Dagen H

Does the transition to digital television make you think of anything? You know, from history? I'm guessing that it does not. Or if it does, it's probably more closely related to DTV than what it makes me think of. Ever since they started plastering ads everywhere about DTV (a long time ago, they’re rarer now), I think about H Day when I see them. I’d read once about all the advertising the Swedish government did to make that work (the “four-year education program”). I think I made the connection because of that somehow. I’m weird.

Can you think of any other widely advertised nationwide switch that a government headed? There’s probably tons. I can’t think of any more at the moment though.

30 Years Later

Aside from telling us that Coke Zero tastes like regular Coke, I think that this commercial was intended to have us look back at the old Coke commercial. So that's what we shall do. And happily. The original one is excellent.

Mean Troy
Coke Zero
2009 Super Bowl


Mean Joe Green
Coca-Cola Classic
1979 Super Bowl


Correction: Make that 29 years. Mean Joe Green was in 1980 according to Adland.

Customer Disservice

Why offer a service you can't deliver?

I was shopping online and had a question when I saw they offered live chat. I've used live chat on other merchants' sites many times before, it's usually instant and helpful and I was pleased to see they offered it too. So I clicked to chat but no one ever came. I was at work so decided to do other stuff while I waited. But no one was there!

After a few hours I finally just emailed them and they responded very promptly. Why did they offer live chat if they weren't going to chat with customers who tried to use it? So lame.

Ask 2nd

Sometimes I hesitate to write about marketing stuff because I like to think I know something about marketing and I’m afraid of being exposed as an idiot.

But recently Hot Cup posed a question which I was happy to answer, and so I’ll share it with you too. (I admit, I went a little overboard with it, which is why it can now make for its own post.) It was about the new Microsoft ads.


They are pretty bad ads. Although the 2nd one (New Family) is considered to be a little better than the 1st (Shoe Circus). There are a few companies that can get away with doing a no real message ad (ie. Budweiser) but Microsoft isn't one of them. Viral marketing is a huge thing. So that’s obviously their goal. And successfully working branding into viral marketing has proved challenging for more than just Microsoft.

The TV spots aren't as bad as the full versions, in my opinion. Maybe I just like that they're shorter. (I’ve seen versions on TV that’ve got to be only 30 seconds, but I can’t find them online.)

I think they want to show you Bill Gates doing something funner than you normally get to see. The message of 'New Family' is suppose to be about connecting with people. Bill and Jerry are connecting with people ... Microsoft connects people. I think that's the message anyway. And both ads hint toward innovation at the end, although there is no real tangible message there.

But they have led to some buzz at least. This article is the most favorable one I've come across.

Good Microsoft Commercial:

The Commute

If you’re dumb enough to not put the name and address of your establishment on coupons you’re giving everyone exiting metro, at least call it out repetitively. No waffles for me. I don’t know where to go.

Speaking of metro …

Did any of you see the set up at Rosslyn station this week? It was there right in time for the Russell Crowe/Ben Affleck movie State of Play they were filming, and then it was gone.

Speaking of metro … again …

My bus driver of 8 months is gone. [So the one I’ve had since I moved to my new place.] I think he is the best one in the whole system. I may have had a little crush on him.

Placement

Ad placement, like product placement, is very important. But advertising online can sometimes make for some pretty funny placement. DCist caught one this morning. (I admit I hit the refresh button a few times, wasting a few impressions of other advertisers, to get this screen shot.)

And not long ago at work we spotted our own ad in the middle of an article about Canadian beef.

It's a little off topic but this reminds me of the "shameless" Papa Johns commercial for meatball pizza during the 2005 Domino's episode of The Apprentice.

Still bored at work.

Current Events: Hasbro

First there’s of course Scrabulous, which as far as I know is still getting sorted out. It’s a situation that’s prompted speculation as to why Hasbro actually went this long without creating their own free online version of Scrabble; whether they really didn’t see any opportunities or whether they were just waiting for someone to make the most popular and profitable version before swooping in and taking over.

Then there’s today’s deal with Universal. It appears Transformers and the upcoming G.I. Joe (both are Hasbro and Paramount) have started something. Now Universal Pictures and Hasbro are set to do more toy-based movies. This article tells us there will be at least four movies, but lists seven brands. I’m guessing they’re still working on those details and are considering doing as many as seven movies, but I’d like to see them combine a couple. We could have Stretch Armstrong in Candy Land and The Ouija Board Sunk My Battleship.

Yes, I am really this bored at work today.

Super Bowl XLII

The commercials didn't quite measure up to some years. There were definitely a few I enjoyed, but I've decided not to rehash them all here.

I just want to bring up one thing: The Cola Wars. I'd thought we'd reached a happy medium with Pepsi taking the Super Bowl and Coke taking the Olympics. But last year Coke was back, and I don't see that they're going anywhere. They both gave us exactly what we've come to expect from them, which is good I suppose. Pepsi featured popular singers and Coke showed us "The Coke Side of Life." Although I appreciated the SNL-styled celeb-filled commercial, if you know me you'd easily correctly bet that Charlie Brown and Washington DC would win in my book.

Just for fun.


It's Derek Jeter; what's not to love?


The Clydesdale series continues.

After the game I discovered the best way to end a Super Bowl evening. And that's with a live performance by the one and only Melissa Branin.

After the evening I discovered the worst way to spend 3:30am. And that is spewing out all the junk I ate during the game.

Ad Habit

I don't know if it is only because I studied marketing, but at least some of my ad-critiquing habits came from my college days. I'll usually critique them and am just as likely to hate them as I am to love them.

It was probably 5 years ago that Tabasco ran this campaign, but it is one of my favorites.