]]> http://truecreek.com/2011/12/12/worlds-most-liked-brands-from-cnbc/feed/ 0 http://truecreek.com/2011/11/17/the-unhate-campaign-from-benneton/ http://truecreek.com/2011/11/17/the-unhate-campaign-from-benneton/#comments Thu, 17 Nov 2011 17:30:58 +0000 truecreek http://truecreek.com/?p=2842 The always controversial Benneton has done it again with a series of posters entitled UnHate.  The concept is one that I can embrace as a marketer and the truth is, the imagery is just amazing.  While some folks may find this to be a bit tawdry, it is some compelling work.  See it all here.

But should Ben & Jerry’s actually crafted an ice cream under the moniker?  Don’t know if I’ll be rushing out for that flavor, but I have to admit I did ask my wife to check for it last night at the grocery store….

The whole thing has prompted a group to ask people to boycott Ben & Jerry’s.  Fox News has been all over it and of course, NPR just appreciates the recognition.

Even CNN had a poll.  Looks like a ‘split.’

I have always felt that copy needs to lead the way, with the headline enticing the reader to want more. Most of these campaigns relied on a spectacular headline. 

That being said, the Absolut campaign has just been incredible, with some of the most compelling and imaginative imagery ever used in the business.

Another wonderful slideshow, from Ad Age and CNBC.

Some great ones in this slideshow.  From Ad Age and CNBC.

Following up the record-setting Captain America, this is going to be a whale of a weekend at the box office.

Official site here.

Box office update: ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ thrashes expectations, earns $19.8 million on Friday

Now the government says 220,000 people were defrauded by this guy, to the tune of at least $532 million. Lapre used broadcast and cable television to get his fraudulent message across.

My question is:  what is the responsibility of the TV networks here? I’m sure he’s screwed them out of some money as well, but do they even bother to do any kind of due diligence before accepting advertising such as his?  What about a few weeks in, when everyone had seen the spots?  Didn’t any network executive say to themselves “Is this guy for real?” How about when SNL did a sketch about him?  Nothing?

I guess one could make an argument that he would not have been able to succeed in his scam without the networks lack of concern, so are they part of the problem?

When I was with CBS Radio, I couldn’t even run a spot for a costume contest on Halloween without having everything delineated in writing by the advertiser.  You would think that the networks would have some sort of policy in place to assure that these snake oil salesmen don’t use their spot inventory to commit fraud.

Does it show contempt for one’s audience when the broadcaster doesn’t seem to care that the advertiser is shilling for something that is just too good to be true?  Is it more important to get the business and close the deal than to protect the financial interests of your viewers?

My guess is that the networks will probably say ‘we will offer our support in any way we can’ when it comes to finding this guy and putting him in jail for good.  But the truth is, had they been a little more skeptical early on in the game, the scam might not have succeeded at all.  And 220,000 of their viewers would have a few more bucks in their wallets.

A net-zero building, it’s one of the finest pieces of architecture I have seen in the U.S. in a long time.  It has solar panels, a geothermal energy system and was manufactured with more recycled materials than I would want to list here. They even use water from a pond to flush toilets.  Now that’s design.

Complete article here:

The cars being produced by GM, Ford and Chrysler are amongst the very best in the world. As Chrysler says in one of their spots, ‘perhaps we should RAISE our standards and buy American.’  Or something like that.  I wholeheartedly agree.

For the entire article, click.

As he did in “Super Size Me,”  Spurlock pulls you through the story, working hard to educate you on the nuances, verbiage and acronyms that are a critical part of the storyline. In this case, he’ decides to make a movie about product placement, financing it through product placement.  It’s just a hoot.

He gradually becomes a learned student of the process.  He makes one presentation after another to agencies and their clients, changing and adapting his pitch along the way. Finally, when he’s asked by one prospect “how much?’, he seems a bit taken aback at first.  Then he calmly spits out a fair, but low, number.

Many of the marketers he presented to seem to have been taken aback by his unpretentious nature in the meetings.  It’s was like like they were listening to their crazy brother or sister at the dinner table. You know what they are saying sounds weird, but than again….

You know he’s not trying to, but he makes more than a few of the marketers look pretty stupid in the process.  And I think that is one of the things I find most interesting about Spurlock; it’s his unpretentious nature. You just feel for the guy and know that he’s just trying to make things happen.  So what if he steps in it once in a while?

In one scene in the movie, he gets in the elevator after having pitched four or five great ideas to POM, only to be told that they would prefer another direction.  Of course, it’s the one that they have been thinking about since he last presented to them. His stuff didn’t have a chance.  How many times have we all been there?

This article from Ad Age speaks to the success Spurlock is having selling the movie.  But his success doesn’t surprise me.  He’s a great salesman. Perhaps he could offer versions of the movie as he adds more and more sponsors.  That’s how the industry would do it, right?

Read more about this in AdAge:

]]> http://truecreek.com/2011/04/25/spurlocks-newest-pom-wonderful-presents-the-greatest-movie-ever-sold/feed/ 1 http://truecreek.com/2011/04/04/its-a-media-thing/ http://truecreek.com/2011/04/04/its-a-media-thing/#comments Tue, 05 Apr 2011 01:06:29 +0000 truecreek http://truecreek.com/?p=2634 A successful media plan becomes the pathway through consumers’ protective radar with the ultimate goal of influencing their behavior. We produce plans that will capture the imagination of the consumer with a full spectrum of creative, well-researched solutions.

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