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Adrants to Crush AdFreak In 'Battle of the Ad Blogs'

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We were going to sit back and take the high road on this competition, letting things flow organically but, what the hell, AdFreak isn't and the competition is a battle after all so we're bringing out the guns. Let's show the industry a small upstart like Adrants can crush the big VNU-backed AdFreak. But let's remember it's all in good fun. To bring you up to speed, Adrants was named a contender in AdLand's Battle of the Ad Blogs in the Best Commercial Ad Blog category. We are joined in that category by some other very fine ad blogs including Adhurl, AdJab, the aforementioned AdFreak, MarketingVOX, The Spunker and Fast Company. We're honored to be among such a fine collection of fellow advertising opinionites but we're confident Adrants readers will rally to the cause of standing up for the little guy...even though we're not really all that little anymore, mind you.

So drag your mouse over to the Battle of the Ad Blogs, scroll down to the Best Commercial Ad Blog category, vote for Adrants and smoke AdFreak's ass.

by Steve Hall    Jan-24-06    
Topic: Announcements



UPN and WB Merge Into One Network

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This morning UPN and WB decided to throw in the towel as competitors and, in September, join forces to become a bit more substantial together than the also-rans they were separately. The new network will be called CW. MediaLife reports, "UPN president Dawn Ostroff will head entertainment for the CW, and WB chief operating officer John Maatta will become the CW's COO." The new network will be owned by CBS and Warner Brother together. Ah, that's where the CW came from.

by Steve Hall    Jan-24-06    
Topic: Television



Adrants Introduces Creative Portfolio Service

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Through a partnership with Portfolios.com, Adrants has launched Adrants Portfolios, a service for creatives to exhibit their portfolios and get it seen by hiring companies and for companies in search of creative talent to easily search a large database of creative portfolios and find the right creative for the job. If you are a creative, of course you already have your own website with all your brilliant work on it but no one's going to see it unless there's qualified eyeballs pointed towards it. That's exactly what the Portfolios service will do for you. Your work will be hosted on Portfolios.com and you will be able to point searchers to your own website as well.

For companies seeking a designer, illustrator, photographer, art director or other creative talent for an upcoming project, the databased can be freely search by various criteria yielding the right talent for the job. Yes, it does cost money ($9.95 - $49.95 per month) for creatives to join but it's a far more efficient method of getting your work seen that aimlessly emailing and calling marketers and clients who never return your phone calls. Give it a try. You can check it out here or access it from the Portfolios link which will always be at the top of all Adrants pages.

by Steve Hall    Jan-24-06    
Topic: Announcements



Adrants Is Not An Ad-Free Blog

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It sure would be nice to live is a world without advertising but until aliens land and introduce an entirely new economic system, advertising will continue to make the world go 'round. We appreciate that there should always be a wall between advertising and editorial but we don't subscribe to the notion that advertising devalues content as do the folks over at Ad-Free Blog. The group places blogs on a pedestal and claims that advertising on blogs devalues the medium. Again, we could go into our tirade about how blogging is just a really easy way to publish a website and not this new uber-religion it's made out to be but will spare you that tired rant.

Contrary to the groups mantra, all blogs should not be ad-free. If all blogs should be ad-free, why not all websites? Why not all media? Why should blogs be held to this artificially higher standard? If the group is so adamant about advertising devaluing blogs, shouldn't they be out trying to stop advertising from devaluing all media? Climb out of the clouds and smell the real world.

by Steve Hall    Jan-24-06    
Topic: Announcements, Weblogs



Hispanic 'Got Milk' Campaign Gets Quirky Rejuvenation

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The Hispanic Got Milk campaign which has focused on "family, love and milk" and has run for nine years has just received a quirky boot in the ass with the launch of three new spots entitled, Contortionist, Amazon Hair Goddesses and Teeth Town. All three are set to air January 30 and reinforce milk as a kind of "wonder tonic." Created by Long Beach-based Grupo Gallegos and directed by Andy Fogwill, each of the three spots uses humorous exaggeration to illustrate how milk offers various benefits, odd as they may be. The new tagline is, simply, "Drink Milk."

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Campaigns, Commercials, Good, Strange



SnackShotz Makes Boring Product Exciting

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Now here's a way to market a boring product like dog treats. Rather than try to espouse the tastiness of the treat - which is clearly a lie - just couple the product with dog treat launch gun called Snackshotz as you laugh your way to the bank while your dog treat competitors utter a collective, "Huh?", as your sales skyrockets past theirs.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Best, Online, Specialty, Strange



Fashion Label Targets Church Goers

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Sort of like explaining the definition of "diffusion" or dissipation" to a kid using the fart metaphor, this image does a very respectable job of explaining the word "juxtapose." Netherlands fashion label G-Star Raw has a billboard with a model offering herself up in front of, apparently, a church. Flickr user MatthijsB was there to properly "juxtapose" the two images.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Outdoor, Strange



Cancer Ads Bring on the Emotion

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While we didn't loose our hair, we know just what's going through the minds of this woman and child in these ads.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Commercials, Good



Johnnie Walker Don't Walk No More

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Stunting the Johnnie Walker walking man campaign is this anti-drinking ad which clearly indicates if you walk and drive with Johnnie more than you should.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Spoofs



AOL Says Internet Is Bad But Logon Anyway

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With a news European ad, AOL is painting a dark, 1884 1984-ish view of the Internet pointing out all its negative aspects all while positioning itself as the wonderful access point and provider of Internet content it, apparently is. Stupid.

UPDATE: It is perhaps we, that are the stupid ones. Apparently, this spot is paired with a good Internet version and the two together are supposed to generate a good versus bad discussion.

by Steve Hall    Jan-23-06    
Topic: Commercials



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