"The problem advertising agencies have got at the moment is that they keep getting asked to do things advertising agencies can’t do."

I stumbled onto this quote during my daily blog exploration.  It pisses me off for a couple of reasons…

1. Never say never.  An agency is essentially, or at least should be, an idea factory.  To say that an agency CAN’T do something will immediately devalue your agency in the mind of your client.  That’s what partnerships are for.  That’s when you nod and smile and say yes, then subcontract someone else to accomplish the impossible with your ideas in mind.  Accomplishing the impossible is what will impress the hell out of your client, and it will build your brand in their eyes (making them believe that you can do the same for their brand in their consumers’ eyes).

Go ahead, charge the client for your genius and accomplishments.  But never, ever give them the impression that you CAN’T do something.

2. Agencies have far bigger problems, as far as I can tell, than being asked to do things they’re incapable of. Namely, getting done the things that they ARE capable of. Which is where this post is leading.  I’m sending it out as a meme (so friends of BMA, watch out!), but we’d love to get your opinion.  Fill in the blank:

"The problem advertising agencies have got at the moment is…"

This woman got a three hundred page bill from AT&T.

Sorta makes me almost glad I don’t have an iPhone yet. 

Watch the video. 

Is that whole Filipino prisoner "Thriller" dance
routine as funny if you knew the prisoners were forced, sometimes brutally, to
get their groove on?

As NewTeeVee reports, that’s exactly what’s happening. The
CPDRC video is a creation of Byron Garcia, a security consultant with the
Filipino prison system, not to mention the brother of the governor and son of a
senator of the Philippine government.

A couple choice quotes…

"A segment on a leading Filipino television network
shows the organized dance routines as a powerfully positive force in the
rehabilitation process. However, the video, with it’s semi-coherent subtitles,
raises some suspicions.

The narrator explains: "The main reason why this gimmick
was created was Byron’s love of music, that’s why last year he thought of
having these people dance. At first, it was really hard to make them
dance." Mr. Garcia elaborates: "These prisoners were all hard-headed.
So, well we, we, did some, ya know, uh, some disciplinary measures."

And even better, "Garcia runs the jail like his
personal S&M dungeon, and he doesn’t care
if you know it."

Apparently, he’s also tattooing female prisoners with the
name Garcia. Seems the
video with more than 5 million views is just a little less
care free than we originally thought…

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, advertising, odd commercials with dolls

I was tricked today.  I opened an email this morning from Madewell Jeans, which I had never previously heard of.  Their website is small, and to the point.  It features their denim and cord lineups, has a couple of fashion-ish tidbits, and then offers readers an insight into the women who run the brand.  Frankly, it looks like one of the many small, hip fashion brands that have been cropping up of late.

At first I took the brand at face value.  I was particularly impressed by the insight into the women behind the brand: Kin, Lisa, Andiswa, & Jenny.  Each has a quick description that reads like a blog profile and points readers to what they’re looking at and listening to these days.  But a little further digging shed some light on Madewell, exposing it for what it really is: an off-shoot brand of J.Crew aimed squarely at the likes of Gap, Banana Republic, and Abercrombie (shudder).

This type of endeavor isn’t new.  Gap has three tiers with Banana Republic, Gap, and Old Navy.  Many brands have been opening "outlet" stores that are actually fronts for lower quality items made specifically for sale at these cheaper retail fronts.  But the catch there is that very few of them hide what they are.  J.Crew has done an excellent job of shielding Madewell from the J.Crew name.  And it might just serve them well given that the Madewell site looks more like a Brooklyn boutique, a market share the J.Crew will never crack.  Of course, I haven’t seen what their retail stores look like, which might change that tune.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, fashion, madewell, j. crew

I have Time Warner cable, and I suffer every day. They really are horrible to deal with, and now I find that they’re even bigger swindlers than I previously thought.

The consumerist is reporting that they’re actually charging their customers for the ads that are enclosed with the bill. Just disgusting.

"Time Warner charged Nick $0.23 for the Home Shopping Network
coupon included in his monthly bill. The "Adhsn fee" listed on his bill
was an oversight, according to a Time Warner representative, who
defended the omnipresent charge as something that is usually ‘just
bundled somewhere else.’"

Wow. Just wow. This is just as bad as Best Buy’s secret website, and just as shady. I highly recommend that you call your congressman, or do what I do, just bitch and moan, then take no real action because it seems like a pain in the ass.

I like puzzles, sure.  Logic puzzles, sudoko, those Jumble thingies… yea, yea.  I even liked the analytical section of the GREs.  Okay… kind of.

But these ads are puzzling in a way that has been making me nutty all day.  There are three in a series posted on 2wenty 4our.  And none of ‘em make a lick of sense to me.

What am I missing here?  Some wacky form of Swedish irony, wrapped in bacon and dipped liberally in invisible ink?  There is a key that will unlock my confusion.  Someone please hand it over.

Insights welcome, even if you are full of shit. 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, advertising, 2wenty 4our, fiat, jayne is confused

This spot for Jeep takes us through the last 66 years of American history. In the spot you’ll notice Jeep is integrally apart of this history because of some great special effects due in part to The Mill/ L.A. The commercial by Cutwater shows Jeep has a rich tradition and has been evolving quite well with time. The cinematography in the commercial reminds me of a great movie? Forrest Gump, perhaps?

Technorati Tags: Beyond Madison Avenue, Jeep, Heritage, Tradition, Off Road, Commercial, Cutwater, The Mill, Forrest Gump, Special Effects

Red Interactive Agency may, quite possibly, have the best agency website I have ever come across. I like my Mother London’s and Wexley School for Girls‘, but I absolutely love the Red Interactive Agency website. At first, when I saw their URL, which happens to be ff0000.com, I thought, "Wow! What a clever URL, this could be the best URL ever." Then after seeing how the page was designed and what users can do, I thought, "Wow! What a clever way to design a website, this could be the best website ever." Then I began writing a post after I thought, "Wow! I should write about this agency on Beyond Madison Avenue." Then I re-read the first paragraph of this post and thought, "Wow! Why am I using all these quotes?" Then I looked at the paragraph again and thought, "Wow! I got way off topic, it’s time to get off the chuckle train."

Now, back to the premise of the post. On Red’s website, after users input their name, location, and choose from eleven characters, they can interact with one another. They can fight, fly, chat, and even change appearance by typing codes into the chat box. Here are some of the codes:

THE LAST STRAW
MAY I PLEASE HAVE SOME BLUEBERRY PIE? (BMA Recommends)
NAY NAY GIVE ME SOME HAY
JIMINY CRICKET!
I SHOT A MAN IN RENO
DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES
RUMPELSTILTSKIN IS MY NAME
I DREAMT I WAS A BUTTERFLY
SURLEY YOU JEST

Oh yeah, Red Interactive Agency has done some good work for Spider Man 3, Sony, and Spectre Performance. So even though there website is off the chain, there work is too.

Technorati Tags: Beyond Madison Avenue, Red Interactive Agency, Interactive Website, Website, Design, Fun, Codes, Advertising