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Showing posts with label advertising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label advertising. Show all posts

motrin controversy

6:24 PM • , , , , • 0 comments

Makers of the popular pain reliever Motrin found themselves in a swirl of controversy last fall after releasing an advertisement directed towards baby toting mothers. The ad suggests that mothers who carry their babies in slings may need to take Motrin to relieve back pain. The ad assures mothers that the pain is worth it and compares baby slings to making a fashion statement and showcases your 'official mom' status. The real kicker is that Motrin actually states that they understand if you look tired and crazy after carrying your baby around all day and that you should take Motrin to relax the pain away.

After receiving literally thousands of responses days after the initial ad was released, baby-toting mothers let their voice be heard in the form of emails, tweets, blogs and video messages. The company had definitely struck a chord with their target audience, unfortunately the results were more painstaking then lower back ache. Two days after the ad was released, it was pulled from the media. The damage had already been done though. The company begin directly emailing irrate mothers who had posted on social media websites. The company followed this up with a sincere public apology on the homepage of their website.

As a public relations professional, I would have made sure to test the advertisement on a test audience first to initiate constructive criticism and feedback. The marketing group that created the ad obviously did not put much research into understanding their target audience. I would have made sure the project had a better idea of how their audience felt about carrying their babies. The company also released the ad on a Friday and let their audience brew angrier as the video made its rounds around the internet. I would have consulted someone to monitor the feedback of the ad over the weekend and contact the agency before the discussion grew as fierce as it did by Sunday.

Apology letter posted on Motrin website.

point of purchase displays

10:52 PM • , • 2 comments

This point of purchase(POP) advertisement is encouraging consumers to buy a given amount of items in order to receive a special discount. I think its effective because its rewarding customers with incentives when they spend more and buy in bulk amounts.















This POP display is not only advertising a promotional product, but offering another coupon which can be applied to the purchase. I think this is effective because people will likely end up buying the product not because they need it or prefer the brand, but because it is offering something tangible to a consumer which can be returned at the checkout counter for even more savings. I think when people are offered coupons, they feel obligated to buy the product.











This POP display has several different products set up offering barbecue sauces, marinades and lighter fluid in the middle of the aisle. This is very effective marketing because all the items are complementary to one another. This not only makes it easier for the consumer to find everything they need, but more likely the store will sell more of each individual product. The placement of the products are near the meat section which should ensure their target audience sees the display.








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media exposure

11:58 PM • , , , • 3 comments

Sunday, May 31st

12:00 PM - Checked E-Mail/ Channel surfed TV for 30 minutes
1:00 PM - Lunch
2:00 PM - Checked Facebook
3:00PM - Work/Research/Internet
4:00 PM - Work/Research/Internet
5:00PM - Work/Research/Internet
6:00 PM - Work/Research/Internet
7:00 PM - Watched Television briefley/ Read newspaper
8:00 PM - Talked to Parents/Dinner
9:00 PM - Drove to Marion/ Listened to Radio/ Read Billboards
10:00 PM - Dropped family car off/Browsed car lot/ Read window displays
11:00 PM - Return to Carbondale/ Read billboards
12:00 AM - Facebook/E-Mail
1:00 AM - Went to Bed

Monday June 1st

8:00 AM - Woke up/E-Mail
9:00 AM - Class
10:00 AM - Class
11:00 AM - Lunch/E-Mail/Facebook/Internet
12:00 PM - Internet
1:00 PM - Work
2:00 PM - Work
3:00 PM - Work
4:00 PM - Work
5:00 PM - Internet
6:00 PM - Bike Ride/Read Store-front advertisments
7:00 PM - Bike Ride/Talked among friends
8:00 PM - Bike Ride/Talked among friends/Recognized brands in Bubble-Tea
9:00 PM - Bike Ride/Talked among friends
10:00 PM - Recognized brands names in friend's home
11:00 PM - Talked among friends/Internet
12:00 AM - Internet
1:00 AM - Went to Bed

If an advertiser was trying to target me, he would most likely be successful placing ads on websites I frequently visit and on client websites that have a given product or service I'm interested in. Viral ads would also be effective as I visit many user generated websites as well. I spend most of my time on my computer compared to the amount of time I consume magazines and television. Sometimes I make drives to nearby towns, in which case I usually glance at every other billboard along the highway. An advertiser would be sucessful in reinforcing a brand name through this media. The message would have to be short and concise for me to remember though. It would be most effective with an image or logo I may already be familiar with. I like to read the newspaper every Sunday where I typically read the advertisments. Ads which promote a consumers immediate action are usually effective as that's when I look for limited time deals on food, electronics and at speciality stores. I usually listen to my iPod, so radio messages would be fairly ineffective in my case. Peer testimonials and past expereiences also play a big role in the way I interpret certain products even if im not exposed to the Ad directly. Guerilla/passive marketing would also be quite effective in my case as I stay busy most days and don't really take the time to digest the Ads I do see. This is where unconvential Ads would have a big impact on me as I move about my day. As percentages, I would distibute an advertisers messages in the following forms.

Web-Based: 55%
Viral Marketing:10%
Guerilla/Passive Marketing:10%
Newspaper: 10%
Billboards: 8%
Television: 7%

the persuaders: part two

9:41 PM • , , , , , • 0 comments


Rapaille's method hints at deeper reasoning to our purchasing habits. I think his ‘decoding’ method merely a highly evolved form of rationalizing underlying emotion and reasoning. Although I can’t completely dismiss his theories, as they seem to work for many of his clients. The way I picture Rapaille’s deeper level of meaning is like this. We are always in an unconscious state of competition with our peers. We all buy products to differentiate ourselves in a world that encompasses over 6 billion people. In this world we are genetically 99.9% the same as each person and every other person. By surrounding ourselves with tangible products and services we feel unique, which in turn makes us feel empowered and satisfied. Tangible items simply serve as a bridge to these ideals.

I feel that whenever I set out to purchase something that I am guided by some deeper underlying reasons in my purchasing decisions. I could go out and buy a generic brand, but because it is the cheapest and is able to perform comparably to the luxury brand, it would make sense to buy the generic brand. However, underlying reasons insist that I buy the luxury brand because it is purchased by fewer consumers and because I am able to afford it, I don’t hesitate to pay up. I end up feeling that I made the right decision because I perceive that I have uniquely distinguished myself from the rest of my peers. The luxury brand is also more likely to have advertisements which reinforce this idea and that I’m worthy of this more expensive brand. But of course this all happens without conscious thought or articulate reasoning of course.

I think Frank Luntz’s study of carefully word choice is an excellent marketing strategy which is able pinpoint where people with opposing ideologies meet in the middle on different topics. However I find the way that he uses this strategy to market political/legal issues is completely deceptive to those to being targeted. Political advertising no doubt has some initial impact on me, but I usually take any political advertisement with a grain of salt. I realize political advertisements are notorious for being deceptive and I usually take appropriate actions by inferring with a trusted neutral news affiliate before making any judgments.

Narrowcasting is the dissemination of information about people in order to direct very specific advertisements to very specific audiences in likelihood that they respond strongly to a message. Many marketers believe that mass markets do not exist anymore. Instead they are focusing on creating messages targeted at specific segments of the public defined by values, preferences, or demographic attributes. Narrowcasting is important for the future as marketers aim to fight the overwhelming clutter which exists currently. By delivering specific messages to niche demographics instead of one mass broadcasted message, marketers hope to grab the attention of not more consumers, but people more likely to act on the messages themselves. Examples of narrowcasting include reaching out to voter demographics that are likely to be affected by an issue, search ads on the web and signage inside stores where consumers are shopping for an item being advertised.

“The secret of all true persuasion is to induce the person to persuade himself.”
- Harry Overstreet

viral / guerilla / ambient marketing

10:06 PM • , , , , , , , • 0 comments

Viral Marketing

Viral marketing/advertising is used to increase brand awareness or relay a specific message through self replicating viral processes. This type of marketing is distributed either through word of mouth or enhanced by the network effects of the internet and pre-existing social networks. This type of marketing often experiences exponential growth in the message's exposure and influence as word of mouth grows. While some viral marketing strategies work better than other, nearly all successful strategies embrace a few if not all the principles from the following list.

1. Gives away products or services
2. Provides for effortless transfer to others
3. Scales easily from small to very large
4. Exploits common motivations and behaviors
5. Utilizes existing communication networks
6. Takes advantage of others' resources

Source: http://www.wilsonweb.com/wmt5/viral-principles.htm




Guerilla Marketing

Guerilla marketing is another form of alternative advertising which focuses on low cost, creative strategies rather than big marketing budgets. Guerilla marketing often uses unconventional methods to target consumers in unexpected places. Guerilla marketing is typically found in public places to achieve maximum results. Street giveaways of products and/or PR stunts are common guerilla marketing strategies. To summarize, guerilla marketing involves minimum cost for maximum impact.

• Guerrilla Marketing is specifically geared for the small business and entrepreneur.
• It should be based on human psychology instead of experience, judgment, and guesswork.
• Instead of money, the primary investments of marketing should be time, energy, an imagination.
• The primary statistic to measure your business is the amount of profits, not sales.
• The marketer should also concentrate on how many new relationships are made each month.
• Create a standard of excellence with an acute focus instead of trying to diversify by offering too many diverse products and services.
• Instead of concentrating on getting new customers, aim for more referrals, more transactions with existing customers, and larger transactions.
• Forget about the competition and concentrate more on cooperating with other businesses.
• Guerrilla Marketers should always use a combination of marketing methods for a campaign.
• Use current technology as a tool to empower your business.

Source: Jay Conrad Levinson Guerrilla Marketing(1984)




Ambient Marketing

Ambient marketing is another growing marketing strategy. Ambient marketing strategies typically stray from traditional media to create intelligent and creative marketing messages. These messages often produce mass attention in highly populated areas or directly interact with consumers in an un-obstructive way. Such examples include ads on hanging straps in railway carriages and on the handles of supermarket trolleys. The key to a successful ambient media campaign is choosing the right media format and combining it with a clever message. The term ambient marketing is thrown around a lot and can also imply the characteristics of both viral and guerilla marketing campaigns. Ambient marketing is not guerilla or viral marketing, but each strategy can certainly employ characteristics of ambient marketing.

the persuaders

7:16 PM • , , , , , • 0 comments




We live in a world filled with clutter and constant bombardment from ads. I think most consumers ignore these ads unless are somehow engaged or entertained from them. Whenever a marketer loses this frame of mind with consumers, the ad simply becomes just another ad in the bunch. Creating ads that are able to differentiate themselves from the clutter is easier said than done however. To cope with the clutter, marketers have begun to rethink the way they make ads. As many consumers largely ignore commercials and ads today, marketers have found they can break the clutter by finding opportunities to integrate their products into the entertainment the consumers are enjoying already. By effectively creating ads that seem more like entertainment then ad themselves, they can effectively reach out to their consumers. The concepts of traditional media advertising has changed dramatically in the past decade. Instead of focusing on information and products, marketers have instead shifted to creating ads which focus on culture and emotional connections with consumers. By creating these deeply rooted connections with consumers, effective branding is generated where loyalty stretches beyond just reason. Branding makes consumers feel like they belong and share a deeper connection with a product and belong to a culture of other like minded individuals. When encountering these same products at the store we instinctively purchase them in hopes that we can somehow capture these same emotions we felt in the ad. Examples of well branded companies today include Apple, Tide, Chevrolet, Honda, Red Bull, Nike and Harley Davidson.

PBS: The Persuaders





day one

8:19 PM • , , , • 0 comments

Advertising means more to me than a product, service or profit from which will be gained from it. Advertising is the glue which holds our uninvited attention during the day when we have so little to surrender. Effective advertising keeps us thinking, talking and ultimately buying. Advertising should be clever, beautiful and engaging. But most importantly, advertising is everywhere, whether we know it or not.

Advertising works for me whenever I have prior intentions of purchasing a product or service. Advertisements with thoughtful design or clever marketing tend to push me in favor of the given item though.

My favorite advertisement currently is from Cadbury.



I like the ad because it is unconventional and keeps you watching to find out what is being advertised. It's also fun to watch in general. Advertising should not feel manipulative or annoying. Advertising should provoke some emotion, but aggravation is not one of them.

I may not go out of my way to purchase their product, but if I'm confronted with the decision between two chocolate bars at some point in the future, I may very well try the Cadbury.