No magick in interruptive advertising

Here's my personal take on why classical interruption ads don't work any more as they used to.

Think of advertising as a dominant and controlling type of person in a social group. He exudes power, authority and influence upon this group... but only to a certain point! As soon as the group starts perceiving him on a conscious level, for example becoming aware of his manipulation tricks (body posture, eye contact, voice, etc.) - his credibility and influence on this group starts to wane rapidly.

The same is happening to the classical format of advertising. It's been around for too long for consumers to learn almost every trick of the trade. Look at the growing trend of online advertising contests where "amateurs" are imitating "professionals" and produce their own ads.
(AdHack, Poptent, Eyeka to name a few)

In other words, consumers became well conscious of the method and therefore immune to it.

Of course, there are still some ad-literate laggards left in the world, but they are no longer a dominant majority and their numbers are constantly dwindling.

To summarize: it is not enough to communicate a selling proposition and put a logo with a slogan in the end. It's too obvious for increasingly critical consumers. I believe that the future credibility of advertising will depend on two main factors:

1. more subtle formats (seeking innovative methods of product placement, for example)
2. integrity of the message ( lovertising / ethics)

here's a classic interruption ad for laggards:



and this one experience engaging for more enlightened ones : )

Benjamin Fulford's vision of the future

Armed also with a contagiously optimistic vision of the future, Benjamin is fully prepared to be the next Finance Minister for Japan. His plans for how he would spend Japan's $5 trillion of foreign reserves to eliminate global poverty are plausible and inspiring as practical steps, way beyond rhetoric, to repair the generations of damage done by a ruthless ruling elite. This is a man with a deep understanding of both East and West, a global economic historian who thinks way outside of the box, a lover of peace who is unafraid to speak warrior words.

In this comprehensive three part video, the first two parts focus on global financial history and Benjamin's most interesting personal story leading up to his approach by the Ninja. The third part contains the details of The Ultimatum itself.




And his interview with David Rockefeller:

A tribute to the cheesy 80's..

Total Eclipse of the Heart: Literal Video Version

The future of advertising

Prediction: Brand vs Customer video wars

Here's a case at hand: United vs United customers

"Carroll and his band, Sons of Maxwell, decided to write a song about the incident, called 'United Breaks Guitars' and posted the video on YouTube, which has been viewed nearly half a million times since July 6.

United caught wind of the video and apologised to the singer for the dispute, issuing a statement via Twitter, which read: "This has struck a chord [with] us and we've contacted him directly to make it right." source Revolution



After watching this one can only sympathize with the makers of the video.
I wouldn't be surprised to see in the near future more videos like this one coming from ordinary pissed off customers using digital media and expressing their grievances in an artistic way . For example: private videos that make fun of bad customer service in a restaurant, or unfair treatment of insurance company, or just about any product or service a consumer finds a fault with.

This video is a kind of celebrity endorsement for it.

Benefits:

For video makers - fame and recognition
For customers - improvement of the product (brands can't afford to ignore it)
For brands - improvement of the product (and customer relationships)

here's a link to my previous post about a pissed off customer burning his creditcard and making a public statement about it.

Best Job in the World

An open letter to my former boss Jean-Remy von Matt:

Idea: Daily Mirror Special Edition

Why not to have a special event when Daily Mirror online display goes literally mirror?
Imagine you go online to check out news and instead of a normal display you see a mirror image (click to enlarge):



those who have difficulty to read backwards can always click on "normal view" button.
the idea would work as a total surprise and generate a lot of buzz.
for the 1st of April addition, perhaps?

Comment: Great product, silly slogan

the link

why use meaningless and silly slogans for such a great experience that this french company is offering? Enjoying the stars (instead of conquering them) at least makes sense.

Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul In The Streets

a brilliant idea from BBH to let street musicians remix and play songs from Oasis's upcoming album. So simple, so viral.



I wonder why not to let each street artist their own live video streams on the internet? Each profile will have a google map with current location of the artist and a paypal donate button. See my previous idea for beggarcam.com as an example.

Desmond Dekker: feline rmx

one day i woke up in my hut to discover a wild cat mother and a kitten lying next to me.
the mother, probably fearing for the safety of her kitten (dogs, crows, etc), decided to move her family to my bungalow. they stayed for over a week until the kitten was big enough to climb down the staircase.

Spacecollective.org

This is a link definitely worth sharing: Spacecollective.org is a place where forward thinking terrestrials exchange ideas and information about the state of the world we create and inhabit. Inspiring and insightful. Here are a couple of the introductory videos from the site:

Idea: A Fight Tank (mobile emergency service)

Problem: How many times did you have an argument with someone and later really regretted that you didn't record it? It could be for reasons of personal record, entertainment value, educational value or even as a legal evidence.

Solution: Why not to set up a service that offers a special mobile room where customers can sort out their differences in an organized and fruitful manner?

A FightTank van, for example, that can be easily rented out when you need to have that serious talk with someone. Click on pic to enlarge:


All arguments are automatically recorded by installed inside cameras for further study or references. The service promotes a constructive argument and personal awareness.

(A set of disposable vases to smash around is available upon the request.)

Couples who seek an objective opinion may also choose to get their tapes analyzed by an independent specialist (i.e. as a free bonus for customer loyalty :)

Mobility of the service also let's the customers to choose appropriate settings for their disputes, for example, a countryside waterfall, a back street alley, a fairground car park, etc.

Happiness project

Wise men tell us: Unhappiness is caused by our excess of desires and worries over trifle things. Here's a simple idea to communicate it:



Also works on street waste/litter baskets, rubbish bins, etc.

The idea would work for a public health organization, a psychotherapist, spiritual website, etc.

Idea: McPorn

Anti fast food guerilla project idea: large stickers over McDonald's outdoor ads featuring naked obese models:

Idea: Interactive ad on Youtube

United by trivia.

i don't know, maybe it's just me.. but after spending some time out of the system you come back to civilization and look at things afresh... and you see rather psychotic stuff....here's what i mean:


Is the community really obsessed with such trivial bonding ...or is it some kind of conspiracy? )

A healthier option, perhaps:

Audition for a revolution

It's random, but I like it.


“Auditions for a Revolution“, 2006 by Irina Botea.

Idea: LeBay is the new eBay

Strategic reasoning: In the time of recession people tend to buy less and share more. So why not to design a new product that would let people auction their items only for temporary use?
It’s like leasing meets ebay. Let’s call it LeBay for example:




As part of marketing strategy to launch the site we invite special celebrity guests to rent out some of their personal items to general public. The money raised from their rented out belongings will go to a charity of their choice. i.e. Madonna rents out her old sofa to support hungry children in Africa, or Ronaldo rents out his car to support decriminalization of marijuana, whatever.

Idea: Treeman

Concept idea for Treehugger, perhaps?

Idea: Puma Reflex

I was jogging the other night... and nearly run over some dosy street cat. So I thought, why not to have a special night glowing sneaker and call it REFLEX? I know that light reflective sneakers aren't anything new, but what the heck, I wanna do my own design.

Here's what I would like to wear next time in a dark alley at night:



A banner (above) and the product itself (below)