In Say Anything, John Cusack says he doesn’t want to sell, buy, or process anything as a career. What Cusack means is that he doesn’t want to kiss ass. We kiss ass in advertising. Of course, pretty much anybody who works for a living does. But it’s the kind of ass we kiss that makes ass kissing in advertising so distasteful (and perhaps so ineffectual). Kissing ass becomes a farce when the participants look so …
For The Ad Lover In Your Family
Wieden + Kennedy/London seems surprised to find their work for sale on eBay. The Impossible Making of the Impossible Dream TV Campaign This DVD is an official press release from Honda and provides an insight into the recent "Impossible Dream" Honda TV advertisement campaign's production, so you can learn more about the brief, what happened behind the scenes, the featured products and examples of how Honda generators …
Moosehead Lost Its Head
From The Chronicle Herald: Following complaints from a feminist group and incensed customers, New Brunswick’s Moosehead Breweries has pulled an ad that implied women should speak no more than 50 words a day. The ad, which appeared in The Onion, a U.S.-based satirical magazine, read: "The average woman speaks 10,000 words in a day. Roughly 9,950 too many." The brewery, based in Saint John, N.B., has pledged to …
AOL Plays Catch Up
USA TODAY reports on AOL's efforts to keep pace with its fleet footed rivals. This week, AOL begins integrating video search from Truveo, which it bought in December. The big push will come in mid-March, when 14,000 Warner Bros.-owned classic TV shows become available on AOL for free, supported by ads, as part of its new In2TV service. AOL's No. 1 instant-messaging service — AIM — has 43 million active users. AOL …
There’s No There There
Seth Godin hit a nerve with his anti-Vegas rant. I've never liked Vegas much. The place seems flimsy and unreal, like a Hollywood set that will be gone tomorrow, after a big dust storm blows it up into Utah. Las Vegas is an epicenter of a trend that is accelerating through every market and community on Earth. A rapid increase in dissatisfaction. If you don't have enough money, you can fix it by gambling. It's okay …
No Lame Names
Last month, Adweek spoke to Steve Stone, president and creative director at Heat/San Francisco. Q. Why do you give your agencies names rather than calling them Stone & Elder, etc.? A. I have always wanted aplace where people could feel like they could be part of a bigger entity, to emotionally feel like they belong to something. When the partners' names are on the door, it's hard for people to feel a true connection …
Radio Shack To Close A Bunch Of Shacks
I'll admit I have a soft spot in my heart for Radio Shack. I used to be the king of radio and cassette "Y" adapters. My grandfather was a loyal member of the free battery club. So it pains me, a bit, to read this story from the AP: Electronics retailer RadioShack Corp. on Friday said fourth-quarter earnings dropped 62 percent and said it plans to close 400 to 700 underperforming stores and distribution centers in …
Continue Reading about Radio Shack To Close A Bunch Of Shacks →
Email Battles For “Killer App” Heavyweight Title
Buzz Machine and Fresh Inc. are running stories on the rumored sale of DailyCandy, a free daily e-mail newsletter and website, that purports to be the "ultimate insider’s guide to what’s hot, new, and undiscovered — from fashion and style to gadgets and travel." Bob Pittman, former chief operating officer of AOL Time Warner, bought controlling interest in Daily Candy for $3.5 million. The rumored sale price is $100 …
Continue Reading about Email Battles For “Killer App” Heavyweight Title →