I wrote the other day about How To Be a Better Client, the somewhat tongue-in-cheek look at the creative services world from the eyes of agency id29. Well, I got home from a particularly fun day at work yesterday, and low and behold, there’s a copy of How To Be a Better Client waiting for me in my mailbox.  It was quite the welcome surprise after a day of wrestling at the office. So, a BIG thank you to the guys (& gals) at id29!

The book is extremely well-finished.  I haven’t had a chance to read it cover to cover, but the parts I did scan through are fun, and humorous.  Definitely a great addition to the library and something that might give clients an insight into us "wacky creatives". Not to mention an excellent piece of publicity for id29. I wasn’t too familiar with them before reading about the book, but you can bet that I’ve now spent some time on their site getting to know them. 

If you’re ever opening an office down here in the big city, don’t hesitate to call me!

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, id29, how to be a better client

via

If I don’t check Creativity Online during the day it feels like I’m missing something when I go to bed at night. I love to watch commercials, see print ads, or explore interactive work. For me, this great work is inspiring and motivating. However, what about old(er) creatives? Do they check the work being posted?

I have always wondered, is the work inspiring for them? Is it simply entertaining or a way to see what the competitor is doing? I can just sit and drool at the lines of copy and endless supply of 30 second commercials for hours. Maybe I get wisdom, experience, knowledge, or enhance my creativity. It makes me think that one day I’ll be capable of this work. I’ll be able to combine subtle humor and an Oreo mustache in a fine weave of copy- take this perfect example.

You tell me, do you look at Creativity Online or Ads of the World?  Why? 

Technorati Tags: Beyond Madison Avenue, Commercials, Ads of the World, Creativity Online, Print Ads, Interactive, Advertising, Inspiring Work

I’ve talked about customer service a fair bit around here. I’ve shared stories from Cingu&T, Bank of America, Farbucks, and a few other greats. This story, pointed out by the Nitro Marketing Blog, ranks right up there.

Short version: A woman spends an hour shopping, finds the perfect dress for an event, the store refuses to sell it to her because it lacks a tag. Then they refuse to sell another dress to her because the top and bottom don’t match perfectly. She leaves, tells the world.

What I haven’t explicitly stated yet, though, is the point. Maybe I don’t need to, but here it is anyway. The point is that customer service is one of your strongest moments of impression with your consumer. You’ve made something they want. You’ve made them aware of it. You’ve gotten them into your store (or catalog or website, whatever). You’ve probably spent a TON of money to achieve all that. And you can screw it up in a matter of seconds. Do you think the woman above is going back to that store any time soon? Do you think her friends will?

Now picture this ending: what if, just this once, you GAVE someone something. Forget the obvious of it being inexcusable to refuse to sell someone merchandise simply because it has no tag. What if the manager had said "hmm, no tag, it must be free" and put the dress in a bag for the customer? What an opportunity for a moment of remarkability. How many of the lady’s friends do you think would now start shopping there? Or tell their friends about this store? All for the price of a dress that will probably end up either sitting in the back for a decade or get stuck on a sale rack with some arbitrary price on it.

Yeah, yeah, I know, stores are in business to make money. Barring that, at least go so far as to figure out how to sell your merchandise. At least then you’re not throwing your customers away. 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, customer service

Figure out what you want to make, and make it better than anyone else on the planet. Why, then, is it utterly impossible to walk into a store and buy a mobile phone? Not a phone with a camera, music player, web surfing computer, 12 games, 63 ring tones, and a GPS device…just a phone. As pointed out by the Reaction [beta] blog, this is the question that Jeremy Clarkson has posed in his recent Times article. And he’s right on point. If mobile phones were brands, we’d berate them for losing site of what they started out to do and becoming a mish-mashed mess of unnecessary crap.

Other than the fact that I’m absolutely LUSTING after an iPhone (anyone want to "sponsor" one for me?) - a problem further compounded by my well-documented distaste for Cingu&T - I don’t need my phone to do anything other than make calls and store numbers. But, as Jeremy points out, it’s absolutely impossible to find a phone that does only those two things. Imagine how small the unit could be if it didn’t have a built-in camera/GPS/sonar/radar/nuclear missile guidance system.

So when did we lose track of one of the keys in any moment of design…simplicity? Do what you set out to do, and do it better than anyone else out there. Fine, someone out there is paying out the nose for these uber-phones with tons of add-on features, but why can’t you market an uber-simple phone alongside those monstrosities? It could be tiny, it could be cheap…it could be a phone. I’d be happy…until I get my hands on an iPhone.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, design

In preparation for the launch of their upcoming partnership with Apple, Starbucks will be giving away free music downloads from Oct. 2 - Nov. 7. Before you get too excited, no, you can’t wander into a Farbucks with your shiny new iPod Touch and start a downloading frenzy. Employees will be handing out gift cards each day that will allow sippers to download one free song, the song of the day (no, you don’t get to choose) by a Farbucks featured artist.

It’s estimated that the 10,000 US stores will give away 1.5 million songs per day for a total of more than 50 million songs over the course of the promotion. Given that those songs would usually cost a buck per download, someone’s shelling out some serious dough to get people excited.

There’s just one problem with this. The hype is that you can now go into a Starbucks and download music on your wifi equipped iPod. This promotion has nothing to do with that though. We’ve been able to buy music at Starbucks for quite a while now, albeit on CD. Shouldn’t a promotion for a service that’s all about shopping iTunes AT Starbucks encourage people shot shop iTunes…AT Starbucks? I know, call me crazy.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, apple, starbucks

Michael Bierut, who I had the pleasure of sitting down with not terribly long ago, has cracked open his student portfolio to show the world - and Design Observer. Referring to June 1980:

I didn’t know it then, but that would be the last time I would look for a job.

…we should all be so lucky. Then again, this is Michael Bierut we’re talking about. 

View the rest here. 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, michael bierut, design observer

Fresh off the news of the nasty break-up of NBC and Apple, NBC has announced that they will offer up their shows for download from within their own platform, NBC Direct. The oddly named Vivi Zigler, EVP of NBC Digital Entertainment said, "With the creation of this new service, we are acknowledging that now,
more than ever, viewers want to be in control of how, when and where
they consume their favorite entertainment."

And Vivi continues non-verbally, "as long as we really remain in control of how, when and where more than they are." Of course, this new platform with also include no-skip ads because, well, you know how people love ads. And now the race is on until someone creates the "NBC Direct Ad Blocker." Good choice, though NBC. You were at least getting a couple bucks for the episode.

via MediaBuyerPlanner.

After all the talk the other day about agencies educating their clients, how could I possibly resist pointing out this textbook from id29? At first blush, you’d think that someone actually heard me. Upon closer inspection, you might realize that it’s a bit tongue-in-cheek. However, it’s still well worth the read.  

The Troy, NY based agency took a little time out of their busy schedules to create How To Be A Better Client. They apparently spent upwards of $25/book and are handing them out to clients for free.  That’s what I call dedication.  For those of us not fortunate enough to be on their client list, they’ve offered up a pdf version at no charge available here.   

via 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, id29, how to be a better client

First off, thanks to Sean for taking the time to this in.  We’re always more than happy to get input from our readers in any form, be it an idea for a post or something that we need to improve on.

Anyone ever heard of The Helping Handle? No, neither had I.  But I swear I’ve seen this before somewhere.  The thing that makes this one "unique" is that The Helping Handle is selling ad space on their handles. And they’re absolutely convinced that they’ve hit on the new ubermedium for launching your brand into the minds of consumers everywhere.  Their claims are funny in that kinda scary, "are you actually serious?" sorta way.

Sorry guys, but I’m not buying it.  A "conversation starter"?  Get real.  And marketing it as an "environmentally friendly" device is absurd.  You’re claiming that using extra materials over what you normally would is green? If you want to be green, suck it up and carry the bags by their handles. Or better yet, buy a few re-usable grocery bags with comfy handles.

While I’m all for finding new media outlets, I struggle to see where any brand would benefit much by spending money on these.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, the helping handle

Piers over at PSFK wrote a post the other day that caught my eye.  He was talking about the Center for Cosmic Wonder, a retail store located in Japan.  Piers brought up the store from a fashion standpoint, but I’d like to take a look at it from a branding angle.  Stop and read that name again, "The Center for Cosmic Wonder."  Who the hell wouldn’t want to visit a place called "The Center for Cosmic Wonder"??  It immediately makes you believe that you’ll learn something incredible there.  

That wonder is carried out in the retail experience.  As Gridskipper describes…

…you’ll be treated to an all-white exterior and interior that plays with the idea of presentation. All the clothes are hidden behind panels that you have to open yourself, sort of like checking out a friend’s closet.

Clearly, Cosmic Wonder has done an incredible job of creating an experience based around their brand.  From the name to the design of the store, to the voyeuristic way that they force you to seek out the merchandise.  Yeah, of course everything would be easier to see and buy if it were out on shelves like at the Gap.  But when was the last time someone raved to a friend about buying a shirt off the shelf at the Gap? 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, psfk, gridskipper, center for cosmic wonder

We’ve been circling this point for the last couple of days talking about WOM, etc.  I think this excerpt sums up the idea of remarkability (yes, I’m coining that term) extremely well.  Why make four when you can make one, really awesome one?

Far too many companies give too much power to market analysts as a substitute for product vision. One result is product oversegmentation that reflects the finely tailored targeting of a product to a specific market segment.

Sony, for example, just unveiled four new Blu-ray HDD recorders — four! – each with minor, largely irrelevant differences. The company obviously thinks consumers will dedicate an hour of their time just to consider Sony’s various Blu-ray options. In reality, eyes will glaze, and people will wander away, confused. Imagine if Sony poured all its energy into just one Blue-ray HDD recorder. You’d probably want it.

[via yet another article about Apple] 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, sony, remarkability, product design, computerworld

I posted Spike’s rant this morning about Word of Mouth Marketing.  Well, fast-forward a few hours and I’ve run into Bryan’s article on Grokdotcom offering three triggers for Word of Mouth Marketing.  Bryan’s article is based on statements that Seth made about another article written about a research paper.  Confused yet?  Don’t be.  See, it’s all really simple.  Bryan, as much as I love the idea of the triggers and the time spent outlining the various experiences, I think Seth really nailed this one:

"Just make great stuff."

Yeah, ok, maybe there’s a little more to it.  But…not really.  You want people to talk about you or your product?  Do something or make something that’s worth talking about.  Be remarkable.  Stop worrying about how to spend millions upon millions making people aware of your mediocre product.  Spend that money making an exceptional product.  Then tell a few people who need your product about how it will change their lives.  And if it won’t change their lives…go back to the drawing board.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, grokdotcom, seth godin, word of mouth

I love rants.  Those little moments of posting genius where we finally let our guard down and rip into something - or someone.  Spike over at Brains on Fire had a pretty good one last week that I want to share.  His target?  "Word of Mouth Marketing" (the term, not the practice).

Word of Mouth Marketing is officially the new overused/misused marketing term. I’m over it (the term, not the practice)…Why?  Because three-fourths of these yahoos still don’t know what the hell it means. They’re talking about how that print ad or a direct mail they did for their client really got people talking – so wa-lah – they created word of mouth marketing. I say BS.

You know what…Spike is absolutely right. They’re missing the point.  If I’m laughing with a friend at how bad your shiny new print ad is, that’s not word of mouth.  That’s just bad advertising.

But, it’s not limited to WOM.  This is becoming a problem with virtually every part of our business as clients search for ways to slot themselves into the new world of branding.  And to make matters worse, they’re relying on agencies who are only schooled in the old way of thought and who are too proud to admit that.  

Part of the problem is that no one is teaching this stuff.  The business schools are still caught with their pants down when it comes to new marketing ideas.  It’s fallen on the shoulders of the agencies to educate the clients about new media opportunities, and new ways to reach their consumers.  But you know what?  They’re not teaching it in ad school either.  This is that fuzzy gray area where where one guy looks at the other and says, "I thought you brought the flashlight."  "No, I thought you brought it!"  [Ominous growl.]

It’s time to step up.  Agencies and clients alike.  If you don’t understand something, don’t pretend that you do.  Get help.  Take the time to learn, or hire someone who can help you understand.  You’ll find that you’re money is far better spend than it would be getting dumped into yet another multi-million dollar TV campaign. 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, brains on fire, word of mouth

A couple of months ago I joined what was then a small social networking site for advertising folks called AdGabber. Since then, it has grown to a slightly larger community of 1509 members and has been featured in "The Week" and "The Wall Street Journal." Created by Steve Hall, the head honcho of AdRants, AdGabber was created in May of 2007 for advertising execs, creative directors, art directors, writers, authors, and anybody else in the field of advertising, media, and marketing. When asked why he created AdGabber and what he hopes to accomplish, Steve said:

"Well I had a social network before AdGabber. It was over at Soflow with 4,050 members. Unfortunately, the folks that ran the platform closed it and launched something new called wis.dm which wasn’t what I was looking for so I found Ning, funded by Netscape’s Mark Andresson. Ning is the platform that AdGabber runs on.

Lots of people would comment on Adrants stories and so I thought why not expand that? Why not build a place that would allow for greater discussion, socialization and networking. The growth of MySpace and Facebook probably had something to do with it also. People love to network. Why not create a place that was specific to the ad industry. I hope it fosters community. I hope it helps people be more creative. I hope the conversations that occur on AdGabber help improve people’s work and the industry overall. And for the purposes of covering the ad industry on Adrants, it just brings me that much closer to what’s really happening and not going just by what’s said in a press release."

So jump on the AdGabber bandwagon and look me up- I’m Max Katsarelas.

Technorati Tags: Beyond Madison Avenue, AdGabber, Steve Hall, AdRants, WSJ, The Week, Advertising, Marketing, Media

Ad Age points to a fantastic tribute to the iconic LBJ campaign spot, Daisy.

The entire report is outstanding, but a highlight for me was seeing a never-aired :60 titled "Pregnant Lady" which was pulled because it "went too far thematically."

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, advertising, daisy, LBJ, politics, campaigns

Tom Ford: Maven of commodified erotica.

This campaign: So overtly sexual that it’s almost sterile.

My take: Ever heard of nuance, Tom?

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, advertising, Tom Ford, frangrance

[via adrants.] 

I can’t take credit for this as it came from one of our commenters on Sean’s Elle MacPherson Intimates post below.  But it needs to be shared for its utter awesomeness.  I think it’s been a long time since I’ve seen an ad, or any type of branded communication, that made me say "wow" out loud.  This one did, even if just for the technology.

EM Intimates installed these interactive videos in the window of their 6th Ave. store here in NYC last week, to coincide with this weeks Fashion Week festivities (can I say "week" one more time please?).  The screens react to passers-by, revealing lingerie-clad women - which we all LOVE.  Talk about a sweet execution that makes consumers interact for a moment with your brand, and rewards them for doing so.

It’s similar to the Adobe ad that was up in Union Square for a while, but frankly, every time I walked past that ad, no one seemed to care.  I guess it needed some naked women.

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, elle macpherson intimates, interactive advertising, fashion week

David Armano wrote about this over on Logic+Emotion, and I think it’s well worth pointing out over here too.  Mark Simon has a column in AdAge this week called The 10 Most Asinine Trends Online and Why You Should Ignore Them.  Talk about a bold statement right there.  And some of what he deems "Asinine" and warns CMOs away from are trends that have already taken off.  Second Life anyone?  Twitter say wha’?

Mark makes a great point.  He’s very clear on the fact that CMO’s, and I’d argue everyone else who’s in charge of creating a brand, should maintain awareness growing online trends.  He also brings up the point that, because there’s practically zero startup costs, the online world is open to everyone.  This, in turn, creates a huge number of off-the-wall ideas that companies can choose to either leverage or ignore.  Right on Mark.  That’s all great in theory.  But you seem to have missed a couple of the points.

Twitter, specifically, and microblogging in general, is here to stay.  Armano already hit on the basic point, it’s a great communication tool.  But lets take it a half step further.  There are two points I want to make:

1. This is an opportunity for opt-in marketing.  As David pointed out, Dell’s got close to 300 people who have voluntarily signed up to be contacted by their brand within this medium.  That’s permission-marketing if I’ve ever seen it.  Any time you can get permission for your brand to be in touch with your consumers, wouldn’t you?

2. Second, and perhaps more importantly, is the user base on Twitter.  Yeah, most of us say 25 and up who didn’t start Twittering on a college campus somewhere or who don’t have a web connected cell phone glued to our hands 24/7 don’t get it.  But guess who does…the kids.  More specifically, the high-school and college kids.  The rebellious, stick-it-to-the-man, I ain’t interested in your $@#!ing brand kids.  The same way they latched onto text messaging when it started.  Seems to me there’s something to learn here.  Sounds like an opportunity for a brand to make contact, carefully, with an audience that’s damn tough to reach.

So, Mark, you’ve made a few interesting points.  But we think you’ve missed the boat on one or two as well. 

Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, adage, twitter, mark simon

Okay.  These launched in August, but we don’t appear to have written them up.  Which I find amazing, as we are generally pretty damn fast to post anything involving young women and underwear around here.

[embedded video above]

The concept is stories.  Intimate stories told by real individuals (who just happen to be half dressed in lingerie at the time.)  Effective?  It certainly works with the men.  But does it work with the ladies?  Or are men the target?

I must admit I like the site.  It makes provocative and interesting use of photographs and reminds me of a magazine layout while feeling different and quite a bit more engaging.

http://www.ellemacphersonintimates.com/