Fact: Prince is a music genius (we have personal proof).?Ǭ† Some of us have always suspected he was also a marketing genius, and facts to back this hypothesis continue to manifest. Prince attached a copy of his new album, Planet Earth, to every issue of London’s “Mail on Sunday” on July 15, so that everyone who bought the paper also picked up a copy of his latest tunes. While he’s a sequined cocktail-purse-sized guy, his brain is apparently?Ǭ† gigantic.
Microchips are now fixed to car windshields as toll-paying devices, on “contactless” payment cards. They’re embedded in Michelin tires, library books, passports, work uniforms, luggage, and, unbeknownst to many consumers, on a host of individual items, from Hewlett Packard printers to Sanyo TVs, at Wal-Mart and Best Buy.?Ǭ† Now, you can have one implanted in your arm. Read on.
Couldn’t resist passing along this funny post from one of our favorite ad blogs, Adrants.?Ǭ† Steve Hall never misses an opportunity to serve up commentary on the sauciest and raciest marketing out there. This one, for Bling H2O, is just downright funny. Read the post on Adrants here.
Best known for writing the scandalous collection of poems, Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil), French poet Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867) was a bold modernist.?Ǭ† His genius lay in his anatomies of the masses and modernity — subjects that all we ad folks live and die by.?Ǭ† While we have the internet, the iPhone, and Microsoft to distract us, he had boats to India, censorship, and syphilis. Even so, he still managed to contribute brilliant creative to the world, rouse his contemporaries, and cause society to question vox populi.?Ǭ† He was known for his fastidious work ethic, and left us these words to live by: “Inspiration comes of working every day.”?Ǭ†
Here’s an insightful commentary on the future of advertising, told through photos in a coffee-table book. The book is a collection of photos of the remains of hand-painted advertising on the sides of old buildings. Castor oil, garter belts, horses– all things that marketers thought people would ALWAYS need. While we’re forging ahead, trying to determine the next “perfect” way to communicate, we’re surrounded by ghosts of marketers past.
RFID, Bluetooth, mobile this, interactive that— that’s the way we like to do it. But in the midst of all the avatars and WOM, let’s face it: sometimes nothing can do the job better than a good, old-fashioned :60 radio spot. Now: turn it into an original tune and lyrics, INSTEAD of a garden-variety radio spot, and you’ve got the next installment in our Sheetz radio campaign. It rocks, it’s fun, and as they say in the world of emerging media: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
Wondering what to do with all those photos of yourself? Animate them! Gizmoz allows you to upload your pix, turn yourself into an avatar, and then animate the whole thing. Remember “Elf Yourself”? This is like that, only without the pointy-toed shoes. Taco Bell is currently using Gizmoz for a commercial slated to appear during the MTV Movie Awards. You, however, can use Gizmoz for…..well, you’ll figure something out.
I avoid walking under ladders, never toast with water, and am even known to throw salt over my shoulder now and again. I braced myself, ready for the luck that was sure to come my way on this 7/7/7, the Luckiest Day of the Year.?Ǭ† I came up snake-eyes. On the other hand, it was a great day for my dog, Blue. A bird flew over us while we were on our morning walk. Blue jumped up in the air and caught the bird in one clean mouthful. Now that was PURE 7-7-7.?Ǭ†?Ǭ† For those of you who didn’t catch a bird in your mouth today: We are capable of creating our own reality– of using the things the universe puts in our path, no luck necessary.
We’ve all gotten them– those crafty emails from ailing millionaires who need your help sending their money to various charities. These emails usually start with “Greetings, In Jesus’ Name!” or something equally friendly. These Scammers cheat people out of $$millions every year, apparently. Here’s where the fun comes in: a group of vigilantes known as Scambaiters make it their job to hook the Scammers, and to use up as much of their time and resources as possible– ultimately saving lots of people from falling victim to email scams. (Scambaiters are kind of like matadors. Or rodeo clowns. Either way, they’re very entertaining.) Check out this video, created by Scammers who fell victim to Scambaiters. Obviously, you CAN scam the Scammer. (confused? this should clear it up.)
Tattoo’s Buffy and Rudy have been slated as speakers at this year’s National Coffee Association Fall Conference. We’ll be shaking things up a bit, with what promises to be a fun and inspiring talk on emerging media. Who knows– maybe we’ll even throw in a laser light show. With all the Joe we drink,?Ǭ† it’s a pretty cool compliment to be invited to present to the coffee world’s kahunas — and talking about our favorite subject, no less.
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With all the Joe we drink,?Ǭ† it’s a pretty cool compliment to be invited to present to the coffee world’s kahunas — and talking about our favorite subject, no less.