Ever watch one of those teaser type commercials that clearly points on the direction of some weepy cause-related effort? This is not one of those commercials. It certainly starts out that way with a bunch of eager, eco-types embarking upon some lofty goal to correct some horrible wrong. And while they do end up doing some cute cuddlies a solid, the whole thing is a lame metaphor illustrating something far more mundane and pedestrian.
SAA/Y&R Tel Aviv created.
Writing on his blog, Idiot Flags, independent marketing consultant Stephen Ban comments on the closing of JWT's Chicago office and the general demise of ad agencies in general. Some gems:
"Agency networks create "conflict agencies" with new names -- effectively admitting that their brands are meaningless, and rendering the differentiation between and among the original agencies irrelevant"
more »
By now, you all know Mullen is moving from its majestic estate in the woods on Massachusetts' North Shore into the city of Boston. The agency's new digs will be at 40 Broad Street. While the move will take place soon, you can check in on the status of construction here. Yea, they're just video loops but still. And if you really have nothing else at all to do today, you can jon the agency's Facebook fan page.
Hyatt's running a sweepstakes called The Big Welcome, where you can win a bunch of free nights in Unspeakably Awesome parts of the world.
That's cool and all, but the effort's being promoted with two wristslash-worthy attempts at irony.
more »
One of the biggest complaints about CP+B's wacked-out Gates/Seinfeld campaign was that it didn't really do much to push the product. In fact, it didn't mention the product at all.
As you recall, that effort was fast followed by "I'm a PC," which did mention the product, but not in any technical or deeply informative way.
Here's the latest suite of MSFT fumbles, labeled "Laptop Hunters." In this installment, an incredibly smug human being called Giampaolo shows us all how precious, how picky, how tech he is(n't especially) -- while on a quest to find the perfect (MSFT-subsidized) laptop.
more »
It's weird about Paris. You get the sense that it's a lot like San Francisco: picturesque, unassuming, discreet by night. But beneath the surface, it's really more like New York: roaming, sleepless. You just don't realize the latter until you're swept up in it, holding on for dear life, then you look around and realize you haven't dreamt for days.
On Monday afternoon at Marketing 2.0, all 250+ speakers, moderators and attendees were invited to dinner at Bistrot Renaissance. Given the girth of our group, we thought the venue would be sizable -- so it was with surprise when I showed up to find it was no bigger than a cafe.
People sat in groups of four or six, wherever they could be squeezed together. (For visitors that popped in just for a drink or something, it must've seemed like every social media zealot in Europe had alighted upon the Renaissance with a vengeance.)
But claustrophobic spacing breeds intimacy among the far-flung. I was squeezed into a table with a girl from a British agency, Senior Editor Elsbeth Eilander of Tijdschrift voor Marketing, Marketing Exec Cedric Giorgi of Goojet and Sven Markschlager of JagerMeister -- who I knew already, because we'd become Designated Conference Walking Buddies. (Seriously? He talks about Jager ALL. THE. TIME. Did you know that in Germany, older people drink it to settle their stomachs? Or that it's preferred as a mixer in Australia? No? Now you do.)
All told, a pretty low-key night. We did the business-card-exchange thing, and I went home fairly early (around 11), which is great because on Tuesday, all flippin' hell broke loose.
David Armano -- you know the one -- was in town with his wife. We shook hands for the first time on Tuesday afternoon and he casually asked if I'd like to go to dinner. I was like, "Sure," mainly because I had no idea what havoc said dinner would wreak.
more »
