dominated supermarket shelves, and Amoco – which had been producing clear gasoline for years, tried to capitalize on this.  They began to newly market their existing product as one that provided superior engine performance and substantial environmental benefits, all because it was clear. When they were unable to provide factual evidence, they were forced to halt the campaign.

L’Oreal: L’Oreal is now forced to put disclaimers on their mascara advertisements after its discovery that Penelope Cruz was wearing false lashes in the Telescopic mascara advertisement; claiming the product boosts lashes by 60%. The Advertising Standards Authority is keeping a close eye on future promotions.

Gap 2009 Holiday Commercial

Although only thirteen days old, this commercial is feeling the pressure from the critics! Gap launched this ad on November 13 to emphasize the momentum for their 1969 denim launch, and is decked out with impressive choreographed routines and denim, boots, scarves – the whole nine yards. Though over-exuberance is evidently apparent, it is hard to say that Gap didn’t have their hearts in the right place. However, Gap is now being accused of making fun of religion in the delivery process.

In fact, the American Family Association wants a two-month boycott of Gap and its sister brands Old Navy and Banana Republic for phrases like the following: “Go Christmas, go Hanukkah, go Kwanzaa, go Solstice. . . . Do whatever you wannukkah and to all a cheery night.” In response, Gap issued the following statement: “the company is and has always been an inclusive, accessible brand in which everyone can participate and we embrace diversity across all of our customers, and more importantly respect their beliefs as individuals… We focus our marketing on the joys of the holiday season as a whole.” While there are comments expressing offense, the majority of others have just said that they are more annoyed than anything with the over-the-top pep. See for yourself; is it worth a boycott for all chains under the Gap Inc. name?

From Effective to Disrespective

Highly supported animal rights organization, PeTA proudly showcases  series of commercials that have been banned on their website for viewing. In 2007 PeTA released an effective ad on reasons for becoming a vegetarian:

A year later, PeTA launched a new series of commercials under a “Milk Gone Wild” title with a theme very close in resemblance to Joe Francis’ Girls Gone Wild series; a show that has been countlessly accused of rape and other associated crimes. According to some opinionated bloggers, the girls featured are treated like objects and are taken advantage of. Needless to say this advertisement violated regulations and was banned from further exposure (no pun intended). One of PeTA’s main initiatives is to educate people on the poor treatment of animals, however this ad simultaneously emphasizes poor treatment of females and diminished self-worth. Quite a comparison!

Spelling Mistakes

Throughout our business school careers, we have been told time and time again the importance of proper spelling and grammatical fluency for every piece of work we hand in. “Your work is a representation of yourself, so make it proper!” and “Your documents will someday be the basis for a first impression, so you need to be very thorough on the editing process(es)!,” have been common warnings from instructors over the years. We have countless methods of editing systems available to us: spell-checkers, multiple-peer editing, cross referencing with grammar books; heck, you can now pay someone via Paypal to edit your written or recorded documents. That is why I am so stunned when I see an advertisement, particularly one produced by a big-wig company or individual, that has grammatical errors that are not supposed to be a part of the design (i.e. Krispy Kreme). You can’t really help but ask yourself, “Okay, how many people have viewed this ad before launching?! How could this slip through the cracks?!”

Very scrupulous viewers of the John McCain campaign series for example have isolated a few ads with some shocking misspelled words:

Yikes! Pretty sure everybody, virtue, and exaggerate were all part of my regular 3rd grade spelling tests. McCain isn’t the only one subjected to poor spelling mishaps, however. How about those weight-loss companies who use the word “loose” instead of “lose”, or those who use “your” (possessive) instead of “you’re” (contraction)?  For those who pick it up, the message’s effectiveness is ruined, and it puts a damper on the credibility of the company or individual. Why give something or someone funds or support when they can’t even present you with a proper sentence? For me, I’m more of a person to laugh it off as oppose to taking personal offense, but there are others who certainly voice their anger, saying that they are offended because they have been presented with something that suggests they aren’t intelligent enough to notice such a slip-up…

Thanx four reeding!

Another Microsoft Ad…

I couldn’t help but put this in. Last September, Microsoft launched a couple of these ads featuring Gates and Seinfeld in hopes to create a hipper image to counter Apple’s the PC vs. Mac campaigns. While I personally find them hilarious on their own, they don’t make any connection whatsoever to the products they are offering to consumers – in this case Vista. The responses to these videos weigh down the success teeter-totter, with many people saying “I’m still waiting for what Microsoft has to say,” and “this is a replica of Seinfeld’s old show: about nothing.” Other comments have a little bit more of an ouch factor:

“I don’t get it”

“Absolutely Pathetic”

“Really Bad”

As is the case with every issue however, there are other opposing thoughts. “All of you are missing the point,” one user said. “These are not defensive campaigns, they are ones of brand-repositioning.” Research a little more and you’ll read about how these initiatives were Microsoft’s attempt to stray away from their cash-hungry corporate giant status to one that was more human, hence the duo living with an “average family.” Needless to say, majority ruled on this one; The campaign was cancelled and a third commercial remained locked in the vault. Here is the first commercial: It may be worth a watch to see Gates’ 1977 mugshot photo make an appearance again.

Politically Incorrect Ads

The advertisements of yesteryear are a plenty with politically incorrectness. The majority of them took stabs at race and women:

It doesn’t take more than a couple of minutes of researching to realize that women were blatantly considered inferior to men back in the day. There are advertisements still available for viewing about the introduction of automatic cars, cigarettes, and food products; all with women subjective to the punch line.

As it may be fun to look into the magnitude of these types of advertisements, politically incorrect advertisements are not a thing of the past. Ads for cleaning products almost always include polished women happily scrubbing away at home in mid-day light. Scantily clad women also tend to be the visual accessories in an array of beer, vehicle, and men’s grooming commercials.

One racy ad launched by Dolce and Gabbana in 2007 is still being talked about.  Audiences responded to this ad in uproar. Rant after rant people accused the company for glorifying rape and identifying women as helpless creatures. While the ad was banned in most locations, it is still available for viewing on several websites, and is being referred to as one of the largest advertising mishaps within the past few years. There is no doubt that this ad created negative connotations to the brand,  and I’m sure D & G is still taking the hit considering the amount of coverage that automatically pops up when their name is searched online.

Windows Phone Ad Fails to Impress

I found an interesting article published yesterday at vista.blorge.com According to the author, Microsoft has never had to focus on marketing because its products were a guaranteed sell. That’s all changed now that Apple has stepped into the arena. The recent campaign for Windows 7 was launched in September and “shows Microsoft effectively morphing into Apple…..We get cool ads with strong branding and the message delivered without bring forced down your throat.” This came to a halt when the new Windows Phone advertisement came out Friday. It was first found apparently by “Fake Steve Jobs” a comical fellow blogger, who responded with “Dancing Twitter icons do not translate into cutting-edge advertising.” See for yourself.

How many ads are there right now with the same concept? What is with the “let’s put grownups in tights and mascot-esq outfits, slap on our logo and get them to say something witty!” trend? We’ve had the Fruit of the Loom foursome, the Listerine bottle and toothbrush duo, and the new Bounty paper towel dude just to name a few. Half the time they say/do dim-witted crap that real people never say or do because it’s just stupid and/or would never happen. I have such a hard time taking those kinds of commercials seriously. Thoughts?

Poorly Placed Ads

I can’t imagine the feelings a marketer experiences when they see their advertisement displayed in a terrible location or situated among an undesired scene. ODDEE’s 15 Unfortunately Placed Ads is not exactly PG-13, but is a great example of some very expensive…mistakes?

This leads on to some of the questionable placements I’ve seen around town. How about those bathroom-stall ads on the back of doors? I know there isn’t anything else to look at in there besides the embossed designs on the toilet paper and the occasional sharpie-d drunken-inspired graffiti of  incoherent sentences, but do we really want to see photographed meal specials in there? At the pub, do we really want to read about how alcohol systematically deteriorates our liver, metabolism, and the like? At school, do we really want to read about how we can deal with an eating disorder? (Wrong wall placement for that one, isn’t it?)

Let’s talk community bulletin boards: The municipality’s attempts at trying to preserve the once-upon-a-time image of a community wholesomely strengthened by honesty and good intentions. While walking through Broadmead Shopping Centre last week, I was drawn to the board by a brightly coloured print advertisement that oddly stuck out amongst the sea of white.  There, in the middle of babysitting requests and homemade lost puppy signs was a scandalous ad for strippers coming to Victoria. Though not even close to the magnitude of similar ads that I saw littered all over Paris a few months ago, it just didn’t fit the part given the area. Looks like there may be a fine line between an unfortunate coincidence and just poor planning.