Archive for February, 2009
Cultural Exchange and “Milk’s Favorite Cookie”
Posted by: | CommentsLast August, Oreo released the commercial below, “Girl on Train”.
From the first time I saw it, I loved the message. Not only are the two little girls adorable, but the message of a universal humanity is particularly poignant. Common Ground, one of the 52 virtues identified by the Foundation for a Better Life, is established here through the pleasures of childhood. Culture specialists and anthropologists have noted the universality of children’s behavior and how cultural boundaries can be crossed through this shared aspect of humanity. Also, the fact that children tend to be more open to cultural exchange and are “culture-blind” in a sense is beautifully illustrated here. The two girls’ love for a certain chocolate and creme cookie quickly turns into a discovery of how similar little girls are. Participating in an intercultural dialogue as a child and understanding the similarities and differences between cultures at a young age allows for more informed and culturally sensitive adults.
I am sure some cynics might disagree with me and condemn Oreo or Nabisco for “westernizing” or “Americanizing” Asia. While the American snack food industry, no doubt, has had a great effect on many Asian countries, I do feel that the basic premise and message of this ad is, on the whole, very positive.
In essence, what I love about this ad and what makes it commendable in my eyes is the establishment of a Common Ground and an exchange between cultures.
Power to the Bloggers
Posted by: | CommentsThe website listed below is an article from Advertising Age. It is talking about how Frito Lay is sponsoring 7 blogs and allowing the bloggers to produce creative content for the Cheeto Brand. The Bloggers create content that will appeal to their blogging community. It was really interesting to come across this because it deals directly with what we have been talking about in class. How important it is to appeal to your blogger community. It’s cool to see companies taking the first steps toward word of mouth marketing, and giving the power to the talkers, ie: the bloggers.
http://adage.com/madisonandvine/article?article_id=134558
Chris Brown Suspended from Advertising
Posted by: | CommentsIt may seem like a no-brainer, but I think the recent actions taken by Wrigley’s and Got Milk are worth recognizing. It is admirable that these two companies decided to suspend their endorsement deals with Chris Brown after his incident with the law this weekend. While it may be an obvious PR response, it gives me faith that these companies understand the impact their spokespeople have on society. Dairy Council says that “Brown’s image won’t help them sell products.” I’m proud of Wrigley’s and Got Milk for doing the right thing and pulling these ads despite their success.
Check out these articles about Chris Brown and the lost endorsement deals:
“Wrigley suspends Chris Brown, Rihanna silent” (Reuters)
“‘Got Milk?’ Chris Brown Doesn’t” (Starpulse.com)
“Wrigley’s puts Chris Brown campaign on hold” (CNN.com)
True Beauty
Posted by: | CommentsI just saw this commercial on TV made by the “Foundation for a Better Life.” I think this foundation is doing a wonderful job bringing awareness to many different current happenings in our country. Unlike other campaigns such as “Truth,” these are more varied and cover a wider spectrum of subjects. Attached the the YouTube video is this description of the Homecoming Queen’s story:
“The story of Shellie Eyre is of a life lived with courage, determination and unrestricted love for everyone she meets. She was born in 1979 with Down syndrome and is the second child of a family of four children. At three years of age she experienced a major setback in the form of a stroke that left her paralyzed on her left side.
Her school years were a wonderful time of learning a gaining many friends. This culminated in her senior year at Murray High School in Utah when she was selected as the 1997 Homecoming Queen. She had been one of the most popular girls in school because of her easy smile and loving heart. When asked why everyone liked Shellie so much, one of the students said, Its hard not to love Shellie when you know how much she loves you.”
“Philanthropy 2.0″
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I found this post about a project that three guys are taking on called “Philanthropy 2.0.” They feel that in this new-age the 1.0 ways of reaching people are dead and non-profit organizations are having trouble with this. They do not understand the powers of social media yet and these three guys want to help. They have posted a survey in their post to help them with their project. I took it, and it just asks you some general information about you and then some information about charitable organizations you donate to. I think this is a great project because it will really help non-profit organizations build their donor base if they can get the word out through social media. This is definitely a good way to use the power of social media for good and help non-profit organizations out in a tough economic time.
Take a look at the post and take the survey at:
http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/social-causes-survey/
De Beers is Forever
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I was just recently researching De Beers and learning about their history in advertising. What they have done is very impressive. Diamonds, back before the late 1930′s, were not seen as the utter symbol of love. In fact, stones like topaz, rubies, and sapphires were seen as much more luxurious. De Beers needed to create a demand since diamonds were taken out of the safes during the Depression to be sold. This destroyed the diamond market which already wasn’t nearly as successful as it is now-a-days.
De Beers created a very intelligent marketing plan. They had to eliminate the after-market. The company turned the diamond image into something given as a gift, meaning it would not be sold as often later on. Once this was established, they identified their real target market: men. They implemented a ‘pull’ strategy by showering Hollywood stars like Marilyn Monroe in diamonds and created them as, “a girls best friend.” De Beers was on the map. Women would see the De Beers ads with lines of honeymoon poetry flowing around the perfect, sparkling rock and be entranced by the ‘idea’ De Beers was selling. Diamonds became a must for marriage and the ultimate show of affection. Men were educated by the two months salary and by 1960 nearly 80% of married women had a diamond on their finger, a massive increase from nearly no brides having one.
The diamond monolith had created a brand image that has not changed much since 1938. Responsible advertising? Probably not, but extremely impressive advertising. I blog about it because this campaign of “A Diamond is Forever” has changed the whole way we view marriage and altered a whole social aspect of Americans. They’ve cemented themselves into millions of romantic lives and monopolized the entire materialistic aspect of love.
Finally something FREE…It’s called LISTENING!
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This brief interview deals with the topic of listening. Richard Branson, the man in the interview discusses how important it is to listen to the ideas of your consumers. While he does not mention specific vehicles to listen to (ie: blogs…) he does state that listening is free and that some of the best ideas come from these “talkers.” He states that ” a lot of your customer’s are the best brains out there.” It’s kind of ironic that companies still reject what there consumers have to say when they are offering them not only free advice but also innovative ideas. I know we discussed this in our class readings, and I think Branson’s emphasis on this topic contributes to the importance of taking into consideration the “talkers.”
Generation G
Posted by: | CommentsIf anyone hasn’t heard of trendwatching.com, it’s a really neat site that has people from around the world emailing them and alerting them whenever they find something of interest. It’s a really fun way to keep up with what is going on in the professional world. Every month they do a briefing, and this month’s briefing was entitled “Generation G: That Would be ‘G’ for Generosity, not ‘G’ for Greed.”
This briefing discusses generosity as a trend. It uses the phrase “giving is the new taking, and sharing is the new giving.” This phrase really got me thinking about society today and how charitable acts are looked at as something we are required to do now a days. If someone has money and doesn’t give to charity they are seen as a bad person. This unfortunate view in society has turned giving to charity into a status symbol and society has almost forgotten the real reason charity exists. The blog also discusses many campaigns that are going on that people consider socially responsible.
Take a look at the site and read all about Generation G, it’s a very interesting view on things and is definitely worth a few minutes of your time:
http://trendwatching.com/briefing/
Responsibility of the company and Phelps
Posted by: | CommentsAs a religious Foxnews.com reader, I was immediately informed last week with the news that Michael Phelps, one of the best Olympians of all time, was accused of using marijuana at a college party in South Carolina. Not only is there a picture of Phelps doing so, but he also has not attested the statement and gave an official apology for his “immature” actions. His apology is listed below:
“I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment,” Phelps said. “I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”
I immediately was disappointed in Phelps. As a young athlete, he needs to realize that he is a role model to so many. I think he was given a second chance after receiving a DWI, but I guess he hasn’t learned yet what it takes to be a role model. Being so famous and successful, it is clear to see why so many companies endorse Phelps and use him to promote their product in advertisements. While his contract with Rosetta Stone ended in 2008, the company made a statement that “we do not condone his activities and are disappointed in his recent judgment.” On the other hand, two of his sponsors, Omega and Speedo called the news a “non-issue”. As a young athlete who is seen as a “role model” by so many people and especially YOUNG children, I would be shocked if this recent drug use didn’t lessen the number of companies interested in endorsing him. Phelps has been extremely successful not only in the pool but in receiving endorsement, I think that companies will now look twice before using him in ads or endorsing him again. I think most socially responsible companies will not want their company in any way correlated to drug use even if Phelps is a highly worshipped athlete for America. While the company might have to make a sacrifice by not using him, I think that they will benefit from focusing on the values of character and responsibility.
To view a couple of advertisements with Phelps:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mY1Qn1g6V8g (speedo)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ5W3zWGQK8 (visa)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5oUJg-J5tw (visa mobile)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcPhzCXewLo (guitar hero)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axkCrMJBFfM (at&T)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNri467qHDI (olympics)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV9E8O_NyYg (power bar)
Community Engagement
Posted by: | CommentsAd Coucil has these great widgets you can add to your social network to share your support for a cause. This is just one of the causes I am in full support of. It’s great that organizations are seizing the opportunity to use social networks for the greater purpose!
Here’s a list of other causes people can support using these widgets:
Autism Awareness
Cancer Prevention
College Access
Community Engagement
Credit Scores Education
Diabetes Management
Drunk Driving Prevention
Early Childhood Development
Emergency Preparedness
Environmental Involvement
Fatherhood Involvement
Foreclosure Prevention
High School Dropout Prevention
Hispanic Preventive Health
Inspiring Invention
Latch System Education
Lifelong Literacy
Men’s Preventive Health
Mental Health Recovery
Minority Education
Obesity Prevention
Ocean Awareness
Online Sexual Exploitation
Patient Involvement
Reducing Gun Violence
Stroke Awareness
Underage Drinking Prevention
Wildfire Prevention
