Technology Wins – Top 10 Back-to-School Ads

08/29/2011 | admin

1. Microsoft: PC or Mini Fridge?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uz5OdiXIV1M&feature=player_embedded

As a kid, the end of August was always full of anticipation and excitement – back to school time! I would actually look forward to school shopping – picking out fresh new binders and coordinating folders, setting up each binder with the necessary section dividers for each class. OK, I was a really odd, really organized little kid.

All grown up, and the end of summer is still exciting. It brings back all those familiar feelings of being granted a new opportunity and a fresh start – the world is your oyster.

Back to school is also one of the most important times of the year for brands and retailers. It’s the second-biggest selling season next to the winter holidays! Apparel, shoes, school supplies, technology -with $69 billion in sales to fight over, you better step up your marketing game.

But in an underwhelming ad season, most of the brands in the must-buys (clothing, supplies, etc.) showed up to the game with lack luster enthusiasm. It was by and far left to the technology categories to push the creativity this year – brands including Microsoft, Dell and Best Buy.

“Retailers go into announcement mode, and for the most part those don’t resonate well. Retailers aren’t developing [apparel] creative stories particularly well, and they’re missing out on an opportunity,” said Peter Daboll, CEO of Ace Metrix. “What really resonated well this year tended to be tech-oriented. Those ads either had an interesting product or an interesting new message.”

Thanks to Ad Age for printing Ace Metrix’s list of top back-to-school ads. Creative effectiveness of ads is ranked by viewer reaction to national TV ads. Here’s the top 5 back-to-school ads…

1. See Microsoft above!

2. JC Penney: Turn your small change into Pennies from Heaven

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_3Kb9yHz4s&feature=player_embedded

Continue reading →

The 5 Second Rule

05/26/2011 | admin

Technically, it’s not the culinary type of mistake that advertisers make; it’s the less palatable kind and spoils easily. Some consumers might even develop an aversion to the stimuli, but that can totally be avoided with the 5 second rule. It’s crucial, it’s vital, it’s necessary and here at MOS Creative we make it delicious once again.

We’ve all heard the expression: “first impressions are usually the correct ones.” Well, this is soo true, especially for the ad world. You have 5 seconds to make the consumer 1) believe that this product will make them or their life better, 2) that they won’t find anything better and 3) their money and time is going to right place.

So how do you do this? Don’t let the value, originality, and creativity fall on the floor.

Make it clear
Make it fast
Make it real

Life is short. Make those seconds count.

You’ve Been A Bad, Bad Ad!

04/19/2011 | admin

Next month, the FDA will be celebrating the first birthday of their brain child, the Bad Ad Program…

Whaaaat? You mean you’ve never heard of the Bad Ad program? Well, we wouldn’t blame you. Since the program began in May of 2010 there have been over 239 complaints. Nope, not 239,000… but 239 total.

The basic premise of this program is “to educate healthcare providers about the role they can play in helping the agency make sure that prescription drug advertising and promotion is truthful and not misleading” (source: www.fda.gov).

Launched by the FDA’s Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising and Communication, it has commissioned a small secret police, whoops, I mean agency, which takes into account the various sorts of advertising violations. Continue reading →

Super Bowl XLV: Ad Winners and Losers

02/07/2011 | admin

Super Bowl XLV, the world’s second largest sporting event, was quite the eventful evening. Besides the messed up National Anthem, a ridiculous halftime show, and fans without seats, it was a great Super Bowl. On a night where companies spend millions of dollars for 30 seconds of your attention, some seemed to win us over while others fell flat on their face.

The Winners:

Doritos-House Sitting

Doritos has created some great ads over the years and that didn’t change this time around. In this spot, Doritos have the power of bringing things back to life from a dead fish, a wilting plant, even Continue reading →

Must See – Funny Spoof on Death of Ad Agencies

12/30/2010 | admin

Thanks to FITC for this clever but eerily relevant sci-fi scenario of the death of the last ad agency on earth. The thing is – they pretty much hit the nail on the head. Many “creative firms” are scared to actually get creative any more. And that, my friends, may be the death of them.

Why? Because consumers’ media habits and access to that media are changing rapidly. We’re not the same captive audience that we used to be. If you’re familiar with the acronyms TiVo and DVR, or you’ve ever been exposed to a YouTube video, then my point has been made.

Effective marketing today has got to be about not doing the same old stuff. It’s got to be about STANDING OUT. We’ve been saying it for a long, long time. Still not convinced? Watch this video! You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, it’ll become a part of you.

Why advertisers can’t afford not to consider digital advertising

08/09/2010 | admin

So what’s the deal with digital? We all know, and by this point love, everything digital. Even if we don’t honestly know what the letters LCD stand for we know it’s a good thing. And when it comes to high definition, whether we’re fast forwarding through infomercials or yelling at a questionable sports call (trust me, the World Cup in HD is totally worth it every four years), as viewers we like what we see.

But consumers aren’t having ALL the fun. Why should advertisers be so excited about digital? Because digital signage advertising is one of the most effective and cost-efficient forms of advertising, way out performing the reach and results of television, online, print, and practically any other medium.

Why should advertisers take a hitch on the digital bandwagon? Studies found that consumers are three times more likely to successfully recall digital advertisements as compared to television, and four times more likely than television ads. Nearly two-thirds of consumers say that digital signage advertising catches their attention – the highest level reported across all media surveyed, including billboards, magazines, TV, the Internet, newspapers, radio, and mobile phone advertising.

If you’re looking for numbers, take these for a spin. It takes an average advertising investment of $21 to reach 1,000 people via television. So how does that compare to the ROI for digital? Continue reading →