The Controversy Bowl?

Ads were going for 2.5-3 million dollars per 30-second spot, but CBS announced that they were sold out on Monday.  The only spots that remain are very few available for pre and post-game.

The advertisers on the list this year include a few newbies: Kia, Flo TV, HomeAway, KGB, Focus on the Family, the US Census Bureau, and truTV.  Returning advertisers will be: Anheuser-Busch, Hyundai, Audi, Dodge, Cars.com, CareerBuilder, Coca-Cola, E*Trade, and Walt Disney, Paramount, and Universal will be promoting upcoming films.  Not on the list this year, a gay-dating website called mancrunch.com.  Last week, CBS announced that it was rejecting the advertisement.

I will not interject my personal politics here, I will simply say that I’ve seen the ad and it looks more like a publicity stunt.

What do you think?  Should the Superbowl be able to be used as a platform for politics and religion?  I want to hear your thoughts on this.  I’m really interested to know.

Until next time, be sure to follow us on Twitter!

Toyota faces brand devastation after recall.

On January 21st, Toyota announced that they were recalling 2.3 million vehicles.  Then, on January 26th, they halted the sale of these vehicles and have shut down production of them until a resolve for the issue is reached.  The company is losing an estimated $400 million dollars a week as long as sales and production are suspended, according to an article on adage.com.

This comes in the wake of a recall announced Nov. 25 2009, of four million vehicles because of a similar issues that they are still attempting to resolve.  According to a press release issued by Toyota today, they are working on settling the issue of both recalls at the same time.

How can Toyota come back from this?  Can they come back from this?

“What’s made them a great car company is that their brand was all about consistency. Consumers always knew what they were getting with Toyota, and this has to give people serious doubts about what they are getting. This blows up that idea of consistency that has surrounded them for so long.” –Mark Hass, CEO and partner of MH Group Communications and the recently named president of Edelman China

The a fore mentioned article hearkens this event to the great Tylenol debacle of 1982.

Johnson & Johnson wrote the textbook on crisis communications when seven people died in Chicago after several bottles of Tylenol were tampered with and laced with cyanide in 1982. J&J’s prompt and proactive move to inform and reassure consumers with a national ad campaign remains the industry gold standard nearly 30 years after the event. Toyota’s comparative lack of response almost seems a textbook example of what not to do.  (Ad Age: Billion-Dollar Battle Ahead for Toyota to Rebound From Recall)

At the time, Tylenol only came back from the atrocity because of Johnson&Johnson’s proactive approach to the situation.  Toyota, for the most part, has remained silent about the issue of the recall.

What do you think they should be doing?  Why do you think they are not doing anything about the issue of their brand?  The view of Toyota in the past few months has taken a dive for the worst according to most analysts.  We can assume there will be short term damage, but what about long term?

We would really like to hear your thoughts on this.  What would you do if the brand you were responsible for took a hit as big as this one?

I hope everyone has had a great start to the semester, this will be my last one.  As usual, I will try to maintain frequent updates and as usual, I would love to hear your comments!  Give me something to respond to, your input is valuable.

Please follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.

Have a great semester everyone!

Missing the “Target”

I promise that in 2010 I will use more sources for my blogs.  I promise this to you loyal readers.  I know there is more out there, but Ad Freak always appeals to me.  I also promise to bring up public relations more often, as I attempt to learn more about the field.  These are my early resolutions to you.

And now for some holiday cheer, compliments of Target.

…awkward, uncomfortable, unsettled, nervous, just plain uneasy… do you commonly associate these words with the holiday season?  I do not, but someone thinks that it is a good way to set Target into people’s minds this time of year.  Target’s new ad campaign is anything, but expected.  This might be due in part to a new agency handling their advertising.

I will admit, Target’s advertising has never really stood out to me… it was usually a lot of products and people dancing across the screen with music set in the background (most notably to me, the “When you say goodbye, I say hello” track).  It got to the point where I could not tell the difference between Target, JC Penney, Kohl’s, and even Sears was getting in on the picture.  Target ads were easy to identify, until everyone else started doing the same thing.  The first time I noticed Target breaking out of the mold was with their Thanksgiving ads.

It was weird, it was freaky, it was so, very, not the Target we had come to know and love.  Did we like it?  It was kind of amusing, but mostly, creepy.  The ads bothered me, but I still shop at Target.  And then the Christmas season is upon us, and the agency gives us even more strange holiday ads… featuring things like the unwanted gift, the idea of thinking someone spent too much on you, holiday envy, Santa needing help, etc.  These are all common holiday things, but Target twisted it into a new, strange thing.

The Target Holiday 09 campaign is built upon a single, simple truth–the products you buy at Target are of such high quality that people naturally assume you’ve spent more on them that you did. Target helps Mom and Dad be holiday heroes, without having to compromise expectations or feel guilty for spending more than they should.

–Weiden+Kennedy’s website

Oh, is that what they were trying to do…?  I think they missed the “Target.”  It seemed more like they were supporting the idea of parents being angry at each other for spending too much money and creating awkward situations for the kids, neighbors disliking you for all the money you have, buying your girlfriend something that is too expensive, etc.  I did find the spot with the kids recording their dad amusing because it reminded me of something that might happen on Christmas morning.

I can see now what the agency was trying to do, inform people that Target has low prices on great stuff and it might fool others just how great the deals are.  Although it did make the ads stand out to me, I was not necessarily pleased with the effect.  However, anything is better than the Gap holiday ads.

What do you think?  Questions and comments are welcome.  Be sure to follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.

I’ll be back next week with the best ads of 2009 and what to expect from the industry in 2010.  I wish you and yours very happy holidays!

HP webcam is racist…?

While doing my rounds, this story on Wired caught my attention.. “HP investigates claim of ‘racist’ computers.”  At first I was going to post this as an, ohmygod the PR team has a tough situation on their hands, better have that crisis management manual handy… and actually believe that it was a real claim.  But, then, I started to think….. this video looks suspiciously intentional.

Here is the story: “Black Desi” and his co-worker “White Wanda” are playing with their new HP computer.  Now, Desi is having an issue with the camera, it does not recognize his movements.  Why are his movements not recognized, because he is black.  Every time his co-worker Wanda (who is white) comes into frame, the camera follows her movements.  But, the moment Desi appears, the software stops working.  The camera refuses to follow his movements.  Desi is furious!  He bought this computer for his wife for Christmas!  He is going to come right out and say it, “Hewlett-Packard computers are racist.”

Why… in the world HP would do this…?  I have no idea, that is the only flaw in the possible, this might be an ad, part of my thoughts.  This is a PR firestorm, no company would intentionally influence an entire race to not buy their products, right?  It seems like no company would be that stupid.  But, I now know what the product is, I know how it works, I know who makes it and I know how to use it.  At the same time, I am appalled that it does not work on black faces.

I’ll come out and say it right here, I believe this might be a desperate advertising attempt from HP.  But, it would be rather unwise if it really is that.

I’ve done quite a bit of research on this topic since initially viewing the video, as far as I can tell, no one else has come to my conclusion, so it is possible that I am incorrect.  Like I said, it would be a terrible public relations move.

Read more about “HP computers are racist” at these sources:

Youtube: The actual video.

mashable.com: An interview with the creators of the video.

HP: An open letter to the public about the matter.

Do you have any thoughts on this video?  Am I completely off the handle to accuse them of a media ploy?  I might be… I’ve been wrong before… certain things about the video just seem suspect to me.  But, the fact that this is just terrible for their PR leads me to believe I am wrong.  Tell me what you think.  I would love to hear from you.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.

Apologies for the hiatus once again…

The semester is over and now I can get back to the important things in life, blogging! Seriously though, I have been crazy busy these past few weeks, I do apologize to the loyal readers who have been hoping for new content.

I hope you have been visiting our Cafepress store to check out the latest merchandise. We enjoy the fact that our students always try to “Think Out Loud,” and want them to show it off. Visit the store here.

Today’s topic of choice is just for fun, but maybe for a bit of learning.  Have you ever wondered why popular things on the internet are so popular?  Why something goes viral and something else falls flat?  How certain videos get the Google-juices flowing while others sink rather than float?  One thing that we as advertising and public relations students need to be looking at is, in fact, the power of the internet.  We need to learn why these events transpire.  The better we understand why a video goes viral, the more likely we are to harness the power of the internet.

There is one, very important thing to remember… the internet is completely random and unpredictable and though people can understand how it happened, it is still quite hard to tell just why.

Check out the informative videos about situations that went viral on Rocketboom’s blog “Know Your Meme.”  Obviously, what they investigate here are viral memes.  A meme, according to Dictionary.com is, “a unit of cultural information, such as a cultural practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another.”  Examples of popular internet memes include, ‘David After Dentist,’ ‘Numa Numa,’ and ‘Boom Goes the Dynamite.’

We can learn from the viral ability of these memes.  By studying why something explodes into the internet, maybe we can get closer to understanding our consumers.  However, like I said before, the internet is not predictable… it is quite a wild beast.  Still, visit the links and check out the stories, it is quite interesting to see why these videos erupted into internet fame.

I offered a bit of fun today, Tomorrow and Wednesday I will keep you updated on the latest news, but Christmas is a time for relaxing with your loved ones and I will take the next few days, following, off.

Be sure to follow our Twitter for the latest updates!

Our Cafepress store is here!

After about three weeks of diligent work from my fellow Ad+PR student worker, Katie Lasiter and I, our Cafepress store is online and ready for the holiday season.  A project that started as a class assignment is now a fully operational store.  Throughout the next week we will be adding more products, but it is certainly ready for shoppers right now.  We are always striving for our students to “Think Out Loud,” be sure to show it off!

Think Out Loud… What does that mean to you? To the WKU Ad+PR program, it is the essence of who we are. Students are encouraged to solve problems in innovative ways. We support communication that is creative and strategic, refreshing yet effective. To achieve that, you must Think Out Loud. If you have a passion for Thinking Out Loud, show it off!

If anyone has no idea what Cafepress is, I will explain.  Cafepress is simply an online community of storefronts.  Their website averages about 11 million unique visits every month, two-thousand new shops are created daily, there are around forty-five thousand new and unique products added daily, and their users have created a catalog of over 250 million products.  At Cafepress it is all about you.

But, what does this mean to the program?  It means that eventually we will have a fully functioning store in excess of 100 different kinds of products and we do not have to order them or store them anywhere.  The products are only made when they are ordered, it is really that simple.

Cafepress uses nine different printing processes to accomplish such a feat.  These processes are: digital press printing, thermal wax resin printing, sublimination, digital inkjet, large formal digital inkjet, large format digital solvent-based inkjet, direct printing, heat transfer, and InfiniStitch Embroidery.  To read more about the processes, visit Cafepress.

All we had to do was get the store online, give you the best quality for your dollar, and give you the means to access the store.  Well, I suppose that last one belongs to the internet.  That’s it, it was really that simple… but now it’s your turn.

Buy our stuff! Visit the store!

…quite simply.  Show your support for your program!  All proceeds from the sales go to WKU AdFed.  Want to benefit from the sales?  Join AdFed!  You do not have to be an advertising major!  We accept all kinds!  We’re just looking for students with a drive to grow as individuals during their college years.  Contact Abbie Leali, 09-10 Chapter President (abbie.leali247@wku.edu), Katie Lasiter, 09-10 Co-V. President (kathleen.lasiter@wku.edu), or Bill Burdett, 09-10 Co-V. President (william.burdett423@wku.edu) for more information.

Hopefully once the insanity of the end of the semester is over I can get back to blogging on a normal basis, many apologies for the large hiatus.  Be sure to follow our Twitter for the latest updates!

And follow our Twitter for Cafepress for the greatest deals!

Colbert’s attack on Miracle Whip gets serious.

Many apologies for being away so long, they’ve had me busy here working on a video for a recent personal branding seminar.  It still needs a bit of tweaking, but I will have it up shortly.  I am actually excited about getting back to my blogging thing.  As the semester winds down and winds up at the same time, blogging is actually calming to me and I learn quite a bit at the same time.  In the spirit of things, this is a less-than serious entry.  A quick note, I am still making strides to contact KVBPR about their history, I just have not had the time, but will hopefully contact them in the next week or so.

With that out of the way… since when do fake tv anchors have so much power?

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have been delighting (or upsetting) the Comedy Central audience for quite a few years now.  A Time magazine poll even shows that Jon Stewart is the most trusted news anchor in the United States with 44% of the votes, Brian Williams comes in second with 29%.  Kind of scary that we place the most trust in a fake news anchor.

However, I digress.  In their time these guys have started quite a few notable “feuds.”  Events such as Stewart’s war with Jim Cramer and Colbert’s war with the Emmys (he has been nominated many times, but has never won).  On October 15th, Colbert decided in midst of Miracle Whip’s new campaign declaring that they will “not tone it down,” that he would become pro-Mayo.  These feuds gain a surprising amount of ground and sometimes result in action from those that were targeted.  And Miracle Whip is no exception.

Colbert decided to create an ad for Mayo, similar to Miracle Whip’s ad in favor of his love for Mayo.

I realize how silly all of this sounds, a feud about condiments?  Really?  Why is this important?  Well, this presented Miracle Whip with a huge opportunity to reach the audience that they were targeting, Colbert’s viewers.  It is not a secret that our generation gets most of their news from Stewart and Colbert, what better way to reach them then to return fire from their hero’s attack?

Introduce the brilliant team behind this campaign, mcgarrybowen.  Their strategy for Colbert’s “attack,” buy space in each ad segment that runs during his show.  Then, run a letter to him in newspapers across the country, declaring that they are not standing down, they are “raising hell.”  Next, go a step further and target the ads directly at him.  Miracle Whip’s team ran three ads on November 12th declaring that they, “will not tone it down… Stephen.”  Stephen admitted defeat during the show, but he did get in the last word, declaring, “Miracle Whip, I know when I’ve been bested.  Thank you for buying ad time on my show. Because let’s face it, revenue is down throughout the television industry, and I could certainly use the money. To buy more delicious mayonnaise!”

The only thing that concerns me about the whole thing is that maybe it was one ridiculous marketing stunt, but I do not really care to find out the truth.  The point is, it was entertaining, people actually paid attention to Miracle Whip for once (don’t be so Mayo), and Colbert still got the last word.  However, his Mayo ad still makes me a bit sick to my stomach.

For additional information: Read about Colbert’s attack here.  Read about Miracle Whip’s response here.  Read about Colbert’s defeat here.  And watch the three Miracle Whip spots here.

In the spirit of the festivities, thus being the release of the new Twilight movie tomorrow night, tomorrow’s post is all about the shiny vampire, Edward and Volvo.  No, you didn’t read that wrong… Volvo teamed up with Twilight.  Yeah.  My thoughts on this tomorrow morning.

Until next time, don’t forget to follow our Twitter!  And comments are welcome and greatly appreciated!

Retweets: A science?

This seems like a fitting topic since my last entry about KVBPR and paramore|redd was in fact noticed and retweeted by KVBPR.  Aileen Katcher, a consultant at KVBPR, noticed that I did not have the history for the company and she will be providing me with it.  I will add this to the post as soon as I receive it.  I guess this crazy social media stuff does work!

Today’s post focuses on retweeting on Twitter.  While I was looking for some actual public relations news to write about, since I tend to neglect the subject because I do not know very much about it… I came across ‘The Science of Retweets on Twitter,’ on Brian Solis’ blog “PR 2.0.”  Solis gives an overview of a report, from a study conducted by the social media and viral marketing scientist, Dan Zarella, that breaks apart the different elements of a retweet.

Wow, that is a mouthful, I’ll let the words of Solis explain Zarella’s study:

Zarrella studied the science of retweets over a period of nine months to discern the attributes and characteristics of tweets that spawned memes and those that didn’t. His sampling group was not insignificant either. He analyzed roughly five million tweets and 40 million retweets to discover the art and science of getting retweeted.

-Brian Solis

Before I go any further, I should probably explain what a retweet is, for those out there that have no idea what I’m talking about.  Retweeting, in the most basic sense, is the act of reposting a tweet that you like or appreciate.  It could be a link, something that you find amusing or interesting, or anything really.  Retweeting is a way to show the original tweeter that you like what they said and you want your followers to see it as well.  Need an example?  Here is the retweet that I discovered this morning and I was additionally quite excited about:

Twitter does not even have a defined way to retweet, you merely type “RT” before the tweet and post the content.  This may seem like an odd, pointless practice, but it’s one of the hottest elements of Twitter.  It is always great to get recognized for something.  You can read the entire article here or you can check out my summary after the jump.

Feature: Ad+PR agencies in Nash-Vegas

Nash-Vegas, sorry for the cheesiness.  I have a lot of… planned blogs, however I have not written a lot of my planned blogs.  Apologies for that, they keep me rather busy here.  I’m attempting to catch up on them.  The tactics begin with an agency feature on Nashville, Tennessee.

I selected two agencies, one for public relations and one for advertising, of course.  The system I selected them with was not all that complicated… more of a go with what my professors talk about, situation.

Speaking of Nash-Vegas, without further ado, I present: KVBPR (Katcher Vaughn & Bailey) and paramore|redd (Online Marketing).

KVBPR is a full-service public relations agency.  Their areas of practice include corporate social responsibility, crisis management, public affairs, media relations, marketing and corporate communications.  I’ve searched their site over and over again and I cannot find a history of their company, however they do feature a very neat tour of their building and some very in-depth client success stories.  Also, scroll down a bit to see the very cool entrance to their office, very non-conventional, I like it.

Additionally, KVBPR has a section on their site featuring their idea of the practice of public relations.  It is a three-step pyramid involving: aligning interests (identify, execute, determine), building relationships (craft, build, define) and creating success (implement, perform, re-engineer).  Certainly check that one out.

Although KVBPR is a certified small-business, this company has big ideas and they get things done.  They also have a paid internship program that is worth a look if you’re interested in the Nashville area.  You can read more about it here.

KVBPR is located in the landmark L&C tower in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.  You can contact them at jobs@kvbpr.com.  More contact information: 401 Church Street, Suite 2100, Nashville, TN 37219.  Or call them at: 615.248.8202.  If you visit the site, you can get direct numbers to specific employees and go straight to the top at KVBPR.

paramore|redd is not your typical agency… so much not your typical agency that they additionally have absolutely zero historical information about them on their website.  Not to fret though, they do feature extensive case studies on some of their work that you should check out.

The services that paramore|redd specializes in are: strategy/planning, web design, web  development, media, social and viral marketing, email marketing, display advertising, search engine marketing and SEO consultation.  The agency does not have a dedicated internship program, but that never means that you should not try.

And if you are interested, contact them, thepinkboa@paramoreredd.com. Their offices are in that rather cool building to the right at: 124 12th Avenue South, Suite 510, Nashville, TN 37203.  Or drop them a line at: 615.386.9012

Well, that’s our show.  Just kidding, I’m in a bit of a goofy mood today.  On Wednesday I will attempt to finish the updates about the AAF Student Conference or whatever else crosses my mind that morning.  I however make no guarantees.

One very important tip that I recall, that is also pertinent to this entry… before you go on an interview, know the ups and downs and ins and outs of the company you are interviewing for.  Your potential future employer will love it if they don’t have to explain everything to you and maybe you can tell them something you gleamed from your research.

Make sure to attend the “Personal Branding” seminar tonight in MMTH at 8pm.  Your future is worth your attendance and do not forget to tell your friends!  Follow us on Twitter for more updates!

Insights from the 2009 AAF Student Conference

The 2009 AAF Student Conference was held on October 15-16th and I attended!  So let me share some knowledge I learned during my two days there.

Business etiquette: It seems like this should be knowledge that everyone knows, unfortunately, even outside of college, this is not the case.  So here are some tips that the speaker from Saatchi & Saatchi NY shared with us.

“Good” Behavior: Be a sponge; Appreciate the experience; Show passion and interest; Be realistic; Take feedback well; Have a sense of urgency; Respect office hours; Notice and do things the “agency way”; Call if you are going to be late (that one should really be a no-brainer); Look at timelines and plan out of office time; “MAKE IT WORK”

“Bad” Behavior: Appearing bored; Coming to work late/leaving work early; Falling asleep in meetings; Not understanding your role; Being defensive when receiving feedback; Having a sense of entitlement; Telling the manager “I’m taking time off” versus asking for permission; Terrible dress; Terrible e-mail etiquette

One huge thing gleamed from this session, IF YOU TYPE IN CAPS NO MATTER IF YOU ARE ANGRY OR CALM, IT WILL STILL LOOK LIKE SHOUTING TO WHOMEVER THE E-MAIL IS BEING SENT TO–so, watch what you e-mail, you never know where it will be sent.  An additional e-mail comment, DO NOT WRITE E-MAIL WHEN YOU ARE ANGRY.  It’s just a bad idea and you will usually regret it quite a bit.  THINK before you write.

A final important comment from this speaker, personalization goes a long way.  Instead of sending a boring e-mail after an interview, send the interviewer a nice hand-written thank you note.  It is sure to get more attention than that e-mail.