tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223Fri, 24 Jul 2026 06:03:08 +0000brandsadvertisingsocial mediaTVthought leadershipibmapplecoca-colacreativityadadvicemobileonlinechinadata privacygooglesuper bowlcelebritiesdigitalold spiceethnic marketinginnovationoutdoortwitterPRambient advertisingcompetitionconsumercreativecustomer servicedevicesgamingmarketingmediatargetingtravelHRKLMKoreaNYCagency reviewaudibillboardcmoemotionentertainmentetradefacebookfinancegrowthholidayhumorolympicspsychologytargetvideoQRVWacquisitionsautobig databrandburger kingchevroletchildrencopycatcorporate responsibilitycustomer experiencedos equisevent planningfailgendergillettehpjapanleadershiplifestyle brandingluxurymarsmcdonaldmercedesmicrosoftnetflixpackagingpartnershippepsiproduct engineersresearchretailsantasmarter planetspokespersonsponsorshipsportsstrategysuccesstmobiletrendsuser generatedviralwpp2012 CEO study2013ATT mobile TVBMWCEOCEOConnectCESCRMCaptain MorganCarrieChristmasDMPDentsuESPNFTCFortuneGroupMIPGKraftLenovoLuvsMITModiNFLNOLAOreo'sPINKPerrierSainsburySochi 2014TNTTWCTescoThinkmodoTurboTaxUKUSPSWestJetaddressable TVadorableadweekagencyairlineanalyticsangry birdsanimalsartasianaxebankingbarbiebespokebest buybig brotherblockbusterbluekaibodybook coversbrandingbrokefacebudweiserbumble bee tunacampaigncapital onecarcdccharminchicken of the seachief digital officerclevercolumbia sportswearconnectedcontent managementcontroversycoolcorningcreepycringeculturecustomer firstcustomer obsessioncustomer_experiencedatadelightdespicable mediapersdirecttvdisasterdiscriminationdisneydisplay advertisingdomino'sdovedownydqdramaecommerceeducationelectric vehicleselectronicsemailemarketerempowermentenergy drinksengagementequalityespionageevevangelistsfabiofamilyfaux pasfirst mover advantagefolgersfoursquarefreudgeicogeniusgift givinggive backglassgmailgo daddygorilla glassgratitudegreygrossgroundswellgrouponguerrillahairhealthhistoryholiday spirithotels.comhyundaiiconinterbrandjellokenlean inlegacyleo burnettlifetimeloveloyaltymacy'smad menmagicmashablemattelmccannmcgarrybowenmemorablemenmike birbigliamillenialsmindshareminionmissonimommortonsmucinexmurdochnexus 7oceanaold schoololympics_2012oscarsoutboundpandorapanteneparking lotpersonal datapersonalizationphiladelphiaphonephotographypiratesplacementpolar bearspoliticsporkpricingprivacyproduct placementproject runwaypromoted emailpublishingpumaracismreal beautyreal estaterebrandingrecruitmentrivalryron burgundyrounduprumsalesschadenfreudesearsselfiesexsharp electronicssheryl sandbergsirislogansmall businesssmithsoniansnickerssocialsocial networkingspokesmansponsored promotionssquarestarkiststuntsubwaysummer jobssustainabilitysxswtablettaxitdtdbanktechnologythank youthanksthink differenttomstourismtoyotatrackingtraditionaltransparencytravelocitytridentunverlichtupfrontsusavalentine's dayvintagevoltawebisodewimbledonwomenyouthAdvert Alert...musings from an ad-a-holic...noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)Blogger382125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-386457065527363850Fri, 01 Aug 2014 19:10:00 +00002014-08-01T15:10:10.868-04:00bankingcustomer experiencecustomer firstcustomer servicefinancegive backgratitudepersonalizationtdtdbankthank youthanksAmazing "TD Thanks You" Campaign Spreads Heartfelt Thanks to Customers<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/bUkN7g_bEAI" width="560"></iframe>2014/08/amazing-td-thanks-you-campaign-spreads.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-1660154082535543005Fri, 11 Jul 2014 19:18:00 +00002014-07-11T15:18:26.278-04:00bodycreativegillettehairmenGillette Celebrates 100 Years of HairBrilliant move by Gillette to showcase the changing trends in men's grooming and positioning their BODY razor perfectly as the focus moves from facial hair to body hair.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/h16y4m2TJsg" width="560"></iframe>2014/07/gillette-celebrates-100-years-of-hair.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-7357050816368954512Sat, 24 May 2014 15:24:00 +00002014-05-24T11:25:30.895-04:00adbrandetradefinancespokespersonWhy we deserved to see the E*Trade baby grow upOver a month ago, we <a href="2014/03/last-etrade-baby-commercial-ever.html">bid adieu to the E*Trade baby</a>... and that was a major mistake. Although the Kevin Spacey infused start to E*Trade's new "Type E" spots are clever and funny, they feel more like the Capital One ads with Alec Baldwin. And the non Kevin Spacey ads are absolutely devoid of.. well everything. They read like a generic ad for any financial institution.<br />
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Could this be a Scottrade ad? Definitely. Fidelity? Sure. Schwab? Why not.</div>
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Which brings us back to the why. Why would E*Trade want to retire the E*Trade baby? I understand that the baby was great when E*Trade and online trading in general was getting it's start ("so easy a baby could do it") and now E*Trade is striving for a more mature, grown-up audience, but I still think this migration could have been handled better.<br />
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According to Russell Messner, global managing director of Ogilvy & Mather which won the E*Trade business from Grey last year, the agency learned from "extensive research" that the brand's customers and prospects enjoy the journey of becoming a better investor -- thus identifying them as "Type E."<br />
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That's all good and all, but it speaks to something that's not unique to E*Trade. Everyone likes becoming a better investor - whether that's with E*Trade or any of their competitors. That's not unique. And when you are trying to grow your brand and your audience along with it, you don't chuck out something that's tied to a lot of brand equity. There's a reason why you don't see Geiko retiring its gecko or Aflac its duck. They are cornerstones of the brand.<br />
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You want to project more maturity? Take a clue from Modern Family which had Lily grow up a few years so they had more material to work with. I would have been perfectly happy to see the E*Trade baby as a toddler instead of a baby, then a teenager, and ultimately an adult. Show us how E*Trade helped that baby grow up to be a better investor and have more financial freedom. Give us a taste of what's waiting for us if we were to follow in his footsteps instead of showing us arbitrary strangers who happen to be E*Trade customers.<br />
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Don't just pull the rug from under us and feed us generic financial jargon like everyone else. Bring back the E*Trade baby and allow us to grow up alongside the one thing that differentiates E*Trade and its brand from competitors. Give us a reason to convert from someone who enjoys your ads year after year to someone who's loyal to your company.</div>
2014/05/why-we-deserved-to-see-etrade-baby-grow.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-6316478949197245756Mon, 24 Mar 2014 18:46:00 +00002014-05-15T11:23:14.294-04:00agency reviewetradefinancegreyspokespersonTVLast "E*Trade Baby" Commercial - EVER?We all knew this day was coming, ever since Grey resigned the E*Trade account in last summer. And so, it may be the end of an iconic spokesperson: the E*Trade baby. Here's his supposedly last and final ad for the discount brokerage:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/brjwVz7uE-0" width="560"></iframe>2014/03/last-etrade-baby-commercial-ever.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-2611973170900356419Mon, 03 Mar 2014 19:12:00 +00002014-03-03T14:12:43.673-05:00ademailgmailpromoted emailsponsored promotionstargetingGmail "Sponsored Promotion Emails"Google rolled out Gmail tabs last summer, demonstrating that it's the best at organizing the web AND your inbox. But were there more capitalistic motivations behind the move?<br />
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This morning I checked out the "Promotions" tab in my personal email and saw this:<br />
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It appears that Gmail floats sponsored "emails" at the top of the "Promotions" tab, highlighting them in yellow with the notation "Ad" along with the opt-out option to delete the ad.<br />
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The advertiser in me says this is genius. Gmail has stayed more or less ad free since the beginning. In 2010 they released a "Web Clips" feature with snippets of news which eventually became an avenue for ads, but consumers were pretty quick to catch on and it's simple enough to disable. But sponsored ads in the "Promotions" tab will probably stay for the long term. Why?<br />
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<ol>
<li>By allowing Gmail to filter your emails into a "Promotions" tab, you are implicitly agreeing to receive emails that are basically advertisements already.</li>
<li>The ads look just like the emails that you normally receive in that tab, instead of showing up as annoying notices on top of your inbox.</li>
<li>If Google is smart enough, they can figure out which emails you already subscribe to (are are likely to subscribe to, based on current subscriptions), and thus you're less likely to get upset about receiving those ads because they are somewhat or very relevant to you.</li>
<li>You can opt-out of individual advertisers, instead of removing the whole feature like Web Clips. In fact, the only option is to remove the "Promotions" tab entirely, but that will put those emails into your "Primary" tab. You can manually move them to another tab permanently, but that's pretty annoying to do for each subscription. And since most users subscribe to at least one if not multiple promotion emails (I'm looking at you Amazon), that's not really an option.</li>
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Now #3 is a big assumption, because right now it appears that the sponsored promotion emails are based on purely demographics (gender, location, language, etc.). But I wouldn't be surprised if Google applied some semantic analysis on your emails to try and figure out what's a good match for you.<br />
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As a consumer, I'm torn. I like having my inbox clutter-free but also ad-free, and the tab structure supports an all-or-nothing approach. As an advertiser, I think it's a genius move for Gmail to camouflage ads as native emails.<br />
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I guess we'll see how the general public reacts!<br />
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<br />2014/03/gmail-sponsored-promotion-emails.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-3330770128755066182Mon, 03 Mar 2014 18:34:00 +00002014-03-03T13:34:39.312-05:00adadorablechevroletcreativeKoreaoscarsselfieTVuser generatedyouthThis Oscars Ad Stole My Heart<div class="tr_bq">
Oscars 2014 went by surprisingly fast and absent the usual fatigue that accompanies the middle section of little known documentary and foreign language film awards, but I was especially riveted by one ad that absolutely stole my heart. So much so that I (almost) blanked out during the Selfie Induced Twitter Outage of 2014.</div>
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Not only was this ad PERFECT for the Oscars, it was USER GENERATED. The ad was the winner of Chevrolet's MOFILM competition, and according to MOFILM:<br />
<blockquote>
"Speed Chaser was shot in Korea near Hwaseong City with a small cast and even smaller crew. Jude explained that their starting point was the Oscars audience and wanting to make something that celebrated the magic of movies, which is exactly what Chevy thought this film did. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
The winners are all headed to Los Angeles for a weekend of celebrations with Chevrolet and the Oscars team so make sure you keep an eye on our Twitter and Instagram accounts to see exactly what they are up to."</blockquote>
Kudos Chevrolet for picking this ad and special kudos to Korean filmmakers Jude Chun, Eunhae Cho, and Sunyoung Hwang for their creative, quirky, and adorable video.<br />
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Here it is in all its glory:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/g9EU1Fw-D2s" width="560"></iframe>2014/03/this-oscars-ad-stole-my-heart.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-3885326377757721347Thu, 09 Jan 2014 23:46:00 +00002014-03-03T14:14:17.815-05:00creepymomold spiceolympicsSochi 2014videoviralCreeptastic Old Spice MomsIn the lead-up to the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, we ad addicts are used to seeing the usual "thank you mom" and "thank you again mom" spots that air, such as P&G's recent <a href=" Them Back Up" ad</a>.<br />
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But this year, we can rejoice (and freak out) in seeing a mom spot that breaks the mold. And that, my friend, is this super creepy ad from Old Spice featuring moms that stalk their sons after they reach "manhood" (by spraying Old Spice of course):<br />
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The janitor might give me nightmares...2014/01/creeptastic-old-spice-moms.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-5276245629693265512Thu, 09 Jan 2014 04:18:00 +00002014-01-17T14:02:30.270-05:00CarriedigitalentertainmentThinkmodoTVvideoviralThinkmodo Delivers Viral Video GoldYesterday I blogged about a <a href="2014/01/groupm-forms-modi-to-target-addressable.html">new agency that GroupM created</a> to crack the code on "addressable TV." Well another agency has figured out another way to cut through the noise on TV: <a href=" />
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Thinkmodo is a 3-year old agency that only develops only one type of creative: the viral video. They specialize in creating memorable videos, mostly for Entertainment clients, with views upwards of 10 MM. Their most recent video, a stunt for Sony's "Carrie" remake, racked up over 52 MM views on YouTube. With the breakdown of the prank, the video reminds me of the <a href=" MAX "Uncle Drew"</a> ads.<br />
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Check it out below:<br />
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For the price of about 8 30-second prime time slots, Thinkmodo is arguably better equipped to stick in the minds of viewers:<br />
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<ol>
<li><b>It's opt-in:</b> Viewers only watch it because they choose to. It's been said once and it'll be said again... content is KING. If you don't have great content to begin with, you won't have a great ad. And if you don't have a great ad, what's the point of spending so much money to run it? </li>
<li><b>It's organically shared: </b>You know it's good content when people want to watch it by choice, and when they liked it so much that they'll share it with others.</li>
<li><b>It ends up on TV anyways: </b>With a really awesome stunt like the "Carrie" video or some of their other work below, it's often good enough to wind up on the news. And the good thing about being WITHIN programming instead of BETWEEN programming? It's not as likely to be skipped a la TiVo!</li>
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I look forward to seeing more work from this agency!</div>
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2014/01/thinkmodo-delivers-viral-video-gold.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-141305671797596666Wed, 08 Jan 2014 04:51:00 +00002014-01-07T23:51:14.471-05:00admemorableTurboTaxTVTotally Unexpected Ad Genius from: TurboTax!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Eg18FG-7-Jw" width="560"></iframe>2014/01/totally-unexpected-ad-genius-from.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-8076941569349749014Tue, 07 Jan 2014 17:59:00 +00002014-01-07T12:59:35.553-05:00addressable TVdigitalGroupMmediaModitargetingtraditionalTVGroupM Forms Modi to Target "Addressable TV"Targeting has long been the word of the day when it comes to digital advertising. Whether you're talking about display or social or even SEO, the ability to reach a targeted audience is critical to achieving strong ad performance.<br />
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Of course, with great power comes great responsibility, and it's the advertiser's role to make sure they are crafting compelling ads instead of just noise. Otherwise, targeting becomes quite a nuisance for the end consumer (cue "This miracle fruit will help you lose 20 lbs!").<br />
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In the world of traditional media, advertisers are still used to buying in terms of reach and frequency (e.g., a TV show that reaches 8 M viewers 2x/week or a magazine that reaches 2 M readers 1x/month). This amounts, more or less, to interest targeting with broad messages suited for broad demographics. While it definitely works for some brands, others might struggle to develop "compelling content" that is generic enough for a broad audience. This often results in polarizing creatives that alienate one or multiple customer segments (e.g., <a href=" Zesty Guy</a> which generated interest with younger/modern moms but backlash from older/traditional moms). So I'm excited to see traditional media experiment with the concept of individual targeting.<br />
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Today, <a href=" announced that they were forming a new agency Modi</a> that would be dedicated to "digital distribution, addressable TV, hyper-local TV and interactive TV." The unit will be headed by Michael Bologna, GroupM's director-emerging communications, who stated that:<br />
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Data-based buying "is no longer an afterthought... All of TV will operate eventually in this way."</blockquote>
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I'm excited to read more about Modi and what they bring to the table for 2014!2014/01/groupm-forms-modi-to-target-addressable.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-78678381386691270Wed, 25 Dec 2013 05:38:00 +00002013-12-25T00:38:24.093-05:002013adweekbrandcringefailfaux pasroundupschadenfreude25 Biggest Brand Fails of 2013Adweek has an amazing post up right now about the <a href=" biggest brand fails of 2013</a>. It's deliciously juicy with cringe-inducing faux pas that might give you nightmares (if you're a marketer of course). Oh, and the intro managed to squeeze in two of my favorite words: rubbernecking and schadenfreude. You know you're in for a good read :)<br />
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Here are some of my favorites (ooh.. goosebumps):<br />
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<b>Hyundai "Pipe Job"</b><br />
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Suicide is not funny. Using suicide to sell your product is brand suicide.<br />
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<b>VitaminWater:</b><br />
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I can't believe someone didn't run the words through a filter. Yes, the French word "retard" means something else, but a campaign emphasizing bi-lingual capabilities really should have taken a bi-lingual approach to vetting the word choices!<br />
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<b>Roxy:</b><br />
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I couldn't figure out what this was advertising for over a minute. Underwear? Lenovo Yoga? Waterfall showerhead? HTC phone? Shoes? Jean shorts? Ohh... Roxy. That in itself is a faux pas.<br />
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<b><br /></b>2013/12/25-biggest-brand-fails-of-2013.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-5774563800504288458Tue, 24 Dec 2013 20:29:00 +00002013-12-24T15:29:20.730-05:00adbrokefacecorningcreativedevicesfreudglassgorilla glassron burgundyunverlichtvideoBrokeface - Corning Gorilla GlassFreud meets <strike>corny</strike> Corning in a new series of ads for Corning's Gorilla Glass. It's a well done set of ads that are filmed like an entertaining movie trailer, featuring Dr. T. Unverlicht who is one part Freud and one part Ron Burgundy.<br />
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Each ad features a sorry patient whose life problems all trace back to buying a device without a Gorilla Glass cover glass. Unverlicht successfully diagnoses each patient with a condition called brokeface which is described as:<br />
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"[An] unpleasant facial contortion and underlying anguish suffered the instant you realize you broke the coverglass on your touch notebook. The effects of Brokeface typically linger past the initial acute facial distortion and persist until a new touchscreen notebook with durable, scratch-resistant Corning® Gorilla® Glass NBT™ is acquired."<br />
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Then the ad cuts to a clip reminiscent of 80's pharmaceutical ads (cue the Ron Burgundy-esque yogging and guitar playing).<br />
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Overall, with nearly 2 million views per ad, I think it's a total hit for Corning. What's your take?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/fNRxfO8Ia4w?list=PL9SYF8ivnLpmGq1y_W43oIW3VJzrOvvRt" width="560"></iframe>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FVJA21WbtiU?list=PL9SYF8ivnLpmGq1y_W43oIW3VJzrOvvRt" width="560"></iframe>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Mu2e3-zdOks?list=PL9SYF8ivnLpmGq1y_W43oIW3VJzrOvvRt" width="560"></iframe>2013/12/brokeface-corning-gorilla-glass.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-760048690955812969Sat, 21 Dec 2013 00:48:00 +00002013-12-20T19:48:15.628-05:00brandingcoca-coladespicable meentertainmenticonminionpartnershippolar bearsMinions Love Chiquita (and Vice Versa)Minions are comic genius. They're goofy, they're love-able, and they won't endanger your brand by showing up on the front page of a tabloid. So it was a fabulous idea for Chiquita to leverage some of that relevancy and humor in their new, minion-branded Facebook page and game:<br />
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I wouldn't immediately think of bananas for an entertainment endorsement but it totally works in this case. Another CPG - Entertainment crossover I've got my eye on? The new Coca-Cola Polar Bears Film! I saw the previews in the movie theater and was SHOCKED, just SHOCKED that they were making the move from small screen ads to full screen features. Major congrats to all the polar bears, looks like their <a href=" work and soda consumption since 1922</a> finally paid off :)<br />
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2013/12/minions-love-chiquita-and-vice-versa.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-8984105363234848379Sat, 14 Dec 2013 19:48:00 +00002013-12-24T15:38:03.009-05:00adelectric vehiclesevparking lotsponsorshipvoltaSponsored Electric Vehicle Charging StationsSpotted: sponsored charging station for electric vehicles in a parking lot in Alameda, CA. Are parking lots the new billboards?<br />
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— dianazhou (@dianazhou) <a href=" 14, 2013</a>2013/12/advertalert-sponsored-ev-chargers-who.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-3858577901851395984Wed, 11 Dec 2013 06:44:00 +00002013-12-11T01:44:44.330-05:00airlineChristmasgift givingholidayholiday spiritsantatravelWestJetWestJet Proves Miracles Do Come TrueThis is perhaps the most astounding holiday marketing I've seen in a long time. I mean astounding...<br />
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Makes you wonder what good could be done if big retailers diverted their holiday ad spend (in the MILLIONS for a few short weeks) to create tangible value instead of lining the pockets of advertisers? Oops I've said too much...2013/12/westjet-proves-miracles-do-come-true.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-5698038334085294597Wed, 11 Dec 2013 06:35:00 +00002013-12-11T01:35:18.333-05:00discriminationdoveequalitygenderlean inpantenereal beautysheryl sandbergwomenIs Pantene the New Dove?Dove's "Real Beauty" campaign, which kicked off in 2006 with it's "Evolution" ad about a model getting Photoshop-ed to perfection, has boosted ads of its bodycare products. While the campaign <a href="2008/12/success-isnt-universal.html?q=dove+real+beauty">hasn't been universally successful</a>, it's definitely helped to shape the conversation on what type of aspiration marketing crosses the line of appropriateness.<br />
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It looks like Pantene is looking to hop on the band wagon, taking some of the findings from Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In" book to create the below ad.<br />
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While I don't think it's get the same stickiness and tear jerk of the Dove campaign (especially their recent "<a href=" Beauty Sketches</a>"), I do support the overall message and I think it's important for advertisers to support women being true to themselves. So congrats Pantene!2013/12/is-pantene-new-dove.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-8339928945589691535Wed, 06 Nov 2013 01:01:00 +00002013-11-05T20:02:21.966-05:00adbrandssocialtwitterReturn to Advertising!First and foremost, I want to apologize for not posting anything for a very long time. I got married and started blogging my honeymoon trip around the world on <a href=" Bend in the Arrow</a>, and I let this blog get dusty.<br />
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I'm sorry.<br />
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But now I'm back with a vengeance and I promise to give this blog the TLC it deserves.<br />
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To start things off on the right foot, here's a video of the top 10 brand tweets. I think they've all got a unique voice and I especially love the Kit Kat/Oreo one. Enjoy!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hhR7zaknqZE" width="560"></iframe>2013/11/return-to-advertising.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-8278914738430410559Mon, 30 Jul 2012 18:59:00 +00002012-07-30T15:00:15.606-04:00adapplegeniusolympicsolympics_2012TVApple's Genius Ad: Too Much Group ThinkIt seems like lambasting Apple's 2012 Olympics ads is the vogue thing to do these days, so I guess I'll jump on the bandwagon...<br />
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Now don't get me wrong, I can see where the concept for this creative came from. The Genius Bar is, without doubt, one of the best aspects of buying an Apple product. When there's something wrong with your device, or if you simply don't know how to do something, you make a reservation, go to an Apple store, and interact with a real person (or "Genius") who helps you.<br />
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In today's day and age, this kind of service is near extinct, especially with technology companies. As a consultant, I myself have played a role in the outsourcing of "non-core" or "non-strategic" functions which do not tie directly to a company's value proposition. However, I too have suffered the pains of trying to fix a something by communicating with someone in India who's reading off a script and has no real subject matter expertise to fix my problem quickly and easily. So it's always a surprise to find a company who's willing to invest and go all the way for customer service (Apple and Amazon/Kindle are at the top of my list).<br />
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Now many people have not yet had the opportunity to experience the Genius Bar, and certainly none of the people who have yet to buy an Apple product. So it makes sense, to some degree, to showcase the Geniuses to Apple customers and non-customers alike who may not realize what they're missing out on. It's also true that some of the questions posed to Geniuses are "dumb questions" - you know, the ones that can be answered by pressing buttons until you get it to work (the brute force method) or reading the instruction manual (the civilized method). When I was at the Genius Bar yesterday, there were a lot of people who were not so tech savvy (e.g., swiping the screens of their laptop like it was an iPad), but the Geniuses responded with the kind of patience and cheerfulness that you saw in the Olympics ads.<br />
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So where did it all go wrong?<br />
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I think the greatest loss when Steve Jobs died, besides Steve Jobs himself, was the its-my-way-or-the-highway mentality that Steve Jobs had. I'm sure Steve Jobs didn't give a d*mn what anyone else thought when it came to a creative. Either he liked it, or he didn't. But in most organizations, especially consensus-driven organizations, that kind of mentality doesn't fly. And we all know that group-think kills creativity.<br />
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I think the original concept about showcasing the Geniuses was a great idea. I have no idea how the final creative came together, but I get the feeling that they evaluated the creative with too many people in the room, and kept tweaking bits and pieces here and there until the concept became muddled. "This isn't funny enough. It's an Olympics ad - it's got to be funny." So they make the lines a little more snarky. "Why not put them on a plane? We can time-box them to fix the problem before they have to shut down their device for landing. It'll be a slight nod to that Alec Baldwin incident." And so they change the setting to a plane. Sound plausible? I certainly know of situations at my workplace where great ideas have been killed because there were too many cooks in the kitchen and no leader to provide the decisive direction.<br />
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I feel like Apple lost sight of its original purpose:<br />
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<b><i>Buying an Apple product comes with exceptional, world-class service from Apple Geniuses. They will go out of their way to solve your problems.</i></b><br />
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Instead, the message became:<br />
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<b><i>You're probably not smart enough to use an Apple product. You need a Genius to fix your problems. Stop wasting your money and our time.</i></b><br />
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That's my point of view at least. What do you think? Watch for yourself and let me know if you agree or disagree.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="; width="560"></iframe>2012/07/apples-genius-ad-too-much-group-think.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Anonymous)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7178626448280682223.post-8887906879244904186Tue, 24 Jul 2012 16:49:00 +00002012-07-24T12:49:25.018-04:00big brotherdatadata privacyonlinepersonal dataprivacysocial mediasocial networkingHow Your Favorite Sites Use Your DataVery interesting infographic today from <a href=" News</a>:<br />
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I love the idea of showcasing the <i>use</i> of various applications in actual situations where you'd be using them, u