The Absolute Best Super Bowl XLIV Ad
It was like a breath of fresh air. It was like walking out of a noisy party into a peaceful spring night. It was remarkably striking in its simplicity. It put the furry animals in perspective. It made all the digital wizardry disappear into the background. It put my consumer exuberance on pause for a brief moment.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Why Issue-Based Advertising Is Like Walking a Minefield
Although Focus on the Family's Tim TeBow Super Bowl ad can be examined from many angles, an interesting angle for a CMO relates to understanding issue-based advertising and how it might differ from more traditional brand-advertising efforts.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Super Bowl Is Most-Watched TV Event Ever
MINNEAPOLIS (AdAge.com) -- Countless cable options, let alone smaller screens like computers and cellphones. The broadcast business model under assault. Two teams from relatively small markets. Add it up -- as CBS has -- and what do you get? The most-watched TV event of all time.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Drawing on the Pencil Project
On Friday afternoon I received not just one, but two of the most memorable pitches of my 14 years at Ogilvy & Mather. Both campaigns were for longtime client Kool-Aid. If successful, these campaigns will expand Kool-Aid's target audience from focusing on mothers to also targeting tween consumers, helping the product reinvent its marketing strategy. Not too shabby, coming from a group of 11-year-olds.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
New Orleans Is a Super Bowl Winner
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The city that was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and has struggled to regain its economic footing, particularly through tourism, received a huge jolt from the day-long Super Bowl coverage that culminated in a victory by the New Orleans Saints over the Indianapolis Colts.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Does a Small Agency Need a Creative Director With a Super Bowl Mentality?
Today's creative leaders in smaller agencies need to have a different mindset. If they were raised in a time when traditional advertising dominated the scope of an agency's workload, then they need to evolve.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Why the Super Bowl Doesn’t Loom So Large Any More
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The Super Bowl has long been -- and probably shall forever be -- known as the Big Game. Yet developments over the past two years make us think it's getting a little smaller.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Budweiser Turns ‘Big Brother’ for World Cup
CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- Anheuser-Busch InBev has kept largely mum on its marketing plans for this summer's FIFA World Cup, but it tipped its hand a bit late Friday when agency DDB put out a casting call for an apparent Bud-themed reality show.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Would Your Manager Walk a Mile in Your Moccasins?
In a perfect world, all work leaders would make a practice of role-reversal. Unfortunately, most don't have the luxury of delaying their real work to do the work of their employees. As employees, we can all be proactive. If you feel as though your boss is clueless about your day-to-day activities, empower yourself to enlighten her about your routine.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Mindshare Picks Up Unilever’s North American Media Account
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- After a seven-month review, Unilever has awarded its $800 million North American media-planning and -buying account to Mindshare, executives with knowledge of the review said.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Super Bowl Commercials Going the Way of the Dodo
There was much debate on whether Pepsi made the right choice not to participate in the Super Bowl commercial spectacle. Ironically, most of those who bought commercials didn't participate either. No one wants to do a great commercial for the Super Bowl anymore. It looks like we're just out of ideas. But if the future Super Bowl commercials are like what we had this year, the hype is over.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Let the Analysis Begin: Weighing in on Super Bowl Ads
NEW YORK (Adage.com) -- The Super Bowl is over, but the attempts to figure out how the Super Bowl ads performed are just beginning. With so many different kinds of post-ad analysis available, Ad Age wants to make it easy for you to find where all of it is.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Magazines Slow Their Losses at Newsstand
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Consumers continued to cut back on purchases at magazine newsstands in the second half of last year, but publishers managed to slow the rate of attrition, according to the semi-annual circulation report released today by the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Vanity Fair’s White Issue
During this past decade, Hollywood has actually trended toward more inclusion. The results: record box office numbers. That is a trend that I would expect to continue into the next decade. Diversity is good for audiences and good for business. So what's with Vanity Fair's obsession with white women?
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
To Regain Luster, Oscars Get a Social-Media Makeover
LOS ANGELES (AdAge.com) -- Like all things Hollywood, Oscar is getting some work done to keep up a more youthful appearance. Along with the ballyhoo surrounding the Best Picture category, now with 10 nominees instead of five for this year's 82nd annual telecast, airing March 7 on ABC, the ceremony is getting its first social-media push to attract younger viewers.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Prosound: On-Hold Messaging for Smart Business Owners
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Runnin’ Down A (Olympic) Dream
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
TBWA Anoints a Chief Compensation Officer
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Rising tensions between agencies and marketing procurement have birthed a new role in the agency C-suite: the chief compensation officer.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Corona Rethinks Its Vacation in a Bottle
CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- While other beers deluged consumers with frat-house gags and women in bikinis, Corona Extra rode to 16 years of consecutive growth on the most unique positioning in the category: It was a vacation in a bottle. But now, as it tries to avoid a fourth consecutive year of sales declines, Corona is beginning to act a bit more, well, like everyone else.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Why Indie Boutique Toy’s Story Came to a Surprise End
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- After last week's shuttering of the highly regarded, 4-year-old boutique agency Toy, Ad Age queried small-agency leaders across the industry to see how they're tackling the times.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Lightspeed Survey: Toyota’s Loss of Consumer Trust Is Domestic Rivals’ Gain
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- General Motors, Ford and Chrysler ought to send Toyota a thank-you card. Toyota's recall is boosting the quality reputation of its domestic rivals in the eyes of consumers.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Burger King’s ‘Superfan’ Might Just Be Your Grandma
CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- After years of talking about how it's targeting young males who consume prodigious amounts of fast food, Burger King's description of its target has recently become a lot more expansive.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
Behind Kraft’s Marketing Makeover: From New Ad Agencies to New Attitude
CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- Quick: Name one highly creative advertiser. Bet your first choice wasn't Kraft. The food giant is making strides toward updating the look and tone of its advertising while keeping it as accessible as possible for consumers.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
What Good Are the Words to a Song Without the Music?
Without a visual hammer, an advertising campaign is almost certain to fail.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
American Family Insurance Grows Its Family With Trust
LOS ANGELES (AdAge.com) -- American Family Insurance VP-Marketing Lisa Bacus recently spoke with Ad Age about lessons learned from her entertainment programs, the importance of bringing all her agency partners together for quarterly creative meetings and why branding should always prevail over tactics.
February 8, 2010 Comments Off
