Deer Mayhem

Allstate Insurance has been running a series of advertisements geared for the "what if" in life. These Mayhem commercials have been marketed towards consumers who seem to forget about the unexpected and be well prepared in the case of an accident. Seeing a seismic shift in the marketing auto insurance has been making toward younger generations, how do you feel about the impact it’s been making? Have these commercials made you second guess what coverage your insurance plan covers?

Perfectly Handcrafted for YOU

As most of us know Starbucks recently changed their logo, removing the text, enlarging their signature "siren" logo and changing the color to all green. This change was welcomed by many customers and had others criticizing the move. Time would tell whether their brand was strong enough to be recognized by global consumers. After the unveiling of their new logo, Starbucks launched a commercial for their Tribute brand coffee honoring this new logo. This commercial reflects the Starbucks brand and the idea that each coffee can be individualized for each customer. Whether someone wants a tall-nonfat Mocha or a Grande extra shot no foam Mocha Cappucino, the process of designing your drink has endless options. This is highlighted in their commercial.





This commercial takes customers from the beginning process of growing coffee all the way to the process of the barista making a specialized drink for "Sue." Do you think showing the "life of a product" can be effective in making something such as a Starbucks Coffee drink more personalized and special? Or do you think showing all the steps Starbucks takes to ensure the highest quality ingredients for each customer doesn't matter to an individual? If you think it isn't effective how do you think Starbucks should advertise for their new Tribute blend? Any opinions on their new logo?

Engineered for Magic. Everyday.

When car most car manufacturers produce television advertisements, they attempt to capture consumer interest based on one or two factors of competitive advantage. Whether they are promoting performance, safety, styling, or luxury - most constrain their promotion based on what factor separates them from other manufacturers' offerings. 

With over 80 years of specialization performance and speed, Porsche has significant brand equity and does not need to emphasize these aspects of their products as do other manufacturers. In this commercial, Porsche manages to effectively communicate the versatility and usefulness of their vehicles. Essentially, Porsche is suggesting that owners can have their cake, and eat it too! 


Do you think Porsche executes this message of product versatility well?


How could the presentation be improved? 

- Jimmy 

Clean gets dirty? The power of Axe

While searching for beauty commercials I stumbled upon Axe. After viewing a variety of their commercials (and peoples 'remakes' of them) I can see that Axe is marketing sex. This isn't all that surprising considering they're beauty products like body wash and hair gel and that they're competing with Old Spice who's man is constantly shirtless. I haven't actually seen their commercials on tv though so I'm curious as to what channels they target, etc.




What do you think? Is sex just an easy go to marketing tactic? Should they get more creative, or is this working for you? Or maybe it's just funny?

The Power of the Cuteness Factor

This commercial was shown to me a few weeks ago and I couldn't help but feel happy when I saw that adorable white ball of fluff and watched the romantic proposal unfold.




This commercial for Fancy Feast featured the events leading up to a marriage proposal and we saw the preparation that the man went through to get ready to propose. He designs an entire room for the kitten with ramps, play toys and new paint and rug. Finally, we see an adorable persian kitten with a silver heart charm collar inscribed with "Will You Marry Us?" on a pink ribbon. Aww!

Fancy Feast is a gourmet cat food brand designed to be an expression between owner and pet as "a way to say I love you." According to Fancy Feast's Facebook site, "For more than 25 years, Fancy Feast® Gourmet Cat Food has created exquisite expressions of devotion, inspired by the love you have for your cat." This description is similar to a marriage or romantic relationship. It also represents the serious dedication that Fancy Feast has to provide high quality ingredients to the consumers, the cats. This message becomes clear in this engagement commercial when we see the new kitten given as a surprise gift during the proposal and after the woman sees the "marry us" tag, the kitten is given a big serving of fancy feast in a glass dish. The couple is eating from chinese food cartons and isn't moved in yet, hence the boxes all around, but they manage to find a "fancy" dish for the kitten!!

Do you think the idea of a marriage proposal involving a kitten is a good marketing strategy for a cat food brand? Do you think targeting the emotions of consumers can be an effective strategy? Any other thoughts?

The Magic of the iPad 2

Apple's second generation tablet the iPad 2 has been a hit since its debut in mid-March. What is so intriguing about the product isn't what it can do, but what it represents. The magic, beauty and experience all integrated into one unit emits a type of experience that only Apple can claim. The iPad 2 is a mediocre upgrade to the original iPad, which now boasts front and rear facing cameras, thinner and lighter hardware, as well as a faster processor. But Apple wants you to forget everything about the technological aspect of this device, focusing only on the experience, design, and "magic" it creates.

Apple's marketing is something unmatched by its competitors. What once was a "niche" and elite status symbol now represents millions of people on a global scale. The goal behind Apple's success is it's constant mindset that makes you believe you have something so different, so advanced, yet so delightful it attracts customers and makes them believe they are more than simply the owners of a piece of technology, but the owner of something delightful. Although the iPad 2 boasts the same iOS software as the iPod Touch, despite the larger screen it doesn't seem to be hurting Apple in any way.

Has Apple's marketing had any effect on you as a consumer? What makes Apple's products so delightful to you? I would love to hear your input on how Apple has kept you loyal, happy, or dedicated to their products, as well as any negative experiences you might have had!

Musical forest

What a fantastic commercial! At first it seems just like a YouTube video, some guys who went into the forest and are creating this xylophone for fun. And to be honest I thought it was just a YouTube video until the very end when they show the cell phone. And because it uses music notes instead of words, it can be understood by all languages, another bonus for them. Great commercial, only negative is that it is a little long. I don't know how it would work for tv or if it's soley for YouTube. Any thoughts on international commercials?

"Let Go" and Have a Glass of Bubbly

This campaign called "Let Go" launched a few months ago in the United States by Italian company Martini & Rossi, for Asti brand sparkling wine. This ad campaign was the first they have had in ten years. This campaign aims to capture the essence of Italian life and follows a beautiful, stylish young woman through the busy streets of Rome as she carries a large handful of golden balloons. Once she arrives at her final destination, she gives balloons to a few other party quests. The Martini image becomes a party that every viewer wants to be invited to. The cork is popped on the bottle of Asti and then she releases the balloons into the air, as they magically transform into bubbles. The ad is mostly visual and doesn't have any speaking, only music. The theme of the commercial is "Let Go" and captures the Italian lifestyle attempting to make the consumer want to "Let Go" and enjoy the luxurious and Italian way of life as they drink Asti... not only during celebrations such as parties and New Years day, but everyday.





In what ways does this campaign capture the essence of Italian lifestyle that it hopes to portray to the U.S. market? What kind of problems could a brand face when launching an advertising campaign in another country? Can you think of any products that may have had to change their advertising plans for international marketing purposes?

Source: http://www.adweek.com/aw/video/adoftheday_player_page.jsp

Allstate Mayhem

The Allstate Insurance Company has been running an advertising campaign using it's "Allstate Mayhem" character to forewarn consumers to "expect the unexpected" when dealing with vehicle accidents. In this commercial a business executive finds out the markets have plummeted losing him large amounts of money, causing him to spill his coffee and burn himself. Slamming on his breaks in pain, the driver behind him rear-ends him resulting in the collision. The message of this commercial is simple, expect the unexpected. Getting Allstate Insurance will "protect you against Mayhem, like me". This tag-line delivers the conclusion for this commercial and leaves the customer with a humorous message.

Can any of you relate to these commercials when considering car insurance? Do you believe Allstate is making a relevant connection with accidents and the insurance you purchase? I would love to hear your input!

Shark humor

This week I decided to ask my roommate about her favorite commercial. It's interesting to see what commercials people remember and which ones just don't stick. This one came up in conversation...shark humor. Snickers is playing off this fictitious idea that sharks have human capabilities and are being used as market research. It puts an interesting twist on the typical person to person market research commercial. Have you seen any commercials lately that put a humorous twist on something usually quite average? Or are there certain commercials that really stick?

Poetry In Motion

Recently, fuel prices in the U.S. have been of paramount concern in the media. So much in fact, over 100,000 Facebook users agreed to not purchase fuel today as a boycott to these inflated prices. This post is not in response to this activism, but to a fantastic advertisement sourced from the LeMay Car Museum's Facebook page.



The commercial appeals to visual perception and auditory senses with the combination of orchestral engine noises, wickedly exciting high-speed cornering, and the classic Rosso Corsa 'Ferrari' red color streaking past magnificent monuments. Considered one of the most expensive commercials ever, the footage was shot on-site in Rome, Monaco, Sydney, New York, and Hong Kong. In addition, Ferrari has assembled a broad historical collection of some of their most coveted vehicles. In order of appearance, the 500 F2, 312, 312B, F310B, F2002, and F2007 exemplify Ferrari's venerable racing heritage originating in 1947. By combining their brand equities, Ferrari and Shell targeted customers by depicting the enriching capabilities of using Shell fuel and providing a correlation to street vehicles.

As a point of information, Ferrari and Shell did not maintain a continued relationship during the sixty years they've worked together. An Italian oil company, Agip, provided fuel sponsorship for Ferrari during a number of seasons instead of Shell.

What do you consider to be the most appealing aspect of this commercial?

As a viewer, does this advertisement encourage you to buy fuel from Shell service stations?

Approved by YiaYia

The new ad campaign run by Kraft Foods for Athenos hummus and yogurt products, has sparked interest as well as controversy. The ads feature a Greek grandmother figure named "YiaYia" and her traditional views on life. Three different spots incoporate YiaYias views on parenting, relationships and fashion. The theme for the commercials is that YiaYia is a fan of "simple, respectful food made the Greek way." She doesn't approve of anything her family is doing. She criticizes their lifestyle choices including, style of dress, living together before marriage, and being a stay-at-home dad. The only thing she approves of is Athenos.

In this first spot YiaYia tells her granddaughter how she feels about the way she dresses. YiaYia criticizes her granddaughter saying she, "dresses like a prostitute."






In this second spot YiaYia tells her son how she feels about his job. YiaYia insults her son, saying he is like a woman because he doesn't work outside the home.




These advertisements have sparked controversy in the Greek community. Some feel these ads are stereotyping Greek language and culture. According to Maria Anagnostopoulos a program director at the Greek Institute, "These commercials are not appropriate from a Greek perspective." Others feel that this advertisement is creative and lighthearted. Kraft Foods felt that this would be a viral campaign and strike interest among their target market of 20 year olds. Kraft wants people to see the commercial as fun and said the Greek-Americans they tested the commercial on thought it was humorous.


What target demographic would Kraft be trying to attract with these ads?
Do you think these Athenos ads are.. Creative? Funny? Controversial? Something else? Why?

New Windows Phone Ad: Consumer Generated

Microsoft. Windows Phone 7. One of the newest products released from the Redmond, WA software giant. Microsoft has an advertising budget of approximately $500 million dollars set aside for its Windows Phone 7 alone; comprised of television advertisements, billboards, radio, and most predominately the internet. But this video stands out from the rest...can you guess why?

It is 100% consumer generated. The creator of this video Brandon Foy has no relation to Microsoft. He merely created this video for a case study on his own and the response has been extremely positive. People everywhere are begging Microsoft to contact this individual because of the way it showcases the beauty of the product. With the amount of money being set aside for marketing this new Windows product, how do you feel about an exciting new video that has Microsoft rethinking their marketing campaign? The importance of consumer generated advertising is beginning to become a norm in the way we rethink our strategy.

Below is a clip of one of many Windows Phone 7 commercials.


How do you feel about the first video being consumer generated and free, versus the last video which is part of a multi-million dollar campaign? I would love to hear your opinions, thoughts, and feelings toward this rapidly growing trend of consumer generated marketing. Lets here what you think!

The man YOUR man ought to be

Old Spice began a campaign last year using social media, humor and their audience members. It debuted as a tv commercial and from there went to YouTube.



Old Spice ran an entire marketing campaign revolving around this male actor. Viewers tweeted and commented on YouTube videos in mass amounts, and positive at that. Old Spice asked viewers what they would like the Old Spice man to do. Then came a succession of requests, which Old Spice did surprisingly well and quickly to respond to. Old Spice responded to celebrities, influential personnel, the average Jo and social media people.

Here is one where the Old Spice man responds to @pingchat



In Old Spice's last video he says farewell to his viewers and like all good things this must come to an end.



This is an excellent example of how powerful social media is and the amount of money it can save a company. Old Spice didn't have to pay advertising fees to tv networks for a commercial spot. Instead they ran a majority of their campaign from YouTube. They made their campaign humorous, interactive and most of all enjoyable. They were able to reach millions through humorous videos. Over 5 million people viewed his "re:everyone" video.

Have you heard of any similar marketing campaigns that used social media in such an impactful way?

Crash the Super Bowl

Doritos and PepsiMax decided to try something new and teamed up for Super Bowl XLV advertisements. They ran a competition called Crash the Super Bowl in which the winning video received a cash prize and was featured during the Super Bowl promoting either PepsiMax or Doritos. This competition allowed their consumers to be actively participating in the marketing process. They were either filming and submitting videos or choosing their favorite videos to be featured during the commercial spots.





This video, "Pug Attack," was the winning film chosen out of 5,600 competitors. The producer uses a "cute" pug dog and humor to set the scene. This commercial became a hit because of a viral marketing campaign set in place by the creators weeks before it was put on TV. In just a couple of weeks the video had tens of thousands of views on YouTube. This specific commercial was tied for the top commercial with another fan-favorite featuring dogs, "Dog Sitter," a Bud Light commercial.

Four of the consumer-created ads from PepsiMax and Doritos made the top-ten ratings from the USA Today Ad Meter. The success behind these consumer-created advertisements proves that you don't necessarily have to spend a lot of money to create a successful or popular commercial. The idea of a competition involving the consumers is a correlation to the growing success of blogs, social networking and websites. These don't cost a lot to maintain but if done well, they can make a big impact on consumers and lead to success.

Do you think using consumer generated advertising is a good strategy for PepsiMax/Doritos?

Could the success behind consumer generated advertising change the advertising strategies for companies?

Audi Superbowl Advertisements

Hello readers!

As this the first post of the blog, I'd like to demonstrate the general format we will be using. For this example, I will use the recent advertisements presented by Audi prior to and during Superbowl XLV.

Audi used three commercials to preface the final minute-long clip aired on Superbowl Sunday. The first of these describes characteristics of stereotypical luxury car consumers. The aim of this commercial is to highlight the modern transition from stuffy, fluffy, and overindulgent products to illumination, innovation, and unrivaled inspiration. Audi clearly illustrates that their vehicles set new standards of expectations for the future. Receiving 839,570 views since the initial launch, this is the second most popular clip in this series.

The second commercial appeals to the viewers' humor as stereotypical wealthy characters and their personalities are described. The clip illustrates how the older crowd is attempting to reform the attitudes and behaviors of their younger colleagues in order to prevent them from making similar "mistakes" as they once did. Although not explicitly defined, the advertisement alludes to these mistakes as being purchases of luxury vehicles from competitors. This clip was the lowest viewed of the collection, only reaching a total of 172,759 views. It is also the longest.

Recognized as "the regent of the smoothiverse" by the New York Times, saxophonist Kenny G was employed as a prison riot suppressor in the third clip. Again, Audi has provided a stereotypical example of customer who purchases luxury cars - this time referencing their musical tastes. In the video, Kenny's talent is not to excite or stimulate the prisoners, but to quickly woo them to slumber.

Finally, the commercial that aired during the Superbowl was a culmination of the three prior advertisements. The plot line of a prison break is a creative metaphor to illustrate the escape from "old luxury". Each escapee was presented the option of either new luxury (Audi) or old luxury (Mercedes-Benz). This video received over 1.5 million views within 10 days.

Each of these clips presents an overarching theme that consumers of luxury vehicles are incarcerated in a metaphorical prison of generational stagnation. The final advertisement is the most crucial of the series and ensures viewers understand that there is only one escape route available. In order for these consumers to transition towards innovative products they must purchase an Audi.

Best Buy® Buy Back Program: Outdated World

This TV commercial produced by retail store Best Buy® represents a growing reality we face today in terms of the technology we attempt to keep up with. This commercial illustrates the continual need for consumers to stay on top of new innovation, while never knowing when the next new thing will come out. Something Best Buy® has attempted to provide us with is the understanding that "we know the feeling". Best Buy is making an effort to compensate those who want to stay on top, without burning a hole in their wallet. The Best Buy, Buy Back Program offers some reassurance that you won't be left behind.

The marketing aspect of this message reiterates the everyday reality plaguing many people who feel they are always behind the technology curve. What are some aspects that you feel you can personally relate to in terms of technology in today's generation? Do you feel that every few weeks or months what was new to you is now obsolete? And if so, what are your opinions about Best Buy's new program to help you cope with this fast changing environment? We would love to hear your input!

Introductory Post

Welcome readers!

We are a group of students at Pacific Lutheran University. This blog is a project for our e-marketing course. Below are brief personal profiles for each blogger.

Holly Dunning is a senior graphic design student, with a minor in Business Administration. When not designing for 425 and South Sound magazines, Holly enjoys the outdoors, and trying new cooking recipes.

Kelsey Johnston is a junior at PLU, majoring in Marketing and minoring in Communications. She is interested in fashion, cooking, yoga and traveling.

Barrett Stamps is senior at PLU graduating spring 2011. He is majoring in Management and Human Resources. His interests include playing golf and keeping up with computer and mobile device technology.

Jimmy Murphy is a senior majoring in Business Administration and Economics. He has a passion for cars, interest in global economics, and enjoys traveling.

We hope you enjoy our blog and encourage response and discussion!