Brad is looking for a girl

"CHICAGO - Recently divorced Saatchi & Saatchi branding executive Brad Stritch, 38, has already generated considerable buzz in the Chicago singles community about his return to the highly competitive world of dating, friends and coworkers told the press Monday."


"Brad believes placing stickers with the phrase 'Who is Brad?' in unusual locations throughout the city will be just the thing to keep people talking," Ennis said. "Also, he's planning a 'Who Says All The Good Men Are Taken?' theme party. He's trying to get it sponsored by Bacardi Silver, but they want him to hand out their T-shirts. He'd prefer the focus to be on him and his availability to attractive women, not a premium malt beverage."

[Source: The Onion \ via Cup of Java]

BBH, London: "Axe Lynx" | Gold Lion Cannes 04






"Getting dressed" - A great campaign that's always worth watching again ... and again. Created by Bartle, Bogle and Hegarty.

A GOOD PURCHASE



For £9.94, the two books, in Amazon UK

"MARKETING ALCOHOLIC DRINKS" The 9th Annual Admap Conference » Date: terça, 28 Setembro 2004 » Theme: "How to introduce greater creativity to the marketing process to pre-empt aggressive legislation and develop new, sustainable markets" » Key speakers: Rita Clifton, Interbrand | Stephen Thomas, Luminar PLC | Maggie Collier, Flamingo International | Jamie Lister, Drink Works | Richard Storey, M&C Saatchi | Rooney Anand, Greene King Brewery | Chris Searle, Bacardi-Martini » Info: warc

The Great Combo: Cheap prices and design



At the end of the road there's always a resting point, a 'checking-in' for every traveller. Perhaps this was the insight that Stelios Ioannou (easyGroup founder) had in mind with his latest venture. After offering cheap and massified means of travelling (easyJet and easyCar) why not offering people a place to rest? At $9 USD per night, Stelios'easyHotel is bound to success.

Source: NY Times

Dr. Seuss ... The Ad Man

Before Theodore Seuss Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) found fame as a children's book author ("How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "The Cat in the Hat", Theodore Seuss Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) he did some really interesting advertising artwork. Perhaps something that few people knew.

[First spotted at Consumer Whore]

IKEA: "affordable solutions for better living"





Everything you've always wanted to know about IKEA's brand:
Blogfonk] [Guardian UK] [Hundred Monkeys

"Holistic Marketing"

"Holistic Marketing" and the Identity Crisis of Advertising

"As the advertising industry struggles through an identity crisis (...) Holistic marketing is supposed to be the answer. It means finding alternatives to throwing a lot of money at 30-second television spots in an effort to reach consumers when they will actually pay attention - at sponsored sporting events, for instance, or when they open their mail, or when they go to the bathroom at a bar. It might mean providing information on the Internet, rather than simply delivering a hard sell."

Source: International Herald Tribune

FooD for Thought

On blogging:
"The problem is that this medium is amateur at its best. Amateur which means that bloggers aren't bored, bloggers aren't lazy and bloggers aren't just trying to fill space." - Seth Godin

On consumers:
"Your customers are really other peoples customers who occasionally buy from you."
- Prof. Andrew Ehrenberg

Philippe Starck + Puma

The Vanishing Mass Market



"New technology. Product proliferation. Fragmented media. Get ready: It's a whole new world"
[Article: Business Week]

TBWA\Portugal: "IKEA. Live more your house."


"... the telescope ... your neighbour."

Lowe Puts Planners out

Lowe London puts Planners out in the streets

Lowe London have started something called 'lowe Groundwork', a sceme where 24 planners will be sent to live, shop and breathe with the punters.

"Real consumer understanding is vital to commercial success, but modern research is no longer generating the required level of insight. Focus group research has created a composite No-Man who resembles no-one anyone has ever met. We do need to know consumers' buying cycles and product usage but we need more than that - we need a view of the whole person if we are to truly understand and influence them."
- Cathy Lewis, Lowe Planner

Source: Ad-Rag | Media Guardian

AFTER "EATING THE BIG FISH"... Adam Morgan, best-known as the author of "Eating the Big Fish" is back with a new book called: "The Pirate Inside: How to build a Challenger Brand Culture within yourself and your organisation". To mark the occasion, APG, the Account Planning Group, UK organized a little 'rendez-vous' where Adam will be talking about his new book. [Here's some info.] Venue: King and Queen pub (in the upstairs function room) Where's that? On the corner of Foley Street and Cleveland Street, London W1, nearest tube Warren Street or Goodge Street. Time: doors open 6.30pm; talk starts 7pm. The bar will, of course, be open. Expected to finish about 8.30pm. Drinks: Get your drinks at the bar downstairs (on your way in). Booking: Free of charge. Space is restricted & this meeting will be popular, so we can accept only the first 50 bookings. Please email to reserve a place pirate@apg.org.uk

DDB LONDON: "MICHAEL MOORE"

"The future of advertising"



"The advertising industry is passing through one of the most disorienting periods in its history".
It's worth spending a couple of minutes "digesting" this great article from The Economist. The new mediums (net); the potential of new markets like China; "media-neutral" agencies; the death of the 30" TV spot, etc. are some of the issues pointed out.

LEO BURNETT BRAZIL


"Are you so indifferent that you don't even notice that this photo is upside down?"

180 Amsterdam: "Adidas. Impossible is nothing."

FOOTBALL: THE NEW RELIGION "We're increasingly deserting the church in favour of the pitch. Players are gods, the stands are the pews, football is the new religion, and here's why." Source: BBC News

"ENVIRONMENTAL PORN": A new category is born.

"Two Norwegian environment-activists have started a website aimed to save the rainforests. That might be no news if it wasn't for the site's content: porn.

At Fuck For Forest.com the members who pay for access will be able to upload their homegrown porn and see other members doing it. And the money they get in is put in a fund and will be donated to the WWF."

Source: Ad-Rag

STRATEGY: Exploiting bad breath caused by 'low-carb'diets (like Atkins) NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Pfizer plans to jump on the low-carb bandwagon by positioning its flagging Listerine PocketPaks as a solution for bad breath caused by the popular diets. While Pfizer is the first to capitalize on the unseemly side effect of the trendy diet, other breath-freshener players are expected to follow suit. Andy Jacobs, director of marketing for gum and mints at Hershey Foods, said that "low-carb dieters are certainly an opportunity for all breath-freshening products to go after" both in terms of positioning and products.

LOGO QUIZ

CHIQUITA BANANAS THAT TASTE LIKE APPLE? The things brand managers do in order to disrupt their product categories, generate novelty amongst consumers and increase market share: "CINCINNATI -- Bananas flavored with the hint of another fruit could help Chiquita International Brands Inc. become the Starbucks of the produce world, the company's leader says, envisioning a larger, creamier or sweeter banana". Source: South Bend Tribune (via Agendainc)