A really interesting look at the legenary Mac 1984 launch advert. I knew bits and pieces of the story, but not some of the finer points. And it doesn’t get much finer than (of the boardmembers it says):
“The others just looked at each other, dazed expressions on their faces…Most of them felt it was the worst commercial they had ever seen. Not a single outside board member liked it.”
It’s always good to remember that the opinions of a few are often not representative of the many…
Levi’s Antidote is, in its own words:
“…a living, growing snapshot of what people are thinking and doing across Europe.”
Now, as the guys at SMLXL so rightly point out, this is theoretically a great idea. A campaign that supports creativity, gets people involved and says all the right stuff about Levi’s. BUT, to my mind it gets lots of things wrong…
Continue reading Levi’s Antidote
Sony Bouncy Balls TV advert. For me this is one of the greatest ads of recent times. Not only is it a thing of great beauty. It’s executed brilliantly. It demonstrates, in a way that everyone can understand, the key product benefit. Oh, and a lovely soundtrack too. [As an aside Veneer by Jose Gonzales is one of my favourite albums of the year so far].
But that’s only half the story…
The other side of what makes this ad so brilliant is the fact that so many people knew about the ad even before it had been edited. The use of Flickr to create buzz around the event of dropping the balls. The releasing of the ‘making of’ documentary before the advert itself.
Very very smart. My hat is off.
Interesting Reuters article from a couple of weeks ago. Martin Sorrell talks about how media companies are running scared of the new new media. But perhaps most interesting is his criticism of News Corp’s recent acquisitions.
All round smart guy, planning dude and greasy spoon fan Russell Davies has set up the Account Planning School Of The Web – IMHO a properly wired idea.
He’s putting effort in, and helping people out, but at the same time potentially getting a really valuable window on the world of planning thinking. Sure, lots of it will be near-useless (my efforts included), but there will undoubtedly be some gems, either individual or aggregated. I’m sure that he’s going to share the wealth, but at the same time standing at the front of the virtual classroom has to be interesting…
Smart!
From Cult Of Mac Blog – iPod Nanos on Tokyo Metro – This is a great (if a little expensive) promotion. Having said that, this is one of those ads that creates so much residual ‘buzz’ around it that the initial investment is totally worth it. I’ve just finished the excellent book Buzzmarketing: Getting People to Talk About Your Stuff. Hence I’m temporarily obsessed with ‘buzz’. I’ll write a review of the book soon. In the meantime, have a look at the Buzzmarketing.com site.
I’m especially loving the use of photo message QR codes on the back of the dummy Nanos (in case you don’t know these are like barcodes that you photograph with your mobile – all the rage in Japan apparantly).
Adrants covers BK getting ‘Farked’ – an interesting story of a brand getting stacks of exposure though an online community running away with their ‘icon’ and co-opting it in their own way. The article kind of makes it sound as if BK had a hand in it.
I was chatting with Rob from B3ta.com about this earlier and he spoke to Drew from Fark who made it very clear that there was absolutely nothing commercial about the Farking at all.
I’m in the process of writing a bigger piece on brands and viral subversion – I’ll post it soon…