Employees, The Best Marketers

It’s no secret that when a company hits hard times they trim the fat, the unessential dollars spent on benefits, perks and personnel are cut in an effort to save money for the company. In doing so you are creating over-worked employees who now have less to work for than before, but continue to work because they fear they may be on the chopping block next. Although the productivity may seem the same, the quality of work suffers due to tighter deadlines and the never-ending stack of projects your employees need to get through now that there are fewer people in his/her department. What you have created now is lack of motivation and resentment toward the company, which is the worst thing you could do. 

Caring — A Blog Post by Seth Godin

Below is a blurb written by Seth Godin about Caring, it’s quick yet very informative and thought provoking. I have been crying this for years and if you want a successful business you have to keep your employees happy and let them be themselves sometimes. 

Sonic Shows Vampires do have Feelings

Oh Sonic you have done it again! Your ads make me laugh all the time and the new “Ring Leader” spot had me rolling on the floor! Possibly taking advantage of the Vampire craze that is sweeping the nation Sonic has launched a new ad that features their newest addition to the menu the “Ring Leader” burger. A woman is so enthralled by the burger, because of its deliciousness and because onions ward off Vampires, she fails to notice that her date is indeed a Vampire! His claims that garlic is the actual key to keep Vampires away, he would know after all, are put down and the woman continues to bash his kind and how much she hates them. At the end he looks dejected and is tired of keeping his true identity a secret, sad times. See the ad below!

New Era Goes Yard Again

Well Alec and John are at it again with the crazy fanatic ways, well actually it’s really more Alec this time, he’s a crazy Yankee fan and must REALLY hate the Red Sox! Once more solidifying New Era’s stance as being the only choice for authentic MLB licensed hats and to prove they are truly fans of the game they hit another one out of the park and have generated buzz by going the comical route with two very famous people. Now I have said in the past that I don’t believe in celebrity endorsements, but these commercials aren’t an endorsement. New Era and their creative team at Brooklyn Brothers chose two well-known actors to do what they do best, act. In fact neither of them mention the product in the commercial at all, which is in and of itself genius! See the ad here. 

Just Because…

YouTube you really need to check up on your stuff. How’d this happen?

Really? Pretty sure no where near eachother!!!!

The Iced Coffee Phenomenon

I love iced coffee! It’s one of my favorite drinks of all time, even in the winter! It’s hard for me to walk by a Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts without going inside and ordering one! It may even be a small problem, an addiction? I hope not…too expensive! Which brings me to my real point, do you really know what you’re paying for?

Would You Propose at IHOP?

Seriously? I can’t think of any person that would EVER propose marriage at an IHOP! This ad is so ridiculous that I can’t even laugh at the prospect of someone actually doing this! In all honesty if I proposed at ANY fast food restaurant, sorry “casual dining” restaurant, I would expect water to be splashed on my face and then get slapped! Seriously IHOP it was a pretty bad attempt, plus the proposal wasn’t really that cheesy! Watch it here…

Tommy Hilfiger Buys TV for No Reason

So…Tommy Hilfiger decides to go ahead and stage a huge TV buy on cable only to create less brand appeal, my own feeling, by making a pretentious ad that singles out those who live the “upper class” life. I’m not really sure what the point is of this ad, a bunch of preppy kids playing tennis in a completely arrogant and obnoxious fashion, not as obnoxious as Calvin Klein though, while wearing Tommy Hilfiger clothes. I get it, you are marketing toward the upper class and that is fine, that’s your demo, I get it. But isn’t the whole point of a TV buy to reach new consumers? By creating this ad you are already marketing toward the people who are already aware of, and buying, your product. It doesn’t make much sense to me but maybe they should go ahead and re-think their strategy, but what do I know? I don’t wear Tommy…judge for yourself, if you can make it through the ad…

Rocksmith and How they Won Me Over

If you are an avid reader of this blog you probably read my rant on the need for a creative team to deliver a branded message within five-seconds of the start of their YouTube ads, especially if you want people to continue to watch. Well Rocksmith has done just that! Now I should put a disclaimer out there letting you know that I am a sucker for interactive music games which definitely peaked my interest and probably led to me watching the majority of the three-minute video, but that’s the point, isn’t it? Shot so it would look like a “behind the scenes” feature at South By South West the ad kicks off with an attractive young lady who is overly enthusiastic about the product, so enthusiastic it’s the reason it caught my attention. I continued to watch the ad, which clocked in at over three-minutes, until I figured out what the product was, and it’s a brilliant idea.

Ford Puts Customers on the Spot

Ford you sneaky, sneaky little devils! Very clever putting your customers on the spot in front of a room full of “reporters” hounding them with questions on why Ford is so great. But wait, we are supposed to believe this is a real testimonial from drivers? With questions like “what do you love most about Ford?” clearly this is a way to boost their own ego. Now, before you think I’ve gone all CRAZY and everything. I know, it’s a commercial, they are supposed to only put positive reinforcement behind their company, I get it. But, let’s be real, no press conference would ever be as civil as this, and if they were real reporters I think the questions may be a little harder than “Tell us why you LOVE Ford”. If you haven’t seen these ads you can see the full campaign here.