The advertising concept book by Pete Barry is a really helpful tool for any student (or proffesional) of advertising. it is a complete guide to creative ideas (how to come up with them, what works etc), strategies and campaigns. it covers every aspect of the advertising business from how to write copy to the creative process to how agencies work. the main thing i like about the book is that it tells you how to start which to me is one of the most difficult parts. there are also excersises throughout so you can practise.
the author has also 'roughed up' more than 400 famous campaigns to reinforce his idea that 'a great idea will last forever'. it is also to show the idea in itself rather than a finished product.
the book is well written, well designed and well worth a read.
Sunday, 7 November 2010
Billboards
As outdoor advertising goes billboards are pretty effective. No matter what is being advertised, I always stop for a look. Probably due to the pure size of the thing. I guess it would be pointless if it was small.
Bus shelters are fine if youre walking but in a car it is too small and you cannot always see what is being advertised.
billboards really do the trick. They are very over-powering and in some cases, unsightly. But they make you look.
the concept is thought to have originated from egypt more than 3000 years ago and was used to advertise a reward for the capture of a runaway slave. the invention of billboards was an important one as its main purpose was to communicate a message to illiterate people.
because of the size of todays billboards there are so many creative and different ways in which to portray the brands message. much more creative than ordinary print and tv adverts as you can use any medium etc. below are examples of creative billboards .
Bus shelters are fine if youre walking but in a car it is too small and you cannot always see what is being advertised.
billboards really do the trick. They are very over-powering and in some cases, unsightly. But they make you look.
the concept is thought to have originated from egypt more than 3000 years ago and was used to advertise a reward for the capture of a runaway slave. the invention of billboards was an important one as its main purpose was to communicate a message to illiterate people.
Slow the pace
the new kronenbourg ad is really good. it features lemmy from motorhead- one of the most legendary rockstars in the world and instead of playing his signature Rickenbacker bass guitar he plays a harmonica. the ad is basically just phil campbell (the guitarist) and lemmy playing 'the ace of spades'- motorheads most famous song and one of their fastest and loudest- but they are playing it slowed down and accoustic... quite the opposite of everything motorhead. the advert was realeased october 4th 2010- 30yrs to the week the ace of spades' was first released'
throughout the ad you see shots of lemmy and the pub locals- the old boys drinking kronenbourg and playing cards and talking while motorhead start playing. it is set in a french bar as kronenbourg is a french beer and at the end of the ad it jsut says 'slow the pace' relating to the song and to the drinking of the beer.
i think this advert works well as the setting and the music and the tagline all fit with what (i imagine) kronenbourg to be. although weirdly kronnebourg is very french and motorhead are very english.. maybe it is to show the british that the french do make a good beer and are showing this by using a great english band.
throughout the ad you see shots of lemmy and the pub locals- the old boys drinking kronenbourg and playing cards and talking while motorhead start playing. it is set in a french bar as kronenbourg is a french beer and at the end of the ad it jsut says 'slow the pace' relating to the song and to the drinking of the beer.
i think this advert works well as the setting and the music and the tagline all fit with what (i imagine) kronenbourg to be. although weirdly kronnebourg is very french and motorhead are very english.. maybe it is to show the british that the french do make a good beer and are showing this by using a great english band.
Just showing off one of my favourite photos =p
Is there really no such thing as bad publicity?
One thing that I've never quite understood is the famous saying "there's no such thing as bad publicity". there is nowhere that explains where the quote originated from apart from that it is commonly associated with P.T Barnum. However there is no proof that he even spoke those words. Brendan Behen an Irish author and dramatist comically added to the phrase saaying "there's no such thing as bad publicity except your own arbituary". But what does the phrase actually mean in a world of advertising?
as we know, we are bombarded with thousands of commercials daily and the companies and agencies thrive to create brilliant and different advertising in order to promote whatever it is they are trying to sell. this is the same for individuals trying to give themselves a particular image, most of the time, a good one.
so how can publicity be good if it is bad?
Succes de scandale, french for success from scandal, might sound contradictory but means scandal causes attention which whether good or bad leads to fame or other such success.
however, bad publicity can have a negative effect on a company, it can damage a brands name and could even be permanent. some can have no effect or maybe even a positive one.
bad publicity brings exposure to a brand/person/ which is a good thing but in the case of advertising a bad advert isnt necesarilly going to make anyone buy the product and in some cases it may make people avoid the brand altogether. in the case of a person lets say someone trying to become president, bad publicity is definately not going to be to positive with the public. unless of course you already love that person/brand/ product etc.
my conclusion is that bad publicity does exist but whether it has a negative effect, most of the time, probably not, maybe a little bit..
Pepsi's one calorie print ads (germany)
as we know, we are bombarded with thousands of commercials daily and the companies and agencies thrive to create brilliant and different advertising in order to promote whatever it is they are trying to sell. this is the same for individuals trying to give themselves a particular image, most of the time, a good one.
so how can publicity be good if it is bad?
Succes de scandale, french for success from scandal, might sound contradictory but means scandal causes attention which whether good or bad leads to fame or other such success.
however, bad publicity can have a negative effect on a company, it can damage a brands name and could even be permanent. some can have no effect or maybe even a positive one.
bad publicity brings exposure to a brand/person/ which is a good thing but in the case of advertising a bad advert isnt necesarilly going to make anyone buy the product and in some cases it may make people avoid the brand altogether. in the case of a person lets say someone trying to become president, bad publicity is definately not going to be to positive with the public. unless of course you already love that person/brand/ product etc.
my conclusion is that bad publicity does exist but whether it has a negative effect, most of the time, probably not, maybe a little bit..
Pepsi's one calorie print ads (germany)
easy jack
we live in a world of consumerism, now more than ever. everything is about buying and having the latest in everything and as a result the quality of the things we buy is gettin worse and worse and the products arent getting much cheaper.
as an example, i had to change the tyre on my mums car but we didnt have a jack- well, we found one in the car but it was so confusing and flimsy-looking that we didnt bother and borrowed one from my boyfriends grandad. it was very old fashioned. its basically a solid bit of some kind of metal, very heavy, nice shape that you place under the car and turn the circular handle with a screwdriver or something of the sort in the hole. it takes a bit longer than a modern jack but at least it worked and was easy to use and it was definately solid- there was no way it could have broken (not that a jack is meant to break). our modern jack had no appearance of a jack and was made of part metal, part plastic with a random spring amongst it.
although alot of modern products arent confusing and are there to make life easier, they are very bad quality and quite often break- laptops, new phones, dvd players for example. compared to computers, old phones and vcrs.
clothes and shoes too are made extremely cheaply and sold pretty expensive (for the quality) and they really dont last. of course this is all so you as the consumer buy and buy and buy.
as an example, i had to change the tyre on my mums car but we didnt have a jack- well, we found one in the car but it was so confusing and flimsy-looking that we didnt bother and borrowed one from my boyfriends grandad. it was very old fashioned. its basically a solid bit of some kind of metal, very heavy, nice shape that you place under the car and turn the circular handle with a screwdriver or something of the sort in the hole. it takes a bit longer than a modern jack but at least it worked and was easy to use and it was definately solid- there was no way it could have broken (not that a jack is meant to break). our modern jack had no appearance of a jack and was made of part metal, part plastic with a random spring amongst it.
although alot of modern products arent confusing and are there to make life easier, they are very bad quality and quite often break- laptops, new phones, dvd players for example. compared to computers, old phones and vcrs.
clothes and shoes too are made extremely cheaply and sold pretty expensive (for the quality) and they really dont last. of course this is all so you as the consumer buy and buy and buy.
no parts jibba jabba
Chuck Norris Vs Mr T: 400 fatcs about the baddest dudes in the history of ever' by Ian Spector.
this is just a hilarious book full of funny made up quotes about Mr T and Chuck Norris. basically just about how tough they are. here are some examples:
"There is no control key on Mr T's keyboard. Mr T is always in control."
"Chuck Norris once round-house kicked a waitress because his steak didn't have a beard."
"The last time Mr T uttered the words ' I pity the fool', a man in colorado suddenly died for no reason." "Chuck Norris does not have aids but he gives it to people anyway."
"Chuck Norris doesnt need a weapon. He IS one."
"Mr T is one part gold, two parts muscle and no parts JIBBA JABBA."
"Two and a half men was originally a show about Chuck Norris,"
this is just a hilarious book full of funny made up quotes about Mr T and Chuck Norris. basically just about how tough they are. here are some examples:
"There is no control key on Mr T's keyboard. Mr T is always in control."
"Chuck Norris once round-house kicked a waitress because his steak didn't have a beard."
"The last time Mr T uttered the words ' I pity the fool', a man in colorado suddenly died for no reason." "Chuck Norris does not have aids but he gives it to people anyway."
"Chuck Norris doesnt need a weapon. He IS one."
"Mr T is one part gold, two parts muscle and no parts JIBBA JABBA."
"Two and a half men was originally a show about Chuck Norris,"
TV ads
Television Adverts, they're on every 15 minutes and last for 4-5 minutes.
and what's the deal with the majority of them being shown at the same time?
you get alot of people who get annoyed by adverts.. these are the people who always have the remote in their hand or nearby ready to change the channel or mute the bloody thing.. adverts.. They're irratating, loud, noisy, repetitive and inturupt ur favourite shows and interesting parts of movies. so starts the channel surfing- trying to find something to watch in the dreaded three minit interuption but all that is found is more adverts which makes you flick over more channels just to see more adverts. Very annoying. On the other hand, the individual sees a much wider variety of adverts and problably about 20 more. Not only for the big companies and their products but also for the channel's future shows.
So, synchronised adverts, annoying or cleverly controlled? Probably definately both
and what's the deal with the majority of them being shown at the same time?
you get alot of people who get annoyed by adverts.. these are the people who always have the remote in their hand or nearby ready to change the channel or mute the bloody thing.. adverts.. They're irratating, loud, noisy, repetitive and inturupt ur favourite shows and interesting parts of movies. so starts the channel surfing- trying to find something to watch in the dreaded three minit interuption but all that is found is more adverts which makes you flick over more channels just to see more adverts. Very annoying. On the other hand, the individual sees a much wider variety of adverts and problably about 20 more. Not only for the big companies and their products but also for the channel's future shows.
So, synchronised adverts, annoying or cleverly controlled? Probably definately both
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