Corporations are shaping pop culture by paying for movies, producing television shows, and showcasing directly with Artists. The surreal advertising landscape of 2002’s “Minority report” is coming to life as interactive billboards and blockbuster video games offer a whole new way to build brand mindshare with the next generation of big spenders.
Brand & consumer planning, that infamous service that everyone talks about and none want to pay for, is becoming more and more of a business imperative as consumers get more sophisticated and overexposed. Planners are key to establishing the foundation for both the creative and the media teams, feeding them actionable insights to make sure the campaigns they produce hit home.
The walls are coming down as these teams work together in a more integrated fashion, feeding off each other, as the competition for consumer memory cells becomes a greater challenge than ever before. In this competitive landscape, savvy clients cannot make the mistake of confusing media efficiency models for effective media strategy. continue reading “The Creative Media Mindset”
The following trends are creating attractive opportunities for many marketers and a few headaches for others. How to stay in the winners’ circle and leave the aspirin to your competitors? Take note, as being ready for the next big thing will never be out of style.
• Cause-related marketing. Consumers want their brands to behave like leaders and stand for something. Values can give a stronger push to your marketing. The results, when done well, are something we call branded movements. Lead and they will follow.
• Multicultural and global. Ken and Barbie represent a smaller share of the consumer and pie. Take your brand traveling to interact with other cultures. The result is additional consumers who can give your brand a new life. Don’t delay, your consumers are already brushing on their Spanish and Mandarin.
• Social networking and new media: it’s time to take your brand out for a stroll and introduce it to some new friends. Only do this, though, if you have a strong story to tell and some brand ambassadors ready to vouch for you. Be real and engaging online.
• The open advertising agency. The world of ideas doesn’t stop at the agency walls. The new type of agency has to open up more to outside collaborations to deliver more innovation and creativity to clients.
Experimentally-minded music and art – exploring the relationships between the concert hall and the dance floor, the austere and the lush, the hypnotic and the starling. Saturday, April 19th 8:00 PM - Midnite The Annex, 152 Orchard Street, NYC $8 Suggested Donation.
Ezekiel Honig (Anticipate, Microcosm)
Mofongo (Agoo Records)
David Vélez / Andrés F. Cortés (Zymogen, Test Tube)
We have a language problem in the US and it isn’t that immigrants don’t learn English; they do.If they didn’t we wouldn’t be seeing commercials for products like Inglès Sin Barreras airing continuously on the Spanish-language networks.Our problem is that the majority of the native-born population is monolingual, mostly under the ridiculous delusion that a second language isn’t necessary to a native speaker of English.This makes the United States a laughing stock to the rest of the world and is hurting us in the long term.What compounds the problem is that foreign language is usually taught so poorly here.
Here’s where the Spanish-language TV networks can be heroes while simultaneously acting in their own corporate self-interest.
Univision in particular airs telenovelas that target teens.For a mid-five figure salary they could hire an education professional to pre-screen episodes of upcoming teen-targeted titles and create teaching guides to them for free distribution to the nation’s middle- and high-school Spanish teachers.The teachers can then assign viewing to their students and spend the first few minutes of the next day’s class discussing the previous day’s episode.Considering the addictive nature of serialized entertainment, the extreme attractiveness of the actors, and the universal themes in the stories, this is a win for all parties:The students get an hour’s more exposure to Spanish every weekday to increase their comprehension and vocabulary, they get entertained at the same time, and Univision gets good press for providing a free and effective tool to our underfunded educational system.
Tambien, Univision gets more viewers.Media Nerd is prepared to predict that some percentage of this teen audience would continue to tune in as adults, enjoying the passion, intrigue, and excitement of love stories like Alborada and the comedies like Yo Amo a Juan Querendon.Univision’s prime time ratings, which increase all the time, can take another leap with the addition of Anglo viewers who are looking for something different and exciting to watch.Which will also, por supuesto, mean more ad revenue for the network.
The United States could become bilingual in one generation, which has been overdue for two centuries… all through the power of television.
Congratulations everyone!!!! we’re ranked number #1 in Google search. I just want to take the time to congratulate all participants to our site, whether you’re a blogger or a reader, Thank. This was truly a “collective” effort in all aspects, and the results are remarkable. Please continue contributing and visiting our blog to help cement our page rank.
In a sign of things to come, an increasing number of the world’s largest cities are coming up with strong regulations banning out of home. It seems that visual clutter is turning many people of. Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, is one of those metropolitan centers taking a clear stance on out of home and billboards, imposing strict regulations and giving advertisers a headache or two.
Why the push towards less? The reasons are clear, even when the view isn’t. First, there is the ubiquitous move towards everything green. There is also the growing number of people moving back to cities and demanding a better quality of life. It’s the physical manifestation of what many of us are already experiencing with media and commercial overload. So it won’t be too late before you will need to opt-in to see that 3-D billboard. But in the meantime, brands will have to engage in more subtle ways through elements that people actually want outdoors. A nature conservancy brought to you by Starbucks, anyone?
Meet Jorge, a virtual Hispanic male. Just type in whatever you want him to read, he can even cry, laugh, and clear his throat. Pick Carlos for a “Telemundo-style” voice or Diego for an Argentine accent. If you prefer an English female voice pick Allison or Linlin, if you can write in Chinese. Click here to meet them.
“Wear Sunscreen” was written by Mary Schmich, a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. The essay was later set to music and released on an album by Australian film director, screenwriter and producer Baz Luhrmann. You can watch it here:
