Archive for the ‘Communications’ Category

Ecofriendly advertising is becoming a big trend in 2012. Why? Because it works. How? By attracting the environmentally friendly consumer’s attention.

Consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious, and advertisers are noticing. Advertisers can reach this new market by making a few changes that result in lower than standard costs, yet still retain high customer involvement.

Below are four ways advertisers can potentially reduce their carbon footprint and entice interest using uncommon advertisements.

1. Bikes with trailers: My eyes are glued to these bikers for multiple reasons. First, I’m thinking I should invest in a bike with a trailer and then maybe one day I can get calves like that. But more importantly, my eyes are fixed on the moving bike. These ecofriendly ads can provide an incentive for businesses to move away from advertising on buses – further reducing their carbon footprint.

2. Walking billboards: We’ve all heard the story where the college grad who needed a job walked the streets of San Francisco wearing a “Hire Me” billboard. This grad received many inquiries and certainly gained attention from the public. Advertisers are no different; they will instantly receive consumer reaction while potentially attracting press.

3. Branded automobiles: With the exception of desperate looks from thirsty drivers, the advertising enthusiasts behind these vehicles go about their days as usual. These branded cars provide higher exposure than other forms of advertising (2.5 times more exposure than traditional billboards), and the branded car wrap is made out of 100% recyclable materials.

4. Light projection billboards: I’m normally not one to recommend anything that might bother me, but these types of displays attract a lot of attention. After all, I’m the one opening the window trying to figure out why an obnoxious light is keeping me awake. With a light projection display like this, it’s sure to attract attention with minimal environmental impact. Take caution in areas where sleeping is a high priority.

See – going green isn’t so bad after all. There are a variety of ways advertisers can attract an entirely different target just by changing their medium. In fact, I think that even Kermit would even agree that moving toward the trend of green advertising is actually fairly easy.

Recently, I was challenged to think of a useless product. Easy, right? Case in point:

Among my first thoughts were trolls, Snuggies, Baby Wee-Wee Dolls, and of course, the Furby. These products were created for a specific reason and purpose, so it’s impossible to call them or any other product completely useless just because they’re not applicable to my lifestyle. Though lately, I have been puzzled by some newer products that have really set the bar low for innovation.

When competition among industries is strong, a company will usually try to differentiate itself. For consumers, competition provides the opportunity for better, higher quality products that hopefully meet and exceed our expectations. So what does a fast food restaurant do in a moment of weakness when the competition overshadows?

Burger King answered this question with their debut cologne, the BK Flame. The BK Flame is nothing like you’ve smelled before. It’s the beefiest, hottest, juiciest cologne you’ll spray on your man when you’re in the mood for meat. This scent is described as, “the scent of seduction with a hint of fame-broiled meat.” Vegetarians, approach at your own risk.

If a burger smelling cologne isn’t something you’re interested in, there are still plenty of products on the market that may be incredibly “useless” to the majority of the population, but for others, may be up to par. The Potty Putter is perfect for those who need an escape from their everyday bathroom routine. The Potty Putter is marketed to help improve putting, and as extra golf practice.

It’s been researched that we spend approximately 1.5 years in the bathroom, so why not make that experience pleasurable with the Potty Putter? Maybe because it’s totally ridiculous and slightly overpriced. But if you think that’s going to stop me from buying it, you’re completely mistaken. The Potty Putter — your 1-star golf resort.

When you go to the course to show off your recently acquired putting skills, you’re going to need some sort of eye protection. To follow with our tacky product theme, giant bug sunglasses probably come to mind.

But we’re taking this a step further with the most patriotic pair. The USA sunglasses scream rodeo-loving, red-white-and-blue-wearing, flag-waving American — for only $208.

Forget that Lake Huron subjects the wearer to severe UV exposure; they look too good to put safety first. These will make their debut at Frontier Days, so I can make sure I am of the caliber to call myself a true American Westerner. Whether that’s something I should strive for is debatable.

The last product I’ve seen pop up that makes quite a case for being beneficial is the “Infant Pillow.” This pillow replicates a parent’s hands on a child. Sure, this seems like a great idea and very comforting for a baby, but I can’t get past the terror I would undergo when I walk into a child’s room to check on him/her and see these hands emerging from the crib. These hands look like they could develop a mind of their own, or at least be the subject in a horror film.

But we can’t focus on things that only pertain to us. After all, what is one person’s trash is another’s treasure, and what may be useless to me may be of extreme benefit to you.

An original product idea is rare. It seems that inspiration is drawn to create products that are similar with only slight differences. However, whether these products are smelly or delicious, beneficial or time-wasting, stylish or strange, or just plain creepy, it’s great marketing that creates a need for the useless.

Lydia Jorden is a marketing intern at Burns Marketing.

While driving down the street, you’re startled by a billboard depicting a meth addict. Next to the text “Meth Project,” you recognize those red eyes as yours, that sparse hair as the full head you once had, and those freckles on your gray skin confirm that this is indeed you.

You speed up to get as far away from the disturbing image as possible while writing it off as merely someone who has the same features. As you take the next exit, you see a Calvin Klein ad with an attractive male and female physique. You fantasize about running on the beach in a Baywatch-style manner, and continue to look up at the face staring down at you. You then realize the fantasy is real; that’s your face on the model’s body.

This isn’t a delusion; this is the result of advertisers utilizing various technological advancements, including Autodesk 123D Catch, to transform a photo into 3D matter.

This type of facial recognition may soon be mainstream in the near future. Technological advancements constantly enable advertisers to go above and beyond to exert influence in a person’s life. Gone are the days of longing to see yourself in an ad. Advertisers want to make the transition to buying, using, or experiencing a new product as easy as possible so it is no longer necessary to picture yourself in an ad — now they let technology do it for you.

Tracking cookies gives advertisers a glimpse into an Internet user’s surfing tendencies. It can be looked at as mildly intrusive, or it can be looked at as attentive, ensuring that the user is presented with relevant material that adheres to that individual’s lifestyle.

If you don’t live under a rock, you’re going to be advertised to; isn’t it better that the material is related to you?

Face recognition, on the other hand, already exists in advertising. Billboards can detect facial features to identify women from men and then alter ads accordingly. Showing the face of the viewer is simply taking the technology one step further.

Rather than looking at this new technology as disturbing, take a different stance. While browsing in the mall, you no longer need to try on that suit because the advertisement already tries it on for you. Can’t figure out whether to bundle up for Alaska or pack the swimsuit for Hawaii? At least now you can literally see yourself experiencing both places.

The technology creates a more efficient way for advertisers to meet consumer needs without end-user effort.

Advertisers need to place their audiences in a situation to be able to effectively communicate their message, and although I may not have that model’s body in the Calvin Klein ad, I can sure think about what it would be like… or just look up the next time I’m driving.

Lydia Jorden is a marketing intern at Burns Marketing. 

Have you seen what leading titles like Wired, Fast Company, and others are doing with online magazines? Very cool stuff like integrated video, real interactive experiences, social integration, and more – all accessible across mobile, tablet, and desktop platforms. Now, you can launch your own interactive magazine, too. Check out this digital project we just published for HP Enterprise Services, and let us know how we can help you bring your engaging ideas to life in a unique publication: http://www.epageflip.net/t/13229/

We’ve had a lot of internal discussion about engagement marketing lately. Why? Because it represents the culmination of many recent marketing trends: the maturation of the website as a marketing tool, the integration of digital marketing into the marketing mix, and the rise of social media and mobile marketing. Engagement marketing defines successful marketing today. But what is it? Well, our digital marketing director, Tracy Earles, takes a crack at defining it in this two-minute overview.

Hate them we do. Most of them have made us change a channel or two. And some just make us wonder, “What were they thinking?” Here are our least favorite ads of 2011. Did we miss one that makes you cringe?

9. U.S. Postal Service: Yes, we know the post office is struggling – and some of us feel bad about that. After all, it’s still fun to get actual mail, and we’ve had some significant success with direct mail campaigns. But can you honestly say that mailing something is the safest way to deliver a message? We’ve heard the excuse, “it must have gotten lost in the mail,” more than once.

8. Dr. Pepper 10: How do you get men to drink a diet cola? Offend women.

7. New Old Spice Guy Fabio: Replacing the handsome Isaiah with Fabio? The ladies in the office are not pleased. Though some may argue this campaign was really a success – after all, it was so ridiculous it got attention. But really the ads fell flat – just like Fabio’s delivery.

6. Colorado Meth Project: Memorable? Yes. Disturbing? Most definitely so. But does it really work? Probably not. After all, studies have shown scare tactics are usually not effective. But it may have caused a car accident or two on I-25.

5. Old Navy: “High School Musical” is so 2006.

4. Target Christmas: If it weren’t bad enough that Target joined the increasing number of stores ignoring Thanksgiving, these ads sealed the deal. Could they find anything more annoying to blast during our feast of turkey and football?

3. Progressive: Flo, you were fun at first. But your perkiness has run its course, especially when you’re resorting to glitter and unicorns for laughs. Please, for the sake of our sanity, hang up your apron and bid farewell.

2. Herman Cain: First the ad, then the campaign. Both went up in smoke.

1. Kohl’s Black Friday: If a song receives the disgrace of being named the “worst song ever,” is it really wise to remake it into a commercial? And then put it on the television and the radio? That trickling sound that you hear… our ears bleeding. Is there no escaping bad advertising?

Fortunately, we did find a few winners in 2011. We’ll share those next week.

Another Super Bowl is in the books. And while some of us weren’t too excited about the outcome (sorry, Patrick and Jenna), we all felt strongly about a few of the ads.

Our absolute favorite: Volkswagen’s The Force.
Why? Even though the kid was wearing a mask, you felt his emotions. And how about how the helmet jiggled on his head as he staggered backward after the Passat started… But besides the memorable humor and exceptional execution, look at the power of nostalgia and the combined forces of two retro-hip brands. Using the lifelong love of Star Wars to appeal to the childhood memories of dads who are now the target market was pure genius.

A close second: Volkswagen’s Black Beetle. Way to go Volkswagen. This ad was chock-full of vision casting, anticipation building, and pure cleverness. Plus, it positioned the next generation of the iconic car with an “in your face” attitude.

Rounding out our top three: Chrysler’s Imported from Detroit. A two-minute serious commercial right in the heart of the Super Bowl, this one earned our respect. It stood out. Kudos for having the best one-liner: “Imported from Detroit.” It redefines a brand that had been forgotten. And thumps the chest for America and an industry our country created.

So it looks as though the auto industry scored big with Burns Marketing. Other favorites included:

Audi’s Release the Hounds: Old luxury versus new luxury really positions the automaker well against the less impressive, we’ve-seen-it-before Mercedes attempt.

Pepsi Max’s Love Hurts: An edgy ad with an unexpected outcome — and good for a laugh.

Bud Light’s Dog Sitter: What can we say? Sometimes you just want to be entertained, and this one delivered. Dogs playing poker — classic.

In arguably the most useless (and obvious) research ever, social media experts have quantified that cleavage sells stuff.

That’s why it’s no surprise that cleavage thievage has increased dramatically (not proven by research).

Case in point. An online ad in the Coloradoan stole (ya, I said it) a photo taken three years ago at ad:tech San Francisco.

Happens all the time, right? So how are we connected to this story? Our senior copywriter broke the news to the fine folks over at adrants. Turns out that the woman’s strategically placed name badge — which was accentuated by her profitable cleavage — was just the type of picture nefarious ad makers covet. Read the adrants article here

Just goes to show that despite tremendous increase in ad response rates, we need to keep our cleavage to ourselves — otherwise it might get stolen.

Innovative approach by EA Sports to embed their gaming product in the context of sports news. The Nebraska vs. Texas A&M preview video is actually a gaming simulation. Genius!

Of course, it doesn’t hurt that they picked Nebraska to win 27-24. It made Johnny, our account development director, very happy.

August is National Smile Month. So, to celebrate, we’re sharing some of our favorite commercials that always make us smile.

Volkswagen: Un-pimp Your Ride

Snickers: Chefs

FedEx: MBA

Travelers Insurance: Prized Possession

DIRECTV: Russian

E*TRADE: Talking Babies

Minnesota State Lottery: Pizza Party

Old Spice: The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

We’d love to hear from you. Tell us what ads amuse you.