I found this article about the winners and losers of advertising in the Olympics:
http://www.news.com.au/finance/business/pg-wins-olympics-marketing-gold-mcdonalds-fails-to-step-up/story-fnki1jcy-1226833494348
I only got to watch the Olympics when I was home over February break, but I did see the McDonalds' advertisement the article talks about and the controversy over the Under Armour suits for speed skating. I specifically remember my reaction to the McDonalds' ad because it compares biting the gold medal with biting into a chicken nugget. Instead of what they hoped to relay to the consumer, I kind of shuddered at the thought of biting into a piece of medal like a piece of chicken because it would hurt. Additionally, the athletes McDonalds showcased did not perform well at the Olympics, hurting the effectiveness of the ad even more.
As for the Under Armour suits used in speed skating, all of the Americans performed very badly while wearing them. It is unknown if the poor performances are due to the athletes' performances or the actual suits, but the correlation might be confused as causation for the viewer. Overall, I do not think this will affect Under Armour in the United States, but it might hurt Under Armour's attempts to expand internationally.
Under Armour spent years testing the suits, so there is no way they could have predicted the poor performance of the athletes. As for McDonalds, they should have analyzed the commercial's effects better before showing the advertisement. Commercials and products at the Olympics have such a large audience that a lot of thought and preparation should be put into the image they produce for the company.
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
DHL Pranks Competitors
I came across a really brilliant marketing campaign by DHL.
DHL utilized its competitors - UPS, TNT and DPD to deliver huge packages saying "DHL IS FASTER". The packages were first treated with temperature-activated ink, which disguised the packages in a black color. Following, the boxes were sent for delivery to difficult addresses. Resulting, the change in temperatures brought the bright yellow marketing to sight.
View the entertaining video below!
DHL utilized its competitors - UPS, TNT and DPD to deliver huge packages saying "DHL IS FASTER". The packages were first treated with temperature-activated ink, which disguised the packages in a black color. Following, the boxes were sent for delivery to difficult addresses. Resulting, the change in temperatures brought the bright yellow marketing to sight.
View the entertaining video below!
Lie Witness News from Coachella 2013
I couldn't help but think about the video above when we talked about the Space Doctor experiment in class and read about it in Snoop. Staff members from Jimmy Kimmel Live went to 2013's Coachella Arts and Music Festival and conducted an experiment in which they asked attendees how they felt about bands that do not exist. Wanting to be aware of the "latest artists" in order to respond in a socially desirable manner, every single interviewee shown in this video confidently answered questions about these made-up groups. The findings from this experiment really epitomize what we learned regarding the Space Doctor experiment and social desirability responding in general.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Speaking about hoarding really made me wonder about how family dynamic or past living conditions, or purchase patterns of parents or family members affect the future decisions of the children as consumers. I found a really interesting New York Times article related to this very idea of utilitarian hoarding and sentimental hoarding. Often there is a psychological imbalance, fear or tendency that triggers an emotional attachment with personal possessions and results in impulse purchases, unnecessary purchases, and the inability to get rid of the most minuscule object.
Below is an excerpt from the article:
Below is an excerpt from the article:
Holly Sabiston grew up outside Kansas City, Mo., with a parent who had a “junk room” that took over the house... she explained that she accumulated items she thought she would use, and that money concerns kept her from tossing anything.
It stands to reason that someone raised in a home marked by excessive accumulation would have a complex relationship with stuff. Some children of hoarders keep too much; others throw out everything. Both responses may suggest an inability to determine the proper value of objects.
...her lingering discomfort with shopping may be rooted in the fear of becoming a hoarder
...when someone was raised by a hoarder from a very early age, “there’s a likeliness they’ll want to collect.”
WHATEVER balance children of hoarders manage to find in their own homes, there is still the ancestral homestead to contend with — and the knowledge that it is filling up with more junk by the day — so long as the parent with the hoarding problem is alive. After years of pleading and arguing, children of hoarders often abandon all hope that the parent will reform.
Most therapists agree that the disorder is complex and difficult to treat. Dr. Frost noted that there had been some success with cognitive behavior therapy that “includes a combination of things: focusing on controlling the urge to acquire and learning how to break the attachment people have to things.”
Just trying to de-clutter the home doesn’t work, because “you’re dealing with the product of the behavior, not the behavior itself,” he said. “That’s what’s so frustrating to family members — they’re trying to de-clutter and it ends up being a giant argument.”
Living in an environment cluttered with objects and growing up with an influence of bad buying and collecting habits alters the psychological development of the adolescent and it transfers into their personal buying habits and environments as they grow up. It's interesting how they form a tendency to hoard not based on utility or sentiment, but rather, on familiarity and their definition of normal based on what they grew up in. Some youth growing up in this can become strangely conscientious and tidy, ashamed by messiness and therefore on the opposite extreme, refusing to live in the same mess of their parents or they develop similar hoarding patterns. No matter what, they must constantly fight the urge to hold onto things, even when the urge to hoard may have no rhyme or reason.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/garden/children-of-hoarders-on-leaving-the-cluttered-nest.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&
On my Facebook newsfeed, I saw this ad that I thought very well represented some of the things we've been talking about in class, such as the endowment effect and anchoring.
The advertisement is for purchasing a box of makeup or a subscription for a box of makeup every month. I thought this was very interesting because I have never seen an ad like this for makeup products. The ad looks like this:
The creators of the ad are really trying to get their potential customers to choose to subscribe to their program. They try to have their guests anchor on the first option by placing "Subscribe for $36" first. Also, right after the option of a one-time purchase, they placed the small text "Subscribers will receive monthly personalized boxes and can cancel or skip anytime," which tries to point the customers at the subscription option right after the customer considers the one-time purchase option. The marketer included the option of a one-time purchase for $40, but seems to be telling the guest not to chose that option at the same time. It's as if they are asking: why would you chose the one-time purchase option when they can subscribe at a cheaper price and be able to cancel at anytime? Wouldn't that be the same thing?
Of course, the reason that the creators of the ad are targeting for subscriptions is because of the endowment effect. The marketers are hoping that that once guests receive their first box of makeup products, they will feel like they "own" the future makeup products that will come, and it will be more difficult for them to cancel their subscription.
The advertisement is for purchasing a box of makeup or a subscription for a box of makeup every month. I thought this was very interesting because I have never seen an ad like this for makeup products. The ad looks like this:
The creators of the ad are really trying to get their potential customers to choose to subscribe to their program. They try to have their guests anchor on the first option by placing "Subscribe for $36" first. Also, right after the option of a one-time purchase, they placed the small text "Subscribers will receive monthly personalized boxes and can cancel or skip anytime," which tries to point the customers at the subscription option right after the customer considers the one-time purchase option. The marketer included the option of a one-time purchase for $40, but seems to be telling the guest not to chose that option at the same time. It's as if they are asking: why would you chose the one-time purchase option when they can subscribe at a cheaper price and be able to cancel at anytime? Wouldn't that be the same thing?
Of course, the reason that the creators of the ad are targeting for subscriptions is because of the endowment effect. The marketers are hoping that that once guests receive their first box of makeup products, they will feel like they "own" the future makeup products that will come, and it will be more difficult for them to cancel their subscription.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Companies using the Olympics for Brand Exposure
The pressure to win during the 2014 Sochi Olympics is nearly as intense for marketers as it is for the athletes themselves. Companies pay as much as $100 million for exclusive rights to sponsor
Olympic teams, while others shell out tens of thousands hoping to score
gold by backing individual athletes. Many companies believe that companies being associated with a medal winner is the easiest way to capture the goodwill created by the Olympics.
The catch is that brands have to ready to capitalize on a good performance, but plan for a mediocre one. The advertising winners of this year managed to both harness the feel-good nature of the Olympics and convey a message about their products. Often, the unpredictability of the Olympics can work in a company's favor, when an underdog sponsored athlete suddenly wins gold. But there’s another side to this...
What happens when the athletes fall under expectations? For example, Under Armor spent years developing and advertising the high-tech suit for the U.S. speed skating team, which was heavily favored to win coming into competition. But when the team failed to medal, there became a negative association with Under Armor as some blamed the suit.
Check out which marketers came out with the gold this year, and which other one's fell short here!
http://www.nwherald.com/2014/02/20/sochis-olympic-advertising-winners-and-losers/avnpsq2/
The catch is that brands have to ready to capitalize on a good performance, but plan for a mediocre one. The advertising winners of this year managed to both harness the feel-good nature of the Olympics and convey a message about their products. Often, the unpredictability of the Olympics can work in a company's favor, when an underdog sponsored athlete suddenly wins gold. But there’s another side to this...
What happens when the athletes fall under expectations? For example, Under Armor spent years developing and advertising the high-tech suit for the U.S. speed skating team, which was heavily favored to win coming into competition. But when the team failed to medal, there became a negative association with Under Armor as some blamed the suit.
Check out which marketers came out with the gold this year, and which other one's fell short here!
http://www.nwherald.com/2014/02/20/sochis-olympic-advertising-winners-and-losers/avnpsq2/
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Subliminal Advertisements
Several years ago, CBS came out with an article that outlined what they believed to be the best subliminal advertisements of all time. While some of the examples seem quite obvious and intentional, there are still a few that I am not convinced of. It seems if you are looking for something in particular in these ads, then it's easy for your mind to start playing tricks on you. Take a look!
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Does Social Media Breed Narcissism?
"The Millennials are All Right" - http://ideas.time.com/2014/02/01/the-millennial-kids-are-alright/
This Time article brings up an interesting idea, that the concept of taking and posting selfies to social media sites could potential be increasing narcissistic behavior.
I found the section in Snoop regarding Narcissists to be particularly interesting. I think that most people have lied to pretend they were familiar with a certain item such as a celebrity, band, restaurant, etc. in the past. However I find it shocking that some people can actually convince themselves that their beliefs are true, even when factually they are not. I personally have never taken a possible belief to that level and am not familiar with a person who would. Prior to reading Snoop, in my mind Narcissists were an anomaly, yet Gosling speaks of their frequency in MBA programs and as CEOs.
The article posted above suggests that the abundance of social media profiles where Milliennials share personal information including photos could increase the number of Narcissists in our generation, or in the generation to come. Of particular interest the article raises the chicken and the egg question - do social networks breed narcissistic personalities or are these types of people drawn to the networks? I would content that people with narcissistic tendencies are drawn to be the most active users. It is likely that prior to prevalence of social media Narcissists found a way to share all about their lives with anyone who would listen.
One thought that this article spurred for me is does how one portray his/herself in a social media profile hint at their personality? Gosling wrote this book prior to the social media boom, but these networks are a clear opportunity for people to display their self-identity. I think it would be interesting to see if differences arise in how personality seems to emerge based on snooping in someone's bedroom compared to by snooping deeply into his/her social media activity.
This Time article brings up an interesting idea, that the concept of taking and posting selfies to social media sites could potential be increasing narcissistic behavior.
I found the section in Snoop regarding Narcissists to be particularly interesting. I think that most people have lied to pretend they were familiar with a certain item such as a celebrity, band, restaurant, etc. in the past. However I find it shocking that some people can actually convince themselves that their beliefs are true, even when factually they are not. I personally have never taken a possible belief to that level and am not familiar with a person who would. Prior to reading Snoop, in my mind Narcissists were an anomaly, yet Gosling speaks of their frequency in MBA programs and as CEOs.
The article posted above suggests that the abundance of social media profiles where Milliennials share personal information including photos could increase the number of Narcissists in our generation, or in the generation to come. Of particular interest the article raises the chicken and the egg question - do social networks breed narcissistic personalities or are these types of people drawn to the networks? I would content that people with narcissistic tendencies are drawn to be the most active users. It is likely that prior to prevalence of social media Narcissists found a way to share all about their lives with anyone who would listen.
One thought that this article spurred for me is does how one portray his/herself in a social media profile hint at their personality? Gosling wrote this book prior to the social media boom, but these networks are a clear opportunity for people to display their self-identity. I think it would be interesting to see if differences arise in how personality seems to emerge based on snooping in someone's bedroom compared to by snooping deeply into his/her social media activity.
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
95 Brilliant Print Advertisements
http://www.creativebloq.com/inspiration/print-ads-1233780
As mentioned in class, although YouTube clips and commercials are often used to advertise new products and services, print advertisement still holds prominence and power in our society. Technology may be developing, but advertising clutter is everywhere. In 2006, CBS reported that the average person is exposed to around 5,000 advertisements per day. It can be assumed this number has increased over the past eight years, which verifies the need for companies to exercise uniqueness and creativity in order to catch our attention.
I was surprised by some the content displayed on this list of 95 examples of brilliant print advertising. There are many incredible usages of the figure-ground principle, incomplete stimulus, isolation, vivid imagery, and other concepts discussed in class that wouldn't even have crossed my mind if I tried to think of an idea for print advertisement. Although 95 is a large number of images, I think dragging through these is really worth it. It only took me a couple of minutes, and trying to figure out what advertisements utilize which techniques actually proved to be quite challenging.
As mentioned in class, although YouTube clips and commercials are often used to advertise new products and services, print advertisement still holds prominence and power in our society. Technology may be developing, but advertising clutter is everywhere. In 2006, CBS reported that the average person is exposed to around 5,000 advertisements per day. It can be assumed this number has increased over the past eight years, which verifies the need for companies to exercise uniqueness and creativity in order to catch our attention.
I was surprised by some the content displayed on this list of 95 examples of brilliant print advertising. There are many incredible usages of the figure-ground principle, incomplete stimulus, isolation, vivid imagery, and other concepts discussed in class that wouldn't even have crossed my mind if I tried to think of an idea for print advertisement. Although 95 is a large number of images, I think dragging through these is really worth it. It only took me a couple of minutes, and trying to figure out what advertisements utilize which techniques actually proved to be quite challenging.
Stereotyping in ads
After reading about stereotypes in the "Snoop," it made me wonder if ads stereotype and how much. Upon looking at a few print ads, one was especially shocking to me: this ad from Intel depicts a white "boss", surrounded by a few black men, bowed down like slaves. The ad was supposed to depict how Intel will help you increase the company's productivity, and this was their way of showing it. My question when I saw the ad was "what were they thinking"? I think the marketers should have realized how sensitive the audience would be to such an ad.
Another interesting commercial I came across was a well-done Guinness ad. In this case, they're breaking a stereotype of how beer commercials are usually made. The commercial shows a few men playing basketball in wheelchairs. Afterwards, five out of six stand up, revealing that they used the chair to include a friend in the game. The ad ends by saying "The choices we make reveal the true nature of our character." This commercial differs itself from other beer commercials in that instead of the usual display of guys drinking beer, getting drunk and hitting on women, we see men who are just as sensitive as they are athletic and masculine.
Another interesting commercial I came across was a well-done Guinness ad. In this case, they're breaking a stereotype of how beer commercials are usually made. The commercial shows a few men playing basketball in wheelchairs. Afterwards, five out of six stand up, revealing that they used the chair to include a friend in the game. The ad ends by saying "The choices we make reveal the true nature of our character." This commercial differs itself from other beer commercials in that instead of the usual display of guys drinking beer, getting drunk and hitting on women, we see men who are just as sensitive as they are athletic and masculine.
WWF Ads that make you think
http://graphicdesignjunction.com/2010/07/40-most-creative-wwf-global-climate-change-ads/
WWF is a nature conservation organization and their ads speak a thousand words. They make the viewer think about what their daily actions are doing to the world, and hopefully change their mentality. Ultimately, the ads are directed for us to immediately take action.
WWF is a nature conservation organization and their ads speak a thousand words. They make the viewer think about what their daily actions are doing to the world, and hopefully change their mentality. Ultimately, the ads are directed for us to immediately take action.
The last one is my favorite because it incorporates the senses into the marketing effort. Whenever tissues are used, the green in South America decreases, signifying how trees in the Amazon are slowly being depleted because of our paper usage. I think if Cornell brought those in, the point would get across to a lot of people and maybe students and professors would be more wary about their actions.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Education through Augmented Reality
For a few years, tech companies such as Layar, Wikitude, and
Junaio have helped advertisers enhance their print ads through digital
applications, creating a form of advertising called Augmented Reality. For
example, Layar will digitize a regular print ad for a movie so that consumers who
have the Layar application on their mobile device can scan the print ad and
suddenly be able to watch the movie trailer and see the show times for the
movie in their area.
Although this form of advertisement has been around for a
few years, we will likely see more AR advertising in the next few years,
especially as Google’s Glass and other similar products come to market at more
affordable prices.
I thought this was a cute advertisement for the use of AR,
for those who are not familiar with the method.
Enjoy
Saturday, February 15, 2014
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Really cool print ads that make you think
I stumbled upon a link today with some really great print ads that I wanted to share (http://www.viralnova.com/creative-print-ads/). In an age where digital advertising is all the craze, I really loved seeing these clever print ads.
Two of my favorites were:
2) Colgate Dental Floss - Colgate has brand recognition as a top toothpaste, but I think this ad does a great job of showcasing why its a superior floss. Using a kiwi and strawberry, the designers chose 2 fruits that often leave annoying seeds behind. The floss is depicted with an uncanny ability to effortlessly remove all seeds while leaving the luscious fruit behind. I love that the actual floss container isn't the focus of the ad and the brightly colored fruits with their pile of seeds really steal the show.
20) Volkswagen Precision Parking - This ad made me laugh out loud and I think it's really on point with the Volkswagen brand. The cars are compact and able to squeeze into the tightest of parking spots. Adding humor to the ad, where the porcupine is nestled in a precarious situation is an easy memory cue to how tough certain parallel parking situations can be. The ad succeeds at letting me know Volkswagen park assist can help me in a tight situation.
23) WWF - WWF is a recognized symbol of preserving wildlife. I think the side-by-side pictures in this ad are really powerful. The shark fin is a well-known sign of impending doom, but the ad flips this scary thought by highlighting how much worse it would be if we sharks were no longer around. The fin is the figure to focus on while the vast ocean is the ground in the figure-ground principle. The ad is beautifully simple and connects on an emotional level.
Two of my favorites were:
2) Colgate Dental Floss - Colgate has brand recognition as a top toothpaste, but I think this ad does a great job of showcasing why its a superior floss. Using a kiwi and strawberry, the designers chose 2 fruits that often leave annoying seeds behind. The floss is depicted with an uncanny ability to effortlessly remove all seeds while leaving the luscious fruit behind. I love that the actual floss container isn't the focus of the ad and the brightly colored fruits with their pile of seeds really steal the show.
20) Volkswagen Precision Parking - This ad made me laugh out loud and I think it's really on point with the Volkswagen brand. The cars are compact and able to squeeze into the tightest of parking spots. Adding humor to the ad, where the porcupine is nestled in a precarious situation is an easy memory cue to how tough certain parallel parking situations can be. The ad succeeds at letting me know Volkswagen park assist can help me in a tight situation.
23) WWF - WWF is a recognized symbol of preserving wildlife. I think the side-by-side pictures in this ad are really powerful. The shark fin is a well-known sign of impending doom, but the ad flips this scary thought by highlighting how much worse it would be if we sharks were no longer around. The fin is the figure to focus on while the vast ocean is the ground in the figure-ground principle. The ad is beautifully simple and connects on an emotional level.
Ads on perception
| Figure-ground principle |
| Closure principle |
Here I found two magazine ads both of which represent some form of incomplete stimulus. The first is an example of figure ground principle which also uses a play on words to the right that says "love your gut." When looking at the image you can see either the spoons and think loving yogurt or you can see the thin figure between the spoons and read the words to mean loving how you look from eating yogurt. In s similar way, the image on the right I thought was a good closure principle example because the brand name alone and just the two dark lines automatically make the consumer finish the picture with that of an Oreo. In this sense, it is also an ad based on the consumer's perception which is formed by our knowledge and experience with that product.
| sensory example |
| Sensory example |
Above I found two really neat forms of appealing to consumers senses and their needs which form their perceptions. To the left is an ad used in Germany where there is actually dog food hidden behind the ad and the scent draws the passing dogs thereby influencing the owners to purchase a brand that appears to attract their pet (even though it could just be the scent of food and it may not actually be anything particular of that brand). This allows the pet owners to see their dog interact and experience the food before testing out a new brand and the scent catching the dogs nose leads the owner to believe their dog will enjoy the taste and they therefore purchase the dog food.
To the right is a more typical ad which while it is common to see perfume and cologne ads in magazines that allow for smelling scents, this one allows for peeling the sticker to reveal the juice glass and then by licking it you can actually taste the Welch's grape juice. This ad presents a major brand with a familiar product and it further allows a childlike interaction with the consumer being able to taste and recall memories and childhood reminiscent of the brand.
http://www.ted.com/talks/rory_sutherland_life_lessons_from_an_ad_man.html
Hey class,
This is a great Ted talk by a "ad guy" Rory Sutherland that speaks on perception and the power of perceived value versus real value. I think he is funny and worth taking 16 minutes to watch but the following time markers address class topics:
2:13 - Talks of placebos and the concept of "placebo education"
3:13 - A historical account of how perceptions of potatoes changed market demand
6:44 - Perceived value trumps material value of jewelry
11:55 to 14:20 - A couple great video advertisments about a campaign that was based on pure perception and humor.
Enjoy!
Rob
Hey class,
This is a great Ted talk by a "ad guy" Rory Sutherland that speaks on perception and the power of perceived value versus real value. I think he is funny and worth taking 16 minutes to watch but the following time markers address class topics:
2:13 - Talks of placebos and the concept of "placebo education"
3:13 - A historical account of how perceptions of potatoes changed market demand
6:44 - Perceived value trumps material value of jewelry
11:55 to 14:20 - A couple great video advertisments about a campaign that was based on pure perception and humor.
Enjoy!
Rob
Monday, February 10, 2014
CVS Stops Selling Tobacco Products, Focuses on Social Relationship
Dan Ariely stressed that a social relationship and a market relationship cannot be maintained simultaneously. Furthermore, he pointed out that once a market norm is entered into the equation, it completely diminishes the social relationship (which proves to be quite hard to recover). He pointed out that businesses must decide whether they are trying to create a market or social relationship (with their employees and/or consumers) and align their actions to their goal.
CVS recently said that they would stop selling tobacco products completely by October NYTimes, CVS to Stop Selling Tobacco Products. However, the reason that they did it exemplifies Ariley's idea of maintaining a social relationship with consumers. The CEO of CVS was quoted in the article saying, “We have about 26,000 pharmacists and nurse practitioners
helping patients manage chronic problems like high cholesterol, high blood
pressure and heart disease, all of which are linked to smoking,” said Larry J.
Merlo, chief executive of CVS. “We came to the decision that cigarettes and
providing health care just don’t go together in the same setting.” This quote stresses CVS' ultimate loyalty to their customers' well-being, and maintains the social relationship with consumers as their friendly neighborhood pharmacy.
General Electric Commercial
I came across this General Electric commercial while watching the Olympics. It grabbed my attention not only because of its amazing visuals but also because of how it is from a child's point of view. What are your thoughts on this commercial?
Here's GE's description of it: "Imagination at work: A journey into a child's imagination as she envisions all the amazing things her Mom makes as an employee at GE."
Funny Product Placement Commercial
This was a very funny commercial that I vividly remember from a few years ago. I saw it the same semester I was taking HADM Marketing and its demonstration of product placement has stuck with me ever since. In my opinion, beer companies have some of the most creative commercials and ads, which makes it easy to pick marketing themes from them. Enjoy!
BudLight_ProductPlacement_Commercial
BudLight_ProductPlacement_Commercial
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Olympic Commercials
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