Happy New Year

All the best.

Digital Agencies.

Interesting benchmark on how we're doing on digital. These agencies I love, but we need to get on the boat and remember we are in the business of speaking in behalf of our brands no matter what the media is. The message and the experience tied to consumer-product relevance.

Which makes me think. Souldn't our first brand be our own agencies?

Thoughts?

What Is A Digital Planner?

I would love to hear any thoughs on differences between a digital planner vs what we know at "traditional" agencies. Anyone?

What Is A Digital Planner

View more documents from Heather LeFevre.

Free Book Giveaway of The Creative Process Illustrated

It's been a month since the last post (job hunting is tough in this economy) so I thought I'd make it worthwhile. Former UT Advertising teachers Glenn Griffin and Deb Morrison have written a groundbreaking book about the creative process.

To win a signed copy of The Creative Process Illustrated: How Advertising's Big Ideas Are Born by W. Glenn Griffin and Deborah Morrison, 1) please leave a comment saying why you like this blog. 2) Be a facebook fan of The Ranch Blog. The winner will be randomly picked by me.

How did you choose whom to profile?
We collected nearly 80 of these drawings over a period of several years. When we found a publisher for the book, we worked with our editor to choose 30 that we thought were most representative of the varied and interesting submissions we’d received. It was a tough cut to make – so tough that the editor permitted us to include a few more as we started writing the manuscript. We really learned so much from every drawing.

What was the inspiration behind the title?
Our publisher actually proposed the title of the book! We’d always called the project “Pure Process” because it represented a study of personal creative thinking as opposed to the partner- or team-driven process that’s typical in advertising. The folks at HOW Books thought The Creative Process Illustrated would be more descriptive of the book’s content and make it more appealing to potential readers. We still love “Pure Process” (you can’t beat that alliteration!) but we like the new title, too. “Pure Process” lives on as the title of our website, so it’s still out there.



Both of you have extensive teaching experience about advertising and creativity and you have touched the lives of so many students. Why write a book now?
Wish we had some brilliant master plan to share with you (!), but the book just sort of happened in the right spot for both of us. Deborah had just finished a book called Idea Industry with Brett Robbs, a great colleague of ours at the University of Colorado – Boulder when we decided to write a new book proposal based on these process drawings we’d been collecting for the past several years and the insights we’d derived from them. We got a book contract in the Spring of 2009 and the rest is history!




Part of the Pure Process mantra is "...also about good stewardship of that process: doing good work, being responsible and revealing the industry as the force for positive change it is and can be." What are your thoughts about the post about a consumer who is appalled by advertising? '
That letter has made the rounds and a lot of people are talking about it, but why? Is there anything we didn’t already know in that letter? Of course there’s advertising out there that’s dumb. Of course some of it annoys people. And (of course) there are some cranky folks out there who won’t ever be happy with anything we do. We are big believers, however, that advertising CAN be smart, CAN engage people and actually do positive things for the world. Nope, we can’t tell you what went wrong with that sausage campaign, sir. But we do know that there are terrific people in our business who know about the “Brians” out there and don’t want to invite more criticism of the industry by doing bad work. Instead, they want to show people what advertising can do when it’s done well. We see lots of examples (thank goodness) of great work out there that gets lots of love from consumers for all the right reasons. That’s the kind of work we want to keep pushing our students to do.



How much sweat equity (hours spent writing, researching and interviewing) is in this book?
Hmmmm. Enough to make us ask two questions: (1) Why the hell did we sign up for this? (2) Okay, what’s the next book going to be about?
We figure that’s about right.

News Roundup

Thanks to Naveed's Weekly Digest for all the links below.

• Tan Le demonstrates a headset that reads its user's brainwaves.


• Hello HTML5. Goodbye Flash.


• Some ground breaking news about the new health care reform bill: Children strongly oppose one aspect of it.


• Naveed gave a presentation about the effectiveness of the Old Spice campaign to a packed house.


• There are three types of happiness. Which one are you?

An Open Letter To All Of Advertising And Marketing

Click on image to enlarge.

I am not sure if this is written by a real consumer or someone posing as an every day joe. Either way, it really makes you think about where and what advertising and marketing people are coming up with these days.

Via PSFK

Recap of Portfolio Night 8 - Austin

Note about the illustration:
Austin is famous for having N. America's largest colony of Mexican free-tailed bats underneath the S. Congress Bridge(750,000).

Portfolio Night is a thirty-five city event where aspiring junior creatives and advertising students show their portfolios to seasoned and highly regarded art directors (such as Ignacio the founder of Portfolio Night), copywriters and creative directors. This year on May 20, Austin was included in the creative host cities for the first time.

READ MORE...

Two ways to make your brand really stand out

I enjoy reading the Brandchannel e-mail newsletters as they do a good job of keeping up and reporting on the latest branding news. Below are two brands they recently featured.



KIND snacks differentiates their brand by doing cause marketing using social media, random acts of kindness and other methods.

READ MORE...

The wisdom of John Wooden

While legendary UCLA head coach John Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) is famous for winning ten NCAA championships, he is also known for his life lessons or "Woodenisms." My favorites are in bold.

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out."

"Never mistake activity for achievement."

"Adversity is the state in which man mostly easily becomes acquainted with himself, being especially free of admirers then."

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

"Be prepared and be honest."

"Be quick, but don't hurry."

"You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one."

READ MORE...

über-cool Chiquita Banana stickers

Many design, marketing and advertising blogs have already covered the redesign of the famous Chiquita Banana stickers. However, I saw them for the first time only recently.

These are a good marketing idea because

READ MORE...

Happy Fathers Day 2010

Via The Ranch (from last year) and Fatherhood.gov

President Obama is a World Cup fan

Disclaimer: if you look closely, you can tell the reflection on the table doesn't match what's on screen.

Via 9gag.

Cannes Young Lions Competition - entry 2

The Cannes Young Lions Competition is underway with 8 days left to vote. Below is the entry, and a brief Q & A, of Jessica kalbermann and Orel Bitan of BBDO (Israel).





How did you come up with the idea?

So... Jessica and I started to compeer the live of those poor children to the reach lives of world leaders (that is how we matched each glass to each leader's country).

We asked our selves how come when world leaders encounter a general problem they will find many rezones to disregard it. But when the problem affects their own lives they will somehow find a fast solution.

READ MORE...

Cannes Young Lions Competition - entry 1

The Cannes Young Lions Competition is underway with 8 days left to vote. Below is the entry, and a brief Q & A, of Wojciech Kowalik of the London College of Communication.




How did you come up with the idea?

As the brief was centered not on the sanitation and water crisis in poor countries, but on the summit that will try to tackle it, I thought it could be
a good idea to use peoples' natural skepticism towards the world leaders.

Really, just a few people are naive enough to think that those big guys really consider Millennium Development Goals more than just a PR. Public isn't stupid.

READ MORE...

Recognize the background?

I keep on seeing this picture when I mistype website URLs. Recognize the background?

For those who haven't visited UT before, it's a picture of the main mall on campus.

World Cup 2010 ads

Which one do you like best? Which ones have hidden innuendo? Have any more ads?

Keep on scrolling down for a catchy surprise.

READ MORE...

A non-profit agency doing non-profit work

In this economy running a non-profit is difficult. Soliciting donors while balancing high stress on a shoestring budget is not fun. On top of that, most non-profits are most lacking in marketing and IT help.

This is why Serve Marketing + Advertising, a non-profit agency, is so remarkable.

One of their recent campaigns, Close The Gap, targets salary disparities between men and women while another campaign was for the American Diabetes Association.

Here in Texas, two agencies come to mind when thinking about social causes. Sherry Matthews Advocacy Marketing in Austin is known for positive social change and IS7 in Dallas focuses on interactive work for non-profits.

Very clever-sneaky-advertising

This is very clever advertising from Marlboro.

Via Graphicology.

Imagine yourself as a major sponsor of the biggest and most successful Formula One racing team. Your identity and brand is intertwined with the race team and to some extent Formula One itself. You are in negotiations to financially sponsor this race team for the next five years and are willing to pay about $1 billion to do so. Unfortunately for you, the European Union is set to pass a ban on cigarette advertising and your company manufactures and globally markets cigarettes.

The law goes something like this: The Tobacco Advertising Directive: Passed by the European Parliament and Council in 2003 (see:IP/02/1788), the Directive bans tobacco advertising in the print media, on radio and over the internet. It also prohibits tobacco sponsorship of cross-border cultural and sporting events. The best I can tell is that this went into effect in 2005. Right around the same time as your contract negotiations.

Vote in another Doritos competition

Yossy Zagha (Copywriter, '05) has a top 20 finalist video in a Doritos Mexico competition.

Doritos has been hosting several video competitions lately with the Crash the Super Bowl ad competition, another competition and now this.

Check it out. Vote!

Translation:
Snake: Come on, eat the apple.
Anncr: Have no cravings, try the new Doritos Temptation.

What do you think of the new Tiger Woods ad?

The long-time AOR (Wieden + Kennedy) for Nike Inc. has debuted a new Tiger Woods ad in time for the Masters.

Similar to the defiant Kobe ad (opens as pdf. Does anyone have the larger size ad? I used to have a higher-resolution jpg and the body copy is really well-written.) released after Kobe's acquittal of sexual assault charges in 2003, this ad has shades of independence and does not mention Nike golf products at all.

Read more about the controversial ad here and here.

News Roundup

From last month's Chinese New Year celebration in Sydney. Via Kineda.com

• Will selling your Vitamin company as 100% US and 0% China work? A company is trying just that.


• The Drinkabilty campaign caused the first ever full-year sales decline in Budweiser history.


• Zappos has a new ad campaign. Is it touting its shoes? No. Is it selling its new collection of Jeans? No. Try customer service.


• Asics has a new womens sportswear line called AYAMi.

  Amsterdam Worldwide created the campaign which takes its name from the Japanese term for ‘feminine’, ‘colourful’, ‘design’ and ‘beauty’. ASICS conducted an in-depth study with women across four European countries* to investigate their running apparel needs. The research reveals that not only are more women taking up running, but they also want to look good and feel great during exercise. Amateur female runners were used for the campaign: Charli Croll, Sophia Teres and Kari Frette – who in turn were shot by world-renowned sports portrait photographer, Robert Wilson. AYAMi will launch in Germany, Austria, the UK and Benelux this spring, with a wider European rollout planned in autumn this year.



• OK Go has a new song out and, therefore, another outstanding music video


• Urban Outfitters is launching a new bridal brand while American Eagle is closing down Martin + Osa.

A beautiful PSA

This is a very beautifully shot and art directed public service ad campaign called Embrace This from England. Despite the techniques used to make it more aesthetically pleasing, viewer discretion is advised.

Via AdFreak

5 thoughts from David Armano

This is from David Armano's outstanding blog Logic+Emotion. David works as a Sr. Vice President at the Chicago office of Edelman Digital and is a popular speaker at SXSW.

We all live in glass houses

So when you throw that stone—and you will, don't be surprised when you are picking up the pieces of your own house as it shatters around you.

Build something

You'll be happier, healthier and wiser if at the end of the day, month or year if you've built something of value. If it helps others to be better—bonus.

Don't give up

Even when you really, really want to throw in the towel. Fight as if you're fighting for your life. Maybe in some ways, you really are.

Hit it hard

If you're going to do something, go at it with everything you've got.

Fail

Words such as these won't stop you from failing and falling short on a daily basis. If you aren't, then you're not really living.

Neuromarketing. the future of marketing?

The following is from The Wall Street Journal- February 17, 2010 edition.

The Emotional Quotient of Soup Shopping

Campbell Taps 'Neuromarketing' Techniques to Find Why Shelf Displays Left Some Customers Cold

By Ilan Brat

The bowls are getting bigger and steamier, but the soup spoons are going away.

Those are among the biggest changes Campbell Soup Co. is making in decades to the iconic labels and shelf displays of its condensed soups—the company's biggest single business, with more than $1 billion in sales.

The changes—to be announced Wednesday—will culminate a two-year effort by Campbell to figure out how to get consumers to buy more soup. Condensed soup has been a slow-growing category in which consumers have little tolerance for price increases.

The problem: It's not easy to know what prompts people to buy soup, except it's warm to eat on a frosty day. When asked why they eat more soup or not, people tend to "say they don't think of it," says Doug Conant, Campbell chief executive.

The company hopes the label and display changes will help shoppers connect on a deeper level to the products and boost its condensed soup sales by 2% over the next two years.

For two years, Campbell researchers studied microscopic changes in skin moisture, heart rate and other biometrics to see how consumers react to everything from pictures of bowls of soup to logo design.

This "neuromarketing" approach is a fresh attempt among companies to better understand how consumers respond to marketing and advertising.

Technological advances have made the research cheaper and faster, making it accessible to more companies. Scientists also better understand how near-instant brain and body responses relate to how people generate meaning from new information, says Robert Barocci, president of the Advertising Research Foundation.

For years, Campbell's researchers asked consumers whether they remembered an ad and whether it made them more likely to buy a product. But a 2005 Campbell analysis revealed that, overall, ads deemed more effective in surveys had little relation to changes in sales.

Robert Woodard, Campbell's vice president of global consumer and customer insights, says the traditional interview had limited usefulness because people's words didn't fully capture their unconscious responses. He says Campbell needed approaches that would help it understand the neurological and bodily responses to an ad rather than how people thought they'd reacted.

By 2008 Mr. Woodard settled on the biometric tools combined with a different type of deep interview to more accurately gauge which consumer communications worked better. Campbell then hired Innerscope Research Inc., a Boston company that measures bodily responses, and other firms to help conduct research.

To be sure, neuromarketing techniques have their doubters. And biometrics tell only if a person reacted to something, not whether they liked or disliked something, and sample sizes tend to be small.

Carl Marci, an Innerscope founder, says his tools can' t pinpoint what emotions a person feels. But if all the biological metrics move simultaneously in the same direction, the subject is likely to be emotionally engaging with something.

Campbell began dissecting its condensed-soup marketing that summer, around when executives had started considering how to refresh the product line.

Researchers interviewed about 40 people at their homes and later in grocery stores. The team also clipped small video cameras to the testers at eye level and had them later watch tape of themselves shopping for soup. Special vests captured skin-moisture levels, heart rate, depth and pace of breathing, and posture. Sensors tracked eye movements and pupil width.

Researchers found warmth and other positive attributes people associated with Campbell's soup at home evaporated when they faced store shelves.

Typically, consumers show simultaneous blips in most of their biological metrics when they decide to buy something. These indicate the emotional reward they feel for making a choice and may help drive future purchases, Mr. Marci says.

But the array of condensed soups so overwhelmed many participants that they would quickly scan the category and select soups while evidencing little biometric response. The people who spent more time exploring varieties showed more and bigger simultaneous spikes in biometrics—and tended to put more soup cans in their baskets.

The Campbell team figured it could boost sales by triggering more emotional responses in stores and prompting more people to focus on more soups.

Another round of research showed Campbell's large logo at the top of shelf displays draws more attention than necessary. At first glance, the logo's bright red background makes its many varieties of soups seem to blend together, the company learned.

In interviews, participants said the soup pictured on the can and shelf labels didn't look warm. And the big spoon holding a sample on each label provoked little emotional response.

Shoppers will begin seeing changes in supermarkets this fall. Among them: Condensed-soup varieties will be sectioned into four, color-coded categories such as "taste sensations" in orange and "classic favorites" in light brown. The company's logo will be smaller and moved lower so it's not as prominent.

Campbell's three biggest sellers—chicken noodle, tomato and cream of mushroom, the soup can labels immortalized by Andy Warhol—will remain the same. But on other labels, steam will rise from larger, more vibrant pictures of soup in more modern, white bowls. And those unemotional spoons will disappear.

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B6

Heard of My Ad Council?

One of the lesser known aspects of the advertising industry not really covered in school is PSA (Public Service Announcements). While the famous Avis- We try harder, Volkswagen- lemon, and other Bernbach, Burnett, and Ogilvy classics are often covered, classic PSAs are not- with the exception of Smokey the Bear-Only you can prevent forest fires.

The organization behind creating PSAs for America is the Ad Council and they have a great website and newsletter called My Ad Council. Top notch agencies donate their time, manpower, and resources to create public service campaigns. The nonprofit clients are treated like Fortune 500 clients and agencies are rewarded with much greater creative license than normal clients give.

THE RANCH.

Great JOB on The RANCH. Give it a name!

My Top Three Super Bowl Ads

Super Bowl XLIV is over and there was a record 48 minutes of commercial time. Of all the commercials, my top three are below. These are the top three because of their simplicity, memorability ("stickiness"), and effectiveness.

View the rest at The 2010 USA TODAY Ad Meter^SM or the AdAge Special Report.

#1. Parisian Love by Google in-house marketing department

#2 Title: TruTV's Punxsutawney Polamalu by Grey, New York

#3 Dorito's House Rules by crashthesuperbowl.com contest

Top 20 Super Bowl ads ever

Since this Sunday is Super Bowl 44 here are the top 20 Super Bowl ads as chosen by Creativity Magazine. My top three personal favorites are below.

Monster.com "When I Grow Up" by Mullen




Reebok "Terry Tate Office Linebacker" by Arnell Group




McDonald's "Showdown" by Leo Burnett

Web 2.0 Visualized

This is a great Web 2.0 poster.

An ad for Haiti

What a simple and clear message.

Via Adverblog.

Austin ADDYs Show at Seaholm - February 12th

View it online.

Controversial non-profit ads

It seems like non-profit organizations have to be more shocking,which generates more attention, in their advertising as they don't have the big budgets that for-profit corporations do. One example are the DDB Brazil ads for WWF comparing the relatively few deaths of 9/11 with the extraordinary number of people who died in the 2005 Asian tsunami.

A recent Medicins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) ad.



Via The Agitator.

The Brazilian WWF ad.



Via Adfreak.

US Buick vs. China Buick

When I was in China, I noticed many upper-class people driving Buicks where in America they would probably be driving an European luxury car. In China, Buick occupies a cool, hip mindset while in America, the brand perception is different.

In China, General Motors has done a superb job of pitching Buick as a cool, even sexy, luxury car. It's not viewed as something your grandfather would drive. Instead, GM positioned Buick as an aspirational brand that fits in perfectly with China's national go-go race to modernity.

As a result, the Buick has become a symbol of the country's rising prosperity — a fun, four-wheeled, tactile embodiment of Deng Xiaoping's famous phrase, "To get rich is glorious."

Compare the two commercials below to see a brand that has already established a strong brand image so they can have more daring ads versus a struggling brand image that is trying very hard to portray hipness.


Chinese Buick ad




American Buick ad



Via Globalpost.

Top Ten Most Viewed Posts of 2009

While I realize it's already 2010, here are the top ten most visited posts of 2009 on The Ranch according to unique pageviews. Not all posts were published in 2009.

10. Texas Rangers advertising

9. Interview with Ignacio Oreamuno,founder of ihaveanidea.

8. Letter to college students from a mom.

7. Simple is the new black.

6. Maturity is overrated.

5. Advertising is evil. Is it really?

I drew attention to this post after reading the comments on GOOD magazine's post about banning billboards. Go to page 5 and 6 of the comments.

4. Interview with Ernie Schenck.

Ernie is currently working at Hill Holiday Advertising.

3. Top 40 Real Men of Genius commercials.

2. Interview with Peter Rosch.

Peter has become a director with Sandwick Films and freelance copywriter.

1. Interview with David Baldwin.

David has started a new agency called Baldwin&.

Top Ten Tips to Work in the Chinese Advertising Industry

This story was published by Ad Age China, a publication of the Ad Age Group. Thanks to Normandy Madden at Ad Age China for graciously allowing this online reprint.

Editor's note: below some of the tips I've added some personal insights and commentary. -David.

Want a Job in China?

by Bryce Whitwam

SHANGHAI (AdAgeChina.com) -- Like many agency directors, I've recently been inundated with resumes from wannabe expatriates who are either unemployed back home or want to come out and experience the adventure. Looking for a job in China? Here are some useful tips to keep in mind.

1. Come with a specialty.

Regardless of your industry experience, you will have better chances of landing a job quickly if you're specialized in something. If you don't have a specialty, market yourself as being interested in one. According to several advertising industry search firms, the hot jobs are in digital marketing, CRM and shopper marketing.

2. Apply to as many agencies as possible.

Many China job hunters make the mistake of applying to the big networks that they know, and avoid smaller, less familiar international or independent ones.

Even local agencies may be looking for an expatriate who can help them service an international client. Remember that the whole point is getting your foot in the China door, and nothing is permanent.

If you eventually land a gig but it doesn't work out after a year, you can move to something else, but now you've got experience and you're better connected, too.

3. Connect directly with the decision makers.

Most agencies here do not use Human Resources managers to sift through prospects, so it's better to connect with the head of the agency or department. They don't mind connecting with someone with talent and passion.

4. Think Shanghai 上海, but don't forget Beijing 北京 or Guangzhou 广州.

Shanghai is the capital of the China advertising industry, but there are also many agencies spread out throughout the country, especially in Beijing and Guangzhou.

5. Don't ask for a flight over here.

Expect to come to China for a round of interviews on your own tab. If you're applying from outside China, you should pick a week for interviews two months before your arrival and start arranging interviews for that week. Nothing impresses an agency boss more than someone who has pro-actively arranged interviews prior to their arrival, and you'll need the interview to convince the agency to hire you over a local. The agency also will not have a budget for your airfare or lodging, unless you're coming out for a senior position.

One major aspect of the Chinese culture, and a major reason why the global recession hasn't affected China as much, is frugality. Chinese value being frugal i.e. less spending equals less debt. For more insight, watch this stunningly accurate Russell Peters stand up comedyclip.

6. Think of your job as an internship and expect a local salary.

Long gone are the days when there was a huge gap between local and expatriate salaries because of different skills. The industry now boasts a good army of talented and well-paid locals, many of whom still live rent free with their parents. Salaries are still lower in China for entry-level positions when compared to places like the U.S., and living as an expatriate can be expensive. If you frequent the expat hangouts, you'll soon discover your salary barely covers your expenses. It may be tough your first year, but you'll find your financial package grows quickly with experience.

One American's salary can equal four Chinese professionals salary. In China and Taiwan, the supply is far greater than demand because a Chinese person has to compete with the whole country. Think about that for a second. I know of one multinational agency in Shanghai where an American CD was let go so four CWs and ADs could be hired.

If you don't frequent the expat hangouts, food in China is dirt cheap compared to America. A meal of soup dumplings 小笼包 cost around $0.50 USD while a combo meal at KFC will set you back $4.50 USD (same as America).

7. Knowing Chinese helps, but it isn't everything.

Ethnic Chinese with Mandarin-speaking skills will definitely have an advantage over non-Chinese speakers, but it's a combination of China experience and language skills that will get you the desired job.

8. If you don't know Chinese, start learning now!

Get the basics down before you arrive because once you start working you won't have the time or energy to really dive into learning Mandarin. Don't fall into the trap of being one of the many foreigners who live here that never bothered to learn the language. Believe me, they all regret it.

9. Be passionate and hungry.

An agency lives and thrives on passion, and if you don't have it, you shouldn't be in the business. One of the pitfalls of Chinese employees is that many have become used to a booming, full employment economy, and have subsequently lost a bit of the hunger that fuels our industry. If you have it, it will certainly rub off on the other employees.

10. Prepare to work your ass off.

Within a few days of working at an agency, you'll suddenly find yourself in hyper mode performing a million different tasks – planner, creative, finance, etc, that you probably never did back home. Seven-day work weeks are the norm here, not the exception. It's just a price to pay for the China adventure.

I could not agree more. My parents have told me about and I have witnessed firsthand the Chinese work ethic. Starting in jr. high, students attend an after school program (補習班) to further learn English, sciences, and other subjects. So 14 year olds get home from school at 9pm. At every level of schooling (jr. high, high school, and college) a SAT-type entrance exam is required. The government places you according to score. You don't get to to choose your college; it's based on your National Higher Education Entrance Examination score (高考). Imagine having to compete with 1.3 billion people to attend your dream university. This strenuous training is carried on in professional life where parents work long hours and don't get home until after 8-10 pm.

Getting overseas experience is now key for career development, and there's probably no better place to get it than China. Spending a couple of years here will be both rewarding and challenging, and if you're like me, you might get so addicted to the buzz of the place that you may not want to leave.

A 17-year resident of Greater China, Bryce Whitwam is general manager of Wunderman, Shanghai.