Hello: Orange

I've got to give it to Access Leo Burnett in Nairobi, Kenya for the TV spot below on Orange. It's about time advertising in Africa represented the people there. Beyond the stories of poverty, there are still stories to tell



although I've gotta say 3 hours for a first kiss is pretty long!

human truths & milk

I won't deny it, I've been searching for the smartest idea on the web to share on this blog. But along the way, I figured you(this term is used with the slight instinct that I might be referring to myself) anyway, I figured if people wanted to learn about trends they would check out trendhunter.com first or they would tweet about the lack of trends in their life and get a 100 million responses instantly. I'm not sure why I was going for that angle. But I do know I like to write so the blog is here to stay. You want a piece of my opinion?

Milk, unless you are lactose intolerant (then maybe soya milk) is only missed when you run out.



and this is why I like the got milk commercials.
I don't wake up and think about the milk carton in my fridge. As long as it does its job: fill up my cereal bowl, act as swimming ground for my chocolate chip cookies and, when I'm feeling like a health nut, be the life source to my oatmeal -- milk is out of my mind. But when I'm out of it, its all I can think of (ok slight exaggeration but who's reading?). Anyway, point being that everything else is milk. Whats your milk? your iphone, tv, friends? does this make sense. I think I'm "laterally thinking" here.

haha

ambient + press coverage = awareness & purchase

I'm fond of ambient media, anything that steps out of the ordinary and leaves a memorable impression gets brownie points in my book. In addition to making people pause, look & think it also draws attention from the press.

The campaign for Christina Aguilera's new perfume launch in Tel Aviv is an exceptional example. The campaign sought out to build awareness and promote purchase. According to this trendsetting blog, it was executed with a budget of $353,000 that incorporated TV, magazine & "guerrilla marketing." The guerrilla marketing aspect is what strikes my fancy. Given that the tagline of the campaign is ""Sometimes, its all you need to wear" I especially like the strategic positioning of the product: on hangers! What message does this send? That the product is literally all you need to wear, or that it can be worn with what you must wear in public. On a deeper level, the use of hangers elicts the idea of getting ready to head out, a time when perfume is used by most.

Pictures of the hangers & samples of the perfume placed around Tel Aviv:




The result of this campaign makes me think of the future of advertising. As a neutral observer of the media battle, my two cents are: one medium is not the solution. Digital marketers sing about the interactive nature of the medium and how user engagement is more apparent on that landscape. However, the campaign above offers a form of engagement that breaks out of the box screen. There's no doubt that digital marketing is growing and will possibly take the lead in the current economic climate (and it will probably be a well respected discipline after "the recession"). Ultimately, I'm concerned about the creative & effective ways in which brands communicate with people and vice versa. Online, offline & both.

The video is worth a watch!

Outdoor Blues

I was going to type up a smarty pants account of how I thought the CBS outdoor ads were a result of budget cuts on outdoor media. Then I did a Google search and found out that CBS outdoor has always had ads of themselves.


So my praise to CBS outdoor on their creative approach to the recession is not as loud as I would've liked. Either way, it got my attention.