Paul Smith + Burton

I am a massive Paul Smith fan.  Massive.  I'm also a big Burton fan, although I am a purist [that's right, I prefer skiing over snowboarding]. 

In my former life at Nokia Nseries I worked on global brand partnerships.  So I was especially interested in what I saw on Cool Hunting - a brand partnership between Paul Smith and Burton.  Besides being a bit pricey for my tastes, the designs are probably not all that practical for snowboarding.  However, it's a provocative partnership that surprises, delights and challenges the orthodoxy of what snowboarding gear should be.  Bravo!

Collection here.

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Sony Bravia Bunny Ad a Rip Off?

OK, let's see ... My friend Geoff sent me quite a note today about a storm brewing over the new Sony Bravia Bunny ad [it was very well written, but as I considered printing it verbatim, I remembered that I have colleagues and clients who read this blog - and Geoff's language was rather ... well, blue].

To quip Geoff's note ...

Despite a far more beautiful (and original) track to Sony Bravia’s original epic, “Balls,” (the tune is called “Heartbeats” by Jose Gonzalez and was so good I started hunting for his every recording), I was the only person alive who found the ad kinda dumb – a kaliedescope of bouncy balls hitting the streets of SF? Everyone else in the world loved it. Awards were bestowed. And Juan Cabral quickly became the most celebrated creative in advertising.

Then came the Sony Bravia “Paint” ad. Again, I didn’t get it. But everyone else loved it. Weeeee. Gallons and gallons of different colored paint shot into the air!

So when the Bunny ad launched last week, I was shocked. I too, loved it. I watched it a few times. I was struck by the flawless execution and, as a fellow longtime fan of the Stones, I even got behind the more obvious track select.

But now this:

Usa_chan

And this:

[And according to Geoff,  Cabral was also behind the Cadbury ad - http://www.aglassandahalffullproductions.com - which Geoff believes came after this ad for ABC: http://commercial-archive.com/node/139797]

Product Placement in Online Viral Videos

Picture_1Brandframe calls itself the "YouTube product placement agency."  Basically they match brands with online video producers.  The brands hope their product is featured in the next viral phenomenon.  The producers get funding to offset their production costs.  It's a pretty standard product placement model.

I'm a bit ambivalent about this one.  I'm not a huge product placement proponent to begin with [unless it's a true product integration or well-done branded entertainment a la BMW Films].  Then again I always applaud those who see an opportunity and make a business of it.

Curious what everyone else thinks ...

Baby Brand Space

Picture_1_2As a marketer and a new dad I am really keen on this initiative at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport [sponsored by Dutch baby food brand, Nutricia].   As Springwise puts it:

Designed by MV Architects, the lounge is serenely stylish and geared to ensuring a baby's well-being while en route. The 90 m2 area features seven circular 'cabins', each of which can be closed off with sheer curtains to create a personal zone. The booths have comfortable circular seating curving around a crib. Lights in the lounge are dimmed for sleeping babies, with individual reading lights for parents. For infants that need a bit of distraction, each booth has a gadget that projects coloured lights on the ceiling, just above the crib. Other facilities include a changing area, baby baths and a microwave for heating food. Although Nutricia hasn't stocked a pantry with samples of their own baby food, the brand does offer tips on baby nutrition and travelling with children. The space is open daily from 6 am to 10 pm, accessible free of charge to parents and children aged 0–3.

Lego Print Ad

I've written about Lego before - one of my favorite companies.  In my opinion Lego has done an incredible job of creating advertising based on the insight that parents believe that children who are creative problemsolvers will do better and achieve more in their personal and professional lives.  I really like the examples I came across today on Advert Eyes.

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The Perils of UGC ... Malibu Rum

2793backlash_2 Seeing these stories more and more.  You just get the sense that brands don't know what they are getting themselves into when they put all the power in the consumers' hands.  The latest incident involves Malibu Caribbean Rum. 

Malibu solicited entries for a contest ('you design our commercial' type thing) from the YouTube community.  But when the winner was announced it caused a backlash of negativity, with many people accusing Malibu of rigging the contest.  From an article in the NY Times:

"The winner, however, was posted Monday, and finalists were not publicly named. Some consumers who lost the contest were quick to start a rumbling on YouTube message boards that the contest had been rigged — a charge that Malibu denied.

One YouTube user even made a six-minute conspiracy theory video that compared images from a professional Malibu commercial promoting the contest with the winner’s video, saying in part: “Wow, the same nose!? The same guy? You be the judge!”

The article goes on to say:

"Many well-known brands — like Doritos, Heinz and Dove — have recently held their own user-generated commercial contests, but these contests are often difficult to manage. And they do not always generate many entries — despite large cash prizes. In Malibu’s case there were 270 entries, though only 84 qualified to be posted on the YouTube site, said a spokeswoman for the Thomas Collective, the public relations agency that managed the contest."

Attention agency people and brand managers everywhere:  Be careful what you wish for when you run these types of promotions, and ALWAYS have your PR team briefed in so they can manage any backlash.

Bud.TV Plans Fixes

The Hollywood Reporter serves up a short article on what the folks at A-B are planning to do to overhaul Bud.tv.  Wasn't too hard to see this all coming (even I picked up on it a few weeks ago ... here).  You can read the full article, but here are the highlights of the new strategy according to THR ...

1. Putting its content—tagged with Bud.TV—on morepopular sites like YouTube, AOL0072435229782_500x500 and Yahoo to gain awareness and encourage people to check out more on Bud.TV.
 
2. Reducing Webisodes to mostly one minute from the previous 5-6 minutes.
 
3. Changing content providers to come up with edgier programming and playing a larger role in deciding on the type of content it thinks will work.
 
4. Making Bud.TV an aggregator of Web content it deems its beer consumers would enjoy and building a social networking element to the site.
 
5. In the marketing arena, converting some traditional media and sports sponsorships to mention Bud.TV; working with wholesalers to create Bud.TV point-of-sale materials that can be put up at retail and at bars to help create awareness; and placing Bud.TV ads on the sites of sporting events sponsored by Budweiser, like Nascar races, NBA games and AVP Tour matches.

New Season of Hell's Kitchen ... Chef Ramsay is Back

I've written before about Chef Gordon Ramsay.  There's an article [click here] in today's Chicago Sun Times about the new season of Hell's Kitchen.  I'm not naive enough to think that any of the previous or future winners of Hell's Kitchen will go on to garner the respect of world-class chefs ... I just love watching Chef Ramsay take out his frustration on the contestants.  As the article says:

Ramsay is the R. Lee Ermey ("Full Metal Jacket") of cooking.

"It tastes like gnat's piss!" he shrieks at a cook's dish.

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