Category: Advertising

A Commentary on Bad TV: Who’s writing this stuff anyway?

Did you ever watch a television commercial and wonder, who wrote this stuff? I do. Every day.

I watched Al Roker (ala The Today Show) on-camera for The Office Depot open with, “Who helps businesses and kids succeed?” Really? The Office Depot help kids and business succeed? Are you giving away school and office supplies for free because you’re a commodity retailer and customers can buy what you sell from any competitor, a grocery store, a drug store or by bulk at Costco. And are you tutoring or offering free consulting because that’s what kids and businesses need to succeed, not another pen supplier. And the close – “Life’s good when the kids are happy!” Really, Al? Really?

Lipton Iced Tea details their three simple ingredients (two if sunshine is not an ingredient) in a spot as the Terminator-Tea girl catches a ride on a Vespa through downtown rush hour traffic to the zen-like close…

Case Study: Recruitment Advertising for Sony Electronics

Situation: We worked with the Director of Public Relations of an Electronics Manufacturer in the business of building large-screen television sets sold throughout the world.

Critical Business Issue: Although a market leader, the company’s greatest challenge was not being able to meet sales projections because they were not able to respond to dramatic changes in staffing requirements.

Reasons: The company had expanded their global manufacturing plant capability and needed thousands of additional staff to run the new lines to capacity. Not running the lines at capacity meant not meeting the production projections. At times they would be required to generate 1000 new hires within 30 days notice, but were unable to deliver. Because of their stringent hiring requirements they experienced a 4:1 applicant to staff ratio. The company had formal recruitment programs and materials in place, but was perceived as “just another factory.” Prospective hires were…

Case Study: Advertising Campaign for Retail Convenience Stores

Situation: We worked with the President and the VP of Marketing of a Convenience Store Chain operating 65 stores throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

Critical Business Issue: Most of the stores in the chain were having difficulty meeting sales goals on a consistent basis. Many stores had missed projections impacting profits of the entire company.

Reasons: The stores were perceived as a “local” chain and not on par with national competitors. Customers surveyed perceived no differential advantage over other convenience stores. Surveys also reported their customers’ perception of them as a Gas/Bread/Milk resource, although their product offering was far more expansive. Maintaining this wide product offering was a substantial investment and impacted annual profitability for the chain…

Case Study: TV & Radio for Newspaper Publisher

Situation: We worked with the VP of Marketing of a Newspaper Publishing Company in the business of publishing and distributing a daily newspaper in a major market.

Critical Business Issue: The publisher decided to invest in developing a new section of the newspaper and the VP of Marketing was concerned with not meeting profit margins set by management. She was also concerned with not meeting advertising revenue goals needed to keep the section self-sufficient and not meeting product sales goals to sustain the effort.

Reasons: Management had made a substantial investment in staff and production to develop a new section of the paper to access a new trend in information. The VP of Marketing was concerned with meeting a tight window of success provided by management to decide whether or not the section would continue. Readers would also have to perceive the value of the new section for the Publisher to generate subscriptions and single copy sales…

Making Sex Look Cool

In the world of nightclubs, getting different cultural factions to party together is about as difficult as bringing the Serbs and the Croats to the same table. Pittsburgh has its share of black clubs, gay clubs, and big hair clubs and sports bars, but night spots where elements of these different lifestyles come together are few and far between.

For the past seven years, Metropol in the Strip District has been our best shot at achieving a progressive urban mix. For almost a decade the venue has held up well, doing its part to keep what there is of a dance scene in this city simmering. Recently, however, Metropol owner Robin Fernandez decided it was time to raise the heat. In an effort to generate some new excitement and take Metropol back to the edge of what’s happening nationally in the club culture, he initiated the idea of “Sex and Violet’s,” and hired the South Side-based team of Ideahaus to carry the concept through…