Archive for the 'Advertising' Category

04
May
11

actually, digital has not killed radio

Christopher Brosius is a New York perfumer who creates fragrances as art rather than fashion. And his olfactory creations, which include Burning Leaves, Just Breathe, and In the Library, are said — for better or worse — to smell very much as their names imply.

Now Brosius is believed to be working on developing a perfume that is “invisible” — has a scent that is noticeable to some and yet undetectable to others (kind of how things are argued to be under the asparagus smell theory).

If we were to categorize media in the same way as these perfumes, some would certainly put radio in the “invisible” category. But despite all the time and focus being directed to new media and technology nowadays, radio can’t fairly be regarded as dead. And when done right, radio advertising can still be a very effective and creative way to deliver a brand’s message to its target audience. Go on and click on the examples below:

1. Naturia dog food (Germany) — “Dog Radio” uses specific sounds to manipulate the behavior of listeners.

2. Senokot laxatives (South Africa) — “Captain’s Log” draws on well written copy to create a very vivid and humorous image for the listener.

3. Isuzu F-Series (South Africa) — “Flipping Fantastic Trucks” capitalizes on smart word play to ensure that the listener easily remembers the name of the product.

See what I mean?

Photo credit: Gabriel S. Delgado C.

20
Apr
11

captivating a captive audience

While in the shampoo aisle at the drugstore the other day, I was greeted by a very loud “Hello there!” that almost made me jump. After getting over my initial surprise, I turned round to find myself eye-to-eye with a smiling, blond woman on the screen of a small LCD ad player. As a consumer, I felt somewhat violated. Here I was running errands, silently going through a to-do list in my head, only to be interrupted — quite abruptly — by some ad/promo piece. Had I made the conscious decision to push or touch the screen, this interaction would have been fine, but it really irked me that playback had been triggered by motion sensors.

Taking a step back and looking at this situation from the perspective of a marketer, however, allows us to see that we have a growing problem that can’t be ignored. The captive audiences taken for granted in yesteryears are no longer all that captivated — at least not by our advertising. Take a look, for example, at how things play out on the subway these days. Most riders are too busy listening to music, playing mobile games, or burying their heads in e-book readers to notice our advertising.

Getting in their faces with a loud, obnoxious message is, obviously, not the answer. But we do have to come up with creative ways to gently put ourselves back into the consumer’s circle of vision if we want to stay top of mind. Wouldn’t you agree?

Photo credit: ephotography

02
Mar
11

leaving consumers thirsty for more

When New York Yankees starting pitcher Andy Pettitte retired at the beginning of last month, he left some of his fans yearning for a great comeback one day. Too bad celebrities such as Lindsay Lohan and Charlie Sheen aren’t likely to find themselves in the same boat.

Too bad that in many areas of business — not just marketing or advertising — it’s all too tempting to ride a wave out for as long as we’re able, even when it may make more sense to quit while we’re ahead.

Remember how the GEICO cavemen took the U.S. by storm back in 2004 with all those funny TV commercials? Well, that was a very different scenario from the one they find themselves in today with a failed 2007 ABC sitcom and an unexceptional vlog  and social networking site presence. And now we have the hunky, wildly popular Old Spice spokesman Isaiah Mustafa. Over the past eight months or so, he has delighted the American consumer and breathed new life into the Old Spice brand. But when will it be time for Isaiah to throw in the towel? (sorry, couldn’t resist the pun)

It’s not an easy question to answer. Wait too long and risk losing the consumer’s interest. Get out too early and miss a great opportunity to further strengthen and grow the brand. I’m sure executives over at Rovio Mobile wish they had a crystal ball as they take their hit mobile game Angry Birds and venture out into toys, board games, and possibly even movies.

Photo credit: Larry Ewing




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