[ paul isakson ]

Hey, Whatta Ya Know! This Shit Works!

Arbitron and Nielsen have been collaborating with Proctor & Gamble on a consumer research study dubbed "Project Apollo," which aimed to show a valid link between advertising and sales. Today, Reveries reports that the results of the test run were good for advertisers. Meaning that people exposed to several months worth of advertising spent more on the brands they saw ads for than those same brands before the ads ran. There's a much more detailed report on the Reveries article along with more links.

[image via pixel packing mama]

The Power of Suggestion

Pairs perfectly with a nice bottle of Ménage à Trois.

Should it really be called a Romantic Dinner for Two? Or should it be an Erotic Dinner for Two?

Whoever created this board has to be laughing. (Yes, it's a real execution.) Same with the media buyer/planner who put it right behind a church. And the person who set the price for the dinner is certainly laughing the most.

Denver Coffee Morning: Part Deux

The first Denver Coffee Morning came and went but not without some thought-provoking discussions. For our own individual reasons, Sean and I have not been able to connect on keeping them going. This is no longer the case.

It's time for the second edition. We're hosting this one downtown so that more of you might be willing to join us. Why should you? Well, other than having coffee with people who share the same interests as you and lively, ranging conversation topics, this one will be your chance to influence the future day, time and location for the regular/recurring version.

So put it on your calendar now and get ready for some great conversation to start your Friday morning. And spread the word. The more the merrier. For more on what these are about, visit my first post for a few links that explain them.

When: Friday, March 23, 2007, 7 a.m. - ???
Where: Common Grounds (Downtown - Corner of 17th & Wazee)
What: Interesting discussions among likeminded folks, coffee or other morning beverage of your choice
Why: For fun, making new friends/contacts, starting off your Friday in good form.

If you've got any questions, just leave them in the comments below and I'll get back to you. Hope you can join us. We're looking forward to seeing some friendly new faces.

[photo via masone]

Got the Media Munchies?

The March issue of Wired landed in my mailbox Saturday. The cover story, Bite-Size Entertainment; Explore the New World of One-Minute Media, presents the idea that all of our attention spans are shrinking and we are now in need of more "snackable" media/content because of it. True to form, the cover story is a quick read itself and is then supported by several short aritcles/snippets discussing various forms of media that fit this idea.

I doubt this comes as a suprise to many of us. We've been hearing it for the past couple years from varoius magazine editors, with their sales support staff in-tow, coming through our offices with decks and presentations talking about how they're changing the format of their publication. How they are going to feature shorter bits of information presented in "easily-digestible" pieces, more visual stimulation of sorts and shorter feature stories. All this due to the changing media consumption habits of their readers.

Anyway, the Wired article is still a very worthwhile read. There are several interesting examples discussed that are good to be aware of. Some you will already be in the loop on, but there are just as many that you might not have heard of yet.

A few gems I liked within the mini-features/support articles:

+ This widget for Oblique Strategies (MAC only. Sorry PC users.) featuring creativity-sparking cards from the decks created by Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt.

+ A nice reminder about a book and web site I've been meaning to post about - PostSecret by Frank Warren. Adapting this idea/technique to qualitative research or as a part of the brief-writing process could be a good idea.

+ A list of the top five list sites - Tenspotting, All Consuming, Ta-Da Lists, Lists of Bests, and 43 Things.

+ Five free exclusive ringtone downloads from They Might Be Giants, plus three of their classic songs.

There was one mini-feature that I hate the idea of, Radio SASS, but that's because I don't want someone messing with my music. I'm sure there's potential for some to like this type of thing though. You know the people I'm talking about. The ones who can't keep the radio on one station/one song through its entirety.

The closing essay is a good read too, written by Steven Johnson, author of The Ghost Map. Titled Snacklash, it presents various examples of the counter-trend to all this snackable content while proposing that because of the constant expansion of media length, we see more and more small pieces coming forward.

[images via Wired.com as featured in the story]

Saatchi Denver is Hiring

Saatchi Denver is looking for an Account Executive. Requires a minimum of 1 year experience with an ad agency and a background in promotions. This person will be responsible for managing the planning and activation of "grassroots" events and promotions for Toyota (mainly support of new Tundra). The promotions experience does not need to be in automotive. Position gets mid-range pay with an all expense paid company car.

Please send resumes directly to heather[dot]ohmert[at]saatchifield[dot]com.

More info on Saatchi here.

[image via marchel]

re: what think you of innovation?

Russell's got a post up asking some questions about innovation. Seems like this is a common discussion topic in our business and so I thought it would probably be good to share my perspective on it. So, without further ado, here are his questions and my responses:

When you think of "innovation" what do you think of?

Music is one of the first things that comes to mind. Especially some current people in the field including Beck, Pharrell Williams and Jack White. An obvious answer is technology/gadgetry. Especially with computers, cell phones, digital cameras, portable music players/media players and all of those merging into one device. Sports is another area that I think of when it comes to innovation. People who change the course of their sport - people like Tony Hawk, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods. The advertising industry and how we're always looking for new ways to do things (at least those who are worth their salt). Everything Web 2.0 and beyond.

What kind of companies?

Companies would include some usual suspects - Apple, HP, Sony, Canon, BMW, GE, Google. When I think of innovation I generally think more of individuals than companies. If a company is innovative, it is usually someone in that company who drives that perception and builds a culture around it.

What is innovative in your mind?

To me, innovation means doing something in a new way that creates a postive change for society. That change can be in how something is done or in how something is thought about. This can be brought about by things physical, emotional, theoretical, or any combination there of.

Generally I see innovation happening in one of two ways. The first, and most simple, is taking a thing or things and making significant improvements to it/them so that they function/perform/work/etc. better. The second, would be somewhat similar but rather than just taking an existing thing and making it better, one takes a combination of things from different areas and combines them to come up with a better solution that replaces one or all of the things it borrowed from to create this new "thing."

What does the idea conjure up (or not)?

The idea of innovation conjures up a feeling of energy, change, growth, optimism, positivity, humility, dissatisfaction, discontent, restlessness, rocking-the-boat, constantly seeking to do things different and better. It is an endless pursuit of making life better.

It does not conjure up things like complacency, satisfaction, lethargy, status quo...

FOOTNOTE: In searching for a possible image to put at the top of this post, I came across this post by David Armano which I quite enjoyed reading.

[image via uncleweed]

JetBlue: A Brand Being Honest

JetBlue's struggles of late have been very well documented. So what do you do if you're JetBlue? You come out and admit you screwed up and explain what you are doing to try to fix it. Thank you for your courage and honesty JetBlue & David Neeleman. I find it quite refreshing.

JWT NY Shares Billy Collins Animated Poetry on YouTube

US Poet Laureate Billy Collins reads his poems with animation by Julian Grey of Headgear. Produced and shared via YouTube by JWT New York. I also really liked Budapest, The Dead and Some Days. You can find several more on their YouTube channel/page here.

Do As They Say, Not As They Do?

When I saw this ad in the newest issue of Creativity and then again on Adweek.com, my first reaction was to call bullshit. Corporate giant Proctor & Gamble taking Tide Coldwater and trying to spin it so that it talks about being eco-conscious. A year ago when consumers were feeling the pinch over higher energy bills, it was about saving money. Now it's about conserving energy for the environment around you instead of your own pocketbook.

I see that they're asking a lot of questions about what their products do to the environment. And I know that they talk about their commitment to environmental policy and sustainability. That's all well and good. But I hope they're doing to something to MAKE Tide better for the environment. Along with their other products that end up in our water supplies.

I appreciate what this ad is trying to do. I really do. I'm actually a bit torn about writing this because I think we could all stand a little reminding to be smarter about how we consume products and their impact on our future. It's just that it feels wrong when a message like this appears from a product that doesn't do positive things for the environment itself when used by the consumer.

It's kind of like if your doctor were to be all over you about being healthier but he or she constantly ate poorly, smoked and didn't exercise themselves.

Mini Rips Off Bacardi

Or is it more appropriate to say Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners rips off David and Goliath? I suppose it's six of one, a half-dozen of the other. Mini might be putting more effort behind their '80s TV rip of Knight Rider with Hammer & Coop, but Bacardi's take on Miami Vice with Bacardi & Cola was first. (Appears that Bacardi took down the Bacardi & Cola site, but if you find it, let me know.)

Found via AdAge.com. You can read it there, or download it here.