The Dissatisfaction of Marketing Overkill

Here's the deal, I have been very excited to see the new movie Ted. I'm a huge fan of almost everything Seth Macfarlane does. However, when I watched all of the trailors for the movie, on YouTube, I set myself up for what would become, The Dissatisfaction of Marketing Overkill.

I'm going to show you several different trailers and TV spots. It comes with a language disclaimer. So, please excuse the language, even though it is a huge part of the movie. I'm using them to show how much of the movie is in the plethora of trailers. I saw the movie last night, and was so informed about the movie, through the trailers, that I barely laughed at, what would've been, the funniest movie I've seen in a long time. They will overlap a few times, but trust me, a fair chunk of the movie is in these trailers.

So without further haberdashery, and with a serious spoiler alert, comes the evidence:

 

 

Again, I apologize for the language and I could have included more, but the language is pretty fierce. So, I kept it to two. Anyway, the point is, after seeing the movie, I realized I had already seen it, in bits and pieces. The trailers give you the picture of the whole puzzle, and most of the pieces. The movie is just the rest of the pieces. I know we have reached the next generation of movie marketing, but come on. I was excited about it last year. You don't have to use my excitement against me and spoil the whole movie!

Overall, Ted is a great movie. It is hilarious, but the YouTube marketing technique has had its darker side exposed here. To put it plainly, it was overkill. I would have really loved the movie, if I hadn't already seen it.

 

The Soccer Mystique Part 2

Continuing on with the Soccer subject, my next example is Liverpool Football Club. Liverpool was formed in 1892, and quickly gained some success on the pitch. Although I do deeply love the beautiful game that is played on the pitch, I am not here to talk about what Liverpool FC does on the grass(and I'm sure if you're a Liverpool fan, you'd prefer it if I did not). I am here to talk about how they portray themselves, to the world.

Liverpool is a club with a rich history of successes and failures. Unlike their rich and illustrious neighbors, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, and even the more recent successes of Tottenham, Liverpool has a much more emotional appeal with their fans. Their fans, although lower in number than their more wealthy and internationally recognized neighbors,  have a certain type of love for the club; a borderline obsession, if you asked me.

What else could cause millions of people to sing a show tune from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel?

Now, that is amazing! These are grown men and women, in the thousands', collectively singing a show tune. That is powerful admiration of a brand.

I have a good friend who has been a Liverpool fan for quite some time. To hear the emotion connected to his admiration of the club is very interesting. I'm not necessarily a big fan of English soccer, but the only reason I know or watch any of what's going on there is my friend's constant vocalization of affection for the club. For him, it is an exclusive membership. A brotherhood of like-minded individuals, collectively seeking one goal(literally, just one goal). 

That is what branding is all about, creating a customer base that feels proud to purchase product. Not just because the products speaks to them, but because it allows them to speak to and for the brand. Trust me, if you haven't met a Liverpool fan, find one, and you'll get an ear-full. Be careful though, don't mention your affection for another club. Liverpool fans stay prepared to defend Liverpool at all costs, even in the case of extreme defamation of your favorite club. 

If you're a Liverpool fan, then the show tune maintains one very evident truth, "You'll never walk alone." 

The Soccer Mystique

There are some professional sports teams in the U.S. that have a specific and consistent message, with history to back it up. A few examples would include the Oakland Raiders, the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox, The LA Lakers, and you could probably argue for a few others. However, they do not have the same strong emotions attached to their marketing that the major foreign soccer clubs have.

I've followed soccer for the majority of my life. Nothing clings to my memory more than one specific and long-lasting example of a team becoming a brand, and then shooting off into a love affair with millions of adoring fans. Even when the team does poorly, the message screams through to their followers, and the fans really respect that.

My first example of a team is not only my favorite team in the entire world, but it is a wonderful example of how to be socially responsible, as a team. FC Barcelona, or Barca, as their fans affectionately call them, is a team with a long and rich history. Founded in 1899 by a group of young foreigners living in Barcelona, the team has had a great run. Their teams main message is "Mes Que un Club." It translates in English as, "More than a club," and that sticks. It really means something to their fans.

Barca Unicef ad:

Man, if we could get more of this here, I would be much more inclined to enjoy American sports. Even though most of them feel staged, and are rule heavy. I think this is what the world needs, brands with a lot of money, putting it to good use. 

An example of their social responsibility, taken from their website, under Values, in the Identity section:

"That is why the club has decided to contribute 0.7 per cent of its ordinary income to the FC Barcelona Foundation in order to set up international cooperation programs for development, support the UN Millennium Development Goals and has made a commitment to Unicef’s humanitarian aid programs through the donation of one and a half million euros for the next five years and now wears the Unicef logo on its shirts. An agreement that has made Barça unique."

 The mystique of soccer clubs is not in the game itself but in the class and culture they carry with them. FC Barcelona has created a classy culture for its fans. They also have some of the greatest players in the world, including the #1 ranked Lionel Messi. So, that helps to drive it home.

I have one more example of this to be included in next week's posts. Check out some other teams in your spare time. You might find that one or two of them really speak to you, not as a fan, but as an individual human being.

Movie Magic

If you still believe that a movie's success is based on how well it was made, cast, directed, produced, or any other measurement, you might want to reevaluate your current thought process. Granted, some of those things can really make a difference. However, it is no longer about how good the movie actually is.

It has gotten worse over time, but this trend of movie marketing equaling blockbuster success is one that is boiling my veins this week. Although there are many examples of terrible movies being successful in ticket sales, due to successful marketing campaigns, one in particular has stood out so much, that I thought I should write about it. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Are you serious? This is actually real, and by the looks of Twitter and Facebook, it is going to be seen on a mass scale. It's cheesy. It's disgraceful. This is a man who was an integral part of abolishing slavery, and we are abusing his legacy to sell movie tickets? The thing that kills me the most is that people are actually going to see it, have their friends see it, and perpetuate the success of awful movies at the box office.

How are people okay with this? I wish people realized how much they are being manipulated by marketing. This movie has an awful premise, a seemingly awful plot, and an extremely cliche style of filming. If you fell for it, I don't mean to insult. I just hope you see what I see in this film. It is a garbage film, with great advertising, nothing more.

Shame on you Fox, as if you could feel shame in the first place. The entirety of this whole project from conception, through marketing, and on to the movie hitting theaters, is trash, in my most humble of opinion.

Trash indeed.

Love and Hate: Athletes in Commercials

There is nothing worse than getting older. One of the inevitable side-effects of getting older is watching your favorite athletes exit their sport. Sometimes, the way in which they leave is bad enough. However, it doesn't end there. One of aging's cruelest jokes is the retired-athlete endorsed commercial. They are just awful. With the exception of a few gems, the world of awful athlete ads is filled with awesome awfulness. Did I mention they are awful? Here's a few examples to really drive my point home.

Troy Aikman and Hulk Hogan(as if that isn't awful enough):

Still not getting it yet? That's fine. There is much to display, Kimosabe. Let us continue.

Emmitt Smith, Keith Hernandez and Walt Frasier(I'm sorry it had to come to this):

It gets even worse when they do the local ads. This next one hurts me deep in the core of my being. It's bad enough if you retire prematurely. Then you go and own a Honda dealership, that's fine. You didn't have to go and be in the commercial. I'll try to remember you as you were Barry.

Barry Sanders(I can't watch):

The least you could do is try and be somewhat classy in your endorsement endeavors. There are few ads, in which retired athletes are required to speak, that go well. It is usually more of a reflection on the company, not the athlete, if the athlete does poorly. I vote to end it all together, retired-athlete endorsements. However, I feel as if it may never end. So, if you're going to do it anyway, please do it something like this.

Charles Barkley:

Yes! There you go. Admit that you are ridiculous, and continue. Don't try to be serious. You are an athlete, obviously not an actor. So, play on that, and we can all live in peace. Don't even get me started on Aaron Rodgers' ads. That's a thesis, not of appropriate length for this discussion.

If it's not the same caliber of an endorsement as you were as a player, just don't do it. Please, don't do it.

Adidas is Awesome

Okay, so maybe it's just me, but I love everything Adidas is doing right now. Products, advertising, soccer, basketball, you name it and I'll like it. That is, if it's Adidas. You could say I'm "All In." You could say I'm part of the "Smart Soccer Revolution." Any way you put it, I'm fascinated by Adidas.

All In:

Smart Soccer Revolution:

I mean, come on! Innovation in product development and marketing? I'm loving this. I hope this sneaky marketing team keeps it up. They also came full swing for the NBA Finals this year. Another area they are just tearing apart. They are putting their money where their mouth is, literally. NBA Finals ads don't sound very cheap to me. 

Crazy Light 2:

They are coming from all angles, and I like it. They are developing a serious global presence, and without the blabber that usually comes with it. Marketing done simple, but done right. It's vivid. It grabs your attention. You enjoy a commercial.

I have seen these Crazy Light 2 commercials one hundred times, but I still love them. Adidas is getting me, and my generation, at least for now. That is really hard to do. As a generation, we are demanding change, we are demanding innovation. They are actively responding to what consumers want. That is very simple, but it is also effective, and it's working.

I'm shouting from the rooftops with this one, I love Adidas, and I can't help it. 

The T-Mobile Lie

Okay, to set the record straight, I might have a little negative bias towards T-mobile after years of poor service, reception, and customer service. However, if I'm a customer, I'm entitled to that opinion through my experience with T-Mobile.

T-Mobile has awesome advertisements, and really cool approaches to connecting with consumers. They do a great job of getting you interested in the company and its offerings. Then, once they've got you, they start to show their ugly side. No reception, anywhere, dropped calls like crazy, nearly inept customer service, and hidden charges and fees that stack up quite a bit on your monthly bill. To be fair, they do offer great phones, but that's about it.

Take last year's awesome Angry Birds ad they did in Barcelona:

How cool is that? It is an awesome idea, and it played on the success of an app. If they played off of how well their service is, or how "great" their customer service is, the ad would have flopped. So, they use these great ads and great social presence to gain customers. Then, once they have them, they can keep them with their ridiculous contracts that hold tighter than handcuffs. I can't wait to leave T-Mobile. AT&T offers so much more, and here's the kicker: They actually do what they say they will. I mean come on, how can T-Mobile keep up with AT&T? The only way they can is to use these visually enticing ads to get customers to unknowingly sign up for two years of annoyance.

Their new campaign puts them up against AT&T with the "Test Drive" campaign where people will test their 4G speed versus the speed of AT&T's. Good luck T-Mobile, you might have just signed yourself up in a competition that you will lose.

Here's the new ad:

T-Mobile has become one of those companies who honestly believes they are great. Just ask a T-Mobile customer how happy they are, the response will most likely sound something like this blog. Any person I've asked, in preparation for this piece, about their satisfaction has echoed my own feelings. That's what drove me to write this. T-Mobile, to be frank, you're terrible.

Here's how one YouTuber felt about their test drive section on their site:

You're not fooling me T-Mobile, I'm on to you.

PVH: New Marketing

This last Superbowl, I witnessed a campaign that totally peeked my interest. It wasn't a Superbowl commercial, but it was a campaign designed around it. One of PVH's many brands, Van Heusen, launched a campaign called "The Institute of Style" featuring Pro Football Hall of Fame's Steve Young, Jerry Rice, and Deion Sanders. It was based on a survey conducted by GQ and Van Heusen. The survey was conducted to discover the truth about male fashion, or lack there of, in the United States. What it found was there is need for improvement.

“We felt the men of America were lacking when it came to style and the survey with GQ confirmed it,” Mike Kelly, PVH Corp. Executive Vice President of Marketing. “We are launching the Institute of Style to help guide American men in a way that is also fun and interesting. We are bringing them trusted voices from GQ, ESPN and Van Heusen to help them get their style back.”

Here's the institute of style ad: 

Van Heusen doesn’t stop there; they used the website to challenge men to use their stylistic transformation to win a trip to the Super Bowl. By documenting the before and after photos and submitting them to the “Schlub to Swagger” section of the Institute of Style, they could enter to win. There was a special panel, including the campaign ambassadors Steve Young, Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders, as well as style experts from GQ, Van Heusen and ESPN The Magazine, that selected and rewarded the best entry.The winner and four friends got to fly in a private jet; attend the most exclusive VIP parties, experience a full style makeover, and sit in a suite watching the Super Bowl with Steve, Jerry and Deion. 

I think there is something really special about a campaign that doesn't demand anything from the customer, but rather it invites them to be a part of the brand. The campaign established a bond between Van Heusen and its customer. It connected the audience with the brand in a way that is not invasive, and is actually quite welcome. I can't wait to see what PVH comes up with next.

Nice work PVH, nice work.

Don't trick my kid

I recently went to an outdoor mall to get some stuff for my mother's birthday and Mother's day, which is quite close to her birthday. That went fine, Yankee Candle is a lifesaver for late present purchases for moms, who like candles. However, while my son's mother was finishing up paying for her candles, me and my son, Ki, came outside to check out some stuff. Right next door was a shoe store, Stride Rite, on the outside there was a poster advertising their new Marvel, Avengers-based shoe line, for kids.


Now, that's all fine and dandy, until my son asks me if we can get them so he can,
A.) fly
B.) stomp green cracks in the ground
C.) manifest a shield from his mind
D.) shoot webs from his wrists.

This stuff drives me nuts, as a dad. If I have to see the look on my son's face when I tell him he cannot fly, stomp green lines, present an imaginary shield as actual, or shoot webs from his wrists, one more time, I might lose it. My boy loves the avengers, loves super powers. So when he saw this, he wanted them, naturally. However, it wasn't because of the shoes. He wanted the powers, being falsely advertised to the unexposed mind of my son, Ki.

In the words of my son Maleki James Meyer, "Stop tricking me! It's not fair making me think I can shoot webs. I'm mad!"

Now, don't get me wrong, yes it's effective, but not at the expense of the hopes and dreams of my son, or anyone else for that matter. In the five minutes we were standing there, at least three other boys asked their parents the same questions. "Can I get those? I want to fly like Iron Man." Obnoxious!

Now, my son refuses to wear or buy Stride Rite shoes, and I'm joining him. He understands at four years-old, that they are deliberately trying to trick him. You lost a good one Stride Rite.

Shotty call Stride Rite, shotty call.

The United Way of Greater Milwaukee

Last semester, at Marquette, I had the privilege of creating a 360 degree ad campaign for the United Way of Greater Milwaukee. I was to select a currently existing campaign, and then create a new one that would continue the success of an already existing campaign. The campaign I chose was in regards to one of their programs, Healthy Girls. This is a program designed to educate young women in Milwaukee about the dangers of being a young woman in today's world.

The ads for this campaign are incredibly good at grabbing your attention, and drawing you into the ad. From their bus shelter signage, to their posters, and their billboards, it is all aimed at the ultimate goal of keeping young women informed. They do a great job, but there is one area of affect, that they might not have considered when creating the campaign; they "Villianize" men.

I felt they had done an incredible job at gaining the attention of young women, and the statistics associated with teen pregnancy and infant mortality have shown this to be true. However, I do feel as if the ads have the potential to damage the self-image of young men. So, when I made my campaign, I focused on encouraging young men to be gentlemen and women to be lady-like. As opposed to demonizing men in order to educate women.

Here are some of their ads:



They're great, right? Yes, but if we look a little close at the message being communicated, it sounds less constructive towards increasing the positive relationship between young men and women. For example, in the first ad, the bottom caption assumes that young men aren't aware of statutory rape laws, and that they do as they please with underage women. This isn't true beyond a small percentage of men, who give the lot of us a bad rap. I feel the most effective marketing targets both genders, and definitely doesn't demonize one side or the other.

Now, mind you, I am not a pro at ad design, but I wanted to share a few of the mock-ads I did for the United Way of Greater Milwaukee. My campaign focused on iterating the fact that, condom use, is common sense. Therefore, Condom Sense was born.

I feel that they did a great job, the goal they were after was accomplished, and is still effective at ultimately reducing teen pregnancy and infant mortality. I just wonder how the negative portrayal of the expectations we have for young men will effect the young men who are touched by the ads.

"Give a man a fish, you feed him for the day. Teach a man to fish, you feed him for life." -Anne Isabella Ritchie, from her book Mrs. Dymond

J.C. Penney: 'Don't Play Games With The Customer'

In February, J.C. Penney began a long transformation that includes eliminating hundreds of sales events in favor of everyday prices on most items, a transformation that many predict will rip the retailer to pieces in the marketplace. Especially because they also discontinued dividends to help fund this massive change. This is not the pretty picture CEO Ron Johnson depicts. However, Ron Johnson has had incredible success at major companies, starting with Target, onto Apple, and now with J.C. Penney. His success with Apple is a major contributing factor to the kinds of change going on at JCP.

How do you market the ending of sales and coupons? The new pricing structure at JCP is a drastic shift from what we are used to seeing at the retailer's many stores. So, instead of constant sales and coupons, J.C. Penney will have three levels of pricing: everyday, best price, (which are clearance items), and month-long value (where they discount certain themed items for a month). Comparatively competitive prices, even with most online competition, they hold the lowest price.Yet, the first quarter results proved to be poor as the company's stock price fell by 12.5 percent and customer traffic also fell by 10 percent.

"It's one big year we have to get through ... We are trying to essentially convert the Titanic into 1,100 wave runners, and that is really hard to do," CEO Ron Johnson said at the analyst meeting, in which vendors, like Martha Stewart, were present.

Recent controversy over spokesperson Ellen DeGeneres being a homosexual, got some pretty heavy media coverage, but can be looked at in a positive light. The company, rather than drop her because of public outcry, kept her on as the company's spokesperson. This sends a clear message of change at J.C. Penney, and one that should be readily accepted by Americans.

Here is a CBS interview with CEO Ron Johnson about the controversy, the transformation, his work, and the future of JCP.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfZKntQZSbo&feature=related


Although this change sounds good when Johnson speaks, it has not reached the ears of consumers. They will need a much stronger marketing strategy. I'm interested, and I love Ron Johnson's work, but I feel that without my preceding interest, I would have never heard of the new pricing at JCP. They need to get out there, in the media. This is a really cool change, and could be a revolution in retailing. Having, essentially, a "Mall of designers" in one store, is a pretty cool concept. Bringing products to customers, based on what they like, and providing it at a cost, based on what they want to pay, sounds commonsensical, but it is rarely seen in as pure a form as what JCP is trying to do. When you replace a tradition of coupons and sales with a no-haggle solid price, it isn't as fun for the involved consumer. However, in a noise-filled world, some straight and forward would be greatly appreciated. Designing a straight and forward marketing plan will be essential to their success with this new transformation.

Good luck JCP, good luck.

The Mountain Dew Show

In an attempt to battle recent loss in market share to competitors, like Fanta and Sprite, and a seven-year sales decline, Mountain Dew is looking for new audiences to help it maintain its position on top of the market.

Although the brand is America's best-selling non-cola soft drink, its target audience has remained fairly narrow. According to data from multiple sources on Mountain Dew, the majority of its consumers are white, suburban males located the in the Plain and Southeast regions of the United States. Therefore, they need a campaign that can facilitate that new growth in a geographically efficient way. The goal is to achieve revenue growth and solidify domination of the market. The company has chosen to bulk up its media buys and refocus its brand’s messaging to speak to new demographics while still providing a consistent message for its brand’s current advocates.

This new messaging can be seen in Mountain Dew’s most recent ad campaign. Focused on the slogan, “This is How We Dew”, the new advertisements use a crew of celebrities ranging from rapper Mac Miller to pro skateboarder Paul Rodriguez to speak to potential consumers. Mountain Dew has developed multiple spots, each being narrated by a different celebrity.  The company will air each celebrity’s commercial in a region of the country best suited to the celebrity’s niche. For example, commercials voiced by Lil’ Wayne will be focused on potential consumers in the LA market — whereas Jason Aldean’s ads will be aired in Nashville. This is exactly what they needed to capture these new audiences.

Here's two of the spots, Mentioned above. 

By effectively reaching these audiences, in a way that is consistent with their past messages, Mountain Dew hopes to spread across the country. How effective it will be, can only be measured in time. However, in my humblest of opinions, they are headed in the right direction. Creating messages for specific geographical areas is a really cool and effective way to direct specific messaging at a specific audience. This type of messaging/campaign will be seen more and more in our new global marketplace. Mountain Dew has got a good one here, I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for more companies using similar messaging techniques.

Smart move Dew. Smart move.