Welcome to the KPC blog! Here you’ll find fresh commentary on all things marketing and research, from historical anecdotes on marketing and research to the latest in advertising today. If it strikes our fancy, we’ll be blogging.

Ads Done Right

I'm watching the MTV VMA pre-show and loving the new Gap ads (they might have launched prior to today...but this is the first I've seen them). The theme is "favorite songs, just like favorite jeans" and I think it is dead on. Some of the songs included: God Only Knows, One Love, Alison and Let's Stay Together. They just happen to be some of my favorite songs. And I just happen to be their target market.

Say what you will about the Gap and their white-t-shirting of America: they use music, celebrity and movement (not to mention camera angle) truly expertly in their advertising.

Remember those swing and funk ads? They might feel tired in retrospect (possibly because of Brian Setzer and Fat Boy Slim were catapulted into extreme heavy rotation after the ads broke)...but the first time I saw the swing ad, I was locked to the TV. The freeze-frame/360 camera angles...totally innovative.

Good job, Gap. You really do make your jeans seem cooler than their generic fit would dictate.

"Perfect"

Over the past couple of days, I've watched a LOT of MTV and VH1 (I like the programming, OK?) A side-effect of this is that I've seen a handful of commercials about thirty times a piece, all in a very condensed time span. So naturally, my recall of these particular spots should be about sky-high right now, no matter how boring they were, right?

Not so much. In fact, none of the ads are stuck in my head at all. The advertising industry should be ashamed of its mediocrity, especially when targeting media-saturated teens and tweens on a station like MTV. During the Laguna Beach time slot, no less.

But maybe I'm being too harsh. After all, I can actually recall one of the ads. It was for some sort of Frito-Lay fun/snack/crazy pack - a big box of little bags of chips. And I remember it for a very specific reason: after seeing it 5 or 6 times, I recognized the first 10 seconds of the commercial, but couldn't remember what brand it was for (or even what type of snack). So I paid attention. Then, fifteen minutes later, I saw it again - and couldn't remember the brand.

Now, I would chalk this up to my own faulty memory. But I won't, because the culprit jumped out at me as soon as I saw the commercial again (that is, for the 7th or 8th time). The problem with the ad is with the product positioning. You see, this snack is "perfect." "It's the perfect snack." That's the gist of the commercial.

Talk about playing to all audiences, all the time. Can't go wrong with "perfect", huh? Except that you can. Lack of specificity and lack of targeting make for ineffective advertising. Advertising that someone in advertising can't even recall after multiple views, during a short period of time, while actually paying attention and listening for the brand.

If it doesn't pass that test, how could it stand a chance in a teenager's bedroom?

Finally!

In the days since the Internet as a concept ventured beyond geek-chat, marketers have been trying to figure out how to best use it to reach their audiences. At the same time, ad agencies and techies have been struggling to understand how to use the new technology to make a buck (and, in the case of the agencies, not get entirely cut out of the ad game). There have certainly been stops and starts: for the past 10 years, new ad technology has barely outpaced the technology that helps Internet-users block ads.

According to Fortune (sub required), however, and to the marketing chief at Chrysler, things are changing. Chrysler is in the process of shifting much of its marketing budget away from traditional media to online outlets - and this strategy is working.

Hopefully this is an indication of a settling effect in the world of online advertising, as opposed to another "big up" like what we saw in the late 1990s. I believe that Internet users are starting to set their own parameters, to actively define what they're willing to deal with in terms of online advertising, and marketers are listening. One of the great powers of the Internet is its ability to shift power away from big business and to the consumer (see the definition of "blog" if you want more about that). The marketers who stop trying to force their agenda and start working with what the consumers want will find an advertising medium that can grow and grow.

Whew. Sounds a little Cluetrain, doesn't it? What year is it again?

Dangerous and Exciting

Unfortunately, on this blog, I don't have the ability to post pictures. However, over on my personal site, I do it all the time. Which makes this type of technology extremely dangerous for me (financially). The last thing I need is encouragement to take more pictures with my phone camera, since I declined any sort of "picture emailing" package when I bought it. To the obvious dismay of the sales girls.

I certainly agree with the authors, though. This is a great example of harnessing the power of converging technologies to make a little money. Plus, everyone I know loves a good photoblog...