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Kosher Food Offering Explained Clearly With Web Cartoon

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Kosher.com has launched a little promotional cartoon, created by Dan Meth, which does a great job clearly explaining the Kosher.com offering. From mentioning the foods they carry by name and showing them to explaining where they came from to telling you how can buy them, Kosher.com makes it clear they are they place to go to when Kosher food is what's for dinner. It's not rocket science but, unfortunately, too many commercials try to be and fail. This one doesn't and, pleasantly, succeeds.

by Steve Hall    Jul-27-05    
Topic: Commercials, Creative Commentary, Online



SnoreStop to Hire More Headvertisers

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SnoreStop, the company that won an Ebay bid of $37,375 to advertise on Andrew Fischer's forehead for a month, is expanding its forehead advertising efforts an looking to find the next sucker or group of suckers to slap the company's logo on their head for a month.

SnoreStop promises a $37,375 month long contract as a grand prize and has invited people to interview to be the next SnoreStop headvertisement. This time, the company is looking to go beyond having their headvertiser simply wear a temporary forehead tattoo but to showcase their special talents, such as singing, dancing, modeling, stand-up, poetry, even snoring, that can help spread the SnoreStop message in a creative manner.

The first interview session will be held on August 12 from 9am-6pm at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles. Those interested can apply online at Monster, HotJobs or CareerBuilder to register for the event. Later, SnoreStop will offer Mid-West and East Coast interviews opportunities.

by Steve Hall    Jul-27-05    
Topic: Human, Strange



New Iacocca Chrysler Commercial Not A Hit

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The verdict is in. No one likes the new Lee Iacocca/Jason Alexander Chrysler commercial. Well, at least no one in the ad industry that is a member of the Adrants discussion group. Even so, wondering whether bringing Iacocca back was effective, one member did an informal survey of people under 40 and found none knew who that old, gray-haired guy sitting behind the desk was. When told it was Lee Iacocca, the man who saved Chrysler from extinction, many replied, "Oh, whatever."

Again, we question the wisdom of trying to recreate a previous success. Whether it be an idea-less Hollywood remake or an attempt at mirroring the cult-like success of a previous ad campaign, rarely, if ever, does the follow up come anywhere near the success of the first effort. Having Alexander approach Iacocca from behind as he did many times the back of Steinbrenner in Seinfeld is simply layering another has been success on top of another. Iacocca should have said no to this. Alexander should have said no. Those who came up with the idea for this should have said no. In spite of these failures occurring over and over and over, it never seems to register with those who insist upon borrowing from past successes (think Hilltop/Chilltop) instead of creating something original.

by Steve Hall    Jul-27-05    
Topic: Commercials, Creative Commentary



Ad For Plastic Surgeon Leaves No Mystery

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WorldUnfurled found an ad in a local Denver paper for Linda Huang, a plastic surgeon that carried the odd headline, "The Best Middle-aged, Female, Asian Plastic Surgeon in Denver" and wondered just how many middle-aged, female, Asian plastic surgeons there actually are in Denver. If this ad does anything, it certainly describes what you're getting very concisely.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-05    
Topic: Newspaper



Charlotte Church to Sign With Lingerie Company

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Charlotte Church, the former child prodigy opera singer, now bulging with womanhood, is in talks with lingerie maker, La Senza, and may sign a six figure deal to model the company's line of intimate apparel. According to reports, after seeing pictures of Church on vacation in Antigua with her boyfriend, Gavin Henson, La Senza thinks the curvy Church would be perfect for the job. The Superficial, however, after viewing the images, thinks La Senza is out of its mind.

UPDATE (3/4/07): And yes. Charlotte Church is pregnant which is why you are all finding this page.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-05    
Topic: Celebrity



Ask Jeeves to Debut Paid Search Bidding Model

A tipster tells us Ask Jeeves will announce its entry into the world of paid search bidding with the launch of a new product interface on August 1. Reportedly, the service will compete with Google and Yahoo's keyword bidding products leaving MSN the last to enter this arena.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-05    
Topic: Online



News Flash: CPB Launches BK Microsite!

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It's a microsite! It's a microsite! It's a CPB microsite! Everybody look! Everybody drool in awe! Everybody bow to the masters of deck! Yes, Crispin Porter & Bogusky has launched another site for Burger King that follows the chicken theme. This time, the chickens are a heavy metal imitator band, called Coq Roq, dressed in chicken masks who sing about Burger King Chicken Fries. We know it's cool because it's, like, so ironic and snarky and weird and...um...other cool stuff too. And, it has ringtones! Yes, you heard it here first, ringtones! And music and a gallery, and...something new...a message board! OK, enough of that. We did kinda like it what with all the hot, chicken head groupies and KISS-like, head banging antics.

See...we didn't even make a cock rock joke. Oops...sorry.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-05    
Topic: Online



'Wedding Crashers' Purple Heart Promotion Angers Vets

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Part of the promotional website for the Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn movie Wedding Crashers and a scene within the movie makes reference to the Purple Heart, a military medal of honor. The movie, which, remember, is a movie and not real life, pokes fun at the medal by claiming it gets a guy attention if he wears one with the line, "Carrying a Purple Heart in your jacket guarantees you attention, admiration and plenty of free booze."

While no one wants to diminish the hard work and sacrifices the fine, upstanding people who serve and protect America provide, we might want to remember this is a joke within a movie and not a clandestine operation to provide every sleazy, girl-hunting man with a fake medal to improve his chances of scoring.

Always one to find himself in the middle of a controversy, Animal Magazine Publisher Bucky Turco commented, "While I know a lot of marketing campaigns cross the line here and there what I find most interesting is the cultural context and political atmosphere surrounding this harmless little promotion. Had the war in Iraq not been going on, this download would probably have went off without a hitch and not offended any vets. It could almost be construed as a type of offbeat homage to their bravery and the power of the uniform. Instead, this type of knee jerk reaction is a prime example of cultural shifts during times of war." Never the less, New Line acquiesced and pulled the promotion.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-05    
Topic: Promotions



Mischa Barton Chills With Keds

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In May, we announced Keds had extended its deal with Mischa Barton and would be launching a campaign featuring The O.C. actress Mischa Barton. Recently, the shoe company launched a website, Mischa Barton Fall '05, created by Toth and mediumbold, featuring Mischa and her involvement in the creation of the campaign, her take on the definition of cool, behind the scenes commentary on the photo shoots for the campaign, Mischa's answers to fan mail, her take on Hollywood hot spots, her favorites songs and, of course, the shoes.

The campaign's tagline is "Be Cool" and the word cool must be uttered by Mischa at least one hundred times throughout her appearances in the site's mini-videos. Not a bad choice for a tagline considering how many times people say "cool" in every day conversation. It's akin to Verizon's "Can you hear me now?" tag which, as anyone who owns a cell phone knows, is said more than a few times every day.

by Steve Hall    Jul-25-05    
Topic: Campaigns, Celebrity, Online



Dove Gives Fat...Uh...Real Women Their Day

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OK, OK, OK. We'll write about this. You've twisted our arm long enough. While we thought we were done with this, having written about it back in March 2005, the Dove fat girls are, again, all the rage. Having popped up on billboards all over the country, the public has voiced its opinion on the campaign by writing on the ads comments such as "I hate my agent," "Fat girls can be corporate schills too" and "I only suck form balls." We're not quite sure what the last comment has to do with the campaign but we're sure the author had something in mind.

Sharpie pen commentary aside, the campaign does make one wonder if we really want to see "real" women in their underwear or stay with the anorexic, cleavage-enhanced, Photoshopped, untouchable, pore-less, fantasy hotties that adorn most current advertising.

by Steve Hall    Jul-25-05    
Topic: Campaigns



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