by mark June 29th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
There are few publications I hold in higher esteem than The New York Times. So you can imagine my ire when I made this discovery last Sunday. In the Magazine section, the lead article began with a headline that read: “In the year since the July 7 bus and subway terror attacks, Tony Blair’s government has tried a combination of hard power (expanding the power of the police) and…”
All of which would have been perfectly okay had not the … been followed by twelve, yes twelve, pages of advertising before the article’s headline was completed. This has got to be the apotheosis of the “placement is everything” media mentality, which effectively says: “If we print our ads on 1-3/4″ cast iron plates, the reader will need a crane to turn the page, so clearly, they’ll see them…”
Continue reading ‘Gray Lady Gets Black Eye’
by mark June 24th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
People of “a certain age” will remember the incredibly funny spots Alka-Seltzer used to run 30 years ago. “Atsa a some speecy, spicey meataball…” The newlywed with her recipe for “poached oysters.” And, of course, “Try it, you’ll like it.” They were truly wonderful. Which makes their recent reincarnation all the sadder. Because the new rendition of “try it” is anything but.
Thanks to Stuart Elliott and this Monday’s New York Times I was directed to a site Bayer, the parent company of Alka-Seltzer, has put up to showcase this piece of…well, poached oysters. Which is highly revealing indeed. Revealing that the once-great TV agency BBDO should maybe reconsider giving Ted Sann the heave-ho. And that David Kellogg needs to get back to studying his Howard Zeiff reels. Because this remake is remarkably awful.
Continue reading ‘It’s A Funny Business’
by mark June 21st, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
Someone asked me the other day what I thought of BMW’s new advertising and my answer was not much. “Not much” in the sense that I rarely notice it or think about it at all, not that I hold it in low regard. Once the brand left Ammirati & Puris, where I’d spent more than a few days, nights and weekends sweating it, I kind of lost interest. Yeah, the BMW films bit got a lot of press, but I always figured the people with time to watch them weren’t exactly hedge fund managers, so I imagined their impact on sales would be minuscule at best. And when the account moved recently to yet another agency, I assumed it was entering that “tenant farmer, just trying to scrape by, third generation” of marketing management phase so familiar to observers of what’s been going on at Coke, FedEx, Volvo and a host of other once extraordinarily well-advertised brands.
However, and no doubt prompted by this inquiry, within days I found myself noticing several BMW ads, one a full page in The Wall Street Journal and the other in The New York Times, and as my mother used to say: “Ye gods and little fishes.”
Continue reading ‘Not Much’
by mark June 18th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
As I was wrapping up the book a new bank with the curious moniker Fifth Third blew into town. My hypothesis then was that this was a name that could only have been created and approved by people who were well into their third fifth–of gin, vodka or bourbon. Now this same institution is treating us to an advertising effort that would seem to indicate they’re well into their fifth fifth.
More or less covering the train station platform from one end to the other is a veritable compendium of ordinary advertising, a costly exercise in more ways than one. (Note to self: Find out once and for all what it costs to plaster every available surface at the Madison Street station with advertising, ordinary or otherwise.
I can dispense with the art direction in one word: ugh. The writing will take a few paragraphs.
Continue reading ‘Third Fifth?’
by mark June 14th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
The soft drink Sprite is one of my favorite examples of what can happen to a brand when its stewards decide to invest in some extraordinary advertising. For those of you not familiar with the story, I’ll quickly summarize it here.
Sprite is The Coca-Cola Company’s version of 7-Up and for years it languished in the 11th or 12th slot in terms of sales volume. It wasn’t like it had distribution problems, not with Coke’s muscle behind it. And it wasn’t like it didn’t spend money on advertising. Who can forget (or should I say, remember) “I like the Sprite in you?” Or the half lemon half lime piece of fruit they oh, so cleverly dubbed a “limon?” Not surprisingly, this ordinary stuff didn’t do beans for Sprite sales.
But then in the 90s, Lee Garfinkel arrived at the agency that handled Sprite and a new campaign was developed: the “obey your thirst” work. And did it ever.
Continue reading ‘From The Sublimonal To The Ridiculous’
by mark June 8th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
It probably seems like I’m always picking on Buick’s advertising and that’s not really my intent. Despite the many years I spent touting the virtues of various European imports, I’ve always wished that a) Detroit would make better cars, and b) that it would make better advertising for any of the cars it produces. Plus, I have several fellow galley slaves with whom I once shared an oar whose lamentable task it is these days to keep this brand on some sort of life support. I just wish they’d stop making ads that present such an easy target.
Continue reading ‘Neocon-vertible?’
by mark June 7th, 2006
in Daily Thoughts.
Undoubtedly, you will have noticed the dearth of postings here over the last few months. Fact is I’ve been busy making money so my kids will only have to finance 99.7% of their college tuitions, and growing increasingly convinced that my jeremiads were going largely unnoticed.
But, au contraire, I recently discovered thanks to this amazing “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” otherwise known as the internet. A certain Jason Rose of Melbourne, Australia of all places wrote me a few weeks ago to tell me how much he enjoyed the book–flattery will get you everywhere–and that he only wished I would post new stuff to this site on a slightly more regular basis than I get laid. (Note to self: Delete wife from “Notifications” list.)
So okay, Jason, I’ll take another stab at it and maybe this time I’ll get a little action. (Second note to self: MAKE SURE to delete wife from “notifications.”)
Continue reading ‘Thank Jason Rose’
