This razor ad reminded me strongly of our conversation about different methods of stimulate involuntary attention. This ad used the method of "surprise the consumer" by showing a novelty and unexpected image that encouraged elaboration and involvement. I wasn't looking for a razor ad when I saw it, but the ad grabbed my attention because the image looked so strange to me at first that I couldn't help but pause what I was doing and look more at it. The ad's novelty relies on a giant 3-D razor apparently having shaved the grass on a field to demonstrate the razor's ability. It depends on the rest of the grass outside of the one shaven strip to be unkempt and unshaven compared to the strip that the large razor is left on, for contrast. The ad also uses the idea of "making it bigger" to promote involuntary consumer attention in the sense that it's not normal to see such a large 3-D razor. I thought these two methods of encouraging involuntary attention were very effective for the ad, and thought it was interesting that they relied entirely on these methods rather than any writing (more traditional advertisement that they could have combined with their efforts to make the ad large and novel). On reflection, I feel as though writing on the billboard itself may have taken away from the surprise of the ad, or may have added too much of another element to the ad and created confusion. The white background seems to go with the shaven patch of grass; both say the razor will give you cleanliness and order.

Changing Roles

Honey Maid's new "This is wholesome" campaign reminded me of our class discussion on changing gender roles.  This ad features homosexual parents, single fathers, interracial families, military families, and a nontraditional "rocker" family.  While the product remains the same, the advertisement portrays the changing gender and familial roles, making a bold corporate statement that these new roles are just as wholesome.  The topic of changing roles is increasingly appearing in advertisements.  Companies such as Cheerios and Honey Maid are taking the first steps to reveal society's new reality.

 

On the subject of involuntary attention, this London bus stop got really creative with alien invasions and augmented reality.

Superb!

No New Ideas

After discussing how marketers use similar materials I came across this picture comparison. I thought that it was very interesting because the advertisement on the left came out much earlier than the Avengers movie had. When I looked further into it I saw that the creator of the picture on the left was inspired by Marvel's comics. This is just another example of how the same material is simply reused during promotion. The Avengers was a very succesful box office hit even with its copied movie poster.

In my free time I was surfing the web and I came across this example of the figure ground principle in an African Children Initiative advertising campaign. I'm not very good at geography and it took me awhile to realize that there was anything in the picture besides the child staring up at the adult. This made me realize that certain uses of figure ground are dependent on the audience of the advertisement having a background knowledge of certain things to be able to see that there is a second way of looking at the picture if they shift their focus. If I'd shown this ad to someone who wasn't familiar with geography, or a third grader who had not yet studied a map of the world in school, their mind would likely not allow them to shift their focus at all and the effect of the technique would be lost. This is true for some ads where one of the two images depends on prior knowledge as opposed to ads like this:

which anyone, regardless of background or education, could perceive the double image in if they shift their focus. The figure ground principal therefore is limited in its power to draw attention and create involvement when it relies on the audience to have prior knowledge of one of the images because if your brain doesn't recognize one of the two images at all from memory or association, it's unlikely that you will be able to perceive a) that a second image is there, and b) what it is.

Starbucks Evenings

I recently came across an article about "Starbucks Evenings." In select locations, Starbucks will start to offer wine and beer and an extended food menu (including truffle macaroni and cheese and chocolate fondue)  after 4:00pm. According to their site, after 4pm customers will "experience a more mellow, less hurried atmosphere for winding down and having casual conversations." The selection will vary to meet "local test preferences." In recent years, Starbucks has expanded its offerings to include breakfast and lunch options, as well as Starbucks Ice Cream--that way, more customers would come in during lunch hours, and buy more Starbucks products in general. They have also made large deals with other big companies, including Evolution Fresh (juices), Whole Foods, La Boulange, and Teavana. Now, with the addition of gourmet food and alcohol for Starbucks Evenings, Starbucks has expanded its brand even more to draw people in at later hours--thus creating in billions of dollars in potential revenue. Starbucks' brand extension has been successful because it has been able to leverage its existing customer base and brand loyalty to create new products.  Through extension, Starbucks has successfully skewed its image to be more of a lifestyle/food and drink brand than just a simple coffee shop. Starbucks' chief operating officer noted that the addition of alcohol to Starbucks cafes won't work everywhere--based on test runs, he said they've seen success in urban areas, near other restaurants and theaters, where people are out at night. Location and the characteristics of consumers in certain areas is important to consider as Starbucks expands in this new direction.


http://www.starbucks.com/coffeehouse/starbucks-stores/starbucks-evenings

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-20/what-to-expect-from-starbucks-new-booze-menu

Whats more Kickass than first class? Delta's New Innovation Class

Cool Delta Ad:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_-1LPRMD_4

Short and simple:  Important people fly all over the world, Delta is letting you apply through LinkedIn to buy a seat next to one of these people.  This will allow you to spend 3-5 hrs having a 1 on 1 session with leaders and innovators in the field you are interested in.  I thought this was a really cool advertisement because it is potentially a new way to segment their market and generate additional revenues (normally people just pay for their seat and the service they get, but now people will be paying for their company and who they can sit by).

Potential drawbacks:  By joining forces to "connect today's high-profile influencers with the business leaders of tomorrow at 35,000 feet" they will not only make it harder and more expensive to get seats on a plane, but the plane will be noisier as well (not everyone wants to listen to your conversation for 5 hrs, some people just want to sleep)!

Time article "Delta and LinkedIn join forces to irritate everyone":  http://time.com/30950/delta-and-linkedin-join-forces-to-irritate-everyone/