Go, Daddy, Go!

Why do you watch the Super Bowl? Is it the barbaric excitement of watching men hit the living daylights out of each other? Maybe the halftime show? Well, I would argue that the most popular answer given may be that people watch it for the commercials. The Super Bowl is the most viewed television event of the entire year, and it's a landslide. Over 108 million Americans watched the Super Bowl this past February, which is incredible for the people at NBC and for the NFL as an organization, but it may be even more crucial and meaningful to the companies that are forking up the dough to run an advertisment during the game. Ad agencies frantically try, arguably too hard in some cases, to come up with THE ad that will change the name of the game. Millions of dollars are thrown into these single commercials just for the Super Bowl and why not? How many other chances do companies have to reach over 100 million people at one time, with one ad? This year there were some great ads that all got wonderful feedback but none caused quite as much of a stir than GoDaddy.com's ad, "The Kiss," featuring Bar Rafaeli and Jesse Heiman.

When I saw this commercial I was intitally shocked. My jaw slowly descended while the two awkwardly made out right in front of me. There was no background music or anything, just the awkward silence interrupted by the occassional sound of moisture exchange. Then, as if it couldn't possibly get more awkward, a close up shot of the session was presented to us. While someone that is unfamiliar with GoDaddy's prior commercials may be a bit thrown off by "The Kiss," it is not entirely out of the ordinary considering their advertising history. They are known for their simple, sexist, and controversial commercials which are magnified in the spotlight of the Super Bowl ad craze. A commercial that costs millions of dollars and also stirs up a lot of controversy does not seem to be a smart business tactic or the best use of money...or does it? Well, as they say, "numbers don't lie." The day after the commercial aired, hosting sales for GoDaddy increased 45%, domain sales went up 40%, and the company added 10,000 new customers. It is easy to rag on GoDaddy for continuously spitting out these types of ads, but if you were GoDaddy and experiencing those kinds of financial and business increases, would you stop? Heck no. If something is not broken, don't fix it. The people that are visiting the website are the ones keeping these types of ads alive. Those who are pointing the "shame on you" finger at GoDaddy may as well be pointing into a mirror.

D&S: Dolce & Sexist?

Over the past century, our country as a whole has changed more drastically than any other time span in history. Whether it is technology, transportation, communication, or overall cultural views, there is no denying that this country is rapidly changing and will exponentially continue to change for all years to come. That being said, there are some aspects of humankind that are very tough to alter such as morality or ethical viewpoints. Also, these areas of thought are extremely sensitive for most people and the line between acceptable and appalling is becomming increasingly blurred. Going with the theme of this blog, it is no lie that I am going to briefly discuss the roles of morality and ethics in the world of advertising while using the specific example of Dolce & Gabbana print ads.

D&G is one of the most recognizable and most worn high-end clothing brand in the world. It has been around since 1984 and can be seen in basically every fashion magazine around the world. I have seen and observed a few D&G ads in some of my classes over the past few years and they really stood out to me because of their suggestive and controversial subject matter and messages. Sexism and oversexualized subject matter is at the forefront of D&G's controversy. Ever since I can remember, whenever advertising came into a conversation, the well-known saying that "sex sells" is never absent. While it has proven to be true that sex sells, is there a point at which sex offends? I think the answer to that is fairly obvious. When it comes to creating advertisements it is important to capture the essence of the brand completely, however, the other half of the equation is also knowing who you are advertising to and what their interests, emotions, values, and perspectives are.

To the left is one of the most well-known and talked about D&G ads regarding sexism. There is not much explanation needed to see why this may be stirring some controversy. While ethics is a highly debatable topic in our culture, it is much like politics:  everyone has their views and opinions but there is never really a right or wrong end of the road. There will always be arguments from all points on the spectrum. Lets look at a few of the details behind this ad and I will let you be the judge of morality, ethics, and whether this particular ad pushes the sexism envelope.

This ad was first published in Esquire magazine which is a worldwide, mens magazine. Also, in parts of Europe, specifically Spain, there were very high rates of women -targeted violence. As a result of this, Spanish and Italian governments intervened and asked D&G to discontinue the ad, a request to which they honored. This is just one of several ads that D&G has released with the same undertones and controversial messages. This is what poses the question of how far is too far and even further blurs the line of ethics and morality in advertising. When you are viewing and advertisement, it is essential to ask yourself who the company is, what are they trying to sell, and what message are they trying to convey? When it comes to D&G, everyone had an opinion and when it comes to morality and ethics in advertising, you need to be your own judge and create your own moral platform on which to interpret these ads.

Mini Car, Giant Voice: A Look at the Mini Cooper's Advertising

I think that there is a contest among all car manufacturers and advertising agencies to see how many boring, uninspiring, and cliche ads that they can produce. So far, I'd say that they are well on their way to a new record. Man, I am tired of seeing the same old car ads that show the car driving somewhere, then at the end just showing the most flattering view of the car and stapling a tag line on the screen or page. Half of the time I can't even tell you what car it is until the brand name is shown, and if I were either the car company or the agency producing the ad, I would think that that sort of reaction to what you are putting out would raise some sort of a red flag. Don't you? Now, of course some ads are more interesting and unique than others but I just feel that the whole car-ad world is becomming irreversibly monotonous...until the MINI came along!

I LOVE the Mini ads. They are so proficient at grabbing people's attention and creating an entire unique experience simply from an immovable, yet suggestive visual. Combined with a few guerrilla marketing tactics, Mini has implemented the most interesting, engaging, and out-of-the-box advertisements that I have seen. And just when I was giving up on car commercials and ads, Mini brought me back.

They already have an untraditional style and appearance from what us American car consumers are used to seeing and experiencing..."experience" being the key word here. That is how Mini has positioned itself in the market. They are selling an experience, rather than useless features or a sleek body, and their advertisements depict that flawlessly. Let me show you a few examples of what and how Mini is doing this:

  

How cool are these? Can you think of another car brand that you have seen a previous ad for that could fill this space that Mini has taken over? I sure can't. From the "moving" billboard to the caged Mini to the personalized driving messages, Mini is invading the minds of its consumers. While although it is still a car and it needs to have certain functional and operational benefits or else a consumer will not buy it, Mini is showing off these functions in a totally different way. They are creating an entire experience with each ad that pretty much any consumer can relate to and it's so refreshing to see. Keep it up Mini! I think we all can learn a lesson from these Mini ads. Don't settle for what everyone else is doing because that is how you get looked over and forgotten. Dare to be different, dare to be wild, dare to be YOU! No matter how "mini" you may seem, you can always have a giant voice.


Check out some of the other past Mini ads:
http://inventorspot.com/articles/mini_cooper_no_small_advertising_6530

What Are You REALLY Getting From Your Advertising?

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time so far studying marketing and advertising here at school and it is the field that I want to build a career on someday. Learning the ins and outs of what lies behind truly great advertising and marketing strategies is rewarding and extrememly beneficial to me. I stumbled across an article on The Brand Builder Blog the other day and I had to share what I read. The article was about Proctor and Gamble (P&G) and how they are being pressured by shareholders to look deeply into their advertising behaviors due to recent sub-par quarterly numbers. P&G CEO, Bob McDonald's seat is 'heating up" as a result and is forced to find a cause, or more importantly a remedy, for the current situation. P&G is the world's largest marketer and the recent spending on advertising mixed with a decline in sales is making a lot of people unhappy; not to mention the 1,600 employees that have been laid off. The article is lengthy but there were some amazing and thought-provoking realities that were adressed.

The whole article revolved around the concept of advertising and marketing budgets vs. their ROI in terms of sales. In the monster of a trend that is social media, ROI for advertising and marketing camaigns are not being measured by "likes," "tweets," "follows," or "shares." No. P&G's main problem is that these ads and strategies are not resulting in increased sales. The article claims that so many of today's advertising goals have drifted away from the elementary goal of increasing sales and is now more concerned with public perceptions and making as many "impressions" on consumers as possible. This simply is not good enough, especially by a goliath company such as P&G. It needs sales and lots of them. P&G's "spend more, sell more" approach to advertising has gotten them in trouble, although this concept is not without some past merit, it cannot be applied across all landscapes. For example, in just the past two years, P&G's ad spend budget increased by 24%, which is great but how much of an increase in sales to you think P&G experienced? Double digits? Nope. As a result of the increase in spending, P&G saw only a 6% increase in sales.

It is more clear today than ever before that communications channels have changed, along with technology. Consumers have access to more information than ever before and are more informed and smarter than any time in history. Now, P&G has obviously had success in the past when dealing with these extreme cultural shifts. Just look at the success of the Old Spice advertisements through viral videos and word of mouth, for example. Success can obtained, it's just a matter of finding the formula for consistency.

Back to the concept of impressions vs. sales, which is at the root of P&G's issues in my opinion. The article deciphered the two concepts perfectly:  "Impressions are not transactions. Sharing content isn't buying...Stick to numbers that matter:  Spend and sales." While impressions and perceptions are extremely important to establish and use to build equity for a company, they are not the necessary metrics on which to assess success of advertising. Sales is. Lastly, the article illustrated a scenario that really drove home the main idea:  Which campaign would you rather choose?

Campaign A - Cost:  $2,000,000. Revenue:  $20,000,000
Campaign B - Cost:  $50,000.  Revenue:  $20,000,000
Campaign C - Cost:  $50,000. Impressions:  100,000.  Revenue:  unknown.

Ask yourself which on of these campaigns you would hang your career on come reporting time?

Got Chocolate Milk?

Last week, our class was visited by Kelly Fisher from the got milk? campaign. Their new marketed idea that has already been launched is about chocolate milk and its benefits in terms of post workout rehabilitation and recovery. This was actually the first time that I have seen or heard of any of these ads so it was quite interesting to learn about it in class.

We talked about the planning and research that was behind the campaign and discussed the process of how they took the idea and made it into a creative communication. After talking about this process throughout the semester so far, it was fun and helpful to look at a real-life example and be able to analyze all of the aspects of the campaign with some knowledge of what to look for. There were some aspects of the campaign that were very unique and innovative, but it also had some aspects that required more attention. With competitors such as Gatorade and Muscle Milk, standard chocolate milk has some work to do in order to take over some of the consumers' perceptions about what they use to treat their body after a workout. Gatorade and Muscle Milk are heavily manufactured and scientifically formulated to aid the body during the recovery stage of a workout, but chocolate milk argues that whatever Gatorade and Muscle Milk give your body, chocolate milk comes with it already in stock. Chocolate milk has all of the necessary ingredients to help your body already inside of it and does not need a lab to concoct it.

The best part of the class was going through each of the creative team's ideas and evaluating them based on what was outlined in the brief. With so many competitors, chocolate milk has a very tough task when it comes to making sure this campaign is and remains completely integrated and consistent. If they produce an advertisement in which the chocolate milk could easily be replaced with a Gatorade logo, then they must go back to the drawing boards. Finding that "white space" in the consumers' minds is so difficult to do. After evaluating the creatives on consistency, the message, integration, and aesthetic parameters, we were then asked to choose which one we thought was themost effective communication for chocolate milk.

The "My After" idea was the communication idea that they chose to go with. This highlights the personalization aspect of how each person individually chooses to treat their bodies after their particular workouts. This campaign utilizes both professional athletes and also "regular" people to show that chocolate milk is effective for even the most renowned athletes, but also it is just as effective and beneficial for the "weekend runners" and heavy lifters that are working out just to make themselves feel good. This was a great experience to have in class and it was beneficial to assess a real-life creative process. It has made me think outside the box a little bit when it comes to what I do after workouts. Rather than just reaching for the most popular Gatorade bottle and drinking because some scientists say its good for me, I may turn towards the more natural solution that is chocolate milk. Plus its delicious!

Mama "Mio!"

Last year, Kraft Foods Group launched Mio, a nationally marketed "liquid water enhancer." Its introduction to the market left many skeptical about its quality and purpose, including myself. But the seemingly hesitant consumer attitude has proven to not be as strong as what we may think. Within the first 52 weeks of its introduction, Mio had over $140 million in sales, a number that continues to grow and it expected to double in the next year. Despite all of the doubts and harsh critics, Mio has become one of the leading products in the bevarage enhancer category which has gotten the attention of other major food and beverage companies.

Mio's strategy is rooted in the fact that it is the millenium product; a new-age beverage enhancer for the individuals in our society and those who value the ability to customize many aspects of their lives. Mio gives the consumer freedom by allowing them to choose the flavor, amount, and application of the product to their beverages and even some foods. Whether you like a lot of flavor or just a hint, Mio delivers.

Mio's target and objective are very clear and concise and when you think about it, very clever and practical. Until now, one of the only products that offered enhancements to your water were Crystal Light packets and tea bags. Mio has brought a new and refreshed look to the simple and necessary act of drinking water. Its small container and portability enhances the ability to customize the consumers' water quickly, easily, and while on the go. Kraft has added and extention to the product line by introducing two new flavors with caffiene for a quick and delicious boost of energy. With the fast-paced lifestyles of today's "millenials," the energy line is a very smart move by Kraft.

Since Mio's birth, other companies have been keeping their eye on its success. Coca-Cola is one of those companies. This fall, the most recognizable brand on the planet plans to release its own line of beverage enhancers, called Dasani Drops, under the Dasani sub-brand. Hmmm, I wonder how they came up with this idea! If you looked up the terms "desperate", "panic", or "copy-cat" in the dictionary, Dasani Drops would be there. This is such a typical and predictable move by Coca-Cola and it is a move that I think consumers are too smart to dive into. Mio better be hiring some good lawyers and patenting the you-know-what out of their product to prevent the bully that is Coca-Cola from copying Mio and taking market share.

Reading this article devalued Coca-Cola in my mind. While it is a necessary business move that Coca-Cola is taking, I have just always been one to root for the underdog. I have not yet tried Mio but be assured that I will, and will continue to support their fight against Dasani Drops and other imitation products. A good idea deserves to be preserved, and that good idea is Mio.


http://adage.com/article/news/kraft-s-smash-product-mio-attracts-rival-coke-s-dasani/238110/

What is a Car Company?

Recently I have seen the new Firestone Tires commercial on television and rather than tuning out or changing the channel, as I often do when another boring and redundant (and sometimes misleading) car commercial comes on, this one made me listen. The opening line just grabbed my attention:  "There's only one car company in America that's never made a single car." It left me thinking and wanting to know how that is possible and I asked myself, "What is a car company?'

Now, although I drive a steel grey (that is fading) 1986 Volkwagon Quantum with 13-inch wheels that could be used as training wheels, I am very interested in cars. Also, throughout my time in college studying marketing and advertising, I have been reduced to having little faith in the automobile marketing world, or scheme if you prefer that I'm honest. Car commercials are all about saying what is flashy and attention-grabbing while disguising all of the downfalls. This Firestone commercial, however, just struck my as being boldly honest and confident, and that was kind of refreshing for me and maintained my attention.

 

 

The message in this ad is crystal clear:  if you drive cars for their performance and "value your car because of what you do with it," make sure that you are getting all of the performance that you can possibly get by putting Firestone tires on your car.

The problem that Firestone could be facing is that the majority of people use their car strictly as a means of transportation to get from point A to point B. And because of this, those people do not value or take the time to search for the best tires, they simple go with what is the cheapest. Cutting back on expenses is the new trend and necessary action in this country with the state of the economy and Firestone wants to make sure that people don't "cut back" on the love for their cars and their driving experiences along with it.

What Firestone is trying to do with this ad is to reinstill the attitude that driving is fun and that you should enjoy, take care of, and experience your car for all that it is worth and that you should not hold it back. With their expert knowledge and passion for cars, even though they don't manufacture the cars that you drive themselves, they are still a "car company."

I have known that Firestone makes tires but this is really the first advertisement that I remember seeing for Firestone, and in my opinion, it is very powerful and will resonate with the consumers. So as the "new car smell" and the paint start to fade from your cars, make sure that the performance and the thrill of driving doesn't fade with it.