And we’ll be right back …

Posted on October 15, 2009 by Whit Thompson

Been watching a lot of baseball on TV recently, it being the playoffs and all. Been seeing a lot of commercials over and over again, too … it being the playoffs and all. I like that there’s new work out, and some of it is pretty good. I just wish there was more of it to go around. Either that, or we need cool new ideas to get us through the inning breaks, like a “yo mama” contest between the managers. Tell me you wouldn’t stay tuned for that.

Bottom line? I don’t care if it’s the best spot I’ve ever seen in my life. Show it to me 20 or 30 times a night for a week straight, and it’s gonna start to suck. Am I the only one who thinks a media buy the size you see during the playoffs would support, if not demand, multiple executions for a campaign? How does this not happen?

Here’s a helpful Playoff Baseball Advertising Formula, humbly submitted:
staggering # of time slots / limited # of brands / minimal # of executions = burnout

My thoughts on the work from Round One:

I want to like the Blackberry ads more than I do. Maybe it’s the weird cover version of “All You Need is Love”. Maybe it’s that I only get to see the Blackberry actually doing something in, like, two edits of a 60-second spot. Maybe it’s the fact that I feel like I’ve seen this idea a million times before. Whatever it is, I wish it wasn’t a :60.
Staying with the handheld device category, I have fewer problems with the myTouch work, other than the exquisitely uninspired product name (which I mentioned, incorrectly, in my last post). I like the SNL veterans ensemble (note to Chevy Chase – the one character you seem to know how to play was funny in the ‘70s, funnier in the ‘80s, a lot less funny in the ‘90s, and is now just excruciating). I like the music, too, but I have to wonder what Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam’s price was to sell out. Wouldn’t have expected that one. The first spot with Phil Jackson and Jesse James is also good, but they’re both pretty much saying the same thing: “See? Different apps in motion? White psych? The name? We’re just like Apple!”
But speaking of Apple, they don’t always win. I’m not usually a huge fan of trying to call out a competitor’s advertising your own work, but the spot from Verizon taking on AT&T Wireless and the iPhone is great. They take direct aim at the iPhone’s singular competitive weakness – the painfully underwhelming 3G coverage from AT&T – and crush it with a payoff line that delivers a nice, big “eff you” to iPhone and its advertising: “There’s a map for that.” Love it. You sank my battleship.
I’m not sure, but I think there’s a new George Lopez talk show coming on TBS. What happened, folks? Have a bit of time left unsold? Do you have anything ELSE to promo? Please? Isn’t there an upcoming re-run of “The Office” or a “Family Guy Weekend” you can tease me with? No?
The new Marines stuff is pretty cool. Awesome editing. In fact, I do believe a Jay Advertising old boy named Justin Baum is currently working on that business down in the Atlanta. Go, JB!
Like the Bing work, too. Great theater, meaningful payoff. The first time I saw it, I wanted to back it up so I could watch it again, but I correctly assumed that it would re-appear soon.
This is probably worth its own blog, but can we talk about the Arby’s media strategy? I can get on board with a bookend strategy that shows me two spots at either end of a commercial break. Two different spots. Arby’s runs the exact same spot at either end of the break, and it’s a teeth-rattling retail number targeting everyone looking for four roast beef sandwiches for five bucks. I’m sure they have a good reason for the strategy, but I sure wish they’d produce a companion spot. They can’t be that expensive.

Round Two starts tonight. Fox coverage joins the party tomorrow. Here’s hoping for some great games. And new spots.

Profiles Get an Upgrade

Posted on October 8, 2009 by Andrea Zuegel

Every so often, I go on a tear about something that’s being overused in our industry, and I get fixated on it. My latest gripe: the profile piece. You know, nice big picture of someone followed by an up-close-and-personal about how the product/organization/company changed their lives. Higher ed is plagued with them. It’s not the concept itself that is bad, it’s that most of them end up following a prescribed outline that ends up sounding inauthentic and canned. They’re no longer differentiating.

But just as my grumbling was starting to bug even me, I came across a remedy that I think offers real value. The Simon School of Business recently (I think) redid their site, and their homepage caught my attention big time. What looked like another series of feature profiles is instead a series of hard facts that clearly define the Simon advantage. You still get the nice engaging people shot, but what’s behind it has a lot more tooth and relevance.

Today’s audience is more discerning than ever. Tell me what I need to know, and tell me why I should care. Once I’m engaged, the story telling can take me further, but I think we need to do a better job of making our case up front.

Saturn and the trap of “brand experience”

Posted on October 1, 2009 by Matt Jones

On a warm Spring day in 1991, my brother Tim visited Rochester with his first new car – a Saturn S series coupe. We took it out on Kings Highway through Durand Park for a road test. Drove ok. But it looked different and Tim was really proud of it. He had a story to tell, something about cookies and a song from the dealer. He was a Saturn brand evangelist.

Tim’s evangelism lasted another year perhaps. The Saturn brand meanwhile soldiered on, right up to this past Wednesday when GM announced that a planned takeover by auto mogul Roger Penske had fallen through. It appears the Saturn division will close next year.

Even before the current auto slump, Saturn had become a staple of MBA case studies on how to kill a promising business. Conventional wisdom has it that the meddling execs of GM killed the quirkiness in an effort to lower costs. The predictable cycle commenced, with loyal owners spun off each year.

I’d like to introduce an alternate theory: Saturn was dead on arrival. That it even got off the ground is a testament to brilliant advertising from Hal Riney and a decent dealer network. The problem was the cars – uniquely styled at times, but nothing special in performance, quality, or safety. Saturn created a compelling brand narrative, but not a good product.

Saturn has failed spectacularly, but not uniquely. Countless brands try to create a “brand experience” before doing the hard work of legitimate differentiation. My favorite category is airtravel – remember Song or Ted (we want to be like Jet Blue, can we do it without actually changing?).

Sadly, agencies and marketers are often asked to create the story and then canned when it doesn’t connect. Wish I had a more uplifting message. Cheers!

P.S. while appreciating some of Hal Riney’s Saturn tv work, came across his work helping to elect Ronald Reagan. Politics aside, far more memorable than anything I’ve seen lately from candidates.

Make better ads in less than 90 minutes

Posted on September 22, 2009 by Scott Wolf

Art & Copy movie poster If you haven’t already, you should definitely make plans to see Art & Copy, playing this week at The Little Theatre. The film, directed by Doug Pray, details the creative genius of several relatively well-known and highly influential advertising creatives, such as George Lois, Mary Wells, Dan Wieden, Lee Clow, Hal Riney, and Rich Silverstein, among others, and explores the processes behind the creation of some of the most significant and moving ad campaigns of the last half-century.

It’s not a how-to guide to creating good ads, and it’s not necessarily guaranteed you’ll create better ads by watching the film, but you probably will walk out of the theater with your creative batteries recharged, and inspired to be a part of something equally impressive. Which in turn leads to great work. Something the RAF is all for.

Art & Copy
Playing at The Little Theatre, 240 East Ave., Downtown Rochester
Tuesday, 9/22 at 6:40pm and 9:10pm
Wednesday, 9/23 at 6:40pm and 9:10pm
Thursday, 9/24 at 6:40pm and 9:10pm (FINAL SHOWING)
More details on thelittle.org
Official movie website

— Scott Wolf

Webster, where life is worth printing.

Posted on September 17, 2009 by Joseph Mayernik

This Friday one of the Rochester area’s newest cultural gem’s is having a Grand Opening. Dock 2 Letterpress is a printing company like no other. Specializing in handset typography and printing on antique hand fed printing presses. They celebrate an art form that since the age of computers has gone the way of the 8-track. It’s combing through drawers of wooden typefaces. It’s large iron printing machines powered by feet not electricity. It’s the feel of the deboss, and the smell of the ink that cannot be replaced by Photoshop.

This is not an official RAF event. It’s an event sponsored by the AIGA, and I encourage you to go out and see what the Dock 2 Letterpress is all about. Why? Because our new RAF mission is to strengthen our creative community, to educate, and inspire great work. And this shop is freaking sweet.

The Grand Opening is from 5pm to 9pm, this Friday the 18th.

Dock 2 Letterpress is located across from Webster Thomas High School on 855 Publishers Parkway, DOCK #2 in Webster, NY, 14580

Hope to see you there. I’ll be the one drooling over the Bookman woodblock typefaces in the back of the shop.

JOE

Why agency sites (mostly) stink, and an announcement…

Posted on September 8, 2009 by Matt Jones

Ok. They don’t uniformally stink. If you want to quickly assess the type of work an agency considers “great”, they can be useful. But visit half a dozen. Right now, I’ll wait here.

Struck by the overwhelming sameness? Like a template was handed out at a 4 A’s conference. Right down to the “proprietary approach” and 3rd person bios (“Our clients describe Mike as quietly brilliant. So they’re surprised to learn he fronts a local punk band on the weekends”). I selected two for fodder, one bad and one good:

McCann NY (bad)
I defy you to discover anything relevant about this agency in 30 seconds. Eventually I found the “what we think” section, and have concluded that concealment was intentional (summary: they’re really really open to ideas). And moving links, still, in 2009?

Full disclosure, I used to work at McCann NY prior to emigrating to Rochester. Met my wife there. Loved the place. They are better and smarter than the site suggests.

Crispin Porter & Bogusky beta (good)
In certain circles, it’s very 2005 to openly admire CPB. But when faced with conventional challenges, they continue to think and behave unconventionally. The beta site is the latest example. Video, feeds and news about CPB and clients. Not just the sanitized PR stuff either. So it captures the impact the work is having rather than assessing work in a gallery. Time on your hands? Watch “Brokaw meets Bogusky” video.

Let me know examples you admire, local or otherwise. Love to see more of the good stuff. Or tell me how wildly off-base I am.

And the announcement:
When introducing the new blog team a few weeks ago, I neglected to mention P&N CMO Sarah Hanson. Not a minor oversight. Sarah arrived in Rochester from Boston’s Digitas with a ton of digital experience. More on Sarah here. Look for her to light up the blogoshere later this month.

Roc Rocks!

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Sharon Harper

Rochester is home to considerable communications talent. On the heels of yet another successful Addy Award ceremony, the Public Relations Society of America Rochester Chapter celebrated the 20th year of its annual PRism Awards program. The event was held on June 11 at Casa Larga Vineyards.

The PRisms acknowledge the highest standards of performance in public relations. This year’s theme—“Who Says PR Is Easy?”—speaks to the process of making our clients look good while we make it look easy.

Categories are included for web and print materials, direct mail, brochures, and press kits, among others. Both corporate and not-for-profit sectors are recognized in each category. For the very first time, the PRSA Rochester Chapter extended the awards to include social media categories. (With full disclosure on shameless self-promotion, Martino Flynn was honored for its innovative work in two of these non-traditional categories, including “blog” and “blogger relations”). This year’s Best of Show for the Corporate category went to Text 100 for their B2B campaign, “Xerox Takes the Headache Out of Office Printing.”

Individual PR professionals from the area are also recognized, like the CEO of The Year. The Rising Star award is rewarded to someone who demonstrates exceptional competence, skill, and leadership, and has no more than seven years of experience. The Sharleen M. Bruse award goes to a PRSA member with more than 10 years of experience who epitomizes the integrity and professionalism of a public relations practitioner. This recipient is also very involved in community service and routinely help advance the career development of other chapter members.

So congrats to all the 2009 PRism winners. As well, a BIG thanks to everyone in the profession for their contributions that are fostering growth in the field and taking us to new heights.

Should advertisers invest in an iPhone application?

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Scott Wolf

Everyone is clamoring about the new iPhone 3Gs and, more importantly, the iPhone 3.0 software update. And with good reason. It’s a powerful new upgrade to one of the best smartphones on the market. Video capabilities, built-in turn-by-turn GPS, internal compass, FM transmitter, MMS capabilities (which Apple is actually late on as most other phones have—even the cheap-o’s), video editing, voice control, and even internet tethering. Plus, it’s all connected to the App Store; wherein lies the real potential.

So many more robust and useful iPhone applications that take advantage of the new hardware features are likely on the horizon. Which begs the inevitable question: should advertisers (or brands) start seriously paying attention to the iPhone and investing in application development? I’m sure there are plenty of people who would say “Yes. Oh, God yes!” and plenty who would say “Nope. Not for us.” Everyone’s situation will differ. What I hope to do here is offer up some solid reasoning as to why a company might pour some money into an iPhone app, and reasoning for why it might be a good idea to hold off. So here we go…

Why it might be a good idea
First off, the iPhone is becoming (if it isn’t already) one of the best platforms for mobile advertising out there. It’s capabilities are nearly unrivaled, and has the potential to serve as an outlet for customers to interact with your brand in entirely new and exciting ways. Second, if you create an application that really solves a problem or proves incredibly useful to your audience, it could be great exposure. Think of all the tech-savvy early-adopters who could fan the flames of a rock-solid app that serves a purpose and works well.

Third, it’s advertising people would pay for. Create an app people actually find appealing or useful, and it’s likely they’d be willing to pay a dollar or two for it. Take for example Kraft Foods and their iFood app. They provide users with daily recipes, a store locator feature, the ability to add a recipe’s ingredients to a shopping list, and more. And just like similar recipe apps from McCormick and Betty Crocker / General Mills, the Kraft recipes conveniently call for Kraft products. And finally, if nothing else, mobile advertising like this literally gets you into people’s pockets and purses. They take your ad with you wherever they go, and may engage with it several times a day if you do it right.

Why it might NOT be a good idea
IMO, the number one reason one might decide to not invest in producing an iPhone app is cost. I’ve never attempted it, and don’t even know many people that have, but I gather it can get pretty time-consuming, and as a result, pretty costly. Probably even more so if your plan is to incorporate many features using several different pieces of the phone. And with development cost goes testing and debugging cost. The first version of the app won’t (and shouldn’t) be the last. Even if you have a great idea for an app, one could wind up spending as much money ironing out bugs and improving upon the user experience based on customer feedback. Nothing would be worse than to spend $100,000 on an app that users find difficult to use, and that garners only negative reviews. It’s also becoming increasingly difficult to find most new apps that don’t have some kind of pre-launch buzz behind them. The iTunes store seems to be overrun with thousands of cheezy, weak, and otherwise useless apps, that will probably get in the way of people finding yours.

I’ve also heard that although the iPhone (and iPod Touch) is one of the most popular devices and the most widely used in terms of operating system data requests, the overall user base of the iPhone isn’t that hefty. Maybe 20% of the total smartphone market according to AdMob, and probably far less in terms of the overall cellphone market. One could argue that money might be better spent on a content-rich website that has a longer shelf-life, or some kind of broader campaign with an online component.

So in short, there are equally weighted reasons for and against. Success I guess comes down to identifying a real need, having a good idea behind it, and having the resources available to pull it off and maintain it. And this is all just one web guy’s take on the matter. There’s room for a whole lot more discussion here…

— Scott Wolf

RAF student member takes home national ADDY gold!

Posted on June 9, 2009 by Kate Sonnick

Huge props to David Nardone who scored some more hardware for his trophy shelf at the national ADDY Awards Show & Gala in Atlanta last weekend. David took home National ADDY Gold for his “Houdini” poster series for the Museum of Magic. David also won gold at the district and local levels.

Apparently, advertising talent runs in the family. David is the nephew of Rochester ad & marketing veteran Joe Nardone of Eastman Kodak.

With over 60,000 entries annually, the ADDY® Awards are the world’s largest and arguably toughest advertising competition. The ADDY® Awards represent the true spirit of creative excellence by recognizing all forms of advertising from media of all types, creative by all sizes and entrants of all levels from anywhere in the world. The American Advertising Federation, a not-for-profit industry association conducts the ADDY® Awards through its 200 member advertising clubs and 15 districts. It is the only creative awards program administered by the advertising industry for the industry.

Check out all the 2009 winners here.

RIF RAF :: The Official Blog of the Rochester Advertising Federation

Category Archives: Creative