Tuesday, July 19, 2005
I spent my weekend indulging my inner child. I poured over Harry Potter and went to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The movie was entertaining. Johnny Depp was excellent (and still beautiful). His Willy Wonka was somewhat reminiscent of Michael Jackson, although I hear he denies the character is based on MJ (it's based on the lead from Marilyn Manson supposedly.) I just finished Harry Potter, and it was excellent. But very sad. Very, very sad. If I had children, I don't know if I would want to read it. But I think the sad ending might hold an important lesson for kids. But what do I know - I'm not a parent. Not to give anything away, I'm hoping given Rowling's other nods to other fantasy writings, a resolution may relieve the sadness. Can anyone say Gandalf?
I've been paying more attention to television and magazine ads lately. Partly because the TV is on constantly (it simulates human interaction - hey, you take what you can get). But mostly because of my interest in marketing. I like trying to discern the messages the marketer is trying to convey through the ads.
One cool ad that's on the airwaves now is the Coca-Cola Zero ad. It evokes the memory of the old Coke ads with the people on a hilltop singing "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" and putting flowers in their hair. OK I'm not sure about that last thing, but you get the picture. It was all multicultural hippies, flowers, and Coca-Cola. Now the new ad says "I'd Like to Teach the World to Chill" and instead of a flower covered hilltop it's on top of a building in a dense urban area. Well that dense urban area happens to be Philadelphia, and that may be why I like the ad. It's probably not the most effective. It doesn't tell you why this Coke is any different than the other 20,000 Coke varieties. But that may be because Coke marketing is all about the BRAND not the varieties. But I do think they are missing an opportunity to tell people what the heck Coke Zero is. Coca-Cola Zero is a zero calorie soda that doesn't taste like diet soda. This stuff tastes pretty good. It's a great alternative for people who don't like the diety taste of Diet Coke. But Coca-Cola doesn't tell you what it is. I guess they want you to figure it out.
Another interesting ad, or rather series of ads I've noticed is the IBM Consulting ads. It features these scruffy looking men around a round table, like the knights of the round table. They are trying to vanquish a witch or some other medieval evil. In between shot changes, you see a modern boardroom. Throughout the series the scruffy looking knights seem baffled by the solutions to solve the medieval evils. One solution is a person who reads white papers, and the scruffy looking knights don't know anyone who reads white papers. Cut to the IBM Consulting name with an announcer saying these people, "The Other IBM" can solve your medieval evils. I'm not sure about this ad. It's clever. But is it a good idea to compare your potential clients to medieval troglodytes who don't even have the mental capacity to read a white paper? Maybe it's just the corporate people I've dealt with, but most business people don't see themselves as idiots. I don't think they want to hire a consultant that might be condescending, which is kind of the feeling I get from the ad, as clever as it may be. But maybe I'm reading too much into the ad. Maybe the target market won't interpret it that way.
After all what do I know. Just enough to be dangerous really!
I've been paying more attention to television and magazine ads lately. Partly because the TV is on constantly (it simulates human interaction - hey, you take what you can get). But mostly because of my interest in marketing. I like trying to discern the messages the marketer is trying to convey through the ads.
One cool ad that's on the airwaves now is the Coca-Cola Zero ad. It evokes the memory of the old Coke ads with the people on a hilltop singing "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" and putting flowers in their hair. OK I'm not sure about that last thing, but you get the picture. It was all multicultural hippies, flowers, and Coca-Cola. Now the new ad says "I'd Like to Teach the World to Chill" and instead of a flower covered hilltop it's on top of a building in a dense urban area. Well that dense urban area happens to be Philadelphia, and that may be why I like the ad. It's probably not the most effective. It doesn't tell you why this Coke is any different than the other 20,000 Coke varieties. But that may be because Coke marketing is all about the BRAND not the varieties. But I do think they are missing an opportunity to tell people what the heck Coke Zero is. Coca-Cola Zero is a zero calorie soda that doesn't taste like diet soda. This stuff tastes pretty good. It's a great alternative for people who don't like the diety taste of Diet Coke. But Coca-Cola doesn't tell you what it is. I guess they want you to figure it out.
Another interesting ad, or rather series of ads I've noticed is the IBM Consulting ads. It features these scruffy looking men around a round table, like the knights of the round table. They are trying to vanquish a witch or some other medieval evil. In between shot changes, you see a modern boardroom. Throughout the series the scruffy looking knights seem baffled by the solutions to solve the medieval evils. One solution is a person who reads white papers, and the scruffy looking knights don't know anyone who reads white papers. Cut to the IBM Consulting name with an announcer saying these people, "The Other IBM" can solve your medieval evils. I'm not sure about this ad. It's clever. But is it a good idea to compare your potential clients to medieval troglodytes who don't even have the mental capacity to read a white paper? Maybe it's just the corporate people I've dealt with, but most business people don't see themselves as idiots. I don't think they want to hire a consultant that might be condescending, which is kind of the feeling I get from the ad, as clever as it may be. But maybe I'm reading too much into the ad. Maybe the target market won't interpret it that way.
After all what do I know. Just enough to be dangerous really!
