Looking over at some of my older posts, it seems I've mostly used this space to note down advertising and uses of media that impress me and make me think about a given brand in a new and interesting way. Well, in order to keep things in balance, I thought it was about time I blogged about something I actually don't like. Blackberry's most recent ad does a good job of almost destroying a brand I find great affinity with. I've had a BB for a while now and though I love the iPhone's sleek design and functionality, my BB has served me well and I just love how easy it is to use and how well it performs as a phone, on top of everything else it does so well.
Their most recent ad with U2 playing a relatively nondescript song from their probably weak new album is old, uninspiring and it's unclear as to what connection the brand has with the band, or music in general. The key problems are:
- Apple linked up with U2 a few years back for a big iPod campaign, notably for the launch of iPod video function on the Classic. Check it here. A solid campaign, that also used some of new-U2's great songs like 'Vertigo' as a backdrop for the famous silhouette's dancing against solid block colours.
- Sony Ericsson have worked on their media messaging for years now and successfully moved into the 'music' space in the world of mobile phones, being seen as the go-to brand for the ultimate portable music player/phone Their whole image is 'I love music, I love my Sony Ericsson', often replacing 'love' with their logo. Perfect.
- The creative in the ad is just bad. Shot badly, with weak audio, and almost just a very weak version of what Apple did years ago.
With the iPhone arguably the most direct competition for Blackberry, it seems odd that they would make such a succession of terrible mistakes with this recent campaign. In such a competitive market, you'd think their creative agency would look to what key competitors are actually doing at the moment, and what they've done in the past.
There, I did it. My next post will probably (read: definitely) be about something I've seen that I really like.
Showing posts with label Apple. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Apple. Show all posts
It seems I can't get enough of Coca-Cola right now. Well, not actually classic Coke, but Diet Coke, Vitamin Water and the company's various drinks pretty much get me through the days and nights, especially in the ridiculous heat LDN has been bathed in this past week.
Liz, my most excellent flattie, bestie and all round superstar mate sent over a link for Guardian's Word of Mouth blog which featured a range of rather silly TV ads for FMCG's that have been around this past month. Check it here.
One of the ones I loved, and wholeheartedly agreed with the blogger on, was for Coca-Cola. It's so wonderfully silly and nonsensical, like a melange of Lewis Carroll's imagination and The Gremlins' absurdity, with a touch of heart. Coca-Cola have gone beyond telling consumers about the product, and now, being one the biggest brands there is, they have to be far more creative with their messaging. 'The Organ Player' takes the sugary dark stuff and turns it into this absolutely epic life source, one that creates mutant-like hamster creatures to play musical instruments inside an organ and sing a rather funky beat. Moreover, it manages to gather a crowd of dedicated boogiers up a hill, and bottles of C-C to emerge from the grass for everyone to guzzle down. And the whole thing is glazed over with a perfect yellow-amber warmth that takes the viewer into a Coca-Cola wonderland, full of friendly Oak trees and lucious green grass you could probably munch on.
As Tony Naylor notes, it just makes you smile. Which really, far from actually trying to sell you something, brands pretty much have to do now. This example is funny 'haha', yes, but if that's not the objective, then the smile's got to come from somewhere else. The Apple iPhone advertising does a good job - it's not necessarily funny, but it's clever, quirky and shows you perfectly just how effective and polished the product is. Plus, it's Apple, so the brand equity messaging is just superb. The new ad for the iPhone 3GS though are lamer than hell, and I don't quite know what Apple are playing at. I give them a few more weeks before they do some focus group testing and realize if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Liz, my most excellent flattie, bestie and all round superstar mate sent over a link for Guardian's Word of Mouth blog which featured a range of rather silly TV ads for FMCG's that have been around this past month. Check it here.
One of the ones I loved, and wholeheartedly agreed with the blogger on, was for Coca-Cola. It's so wonderfully silly and nonsensical, like a melange of Lewis Carroll's imagination and The Gremlins' absurdity, with a touch of heart. Coca-Cola have gone beyond telling consumers about the product, and now, being one the biggest brands there is, they have to be far more creative with their messaging. 'The Organ Player' takes the sugary dark stuff and turns it into this absolutely epic life source, one that creates mutant-like hamster creatures to play musical instruments inside an organ and sing a rather funky beat. Moreover, it manages to gather a crowd of dedicated boogiers up a hill, and bottles of C-C to emerge from the grass for everyone to guzzle down. And the whole thing is glazed over with a perfect yellow-amber warmth that takes the viewer into a Coca-Cola wonderland, full of friendly Oak trees and lucious green grass you could probably munch on.
As Tony Naylor notes, it just makes you smile. Which really, far from actually trying to sell you something, brands pretty much have to do now. This example is funny 'haha', yes, but if that's not the objective, then the smile's got to come from somewhere else. The Apple iPhone advertising does a good job - it's not necessarily funny, but it's clever, quirky and shows you perfectly just how effective and polished the product is. Plus, it's Apple, so the brand equity messaging is just superb. The new ad for the iPhone 3GS though are lamer than hell, and I don't quite know what Apple are playing at. I give them a few more weeks before they do some focus group testing and realize if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
We had our annual Google day at SMV this week, learnt lots about all the new developments going on at the big G, and got to eat some pretty delicious cupcakes too.
Google is more than just a fantastic search engine, which, as we all know, it's fantastic at being. Whenever I use another engine now I just get frustrated by what the results look like if they're different to Google's pages, and the tools are just never up to scratch elsewhere. Perhaps because of Google's usability most specifically, it has become a global brand with an absolute and awesome prowess.
I found this video on youtube promoting Google Chrome (which, by the way, I haven't gotten round to exploring yet. Firefox is pretty solid for my needs.) from Japan. Not even for the creative animation do I love this vid, but for the fantastically Apple-esque imagery that it conjures up. It's odd how as consumers we align Google and Apple together, but it's probably a great thing for all parties involved...
Check it:
Google is more than just a fantastic search engine, which, as we all know, it's fantastic at being. Whenever I use another engine now I just get frustrated by what the results look like if they're different to Google's pages, and the tools are just never up to scratch elsewhere. Perhaps because of Google's usability most specifically, it has become a global brand with an absolute and awesome prowess.
I found this video on youtube promoting Google Chrome (which, by the way, I haven't gotten round to exploring yet. Firefox is pretty solid for my needs.) from Japan. Not even for the creative animation do I love this vid, but for the fantastically Apple-esque imagery that it conjures up. It's odd how as consumers we align Google and Apple together, but it's probably a great thing for all parties involved...
Check it:
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