Reebok claims their new EasyTone sneakers will firm up your butt and sculpt your legs so well, “your boobs will be jealous.”
Tech jargon, boulders and other jive
Vague, jargon-filled buzzwords are like boulders in old TV westerns. They’re really great to hide behind.
Deciphering auto dealers' promises
Ever wonder how your local car dealers can afford to make promises like these? “Zero-percent financing! Drive it away for just $189 a month! We’ll give you $4000 for your old car, even if you have to tow it in! And (my personal favorite) below-invoice prices!” Can dealers really afford to make such extravagant promises? …
Coming soon: Bigger, louder, more obnoxious ads
Hate those awful online ads ? You know the ones I mean. The ones that blink and spin and move around and morph into different shapes? Brace yourself. They’re about to get even worse. “The Online Publishers Association has created a series of new standards for really big, intrusive, bash-you-on-the-head sorts of advertisements, which you …
Maybe it's only the death of BAD advertising
Has the American consumer become immune to advertising? Has marketing become a waste of your time and effort? “Bullshit,” in the words of the Ad Contrarian, a/k/a agency owner Bob Hoffman. “Here’s what the consumer has become resistant to: generic, undifferentiated products supported by smug, benefit-free advertising.” FTW! Nailed it.
How Kellogg's came to dominate the cereal market
Thinking of cutting back on your marketing during these tough economic times? It’s a natural reaction. After all, money is tight. But look back at history, as the New Yorker’s always-interesting James Surowiecki did this week, and you discover an amazing secret: when everyone else is disappearing off consumers’ radar, you can take over an …
Four magic words that will transform your marketing
“I can help you.” Simple, isn’t it? Your prospective customers don’t need more information. Chances are, they’re drowning in information. And they sure don’t want a sales pitch. What they really want is advice. Guidance. Expert help from someone they know and trust. Someone who has demonstrated that s/he understands their problem or need, and …
Ignore customer's attitudes. Change their behavior.
Changing customer attitudes is a difficult and expensive proposition under the best of circumstances, and this ain’t them,” says ad agency president Sharon Krinsky in a delightfully snarky blog called The Ad Contrarian. For the time being, she says ignore your ad agency’s brand babble and focus on giving your customer a practical reason to …
The most powerful form of advertising…
The most powerful form of advertising is being exceptional, says a technologist quoted in Sunday’s NY Times. He’s talking about Google, of course, by far the most innovative and exceptional company of the past decade. Columnist David Carr’s love letter to the search giant rhapsodizes about the quality and ease of use of company’s many …