Message from paradise...

Suntory time....deja vu

Didn't Rachel Bilson see "Lost in Translation?"

 

 

 

 

need to sell some shoes? give away free beer.

Absolutely love this product launch from Puma. It ranks up there with my favorite beer commercials of all time....even though it's not a beer commercial. Similar to Hyundai producing an exceptional marketing campaign for the batery industry. That's marketing leadership.

 

 

 

 

Beer Advertising Hall of Fame

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

this is a cause I can get behind!

Check out this P&G-backed clean water initiative. It's one of those (rare!) cause marketing efforts that does a great thing while featuring and promoting a product in a tasteful way.

Oh, and this is one of the coolest product demos I've seen in ages. If you agree, visit their Facebook page to help send some funds to a good cause.

 

Van Damme Friday is feelin' a little French-Canadian today

greatest cover letter EVER

We're currently on the hunt for a copywriter and this is an actual email I received this morning. 

It could be the greatest job solicitation I've ever read. Ever.

The true identity of the author has been suppressed to protect the innocent....

Fantastic.

 

Very clever pricing, Mr. Bond.

So I'm in a Renaissance Hotel last week, go to login to the hotel WiFi and get presented two options: DSL speed for $14.95 or T1 speed ("recommended for streaming video") for $24.95.

Hmm. I ask myself, "Why two tiers of speed?"

With no reason coming to mind, I forget about it.

Fast forward a few hours - and I swear to you I wasn't going looking for it! - as I turn on the LodgeNet system on the tv, I notice something's amiss. Something's not there. Something like....

 

And then it hits me. Marriott's pulled porn off the air. I'm not judging at this point, but admittingly I'm curious. Turns out, they (ahem...) yanked porn over a year ago. How'd I miss that important announcement?!

 

What I love is that Marriott is supposedly "taking a stand against porn" yet they're offering streaming-quality WiFi for a premium price. 

Hmm. Taking a stand, or taking advantage of a national trend? 

 

More than anything else, I salute Marriot for a brilliant pricing strategy. Well played.

oh, you wench!

So I'm walking through the grocery store early Sunday morning, headed down the frozen aisle toward the milk and something catches my eye. I do a double take, stop in my tracks and hear an employee halfway down the aisle say to me, "You found the wench, didn't you?" Oh, yeah, all five varities of the wench.

Sure, it caught my attention. And of course, the brand name made me laugh. But am I going to purchase a $7 bag of pre-made pasta called The Wench? Only if it's well paired with.....

Got me thinking, inevitably, of how many other regrettably, unfortunately named brands I could think of. The list isn't nearly as long as I'd have thought.

 

freakin' awesome commercial of the day

OK, this Mt. Dew ad really is pretty freakin' awesome. And imagine how the uber-caffeinated 20-somethings who drink Mt. Dew feel about it?!

 

This makes my list of 2012's coolest FX in advertising along with these gems.

 

 

 

 

And, an all-time classic.....

 

bow chicka bow wow, Grandma!

I'd heard the disturbing facts before, but this campaign certainly shines a spotlight, doesn't it?

 

 

 

does cause marketing have a cause anymore?

The Recession pretty well crushed cause marketing initiatives over the last several years. Conversely, cause-driven companies who are founded purely on "social goodness" like TOMS, Warby Parker and Patagonia have done extremely well.

Judging from two recent pushes from WalMart and ExxonMobil, I'm guessing that the Recession's over and that they can stop plowing those cause initiative dollars into the bottom line.

Call me cynical, but why'd it take so long for the WORLD'S largest and third-largest companies to recommit? That said, education and hunger are perfect causes for each to rally around because, hey, Exxon needs smart employees and WalMat is the world's largest grocer. This isn't to say I'm not tickled that they're leading the charge with big, audacious calls to action, because I am. I'm just a little skeptical of their true commitment. 

(As an aside, is that Christian Slater doing to voice over in the Exxon spot?)