An Apple Christmas

Though I generally dislike the Apple commercials I've seen so far, this one ended up being very well done. Merry Christmas!

Nike's Just Do It

Didn't like the Bradley Cooper commentary at first, but the end wrapped it up and made it worth it. Enjoy!

Marmite Rescue Squad

Just coming from London, I can personally attest to how awful this thing smells. The fact that the English are so split over the taste of Marmite is what makes this commercial funny and the final message so clever

Discovery Channel -- Shark Week!

Itssssss Shark Week!!!

 

Adidas -- Jump With Derrick Rose

PBS Makes Fun of Reality TV

At the risk of sounding like your Pop-Pop, TV was so much better back in the day. Apparently PBS agrees with me, as they've released a series of posters and commercials meant to open our eyes. CHI & Partners worked with PBS to poke fun at the current state of television, creating bogus commercials for the season premiers of Clam Kings, Long Island Landscapers and Meet the Tanners. The really scary part (I mean the part that keeps me up at night) is that I can see Long Island Landscapers becoming a real show (its only a step away from Treehouse Masters on Discovery...)

Football Season at Dick's - Every Snap

With preseason camps starting everywhere next month, Dick's Sporting Goods began ramping up its football campaign. This spot mimics its earlier Baseball commercial back in March, focusing on the sounds of the field in a single-shot masterpiece, though it has its own feel to it. It highlights the chaos and tension that follows every play, with sideline play-calling complimented by a crazy amount of audibles and trash talking. The commercial ends with the quarterback screaming for the snap on 4th and inches and the crunch of pads in the trenches. Dick's continues to move in the right direction with Anomaly's newest creation below:

New Wonderfilled Commercial

What the heck is this?! This isn't the juvenile, fun-filled Wonderfilled Commercials that we're used to. This is about a woman wrecking some guys relationship. This isn't an Avril Lavigne video, its supposed to be about innocence!

In all seriousness, I don't have a problem with the commercial, but it is a little different than what they usually do. At least the memorable jingle is still there.

Heavy on the Cologne

What's with the sudden influx of collegiate fragrances? I read earlier today that Notre Dame is releasing two in the fall, following Virginia Tech's announcement last week. I know UNC has had their own line of perfumes and colognes for a few years and I'm sure there are plenty more out there.

Notre Dame will release "Gold" for men and "Lady Irish" for women in the fall.

The Smell of Champions

Though I get theres no intended seriousness in these investments, you can't help but realize that everyone is trying to get into the fragrance industry. Big names like P Diddy, Derek Jeter, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce and Taylor Swift have all tried to brand their signature smells, but its all white noise at this point. They lack the special something that makes them unique. They lack the Hepburn factor.

Its well known that Audrey Hepburn was a huge star in the 50's and early 60's. In 1957, Hubert de Givenchy created a perfume for the actress, who then forbade Givenchy from marketing it because she wanted it all to herself (hence the name L'Interdit, forbidden). The perfume was eventually distributed, along with the reputation of being Aubrey's personal perfume. It was created just for her so people knew that she wore it. When they put it on, they felt a connection with the star known for her beauty, class and elegance. They felt special because they knew she loved it.

Audrey Hepburn's L'Interdit (1963)

Britney Spear's Fantasy Twist (2012)

Today, no fragrance has that Hepburn factor that once was. The market is so diluted that its impossible to feel any sort of connection. The industry has lost its class.

Summer is Serious

Aired during the NBA Draft last night (full version)

Smarter Commercial for Smarter Cars

Finally, a car commercial that isn't over the top. It's hilarious how so many of them are filled with hot women, off road adventures and drag racing down city streets. Of course, there's nothing wrong with hot women, but its getting to be a little much (I'm looking at you too beer commercials...)

As opposed to this guy I saw moments earlier. Though, in its defense, no ones drifting across dirt roads:

"Wonderfilled" Oreo Cookies

There's been so much to going on at Oreo recently! The Nabisco brand has had two creative and memorable campaigns over the past year, with a creamy, revolutionary tweet sandwiched in the middle of them. The marketing focuses heavily on nostalgia, using historical events in the first campaign and memories of childhood in the second. Its been a big twelve months for milk's favorite cookie!

 My Daily Twist

With the goal of "help[ing] everyone around the world celebrate the kid inside", Oreo began its "Daily Twist" campaign to celebrate the brand's 100th birthday last year. For 100 days straight, a four agency team created an Oreo-themed visual featuring a current events story or historical anniversary tied to that date. 

The effort kicked off on June 25th and featured a rainbow stacked cookie celebrating gay pride month. It then went on to feature the 1969 moon landing, release of the movie "Jaws" and ended with the anniversary of the first high five (October 2, 1977 apparently- and don't worry, you wont be judged for thinking high fives have been around forever like I did). The campaign was a huge social media success, raising average fan interaction through Facebook and Twitter by 110% and garnering praise from marketers as well.

 Light's Out Advertising

One of Oreo's most talked about accomplishments came during the Super Bowl, though it wasn't their Whisper Fight commercial. During the 35 minute power outage, the brand released a brilliant, hastily conceived ad on Twitter that read "Power out? No problem" and had the below picture attached:

It was retweeted more than 14,000 times in the following hours.

Quick thinking and a historic opportunity might have led to a revolution in social marketing.The company's agency, 360i, had their team already gathered when the blackout occured. With Oreo executives already accessible, the agency easily got approval and pulled the trigger. When the lights turned off, their light bulb's turned on!

Many agencies now feel they should be on-call for major events, just in case another opportunity presents itself. Creativity now doesn't stop when you leave the office (never really did, but it DEFINITELY doesn't now). Agencies are on the job 24/7. 

 Sharing the Good Times

Oreo's latest campaign- its "Wonderfilled" campaign- again seeks to awaken the inner child in you. "The whole dynamic of having an Oreo, eating an Oreo, sharing an Oreo gives you a little feeling like a child again" says Jorge Calleja, creative director at the Martin Agency, maker of the first "Wonderfilled" commercial. Both spots go for nostalgic and childhood, with references to the Big Bad Wolf from the Three Little Pigs, staying up late to watch monster movies on TV and music from Adam Young's Owl City (who recently provided original tunes for the children's movies Legend of the Guardians and Wreck-It Ralph).

This is only the beginning of the campaign, but I believe its off to a good start:

Controversial -- Cheerios

This is the second controversial ad in a row I've posted (I swear this won't become a theme!). I actually saw it a couple of days ago and thought nothing of it, though there were rumblings of controversy at that point already. The problem people are having is that this spot stars an interracial couple and their mixed daughter, which Cheerios goes out of its way to show. If you look at the commercial itself, its actually pretty cute (like all Cheerios' commercials) and very well done, but nevertheless, the content is overshadowed by the casting.

Cheerios disabled their comment section after extremely vulgar and hateful comments were left and its still down as of now. Though its 2013 and most of us thought those days were over or nearly gone, its sad to see people are still as hateful as they were 50 years ago (yea, it was THAT recently). My faith in humanity was restored a little when I read the statistics: 8,117 thumbs up, 864 thumbs down! Watch the 30-second commercial below:

 

Controversial -- Samsung's Evolutionary Husband

Apparently this is controversial? People need to stop crying about everything, this is actually pretty funny.

http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/samsung-presents-advertisings-most-idiotically-primitive-husband-ever-149710

Big Gas Savings -- Kmart

From the same people that brought you "Ship my Pants"

Social vs. Market Norms

Have you ever wondered why it was acceptable to offer pizza and beer to a friend for helping you move, but weird to offer them money? What about when a buddy helps you study for your super tough econ exam? Why is pulling out your wallet the last thing you consider doing? I only ask because a few months back, I helped an elderly Asian couple move into my building (and by move, I mean I helped them carry a couch up a couple flights of stairs, nothing special). After we gently placed the couch by the window, the man pulled out his wallet and offered me a ten dollar bill. Of course, I refused the gift, thinking it was the polite thing to do. As I walked out of their semi-empty apartment, I started to wonder; why exactly was it so impolite to accept the money?


According to Dan Ariely, its because we simultaneously live in two different worlds, one where social norms reign and another where market norms dominate. Based on his book Predictably Irrational, social norms include helping friends move, giving your roommate a ride to work and holding the door open for a stranger. Here, the return is the warm and fuzzy feeling you get from being a good person, along with the eventual repayment of kindness you expect (you may help move your friends couch, but this doesn't mean he has to come right over and move yours). Social norms are wrapped up in our social nature and our need for community.


On the other hand, market norms are based on rigid rules where feelings aren't involved. "The exchanges are sharp edged" Ariely explains, "wages, prices, rents, interest, and cost-and-benefits." Here, when a benefit is given, immediate (or close to immediate) reciprocity of comparable benefits is expected.

You've probably guessed by now that helping a friend falls under social norms. You help because you want to be a good friend, not because you want to get paid. But I haven't answered why it would be weird to actually get paid (ie when social and market worlds become intertwined).

If you've ever read Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner, you'll recognize the following story about the Israeli daycare study. This is what happens when a social problem is "solved" with a financial solution:

When market norms are introduced, the social pressures melt away and are replaced. Worse still, they learned that once market norms are introduced, it becomes extremely difficult to bring back the feeling of social responsibility, even when the market norms are taken away.

Now to answer the questions from above. If you were to pull out a crisp twenty for your friend's moving services, market norms collide with social ones. Three possibilities come to mind. Most likely, you insult them by assuming they're only doing it for the money. The implied lack of morality will come off as awkward, cold, and impolite.

Assuming they do accept the money, you are bound to get the number wrong, as everyone believes their time is the most precious thing in the world. When you hand them the twenty dollar bill, they'll think that their services are worth much more than $20. They'll walk away feeling used, hurting your social relationship because you used a financial solution (or you give them more money to try to smooth things over and begin to realize you might as well have hired a professional mover).

The third possibility assumes you got the number right. Congratulations! Now whenever you ask this friend for help, they'll expect some sort of financial reimbursement (since you already paid them once). It moves from being a friendship to an on-call rent-a-pro service. Either way, you've pushed your relationship into the realm of market exchange, which almost never works out.

Lending Tree

What's that smell?

 

This is Water

No intro needed. Just watch.

For a little background, click below:

http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/story-behind-water-inspiring-video-people-cant-stop-watching-149324

Thank you, Jackie Robinson

Maybe its all the 42's running the bases this week, or the fact that I saw 42 over the weekend, but there just has to be some kind of entry about Jackie Robinson. With the tag line "Fly your own flag," New Era was the perfect firm to do this:

Must. Have. Wheat Thins

Don't know why I found this so funny, but I've been watching it on repeat all weekend

Google Glass

We've all begun hearing the buzz surrounding Google's new project, Google Glass. In case you haven't, here is the commercial released a little while ago:

The glasses themselves don't get in the way of everyday life, but do offer subtle hints of the Terminator.

Google Glass 2.0?

A little background about Glass. The idea behind Glass is quite genius actually, as Timothy Jordan describes in his presentation at SXSW (South by Southwest) a few weeks ago. He uses the image of a performer stepping up to the stage, and then suddenly everyone's phones and tablets shoot into the air, trying to record and take pictures. "It felt like they were watching the screens instead of the event..." Jordan says, "it feels like tech is often getting in the way more than it needs to." Glass allows the user to still have access to technology, while not "[taking] you out of the moment."

But the real point of this entry is to analyze the marketing behind them. Though their release is months away, Google has drawn a lot of attention to these futuristic, internet-connected glasses. Google recently selected a group of 8,000 individuals (called "Google Explorers") to test-drive Glass before its official release. All they needed to do was submit a 50 word application explaining how they would use it and tag it under #ifihadglass on Google+ or Twitter. Winners will have to pay $1500 for the experience and pick it up in either New York, San Francisco or LA.

Needless to say, hundreds of thousands of people jumped at the opportunity, but with such a new concept, Google needed to make sure that the product placement was just right. I believe that Google was less focused on WHY one wanted the Glass as much as WHO wanted it. Their marketing department showed its brilliance here, as they probably spent hours combing through Twitter accounts looking for the most well-connected of the bunch. Those who were highly active and had a large number of followers looked like prime choices to flaunt this cutting edge technology. The strategy here is for Google to let the public do the marketing for them, and we're the ones who are paying $1500 for the privilege! Those geniuses in Mountain View should pat themselves on the back for this one, as I've heard top executives other notable individuals have been selected among the elite few, as well as some others who did actually have creative and constructive ideas on how to use Glass.

Strategies like this have been seen before, but I can't remember anything on this scale and for such a revolutionary product. The marketing strategy behind the new Google Glass is nothing short of brilliant as far as I can see, but that doesn't mean it can't fail. If you want to see Timothy Jordan's full presentation at SXSW, click the link below:

PC Mag: Watch the Google Glass SXSW Presentation

Gatorade Fixation

Great commercial I just saw from Gatorade. Very clever

Nivea Stress Test

Stress tests aren't just for banks anymore

Primetime for Posters

Next to Coldplay: Viva la Vida, an eight by twelve, Union Jack backgrounded Keep Calm and Carry On poster hangs on my closet door. I bought it because it reminds of the time when a nation persevered through the worst time in its history, coming together to win the Battle of Britain. As a governmental marketing tool, posters and other propaganda had their heyday during World Wars I and II. In one way or another, every country utilized these works of art to rile up support for the war effort or paint the enemy as sinister and evil (a little bit of Column A, a little bit of Column B).

World War I was when things started getting personal.

Everyone here in the States recognizes Uncle Sam, sternly pointing his finger, as if he's personally calling YOU out. Its hard to avoid those piercing eyes and cold facial expression. It just oozes of seriousness, like whatever he's about to say is going to be the most important thing you'll ever hear. You go on to read that he wants you to enlist in the US Army. Hell if I ignore him, at this point I'm scared he might come after me if I don't. Posters like this undoubtedly increased enlistments in the warring countries, as governments employed every resource they had to get recruits.

During World War II, their messages began to expand. Posters went from being mainly enlistment focused to infiltrating every part of the wartime civilian's daily life. With men joining the armed services, woman were called into duty by way of factory work, and Rosie the Riveter was born! People needed to know that the job done at home was equally important as the one done abroad, and that careless talk could spell disaster for the war effort.

These art pieces did in fact sell a product, they sold a sense of pride and duty. Posters were instrumental in creating nationalism, which led to participation through buying War Bonds, planting Victory Gardens, and showing up to work everyday. As I mentioned in the Dick's Sporting Goods post, I think tapping into something deeper should be marketing's ultimate goal. It shifts the rules from that of market norms to that of social norms, a mindset that places less value on money and more on emotional satisfaction. The proof is that these images are still iconic decades after their original purposes were fulfilled. Even I can tell you that I feel a little something every time I look up at my wall and see that simple message staring back, telling me to keep calm and carry on.

Paper isn't dead after all

"Toilet Paper Ad 'Emma' proves both French Husbands & Technology Wrong"

Dick's Sporting Goods?

I was watching the World Baseball Classic on MLB Network a few days ago (that's right, I'm one of the three people who watch MLB Network) and saw this commercial for Dick's Sporting Goods...

I HATED it at first. I thought it was much too intense for a Dick's commercial, as they've always had a fun "this is where you buy your equipment from, nothing else" vibe to me. But after seeing this and finding a few more of their more recent commercials like The Glove, I'm starting to see a change in how they present themselves.

This spot successfully captures the intensity that comes from sports. Peter Deming, the man who shot Oz the Great and Powerful, works the camera well, never cutting, but instead using zooms to create a seamless, more realistic perspective. Beginning with a bluff at third, we scan the outfield while immersing ourselves in the sights and background chatter of the game. Following a dramatic check to first, the camera gets a close-up of Texas Ranger's prospect Cody Buckel, about to deliver the deciding pitch at the climax of a symphony of strings.

Dick's is tapping into emotion with it's commercial, which is much deeper and longer lasting than Darrelle Revis screaming his name at me. Its worth a laugh, but nothing more. I'm interested in seeing what else Anomaly comes up with for Dick's Sporting Goods in the future.

Compare these two, the Revis commercial from like three years ago, and The Glove from late last year, to see what I think is the evolution of Dick's. What do YOU think?

Bad Pricing or Genius Strategy...

In what situation would this ever make sense?!

Needless to say, I bought two. I didn't come for and generally don't even like Chex Mix. It was for Super Bowl Sunday and I thought other people would enjoy it. 

They got me, didn't they? Damn...

The Coke Marketing Machine does it again!

I'm constantly amazed by how awesome some of these brands are, especially how Disney and Coke are so good at associating happiness and great memories with their products. Latest example from Coke:

House of Cardinals

Thanks @_KateMara! If you haven't seen House of Cards on Netflix yet, DO IT! Its legit

Original House of Cards Trailer

House of Cardinals spoof

Coding more influential than you think...

I started coding at UVa, but mainly got into after college when I worked in Quantitative Strategies. This video is on point:

Starting Fresh

This started out as me trying to express my views on the world. As anyone can see, that was an EPIC FAIL. Instead, I making this about things I really care about. Sure I have views, but I don't care enough to discuss them. I care about activities, sports, film, things like that. So from this moment forward, this blog will be about things I find interesting and just want to talk about. Hope other people read this, but the purpose of this is to enlighten in a different way then I tried over a year ago. So, without further ado, enjoy!