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Archive for the ‘Commercials’ CategoryNext Entries »Drinks promotion won’t fall flatTuesday, November 4th, 2008
How’s this for a costly promotion? ‘One free can of Dr Pepper soda for everyone in America if Guns N’ Roses release their next album before the end of 2008′. Well, guess what? The album’s release date has been announced as November 23 2008, meaning a not-insignificant 300 million cans of soda could potentially be given away free by the corporation. Guns N’ Roses have been working on their new album for some 17 years now, so when Dr Pepper made their ‘free soda’ pledge back in March 2008, they probably felt fairly secure in the knowledge that they wouldn’t be called upon to give anything away gratis. Yet, if everyone who is eligible to claim their ‘freebie’ actually does so, it will certainly eat into this year’s company profits. In light of the recently-announced album release date, the soft drinks company has confirmed that it will stand by its promise. On November 23 only, Americans will be able to redeem their free can of drink by registering their details on www.drpepper.com. In reality, of course, not too many people are going to remember, be able, or make the effort, to claim their drink. Yet, on the back of such an unusual promotion, Dr Pepper will surely benefit from increased brand awareness, and probably increased sales too. Whilst in the long run it may not turn out to be too expensive a marketing exercise, interestingly the Dr Pepper website currently makes no mention of this generous offer! Online Advertising On The UpWednesday, October 1st, 2008
Research conducted by the European Interactive Advertising Association (EIAA) shows that the internet is cementing its position as the advertising medium of choice. 81% of advertisers questioned have increased their allocated online ad spend this year and predict that 2009 and 2010 will see further growth. 82% of these advertisers with increased online spend have reallocated budgets away from traditional media (40% away from print; 39% from TV; and 32% away from direct mail). In its Marketers’ Internet Ad Barometer, the EIAA also found that some three-quarters of those questioned believe online advertising to have a positive impact on the perception of their brand, as well as serving to increase overall brand awareness (68%). Other interesting statistics uncovered by the study show that 40% of advertisers now view the internet as very important in influencing purchase decisions (rising from 30% in 2006), in generating sales (46% vs. 31%) and in increasing customer loyalty (23%). The EIAA Marketers’ Internet Ad Barometer, was commissioned to provide valuable insight into the role online advertising plays in the marketing mix and to understand attitudes towards the internet amongst key advertisers across Europe. The survey was conducted online among senior marketing executives with responsibility for advertising budgets and/or strategy across UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, Sweden and the pan-Euro sector. The results reveal the increasingly important role that online advertising is playing in overall advertising strategies. 38% of advertisers now regarding online as essential, which has more than doubled since the 17% recorded in 2006. B2B International has itself invested in increased online advertising of late through a targeted campaign of banner adverts (see below), which have appeared across websites in the market research, marketing and business-to-business arenas.  
Wishing to deter GreenwashingMonday, September 22nd, 2008
In his first Thursday Night Insight piece earlier this year, Nick Hague underlined how important it is nowadays for companies – whether consumer or business-to-business organisations – to take green issues seriously. Yet in his Differentiation Through Being Green article, he warns against the dangers of ‘greenwashing’ – that is to say deliberately misleading customers about your environmental credentials. An article spotted in British newspaper The Guardian last week showed that Nick is not alone in his assessment. This article talks about MTV’s new global marketing push to tackle climate change, which includes a TV ad attacking businesses that are guilty of greenwashing. With the launch of this campaign targeted at 15- to 25-year-olds, MTV urges corporations to make their lifestyle greener by "speaking to young people in their own language". One of the campaign’s TV adverts features an animated character singing a humourous ‘green song’ about how to identify ‘false greens’, by talking about businesses and politicians who choose to ‘paint’ their policies green. The character encourages viewers to remain alert to environmental practices and to take action themselves in their everyday lives. As Nick highlighted, environmental issues allow companies the opportunity to differentiate themselves from the competition, but should not be used purely as a marketing gimmick. Protecting our environment is a serious subject and deserves to be treated as such. Be strategic and be smartWednesday, September 17th, 2008
At the moment, it feels like the global economy hits a new low almost every day. Massive financial institutions go into administration, established global airlines go bust, redundancies are on the rise… Most people, and the companies they work for, are understandably facing the future with more than a little trepidation. Last month, Carol-Ann Morgan’s contribution to our Thursday Night Insight series commented on why challenging times bring changing market research needs. In it, Carol-Ann recognized that, while economic difficulties may bring obvious challenges, the answer often lies in best utilizing your budget to give yourself a competitive advantage. This could be anything from a re-allocation of marketing spend to the commissioning of a piece of market research in order to spot new opportunities that your competitors might shy away from presently. Whilst a little more caution than in recent times is perhaps prudent, Carol-Ann summarized that the worst thing you can do when times are hard is nothing. It would appear that Bob Liodice of the Association of National Advertisers would agree. In an article appearing in BtoB Magazine, the ANA’s president-CEO comments that: "Historically, marketing budgets are among the first to be cut in a budget crunch, but marketers should be cautious about trying to find a quick fix. Marketers need to make far smarter decisions about marketing investments than ever before and, hopefully, influence CEOs and CFOs to not cut as drastically as before. Marketers need to invest strategically and tactically to make sure their brands remain strong. When marketers do increase spending and do it in the right way, they can gain share of market." Liodice’s comments were made in response to a recent ANA survey, which found that more that half of all U.S. advertisers questioned expect their advertising budgets to be reduced over the coming six months as a result of the tough economic climate. To read the article in full, please click here The Power Of AdvertisingFriday, September 5th, 2008
Caroline Harrison’s latest Insight considers how some advertisers shun traditional advertising methods and rules to grab your attention. The million dollar question is how much does this really work?… Earlier this year Cadbury’s Dairy Milk ran an advert on TV which featured various cartoon-like airport vehicles racing along a runway to the tune of Queen’s 1979 hit ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’. After two minutes of this strange scene, the advert came to a conclusion with a giant bar of the aforementioned chocolate appearing in the middle of the television screen. The first time I saw this advert it held my attention for two reasons: firstly, the fact that Don’t Stop Me Now is one of my all-time favourite songs kept me hooked, but secondly, I was also quite mystified by what was happening in the advert. Was it promoting a new Disney/Pixar animated movie like ‘Cars’? Was it mocking the Heathrow Terminal 5 fiasco which was all over British newspapers at that time? I certainly wasn’t expecting it to be an advert for chocolate – after all, where was the link between what was unfolding on the screen and the product the advert was promoting? What I don’t actually remember thinking at any point was ‘I must go out and buy myself a bar of Dairy Milk‘, so in that sense the advert failed in its job. However, there is no doubt that it did elicit some kind of response from me: it propelled me to ask friends whether they themselves had seen the advert; it made me forcibly stop family from leaving the room if the advert came on TV so they could ‘experience’ it too; and I am today talking about it in this Blog post. In many ways I have, in effect, been doing the job of advertising this product on behalf of Cadbury’s. Advertising serves many different purposes: broadly speaking most adverts aim to either create awareness and/or trigger a direct response, whether by informing and educating, reminding or motivating. Some adverts are blatant, in-your-face hard sell, encouraging you to buy, buy, buy. Others adopt a ‘softer’ and more subtle approach, informing you about a product or service and perhaps bringing to your attention its benefits. And then, of course, you have the adverts, like the one in question, which I believe are designed purely to make you sit up and take notice; to grab your attention in some unique way; to create a buzz and generate interest in the offering. I’d be very interested to know what impact this latest campaign by Cadbury’s has had on sales of Dairy Milk. For me personally, hearing the song Don’t Stop Me Now does not actually stimulate thoughts of chocolate, whether Dairy Milk or any other kind. Anyone who has ever lived in the Manchester area of England will probably understand that the shopping mecca that is The Trafford Centre has already become intrinsically linked with this song following years of TV & radio advertising. What a shame that when I hear a great song I think of a shopping centre! But then doesn’t that just demonstrate the power of advertising? Next Entries » |
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