The Power of a brand

I was reminded of the power of a brand this weekend. It was my girlfriends birthday and all it took was a couple of Tiffany's blue boxes to make her go over the moon.

I could of spent twice as much money at Peoples, Birks or Spence Diamonds but she would have been half as happy.

Even when I was there the Lady helping me out was telling me about how a man was in to purchase his Mom a mothers day present and he asked if they had a different coloured box. Apparently she looked at him and said that the box is just as important as what it contains... so true.

Vintage VD ad

AXE's Summer Cottage

Now that it's cottage season, I thought I'd share my new place with everyone. Just remember, you have to bring your Axe to get in.

Venture Capital Predictions

A few nights ago, a group of VC's got together in Silicon Valley to discuss what the future of the technology in the world could look like - and where they could invest their dollars.

Valleywag has put together a quick list of some of the predictions that came out of the night:

• Customer data stored by different service providers will be combined to create more intelligent services.
• Oil will have increasing difficulty competing with biofuels made from cheap nonfood crops for transportation.
• Water technology will replace abating global warming as a global priority.
• The mobile device industry's migration to smart phones will produce great disruption for big industry players.
• Booming market for healthy aging technologies.
• Four-fifths of the world population will carry mobile Internet devices within five to 10 years.
• Algorithms will be constructed to develop new industrial chemicals, new biofuels and eventually artificial intelligence.
• The mobile phone is your most important device.
• There is going to be a venture capital shakeout.
• Within five years everything that matters to you will be available on a device that fits on your belt or in your purse

Too Much Lube

Brought to us from Geneva, Switzerland, this ad for Substation Sex shop really gets the main message across. I wonder how it will score on "Key message takeaway".

Found on Copyranter.

Bacardi ad - 1979

They got it right in 1979. Still my favourite print ad against drinking and driving.

RIP Robert Mondavi

The first wine I ever drank (legally) and enjoyed was Robert Mondavi Californian Merlot. It was at Earls Dalhousie in Calgary, AB. I was 18, she was 20. Good date - amazing wine.

He died today. This man put Californian Wine on the map, made it recognized world wide and made his name a brand with more power and consumer recognition than the entire Californian Wine Industry.

Quote of the week

Some things have to be believed to be seen.
- Ralph Hodgson

Trying to sell truly original ideas or ideas based on technology, programs or media new to your clients can be nearly impossible. They will ask you for examples about what is the industry average for dollars spent, % of marketing budget, CTR, time-spent, etc...but the problem is that if the idea is unique and original these benchmarks will not exist.

This leaves you in the position to either generalize - take unrelated but through the magic of your bullshit similar campaign results and share them with the client or try to make them trust you, but I will never do this and I don't recommend it either.

Does trust still exist? Our clients depend on us to be successful while their jobs depend on returning results. If they take risks and fail they lose their jobs. As an industry we need to find out how to propose these ideas and convince clients to take risks.

Alex Bogusky please tell us how you do it.... an interview in the Globe and Mail gives us a little insight.

What do consumers think of your brand?

Wondering what words come to the minds of consumers ... brandtags will tell you.

My Favorite Spot of 2008

I know, I know...what a statement. It will probably change in a few hours but after just watching this spot from Cadbury Schweppes, I had to blog it immediately.

From a branding perspective, I'm sure link will be low and key message...well that's going to be tough as well.

But it's a nice ad. It got my attention and I'm going to remember and enjoy watching it...over and over. If it's on TV, I won't FFWD through it on my PVR, I'll watch. And that to me, is success.

Mandatory Reading

We try to read as many ad books as possible. Some good, some alright but boring and some brutal. It always amazes me how many people in the industry don't read anything - even something as simple as a newspaper.

If you don't read, I'd recommend it. And if you're looking for a place to start in advertising, read "Hey Whipple, Squeeze This" by renowned America copywriter Luke Sullivan. Billed as "A Guide to Creating Great Advertising," Sullivan goes through an in depth analysis on what to think about when creating great ads.

Although it is written for creatives by one of the best creatives, anyone in our industry should read it - if even for the examples and insights.

Filled with quotes from industry legends, the book isn't just a "how to" novel, it's a guide to help understand how create work is made. Oh, and it's hilarious.

One of my favorite references:

"THE SIX PHASES OF AN ADVERTISING PROJECT:"

1. Enthusiasm

2. Disillusionment

3. Panic

4. Search for the guilty

5. Punishment of the innocent

6. Praise and honors for the nonparticipants

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a little of #2 and a lot of #4 these days!

But seriously, give it a read. It's worth it and it might even make you sound smart in a meeting.

My New Favorite Video

I hate Bill O'Reilly. Hate what he stands for, hate his show and pretty much hate any interview he's ever conducted.

But the one thing that I love about Bill is his new viral video. It's fresh, fun and already going viral with over 250,000 views. I've got to give him credit, he knows a thing or two about viral marketing.

Hell - even Steven Cobert is copied his approach on his show tonight.

Check out Bill's video and Steven's parody below.

iPhone Customer Survey Results

The results are in. Everyone knows that the iPhone is a big success. But Why?

Here are some of the key findings:

• iPhone users are very satisfied. The iPhone users we surveyed report very high levels of satisfaction with the product. They are using its features extensively. (Page 12.)
• E-mail is the #1 function. The most heavily used data function on the iPhone is reading (but not writing) e-mail. (Page 13.)
• The iPhone increases mobile browsing… More than 75% of iPhone users say it has led them to do more mobile browsing. (Page 14.)
• …but it has drawbacks. About 40% of iPhone users say the iPhone has trouble displaying some websites they want to visit. (Page 25.)
• The iPhone is expanding the smartphone market. About 50% of iPhones replaced conventional mobile phones, 40% replaced smartphones, and 10% replaced nothing. Among conventional phones, Motorola Razr was the phone most often replaced. Among smartphones, Windows Mobile and RIM Blackberry were most often replaced. (Page 19.)
• A third of iPhone users carry a second phone. There have been anecdotal reports of iPhone users carrying a second mobile phone, either for basic voice calling, or for other functions like composing e-mail. The survey confirmed those reports. (Page 20.)
• A quarter of iPhone users say it’s displacing a notebook computer. 28% of iPhone users surveyed said strongly that they often carry their iPhone instead of a notebook computer. (Page 22.)
• Users are young. About half of iPhone users are under age 30 (page 29) and about 15% are students (page 31).
• Apple sells to its installed base. At least 75% of US iPhone users are previous Apple customers — they used either iPods or Macintosh computers. (Page 28.)
• The iPhone increases phone bills. The iPhone has increased its users’ monthly mobile phone bills by an average of 24%, or $228 extra per year. (Page 17.)
• The iPhone leads people to change carriers. Almost half of iPhone users changed carriers when they got the iPhone. (Page 18.)
• AT&T’s gamble pays off. The iPhone has probably increased AT&T’s gross service revenue by about $2 billion per year. (Page 4.

Found on The Bottom Rung

Bottom Rung's Source: Rubicon Consulting

Go down in style

I was hoping the tagline meant something else....found on adofdamonth

Subway Advertising's New Look

BKINDY.COM - Burger King & Indiana Jones Team up

New site from Burger King and CP+B around the Indiana Jones release.

Description: “Discover $10,000 buried on the Burger King’s Indiana Jones Reveal the Secret at bkindy.com. Every day $10,000 is buried on the site. Enter your code and hit the Dig button. If the money’s there, it’s yours. If no one uncovers it today, then another $10,000 will be added tomorrow.”

The prize started at $10,000 on May 11, 2008 and that amount can be won each day. If no one wins that day, the $10,000 prize is added to the next day’s total.

The site will be giving away $10,000 a day until June 8. What a great promo for the movie and for Burger King.

“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” opens in movie theaters May 22.

TBWA Vienna makes me lose faith in Advertising

I believe I may have to resign today. Maybe go get a job driving the subway or commuter trains - it always seemed like fun.

Why do I have to quit my job? Because this Playstation ad below has been concieved, created, approved and media dollars spent to share it I have lost all faith in this industry. I just threw up on my laptop.

Maybe a thumb down there is to help you use the whammy bar when playing Guitar Hero.

Here is what I believe the creative team said when presenting:

"Imagine that man has evolved. He now lusts for and wants to play video games more than he wants to have sex. His body follows suit and evolves...growing a third thumb...but not where you would think. A thumb replaces his penis [ad revealed to client]".

Google it - The new guerrilla CTA?

Smart and simple call to action that piques curiosity. Love the line.

See post below it explains everything you would discover when you "Google It".

Empire Alley - listen

EMPIRE ALLEY

A band from Vancouver that is worth checking out because their music is good and their sound is original.

I highly recommend that you listen to "Hey Now", "Salem" and "Orange Revolution".

Enjoy and spread the word.

They are also extremely media savvy. Check out their:

Facebook group

Facebook fan page

Website

MySpace page

Flickr album

and a new promo video on youtube.