Not only do I like quick facts about advertising, I love cool graphs and charts.
Here’s your daily dose of both. Enjoy.
The Sneaky Psychology of Advertising
Archive for the ‘Mixed Nuts’ Category
Advertising Meets Psychology
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011Beyond the MiniBar
Thursday, June 2nd, 2011In my pursuits to keep up on what’s interesting and innovative in the marketing world, I came across a hotel chain that is “literally” changing the in-room and in-restaurant dining experience.
The Morgan Hotel Group, which has hotels in MA, FL, CA, NY and London, is adding an intellectual element to its guest amenities. For example, in your hotel room mini bar, you not only can purchase the expected overpriced liquor bottles and macadamia nuts, but something for the mind, too. For $56 guest can purchase a MiniBar for the Mind which includes a deck of interesting and provocative Conversation Starters, Reading Prescriptions which contain passages designed to evoke moods of relaxation or seduction and a Dreams & Fears Notebook journal and pencil.
Additionally, to help ease the potential awkward business dinner or first date conversations, Morgan’s restaurants offer what they call a Conversation Menu. This entertaining selection of conversation prompts will ensure that table talk moves beyond the domain of the weather and the price of gas. I, for one, can recall a time a two where something like this would have come in mighty handy.
It’s nice to see a hotel chain thinking beyond the minimart and offering new constructive experiences to their guests. Is it worth the money…I’ll let you know next time I travel to MA, FL, CA, NY or London.
First Birthdays
Tuesday, May 24th, 2011So the thing weighing heavily on my mind lately is that my little girl, Elise will be turning one year old in less than a month. It’s hard to believe how quickly that time flew by.
We are currently in full swing on preparations for her 1st birthday party. I feel that the first birthday, while insignificant to the child, is very important to not only the parents but the guests as well. Everyone who has been a part of this child’s first year of life, coming together to celebrate. There’s also a lot of pressure on the parents to make this event special. I have been scouring websites, reading up on party planning-heck, it’s been a long time since I threw a party, and NEVER for a child! What do you do during them again? How do you keep everyone entertained, etc.? There will most likely be children of all ages attending this event, how do I ensure THEY are happy and not bored out of their minds watching a one-year-old tear through presents at a snail’s pace?
We have decided to keep it small(ish), at my parent’s house, and with mostly family and just a few friends. Grandma and Grandpa have a pool, so that should keep the kids happy. Plus, a huge fenced-in backyard and TWO bathrooms-this was really a no-brainer. And they offered to host it at their place, which is a huge help!
I’m going to try not to lose my mind over the next several weeks while putting together the details. I’m sure everything will turn out fine and we’ll have a blast. It’s just the leading up to the party that puts me in such a tizzy. Throughout my daughter’s first year, my mothering instincts have taught me to go with the flow and take each day one step at a time. Party-planning should be no different. Elise won’t remember if she had an inflatable bounce house or a piñata, so why should I care? I’m sure we will have many, many demands to meet from the birthday girl in the years yet to come.
The most important thing is that we have a happy, healthy baby who we are gathered to celebrate, and that’s what matters most.
Toys From Our Own Backyard
Thursday, May 19th, 2011Almost everyone who grew up here knows that the little red Radio Flyer Wagon from their childhood was made in Chicago.
But did they know Lincoln Logs, Operation, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots and Beanie Babies started in Chicago as well?
Driving to work yesterday morning, I was surprised to learn just that – and that I can apparently find out a lot more at the Elmhurst Historical Museum (who knew?). “Toys in the Hood” is a new exhibit exploring the incredible role Chicago has played in the evolution of these iconic toys and games.
Check out the story on WBEZ or visit the Elmhurst Historical Museum, 120 E. Park Ave., Elmhurst. Ph: 630-833-1457, Recommended for all ages. Free admission. Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 1-5 p.m.
Let’s Get Small: Part 2
Friday, May 13th, 2011Follow-up to March 19, 2010 post
Tristan da Cunha is an island located in the south Atlantic ocean and is a little under 38 square miles in size. The island is approximently 1,700 miles to the southwest of South Africa and 2,000 miles the the east of South America. It is considered to be the most remote inhabited place in the world. Current population stands at 264.
If one wishes to travel there, you’ll need to take a 5-6 day boat trip from Cape Town, South Africa. You’ll also need to obtain permission from the Tristan da Chuna Secretary to the Administrator, stating what your purpose for visiting the island is.
Tristan da Chuna official web stie
Tristan da Chuna Wikipedia page
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In 1977 Steve Martin released the comedy album; “Let’s Get Small”. This album featured comedy hits such as: “Ramblin’ Man/Theme from Ramblin’ Man”, “Let’s Get Small”, “Excuse Me”.
In the ’70s Steve Martin hosted Saturday Night Live 8 times. During the 3rd season (1977-1978) he hosted the show twice. However, he did not host the show upon which Elvis Costello received a ban for playing an unscripted song on the night of December 17, 1977 – Martin would go on to host the next episode which aired January 21, 1978.
Costello was invited to perform on the episode after the Sex Pistols were unable to play. Costello’s record label, Columbia, wanted him to play “Less than Zero”, but he wanted to play “Radio, Radio”. After playing the first few bars of “Less than Zero”, Costello stopped the band and said: “I’m sorry, ladies and gentlemen, there’s no reason to do this song here,” he then instructed the band to play “Radio, Radio”
After the performance, Elvis was banned from SNL for 12 years – reappearing on the show in 1989.
Unfortunately, I was unable to find any video footage on the internet to accompany this post. However, it is available for viewing on the SNL 3rd season DVD or on Netflix (Go to Miskel Spillman/Elvis Costello episode in Season 3 of the The 1970s – and its near the end of that episode).
I did find a clip of when Elvis Costello sabotaged the Beasite Boys playing “Sabotage” on the 25th year anniversary show from 1999.
The Beastie Boys just released their 8th full-length studio album titled “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two” on May 3, 2011
Royal Wedding Phenomenon
Wednesday, April 27th, 2011You’d have to live under a rock to not be aware that Prince William of England is marrying Kate Middleton on Friday, April 29th. Being a romantic, myself, and a sucker for the Royal Family, of course I will be DVR’ing the event and am looking forward to watching it. I still vividly remember watching Prince Charles marry Diana in 1981 with my mom and sister (while my dad rolled his eyes and huffed about how we were delaying leaving the house for Great America and would now be in traffic).
To me, like many, the fascination is watching the reality of every girl’s dream to marry her Prince come true. A concept marketed to us since birth by Disney. But what is surprising to me is all of the peripheral marketing going on by the 3rd parties…Royal wedding party supplies, Kate & William tea bags, a $79 commorative plate, and my favorite — must-have of the season…a $195 Kate doll. It’s amazing what a source of income this wedding is generating for businesses across the world.
This romantic is hoping that the wedding is about more than just a media frenzy and income generator. Hoping is a union between two people that love each other and will have a very happy life together.
Cheers!
Marketing and the NBA
Wednesday, April 20th, 2011So, I was going to write this blog on how Derrick Rose is a dream come true for the NBA, but damned if anyone knows how to properly market the kid.
Derrick is a joy to watch and has brought back a certain excitement to basketball that’s been missing (at least in Chicago). He just makes it all fun again. You would think marketing him would be easy. But no one seems to be doing it in a way that’s memorable.
I was going to talk about the Adidas spot that has him shooting a gun (yikes!) that triggers fireworks. But mostly he’s just being overshadowed by someone I can only assume is a soccer player, since I have no idea who he is.
I was going to discuss the “Fast Don’t Lie” spots that proved when it comes to making commercials, Rose is a great basketball player (he doesn’t talk in the ad, just dribbles and shoots…at the end he does wink, and it’s kinda awkward).
I was going to talk about how maybe he’s not naturally funny and charming, on camera he comes off a little uncomfortable and nervous, and how maybe that could be his hook. Give Derrick one funny thing to say, maybe a little under his breath and call it a day. This worked pretty well for some ESPN and TNT ads.
TNT Spot
ESPN Spot
But the more I thought about it, and the more I watched, the harder it was to care a lick about marketing. It’s the playoffs now and it’s hard to wrap my mind around anything more than watching this team play great basketball.
At the end of the season I promise to give it more thought, but right now I’m just too darn excited to keep a clear head.
To leave this blog entry on a positive marketing note, I am including “5 Favorite Commercials with NBA Stars”…I only wish the one with Gheorghe Muresan was better quality, since it is awesome! Enjoy and GO BULLS!
The Popcorn Tape – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IL5WnqWqkrY
Chicks Dig Cabbage – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9uaDiRlLBQ&feature=related
Do You Like Popsicles? – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QIH8NrNeso&feature=related
The LeBrons – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnV6ND7PdvE
Shaqtastic! – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo0ncg-2zPY
And one with a picture of Chris Paul - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I44BF3R4rmU
Check out what Crain’s Chicago Business has to say about marketing D. Rose
Paprika, Pizza, Ordering Food Online and Beer
Monday, April 18th, 2011When I was a kid my mom made a dish which consisted of mainly potatoes and paprika. Every now and then she’ll break out the old recipe and make it for me – I enjoyed it back then and I enjoy even more now.
A few years ago I was in Europe and while in a grocery store I noticed paprika flavored Pringles – of course I had to try them and was instantly reminded of the dish my mom made, not mention I was now hooked on this snack. Because Paprika Pringles are not available in the U.S., every chance I had on that trip, I would buy a can and devour quickly.
Today, if I have the urge, I can order a can of Paprika Pringles online. It may take a while for them to be shipped, but I don’t mind the wait, its good stuff.
There are times, however, when I get taste for something and need to order it for delivery ASAP. This happened the other day while visiting my wife’s family in St. Louis – I really wanted Papa John’s pizza. Now, I do not consider Papa John’s to be a guilty pleasure, I maybe get a taste for it once a year at best. But on this day – I had to have it. After downloading the Papa John’s app for my smartphone, I placed my order – within 30 minutes I had my pizza.
I’m a really big fan of using apps (on the smartphone) and/or sites (on the laptop) that allow one to order food, especially when the navigation of the app/site is pretty smooth. I also enjoy how one can specialize their order, if they want. But, the main reason I prefer ordering food for delivery this way is because I just don’t like talking on the phone.
Speaking of St. Louis and referring to the They Got our Goose post, here is a clip from the Beer Wars movie which came out in 2009. It’s a pretty good film on how the inside of the beer industry works.
They Got our Goose
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011So yesterday Goose Island announced that Anheuser-Busch InBev is buying out the brewery for just shy of $40 million dollars. As Chicago’s biggest and most highly acclaimed brewery, Goose Island being taken over by a corporate giant is less than exciting for several reasons.
In a time when buying local is an ongoing (and awesome) trend, it’s disappointing to see a huge Belgian company operated by Brazilians take over our local microbrewery – the one that pioneered Chicago’s craft beer market and has brought us countless bottles of unique, delicious beers. But regardless of who bought it and where they’re based, it’s no longer “ours” – which is hard to swallow for a city that likes to support its own.
There’s also the concern that Anheuser-Busch InBev will dilute the quality of Goose Island’s beers, especially since its brewmaster has stepped down with the acquisition. His dad, founder John Hall, is staying on as CEO at least, so ideally he’ll keep the Goose Island quality afloat. Messing with it would be a major misstep on InBev’s part, and surely they’re aware of that. But it’s certainly a possible outcome as Goose Island transitions from a passionate, independent brewery to one of many operated by InBev.
Although I seriously hope that the integrity of Goose Island is never compromised, I also won’t blame the Hall family if it is. However disappointing this buyout is, I’m not going to jump on the hater train and point fingers at Goose Island’s owners for not hanging on to their independence forever. Yeah, that would be great for those of us who would enjoy sipping our beers more if we were buying them from the brewery’s founders, but it’s unrealistic to ask that they turn down a $40 million offer if they’re comfortable with the deal and ready to sell. Over the last 23 years, they’ve built an amazing operation that has built an enormous following and achieved great success. And cheers to that. Not to mention the fact that they led the charge for other great Chicago microbreweries, which we’re seeing more and more of with Half Acre, Revolution, Haymarket, Two Brothers and Metropolitan.
On a related note, this is not the first time InBev has taken over a hometown brand for me. As a native of the St. Louis area, I grew up being a fan of Anheuser-Busch – even before I could drink beer, their name was on my favorite baseball team’s stadium, they owned and operated Grant’s Farm – the coolest place for a third-grade field trip and they had those awesome Clydesdales. Anheuser-Busch was synonymous with St. Louis and undoubtedly one of the strongest American brands in history.
Ironically, I just started reading a book about InBev’s takeover of Anheuser-Busch – Dethroning the King: The Hostile Takeover of Anheuser-Busch, an American Icon. At least at this point in my reading, I’d definitely recommend it.
And while the Goose Island buyout doesn’t appear to have anywhere near the level of drama that I’m reading about, InBev taking them over does take the craftiness out of craft beer.
More of You to Go Around
Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011
With today’s busy schedules, sometimes do you ever wish you could be in two places at once? Whether it’s in the office, out of town with clients, at a really interesting trade show/conference or even at home with your family. Even though technology allows us to work from anywhere in the world via our laptops and iPhones, “Face time” is still critical in the work environment. Making it happen can be a challenge.
So what can you do? Anybots, a Californian company now sells what it calls a “personal avatar” that enables people to participate in meetings and other events from afar.
Equipped with a speaker, microphone, camera and video screen, the wifi-enabled device can show live video of the person operating it, or it can simply display a still picture. Either way, the robot’s eyes glow as long as the user is logged in. The Anybot glides around quietly and smoothly, giving the human operating it complete visibility and access to the events going on.
Hey, it’s only $15,000. I think I’m gonna hit Mr. Weiner up for one.
Check it out!
