Tag Archives: Advertising Blogs
Motorola, VW, and Chrysler scored with critics and viewers in the Super Bowl advertising game. Yet, in the weeks following the game, they’ve missed (and are still missing) opportunities to convert viewers into customers through their online channels. These three brands all replay their ads on their sites, but that is not enough. Advertisers in the Super Bowl — and other big events like the Oscars — must create online experiences that get viewers more deeply involved with their products and the brand. That’s what pays off the huge advertising investments.
VW’s endearing “Darth Vader” spot speaks to affluent parents who are the primary market for the Passat. When those viewers visit VW.com, however, the most easily found content for the new Passat a snarky but flat-footed video, “VW Academy with Bill Hader.” The video’s sarcasm seems off-key compared to “Darth Vader” and more akin to a Bud Light commercial. Plus, the video is slow to communicate a handful of the model’s key features. It risks diffusing the goodwill earned by “Darth Vader.”
Worse, there is little information on the new Passat anywhere on VW.com. If you click on Passat, under the Models menu on the home page, you get information on the current model. The lack of details on the new Passat is a huge missed opportunity for VW to keep potential customers engaged and feed their curiosity about the new model.
Motorola does a better job following up on its “Empower the People” spot for the Xoom tablet. After viewers find their way to the Motorola Mobility consumer site, the Xoom is featured on the home page. The Xoom product page leads with a replay of the TV ad, but it’s easy to skip the ad and get to an overview of the Xoom.
After the daring TV ad however, the product page is a let down. The Xoom ad, like it’s 1984 inspiration, promises change, but visitors get a typical, staid list of specs and features. The Xoom page could have related tech specs and features to human needs and situations. Read More
If you had to sell 100 million people a product in less than a minute, what would you say? Saying too little is what makes Super Bowl ads more obsolete every year. It isn’t that the commercials were better back then, and increased viewership has nothing to do with it. There are just too many better ways for advertisers to spend $3 million now.
They’re advertising ads now?
A clear sign that advertisers are losing faith in the Super Bowl is the pre-released ad. To generate buzz this year, Volkswagen, Careerbuilder, GM and others released their commercials weeks before the game. Then they tried to drum up further interest with ‘making of’ videos and other media appearances. When advertisers are trying this hard to sell you on their commercial, you wonder why they don’t just sell you their product, story or brand another time.
It’s a tough crowd.
Despite murmurings that social media would radically alter this year’s Super Bowl commercials, very little changed. Most ads tried to get a laugh from the lowest common denominator, employing animals or children or plenty of CGI work. It’s understandable, because it’s hard to get a big crowd to listen but it’s easy to accidentally turn one against you. So the best hope with so large an audience is to entertain without offending. As a result most ads aren’t memorable to anyone.
Super Bowl viewers don’t want to interact.
Although brands did try to get users involved, it was little use. Many tried to get viewers to find them on facebook, watch alternate endings or tweet about them, yet most refused. And those brands were the lucky ones.
So, if I am to believe everything I read on the internet – the only separating myself from a bot is the ability to recognize and mimic a simple string of nonsensical characters or phrases in the form a captcha. We’ve all used them at one time or another, the “prove you’re human test” when posting links on facebook, signing up for web services, leaving blog comments etc. They are nonsensical at best and blatantly unreadable and irritating at worst. But they are a decent line of defense against those who would attempt to spam your facebook profiles, saturate your blog with spam, and generally wreak e-havoc on the world. But a new breed of captchas is at hand, a new captcha that will be relatively easy to read, probably make sense and–most pertinent in our business, act as a bridge between utility and advertising–all while strengthening brand awareness.
“How can this be?” you might ask. Well, allow me to enlighten you.
Why did you take notes in school? There’s a good chance that somewhere along the way a teacher or a parent told you that writing things down helps you to remember them–especially the important things. Well, New York-based Solve Media and their clients are betting that their messages are important enough for you to remember. The plan is to combine captchas with ad revenue. Now, instead of typing out a string of nonsense you’ll write down a branded catch phrase from your favorite brands.
In the example below, random characters are replaced with the Microsoft altruism “Browse Safer.” Another example, an ad for the movie “The Town” might use something like “Turns out Ben Affleck can act, go figure.” McDonald’s, “Better than eating Cardboard.” And so on.
Internet Explorer branded Captcha
From June 20 – 26 many of the most innovative global brands and communications leaders gathered at the Cannes Lions festival to discuss the latest trends in the ever-evolving advertising world. We decided to take an interview approach to share an insider look from our new friend at Contagious Magazine, North American Editor Nick Parish.
For those who are not familiar, Contagious is a leading global news and intelligence resource for the marketing industry that helps advertising professionals navigate their way through the new media landscape. Contagious was launched in London in 2004, covering topics like branded content, mobile-social-and viral marketing, and a bunch more. Essentially they’re most interested in all the ways ideas are transmitted outside of paid media. Nick helps steward Contagious NA from New York, where he’s worked in many forms of media since arriving in 2001. (Sports Writer for the New York Post, Silicon Alley startup Flavorpill’s Editor, Associate Editor of Advertising Age’s Creativity magazine, and most recently, Events Content Manager for Ad Age events like CaT: Creativity and Technology and the IDEA Conferences.)
We got together with Nick last week to discuss the week that was Cannes Lions 2010…
CM: Cannes is known for being the ultimate celebration of creativity. What was the most creative thing you came across?
Nick: Most creative thing? Single thing? Maybe people’s expense report strategies?
Seriously, it’s tough to nail down, and ultimately, even if you were to see all the work, that’s a really personal question. I enjoyed a lot of the Design work this year; that’s a group I haven’t paid much attention to since it was launched. But the category has only been around for a few years, so it’s pretty media-agnostic, and you get groundbreaking stuff that’s fundamentally aesthetically sound, like the Toyota IQ Font, which won Grand Prix.
Fundamental aesthetics will always be essential.
CM: What was a common theme running through the Cannes Advertising fest?
Nick: I think a common theme was re-building and re-thinking.
Everyone realized we had a bad run last year, and that undoubtedly affected things like resources and budgets, but the best projects, like Grand Prix winners Gatorade Replay and Best Buy’s Twelpforce, were ideas that became platforms that could stand on their own and grow.
In the instance of Gatorade, that’s changed the way PepsiCo structures that business, from a marketing sense, and Replay and Replay-esque things have become a serious part of their considerations. And it’s blossomed from episodic online content into events that are shot by Fox Sports Net just like they’d shoot any professional sport, in addition to a grassroots league and other side parts.
Another interesting theme is that we continue to see is the best work winning in multiple places. This happened last year with the Queensland Tourism Board’s “Best Job In The World” campaign, and again this year with Replay and Nike’s Chalkbot. All of a sudden we’re asking what each of these categories has to do with each other, and what applies best where.
Further, and this pains me a bit to say it, but the Cyber category feels like it’s really looking for direction. Digital is everywhere now—nearly every Grand Prix winner has a digital component, and most of them were really integral to their success. Even the ‘Film Craft’ winner, Philips’ “The Gift” from DDB London, was a webfilm. Cyber’s become a category for great websites, but now that everything moves digitally and lives everywhere it’s going to have to go through a bit of a renewal.
If you have read any of my previous posts, you know that I am a huge sports fan. As such, I have a tendency to post about ESPN a lot. As they are the self-proclaimed world-wide leader in sports, its kind of hard not too. BTW, “world-wide” is a bit much, as no one in Europe watches ESPN and last time I checked they are a big part of the world.
This morning I went to the site as I always do and went to look for the headlines. Of late I have been disappointed that this section had been shrinking and I was only getting a small amount of them. Here is what it looks like today:
So when the page loads I get absolutely zero headlines. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. In other words, I get the same amount of news headlines as the Calgary Flames get second round home games (there, I built the one jab in that I said I would in the CBC radio interview.) I have to scroll down the page to get the information I want.
As loyal ESPN.com user, I’m pissed. They have continually bastardized their site in an effort to make more room for ads and thus drive more ad sales. I keep coming back because even because the content they have is second to none. This last move, however, is a tough pill to swallow.
Now, to their defense, if you do scroll down you get 15 top headlines. That is three times the amount you got before. Also, it is possible that the Mac ad running their now is only temporary and they will go back to the old format.
