Campaign Reveals Women's Favorite Things

Now here's an ad that speaks the truth about what women love: IRN BRU and dick. Visit Hidden Persuader for the full sized image.

Neopets Teams With Limited Too For In-Store, Online Promotion

Online youth entertainment company Neopets, Inc. has partnered with specialty 'tween retailer Limited Too to offer a selection of exclusive Neopets themed CD/DVD cases at 568 Limited Too stores beginning February 11. The plush-covered, padded CD cases, which hold 8 compact discs each, come in three different colors with images of popular Neopets characters - a Uni, a Gelert and an Aisha. The CD cases are priced at $2.90.

In addition to the in-store promotion, Neopets is launching a Limited Too themed Immersive Advertising activity on the Neopets website. Site members can play the new Limited Too Mix 'n' Match game to earn the website's virtual currency - Neopoints. Neopets players can then use their Neopoints to "shop" for their virtual Neopets, with odd names like Shoyrus, Kacheeks, and Kougras. Other site activities include trading virtual items with friends online, playing online games, writing for the online newspaper (The Neopian Times) and exploring the expanding world of Neopia.

The Apprentice Dove Ads A Horror Show

Writing on MSNBC, RealityBlurred's Andy Dehnart reviews the horror show that was last night's The Apprentice.

In the episode the two teams were to create television ads for Dove Cool Moisture body wash. While Dehnart thinks one teams ad was no more horrible than both ads, we think they both just sucked. But, the contestants on The Apprentice are not advertising professionals. It really should not have been a surprise to Donnie Deutsch and Trump the ads might not end up so good. Deutsch informed both teams they were losers on the task forcing both teams to face Trump in the boardroom. We are so tired of writing about The Apprentice but can't seem to stop watching the train wreck product placement orgasm. If anyone cares, the leader of the marathon team that created the marathon ad was fired. View the two excuses for commercials here.

Brits Freak Over IKEA Brand

The combination of effective promotion and Brits apparently never having seen furniture before caused hundreds of people to be injured as 6,000 people crushed through the doors at the grand opening of the IKEA store in Edmonton, North London. Being fanatical about a brand is one thing but we certainly can't imaging the desire for a couch to be quite this powerful. Freaky.

Dogs Mug For Kennel Show

The 129th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show airs February 14 on USA.

Promoting the event like it was a professional wrestling match, is a :30 set to the tune of Europe's "The Final Countdown" which features images of dogs mugging for the camera. With simple copy, "Destiny Awaits, Fetch It," and "tv announcer" voiceover, the spot is, in our opinion, effective in keeping your attention long enough to see the pay off at the end. The ad was created by 72andSunny. View it here.

FTC Says Product Placement Need Not Be Disclosed

Advertisers jumped gleefully into the air yesterday when the FTC decided not to require the disclosure of product placements on television. While the decision is not an indication of endorsement of the practice one way or the other by the FTC, it felt issuing one broad rule for all product placement was not the best way to go. The FTC, later, plans to examine celebrity endorsements on talk shows, entertainment and news programming.

Without surprise, Commercial Alert, the Ralph Nader group that proposed the rule requiring all product placements to be disclosed at the start of the show and during the placement, with the word "advertisement" on the screen, is pissed. Commercial Alert Executive Director Gary Ruskin said the FTC's position is out of date and "based on a totally antiquated notion that advertising persuades only through objective claims, and not imagery."

While this may be a coup for the advertising industry, we hope it doesn't open up a free for all product placement explosion. We also hope marketers allow the writers of shows in which products will be placed more creative control so placements don't look forced

Turmoil Surrounds Introduction of WOMMA Standards

Following the introduction of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association's Code of Conduct, a heated discussion surrounding the association's statement against including children under 13 in word of mouth campaigns and it's apparent neglect in establishing guidelines for children 13-17. While we hope WOMMA's intentions are honorable, both the Viral and Buzz Marketing Association and the National Institute on Media and the Family have taken issue with some current word of mouth marketing efforts. Last fall at the New York AD:TECH show, a conference about online marketing, VBMA founder Justin Kirby and a NIMF audience member questioned the practices of Boston-based BzzAgent, a company which recruits people to join the company as buzz agents who "talk up" the products of paying marketers. The NIMF audience member challenged BzzAgent to change its policy which urges its buzz agents to be "discreet" when talking about the products they have agreed to buzz about. While BzzAgent said they would revisit their policy to perhaps urge agents to be more forthright with the reason they are talking up a product, NIMF claims no policies have been changed.

BzzAgent Founder Dave Balter counters NIMF's claim the company's code has not changed saying, "We changed this code over two months ago because we realized that our code was out of date."

Balter also claims NIMF was premature in its attack on the WOMMA Code of Ethics saying, "We appreciate the Institute's feedback. However, we (WOMMA) were concerned about the glaring inaccuracies in the Institute's press release, beginning with their failure to note that this was not an established code, but a starting point and request for input."

Balter further lays blame on NIMF for not responding to WOMMA's requests for input during the establishment of the Code. "We did in fact contact them back in December, asking them to help us draft a more effective code. They never responded, choosing to attack instead of contribute."

As heated as this issue may have become, Balter simply wants to move forward and work with interested parties to establish effective and mutually acceptable guidelines. "we are in complete agreement that the need to protect minors is a critical issue. And we look forward to working with leading educational, consumer, and children's advocacy organizations in making sure that the bar is set properly high."