A steady flow of thoughts about advertising
and marketing from True Creek.
Posted by truecreek on December 12, 2011 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them. | 
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This really brings home the new online world we live in, doesn’t it? First time in all my years of doing this that a have actually seen this type of list using LIKE from Facebook as the selection data. From CNBC.
Posted by truecreek on June 7, 2011 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
I’ve always been a fan of the Olympics, to a point where it’s almost always recommended as a tactic for a client. Especially if there can be promotional tie-ins, merchandising and the like. For NBC to lock up the U.S. television rights is a real coup. It’s become their franchise.
One can only imagine how much cash was floating around that table.
NBC now will have exclusive rights to the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, as well as the 2018 Winter Games and 2020 Olympics, whose sites have not yet been chosen.
Posted by truecreek on May 16, 2011 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
Looks like we’re really setting up for a nice summer at the movies. If you haven’t placed your schedules yet, it’s time to move forward. Summer is a tough time to reach your audience with your message. But it looks like they will be in the theaters!
Posted by truecreek on April 28, 2011 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
From AP in today’s USAToday. Could really be a game changer when it comes to how we market food to our kids. Several agencies have introduced new guidelines. The story here.
Posted by truecreek on March 8, 2011 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them., Research | Comments are off for this article
Surprising to see this happen so quickly. I would have thought this shift would have taken another ten years or so. It must be a youth thing because I prefer HD on a big screen for my TV and gaming.
By John Eggerton — Broadcasting & Cable
Consumers are spending about 20 hours per week accessing digital content-including video games and print content–on a cell phone, computer, or mobile device, with the majority of that TV shows, movies and other videos.
That is according to a just-released consumer research study from PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers). The study found that across all age groups, respondents watched 12.4 hours of TV shows/videos and movies online, while only 8.9 hours of that content on network TV and basic and pay cable.
Not surprisingly, the 44 and under crowd do the majority of that digital viewing, but even the 45-59 age group was close to even, with 9 hours of traditional video watching vs. 8.3 hours of online video viewing.
Mobile devices trailed as the screen of preference, in line with PWC’s forecasts that mobile TV is a very small percentage (1%) of the total TV subscription marketplace. The study found that 80% of respondents would not pay a premium for early access to content on their mobile device.
When asked about the ways they obtain movie content, only 12.9% cited purchasing via VOD from their cable company, which put that ninth on the list behind streaming from Hulu for free (30.7%), renting from an actual brick and mortar store (23.3%), or borrowing one from a friend or relative (19.8%). The two top answers were renting an actual copy from a Netflix (42.6%) and renting an online copy (31.7%).
Posted by truecreek on February 1, 2011 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
Just strolling down memory lane today. Art Director for the Off the Wall campaign was Bill Hornstein, but can’t remember who the writer was. Very effective work for The Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who at the time we’re in their second year as a franchise.
The baseball organization was in chaos at the time, if I remember correctly. But the work was great.
This and other outdoor executions were all over Tampa and St. Petersburg, including a three-dimensional board right at the stadium. The player from that board is still on the wall on the back of center field at the Trop.
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This is nothing but great news for the U.S. auto industry. Once left for dead, GM and Chrysler are both back, producing wonderful cars and trucks. Ford, the perennial favorite, hasn’t really even skipped a beat.
With technology leading the way, the American auto industry stands to gain a tremendous amount of market share in the coming years. I believe that most of that gain will be at the expense of heritage Asian brands.
AP DETROIT— U.S. sales of cars and trucks rose in January, a strong start to what the auto industry hopes will be an extension of last year’s recovery.
In another good sign, sales to individuals were better than sales to fleet buyers such as rental-car companies, which are far less profitable for automakers.
Posted by truecreek on January 26, 2011 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them. | Comments are off for this article
So, did this thing help communicate the level of threat? Wonder how much was spent on it? Well, as of today you can say goodbye.
Posted by truecreek on December 8, 2010 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them. | Comments are off for this article
It stands to reason. Might our entertainment industry be offering up the best form of propaganda? Desperate Housewives being used to ‘counter the extremists?’ Amazing. Wonder how Modern Family is going over?
By Devin Dwyer.
American television shows broadcast across the Middle East are proving to be effective “agents of influence” in the ongoing battle over hearts and minds of ordinary Muslims pondering jihad against the United States, a confidential government cable published by Wikileaks reveals.
ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” and “World News with Diane Sawyer,” as well as CBS’ “Late Show with David Letterman” and NBC’s sitcom “Friends,” all carry more sway with viewers than a U.S. taxpayer-funded Middle East broadcast network, an unnamed Saudi source told U.S. embassy officials last year.
“It’s still all about the War of Ideas here, and the American programming on [privately-owned] MBC and Rotana is winning over ordinary Saudis in a way that ‘Al Hurra’ and other U.S. propaganda never could,” the source said.
“Saudis are now very interested in the outside world, and everybody wants to study in the U.S. if they can. They are fascinated by U.S. culture in a way they never were before.”
The Saudi government, which exerts tight control over media in the country, has permitted the satellite broadcasts of American programming uncensored with Arabic subtitles over the privately-owned Middle East Broadcasting group (MBC) as a “means of countering the extremists.”
Posted by truecreek on November 17, 2010 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them. | Comments are off for this article
Just yesterday, General Motors announced a 31 percent increase in the amount of shares the company is going to issue in common stock for their IPO tomorrow. It very possibly could become the largest IPO in history. This dramatic increase in issuance is due to the demand generated by the buzz associated with the offering. And it’s a buzz that is not all about just the financials. UPDATE FROM AP: GM’s landmark stock sale is now set to raise up to $22.7 billion, the biggest IPO in history.
I think it says a lot about the product offering. Dropping Saab, Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer has allowed the company to FOCUS their attention on their four remaining core brands: GMC, Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac. GMC trucks are some of the best in the world, the Chevrolet and Buick brands are on fire and Cadillac is staying strong.
According to the company, year-to-date, combined sales of the Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Camaro, Buick LaCrosse and Regal, GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX and CTS Wagon are up 323 percent.
And today, even more good things to say. The highly anticipated VOLT has been named Car of the Year by Motor Trend and Automobile. I’m sure Car and Driver won’t be far behind. Without a single car having been delivered. Now that’s confidence in a product. Add to that, GE’s decision to buy 25,000 Volts by 2015 and you have a winner here.
The quality of the GM build today is second to none. Factories are in the best shape ever, utilizing build and production techniques that will assure buyers of a high quality product with minimal defects. Reliability and quality engineering is now a part of the overall message for all the brands. Take a look at some of the new GM advertising. Best in a long time.
So, tomorrow will be a good day, maybe even a great day, for GM. And they deserve it.
(Chevrolet’s SS concept, from GM’s North Hollywood Design Center.)
Posted by truecreek on November 3, 2010 under More Dam News, Research | Comments are off for this article
By John Consoli
NBC Universal wants advertisers to know that when it comes to consumer spending based on what they see in television ads, the 55-64 demo is the new 18-34—or it’s just as important as that younger demo.
NBCU on Tuesday (Nov. 2) gave the media a sneak peek at a major presentation it will make on Thursday to its advertisers, their media agencies and Nielsen officials. The presentation will offer data showing that the adult 55-64 demo is as vibrant as younger demos in ad spending, and should be targeted (and not ignored) when television marketing plans are created.
Allen Wurtzel, president of research and media development at NBCU, presented evidence from assorted sources—including one-on-one interviews with adults in the demo—that dispel myths about how adults 55-64 respond to advertising and spend as consumers.
Wurtzel said the demo, which he’s labeled “AlphaBoomers,” “has been largely ignored by advertisers and marketers.”
“Every seven seconds someone turns 55 and once they do, they are eliminated from the highest-end Nielsen demo measurement: 25-54,” Wurtzel said. “It is the fastest-growing demo group in the country and now numbers 35 million people that account for close to $2 trillion in annual spending.”
Wurtzel said NBC research and a survey it commissioned of people in the 55-64 demo counters common perceptions that they make less of an income and spend less on advertised products; are technophobic and brand loyal, and therefore, cannot be motivated to switch brands.
“Our goal is to raise a discussion among CMOs at the various companies and to get Nielsen to begin offering ratings data for the 55-64 demo,” Wurtzel said. “They have the data. It’s just a matter of creating the software and adding staff to distribute it.”
Other findings include:
* AphaBoomers spend more on home improvement products, home furnishing, large appliances, beauty and cosmetics and casual dining than adults 18-49.
* A similar percentage of AlphaBoomers have high-definition TVs, use DVRs and broadband as adults 18-34
* 70 percent of AlphaBoomers buy at least one product a month online
* 59 percent of AlphaBoomers send text messages via their cell phones
“This is not something that is just going to affect NBCU,” Wurtzel said. “Down the road as more people leave the 25-54 demo, it will affect every network.”
Posted by truecreek on under More Dam News, Research | Comments are off for this article
I am not surprised at all by the results of this research. Men really do care about a lot of things that matter to all.
By Stuart Elliott
For many years, the assumption on Madison Avenue has been that cause marketing — doing well (selling products) by doing good (helping causes that matter to consumers) — plays more strongly with women than men. That may not be the case, according to a new survey.
The 2010 edition of the PR Cause survey, co-sponsored by the trade publication PR Week and Barkley, an agency in Kansas City, Mo., found that men were nearly as supportive of cause marketing campaigns as women.
Eighty-eight percent of the men questioned for the survey said they believed it was important for companies to support causes. When the question was asked last year of women, 91 percent of respondents said they agreed.
“Men do have a heart,” said Mike Swenson, president at Barkley. The agency suggested to PR Week that part of the survey be devoted to men’s views of cause marketing, he added, and the publication agreed.+
The survey, as usual, also canvassed corporate marketing executives for their opinions about cause-related promotions and advertising. Two-thirds said their companies engaged in cause marketing, versus 58 percent in the survey last year.
However, 68 percent of the marketing executives who were questioned for the survey said they had no plans to aim cause marketing efforts at men.
“It’s certainly an open door for brands that cater to men,” Mr. Swenson said.
A cause marketing program centered on breast cancer, which Barkley created for Lee Jeans, part of the VF Corporation, also has a male target audience in addition to the obvious female audience. The idea is to generate men’s help to fight a disease that affects the women in their lives.
The results of the survey showed that the economy “hasn’t affected corporate support” of cause marketing, said Erica Iacono, executive editor of PR Week in New York, owned by the Haymarket Media Group. In fact, it may have increased that support because consumers are more interested in causes after going through tough times.
“Last year, we had two clients that, while making other budget cuts, each started a new cause program,” Mr. Swenson said.
Posted by truecreek on October 27, 2010 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
I wouldn’t want to piss these guys off.
By Don Jeffrey
The Hells Angels motorcycle group sued fashion design house Alexander McQueen and retail chain Saks Inc. for trademark infringement for selling handbags, jewelry and clothing using the club’s death-head design.
Hells Angels Motorcycle Corp. said McQueen’s company, New York-based Saks and retailer Zappos.com Inc. have been selling infringing products in stores in California and online, according to a complaint filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
The motorcycle club said it has been using the death-head mark, a skull with wings, since at least 1948. The Hells Angels have authorized the use of the marks on jewelry, apparel and “promotional and entertainment services,” according to the complaint.
Posted by truecreek on under More Dam News, Research | Comments are off for this article
By Emily Fredrix
And now, a word from our sponsors. A very brief word.
TV commercials are shrinking along with attention spans and advertising budgets. The 15-second ad is increasingly common, gradually supplanting the 30-second spot just as it knocked off the full-minute pitch decades ago.
For viewers, it means more commercials in a more rapid-fire format. For advertisers, shorter commercials are a way to save some money, and research shows they hold on to more eyeballs than the longer format.
“It used to be that the most valuable thing on the planet was time, and now the most valuable thing on the planet is attention,” says John Greening, associate professor at Northwestern University’s journalism school and a former executive vice president at ad agency DDB Chicago.
So instead of seeing a lengthier plot line, viewers are treated to the sight of, say, the popular “Old Spice man” riding backward on a horse through various scenes for just 15 seconds.
Or the “most interesting man in the world,” the suave, rugged, Spanish-accented character pitching Dos Equis beer, appearing just long enough to turn his head and weigh in on the topic of rollerblading. (Verdict? A deadpan “No.”)
The number of 15-second television commercials has jumped more than 70 percent in five years to nearly 5.5 million last year, according to Nielsen. They made up 34 percent of all national ads on the air last year, up from 29 percent in 2005.
Commercial-skipping digital video recorders and distractions such as laptops and phones have shortened viewers’ attention spans, says Deborah Mitchell, executive director of the Center for Brand and Product Management at the University of Wisconsin. Viewers are also watching TV streamed on sites like Hulu, where advertisers have less of a presence.
Posted by truecreek on October 26, 2010 under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
For years, companies have had to make decisions regarding proper usage of their customer information. Kudos to Amazon for fighting this one. Why would the state need to know what we are reading, what we buy and what we listen to? You would think all they would care about is how much we spent with Amazon. That’s it.
If this is appealed, I wonder if it might just make it to the Supreme Court?
Posted by truecreek on under More Dam News | Comments are off for this article
Today’s zombie commute in NYC must have been really something to see. Hopefully, there were enough of them on the streets to really make a visual impact. Probably one of the more inventive uses of social media that I have heard about.
By Deepti Hajela
As if the morning commute wasn’t odd enough, intrepid New Yorkers trying to make their way to work on Tuesday had to battle past hordes of the walking dead.
Two dozen zombies, their clothes spattered with fake blood, were staggering up and down the block outside Madison Square Garden. Downtown, others shuffled across the Brooklyn Bridge.
Some pedestrians looked startled or amused by the ghost-white actors with bruised-looking eyes. Some people ignored them entirely. Others whipped out their cell phone cameras.
Horror movie fan Linda Emery was thrilled to see the creatures.
“I’m into zombies, anything with zombies,” said the 58-year-old home care provider from Brooklyn. It made a change from her usual commute.
“You see a lot of stuff, but not this stuff,” she said.
Erik Machado, an audio engineer heading to work in New Jersey, was unfazed and passed by the scene with nary a glance at the nightmares walking around.
“Gotta commute, gotta go where I gotta go,” the Queens resident said.
The stunt was part of a campaign in 26 cities worldwide promoting the Halloween premiere of the AMC television series “The Walking Dead.” The show is being broadcast outside of the United States on Fox International Channels.
Posted by truecreek on October 25, 2010 under More Dam News, Research | Comments are off for this article
Well, it was bound to happen. Someone was going to look at the relationship between a brand and a political party. Perfect study for this time of year, don’t you think?
This is only the top 10 for each and the only thing I don’t see is Apple on the list for the Dems. To me, that would be a no brainer, but I’m sure it’s on the big list somewhere.
I love Craftsman tools, but big with the liberals? Don’t know about that.
Fox New Channel the #1 brand with a bullet for the GOP. Who would have guessed?
Posted by truecreek on October 18, 2010 under More Dam News, Opinions. Everyone has them. | Comments are off for this article
Now, I’m no fan of the Jackass series of TV and films, but you just cannot argue the fact that they can get the eyeballs. And 3-D had to help.
Jackass 3-D grossed a whopping $50 million in its debut weekend, setting several records and setting punditry tongues wagging in the process. First of all, the film bested the $48.1 million opening weekend for Scary Movie 3 in 2003, taking the October opening weekend record. Second of all, the opening figure is far and away the best opening weekend for any kind of non-fiction/documentary film in history. If you count this series as a documentary franchise (which I do), then the third entry is now the fifth-highest grossing documentary in history in just three days. It stands behind Jackass: The Movie ($64 million), Jackass Number Two ($72 million), March of the Penguins ($77 million), and Fahrenheit 9/11 ($119 million).
While the franchise has mediocre legs (part one had a 2.9x weekend-to-total multiplier in 2002 and part two had a 2.4x multiplier in 2006), thus making $100 million+ not quite a sure thing yet, there is little doubt that the film will end its domestic run as the second-highest grossing documentary/non-fiction film of all time. Still, 3-D films seem to have better legs than average (witness the useless My Soul to Take dropping just 53% in weekend two, as well as the inexplicably strong holds of Legends of the Guardians, now at $46 million), partially because they keep the bigger auditoriums for longer periods of time. If it can manage a mere 2.4x multiplier, it will in fact surpass the Michael Moore anti-Bush epic.
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For the lovers of Kit Kat. Happy 75th Birthday!
From PopSop:
Kit Kat, one of the most successful brands produced by the Nestlé company, is celebrating its 75th birthday. The name of the iconic chocolate ‘fingers,’ approx. 540 of which are consumed every second around the globe (according to the Guinness Book of Records as of March 2010), dates back to the 17th century and originates from a London-based literary and political club called Kit Kat, the abbreviated name of pastry chef Christopher Catling, the owner of a pie shop where its meetings were held.
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By Julia Boorstin, CNBC
After years of moaning about the death of broadcast TV as viewers move online and to cable, the broadcast business is looking pretty healthy.
For one thing, advertising is back — CBS CEO Les Moonves said this week that ad rates are up 30 percent from Upfront Ad sales rates.
Considering that this year’s Upfront showed high single digit gains over last year, that’s significant progress. Second, networks have managed to secure that all important second revenue stream– retransmission fees from cable and satellite TV carriers.
More about Rumors of Broadcast’s Death Greatly Exaggerated here.
