Remeber this one? Jesus, listened to it three times back to back. Didn’t even remember it was on my iPod. Thanks Shuffle Feature!
And being alone is the best way to be.
When I’m by myself it’s the best way to be.
When I’m all alone it’s the best way to be.
When I’m by myself nobody else can say goodbye.
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Don Imus is once again under scrutiny for making racially charged remarks on his "Imus in the Morning" program, but it doesn't appear it will make a difference to advertisers this time around. The last media storm the shock jock created prompted advertisers such as Procter & Gamble and General Motors to pull their ad spending from CBS Radio and MSNBC, where his show also appeared. But his new gig at Citadel Communications' ABC Radio Networks has yet to attract any of those major advertisers.
CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — General Mills reported impressive fourth-quarter and full-year earnings this morning, citing increased marketing spending and the company's "right size, right price" initiative. Net sales and net earnings were up double digits.
To be perfectly honest, I don’t know much about the HBO “Voyeur” thing that won a lot of Lions last week. Seems that it involved a lot of production in all kinds of media. But apparently, an agency that worked with BBDO to produce the idea thinks it deserves more credit. From Ad Age:
In an interview, Michael Lebowitz, co-founder and CEO of Big Spaceship, one of the shops instrumental in executing “Voyeur,” criticized both BBDO and the awards system for not giving due credit to his firm for its role in a campaign that crossed from outdoor to digital to film. The campaign picked UP a number of awards at festivals this year, and in Cannes it earned two Grand Prix trophies in the outdoor and promotion categories, five Golds, a Silver and a Bronze in media, cyber, design promotion and film, with the bulk of the credit attributed to BBDO, New York.
In an e-mailed statement, [BBDO CCO David] Mr. Lubars said his agency, as “the source of the idea,” deserves the credit it received.
“Ideas are timeless,” the statement read. “Ideas are what inspire people. Ideas are the root of all execution. On ‘Voyeur,’ BBDO thought of the idea, shot the idea, then brought in Big Spaceship to do what they do. They did a great job (and we’ve made every effort to acknowledge them). What’s the issue? Maybe Cannes should consider the idea of a Palme d’Or for digital production.”
Many shops, particularly interactive ones, partner up with big agencies to execute ideas. So is there a proper way for everyone to get credit? Because it’s all about recognition, it seems.
American Copywriter left a telling comment on Gods of Advertising.
Let’s take a look:
There are light and dark sides to everything. It’s good celebrate exceptional creative. But there’s no perfect way to do it. And without results attached, well, it’s really about what’s wonderful in and of itself, yes? Are scams a sin? Without question. But unlike poaching no one dies. And, while it’s easy to shake your head about the whole thing (particularly from the seat of a mid-sized indie shop) we have to consider what motivates the creation (and sweaty anticipation) of this kind of work. I believe it has less to do with ego and more to do with money. Awards (and the bigger the better) equal better paychecks, more career options, more sex and, yes, more weeks in France with the agency credit card. Follow the money. Clients pay for award-winning agencies (even if they might complain later that it’s all the creatives really care about). Agency CEOs and ECDs pay for award-winning creatives (even though they might later grouse about attitude). The truth is no creative is born with a need for hunks of metal and lucite. Creatives indulge in producing this work because they get “paid†to do it. We may not like it but, as agency leaders and clients, we need to acknowledge our responsibility for it. If we start paying for some other measure of success and we’ll see a change.
Steffan Postaer, the site’s host, agrees and says we ought to start calling awards, “rewards.” I’m in. From now on, I’ll rail against the inanity of Reward Shows.
The three consciously-casual males at left aren’t new contenders for The Bachelorette.
Fred Wilson wants to get serious and break out of the 2.0 box.
I am a bit jealous of friends who are working on finding and funding alternative energy or biomedical technologies that have the potential to address the serious problems facing the world. At times it seems that helping the web become more social, intelligent, mobile, and playful is not as impactful.
The work that we do at Union Square Ventures can’t just be about making money. At least that’s not enough for me. It has to be a force for positive social change. It needs to be about making the world a better place for our children and their children.
I feel the same way. In fact, I’ve always harbored the idea that someday the work I do in this business might be needed by companies or movements that truly are important. That all I’m doing now is preparation for that, as yet unspoken, need.
Loving the “Maestro” spot for HP’s TouchSmart PC. It’s a striking but natural development from the more casual “Hands” campaign.
YORK, Pa. (AdAge.com) — When it comes to advertising in and around schools, marketers should consider skipping children altogether and going straight to the top: mom. In a recent survey by School Family Media, the majority of mothers involved in parent-teacher groups said promotional materials aimed at parents are more acceptable than those aimed at kids.
To promote yet another limited edition vehicle, the xD RS, Scion went all Hot Lava. The subsite features a bubbling volcano with a gray xD RS in the foreground; an explosion of lava makes it that wild red-orange color we love so much.
Another day, another viral campaign where you have to squint to find the culprit. This time it’s Gatorade, whose “Amazing ball girl catch†has gotten a few hundred thousand views on YouTube (although much of the traffic seems to be coming from debunking posts like those on Deadspin and Snopes). I always have mixed feelings on these kinds of videos, especially when they only take off after being revealed as marketing projects. Still, if you know a video is the work of an ad agency—in this case, Chicago’s Element 79—and you still go watch it, they must be doing something right.
—Posted by David Griner
Hey, who says social networking is only for 20-somethings? Not Lamato Network which claims to be aimed at people 32-54
Alan Wolk wants to be an architect, not a builder. Me too.
Years ago, when I worked at the legendary Anderson & Lembke, Steve Trygg (who started the shop) was fond of saying that “an ad agency can be the contractor or it can be the architect. And you always want to be the architect.â€
Wolk argues that typically ad men and women are not architects today.
We’ve turned ourselves into the contractors. The guys who make the ads. Who cares about the strategy, who cares about the actual product, if the ads are funny and clever and likely to win awards?
And clients get that. They get that in spades.
That’s why they turn to PR agencies like Edelman and strategy shops like Naked and even management consulting firms like Bain and McKinsey to do all the work their agencies should be doing. Because they know that too many agencies can’t even be bothered to use Google to see if the product actually lives up to the brief.
Harsh, but true. I’m so close to it, I sometimes forget just how clueless ad people can be. The fakery at Cannes was a good reminder. And there are many more reminders in our day-to-day existence in this business.
Perhaps, you’d care to share a “Yes, we’re clueless” story with us.
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Last week in Cannes, BBDO's campaign for HBO brought home the Omnicom Group-owned agency and its creative chief, David Lubars, a lot of hardware. Now "Voyeur" is offering a tense look inside the often uncomfortable relationships between ad agencies and digital specialists when it comes to the question of who takes credit for award-winning work.
LONDON – Publicis Groupe’s Vivaki, the ad giant’s digital initiative announced earlier today, has unveiled deals with Google, Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft to boost clients’ ability to target online users.
LONDON – Digital and direct agency OgilvyOne London has appointed Chris Lonie as creative partner for British Gas.
LONDON – Prospect Swetenhams has enhanced the Johnston Press list it manages with added lifestyle and transactional data and is also offering clients the ability to access research panels through Johnston Press.
LONDON – The BBC will tomorrow launch a new version of its on-demand service iPlayer, that will integrate its TV and radio content in one place for the first time.
LONDON – Turner Broadcasting and MySpace have signed a deal under which lads’ channel Nuts TV and comedy animation brand Adult Swim will launch channels on MySpaceTV.
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