ComputerHunter.org |
|
|
|||
|
 |
Crazy Ads? Maybe Youre Just Out of The Demo!
My father called me to complain, again. He's 82 and he's angry. "Son, I know you're in advertising and all that", he usually starts off, "but the ads I see today I wouldn't give you two cents for. They're stupid and they don't even tell you what they're selling!" I explained it to him as best as I could. "Dad, it's OK, you're just out of the demo." "I'm out of the what?" "The demographics Dad, The key target audience for who they're trying to reach." "Well then who in the heck are they trying to reach?" He yells. "Must be boneheads cause those ads make no sense to any sane person." Whether it's a beer commercial trying too hard to be funny, or like a recent FedEX commercial where Burt Reynolds sparred with a grizzly bear, I gotta admit that sometimes, Dad is right. I've been in the ad business for quite awhile now and know that in today's world, it takes a lot to get a business noticed. However I can't help laughing to myself when watching these ads, imagining the initial pitch to the client. Secretary: Boss, those ad agency guys are here. Boss: What? Are they on the calendar? (disgusted) Oh all right, send them in. Young ad guy #1: Hello sir, and how are you today? Wow! That tie is whacked! Boss: It's what? Never mind. What have you got for our new ad campaign? Young ad guy #2: Oh this is so cool! Check out these story boards. Boss: (looks at the story boards puzzled, eyebrows creased in confusion). Young ad guy #1: OK there's no voice over at all! You just see a guy waking up in bed. Next, he rolls over and he realizes that he's in bed with the Burger King! Boss: He's what?? Young ad guy #2: Yeah! And then the Burger King, who's really this actor wearing the Burger King costume and a big plastic face with a frozen smile, reaches around and produces a Double Breakfast Crosandwich and hands it to the man who takes a big bite of it. Boss: (Now his eyebrows look like one unibrow as his cheeks glow red.) Young ad guy #1: Then they both share a laugh, pat each other on the back, and we fade to logo! Is that wild or what? It's going to generate huge numbers man! Boss: (Stunned then angry) I thought I told you guys to quit putting crack in the water dispenser! See the problem facing advertisers today is the pressure to relate to the 18-34, 25-44 demos they so desperately need to reach, so they try anything they think will accomplish this and as a result, many people out of those key demos, don't get it. However, it dawned on me after my most recent birthday that sadly, I too have joined those ranks. So now when I watch an ad that even from my experienced perspective seems to make no sense at all, I just remind myself it's nothing personal. I'm just out of the demo. Hal Eisenberg is an award winning copywriter, voice over talent and producer, as well as owner of The Eisenberg Agency, a full service advertising agency specializing in creative ads that get results. You can visit his web site http://www.eisenbergagency.com. Contact Hal at halacious@eisenbergagency.com.
Google News - Top Stories
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Top 9 Reasons To Advertise Advertising is not for every company. But some require it because their market is big and constantly changing and evolving. Consider this, up to 30 percent of the people in the US move each year. Or, you may be locked into a battle with a competitor. People do business with companies they know and trust. Advertising can help build awareness, so that eventually consumers will trust your offer. 16 Ways to Make Your Business Cards Unforgettable Every time you hear someone say "May I have one of your business cards?" you should get excited. I know I do. That's because I LOVE my cards. I spent thousands of dollars on printing, several hours on designing and went through 10 different layouts until I got them right. Advertainment is Sneaking Into Music, Movies, TV and More The very name "advertainment" sends thrilling vibrations up the spine of anyone with marketing in their blood or communication in their genes. And it produces a strong shiver of disgust from many of my colleagues in the music industry. Using The Popularity of Celebrities and Currrent Events to Promote Your Business In this article, we want to explore the idea of using the popularity of celebrities and current event (news) topics to help market any internet business. Is Advertising Art? Oh Grand and Glorious Southern Guru, I am perplexed. What ails thee, my peabrained little grasshopper? My sleep has been short, my walls have been climbed, my hair has been pulled. Not Another Calendar! - Choose Advertising Specialties That Sell As I was searching through a kitchen drawer the other day, I found dozens of pens, pencils, letter openers, sticky-note pads, oversized paper clips, rulers, dental floss, calendars, magnets, whatsits and thing-a-ma-bobs, each with the name of a business on the front. In looking through my "collection" I discovered some things I love and use and others that I can't imagine why I picked them up. Some, I'm not even sure what they are! How to Use the 3 Most Common Direct Marketing Measurements to Increase Your Profits! John Wanamaker, a 19th century entrepreneur, once famously made the statement, "I know that half of my advertising is wasted, I just don't know which half." Fortunately for today's marketers, there are scientific ways to determine which half is wasted, and which half is not, through the use of common direct marketing measurements. Advertising Primer for Fast Learners Advertising, when done well is a very effective way to increase your customer base and ultimately grow your bottom line. Testing Headlines A correspondent to AdBriefing, my monthly newsletter, has posed a very sticky question. How, she asks, can you tell whether a headline you have written is a good one?or not? What she means by this, I imagine, is whether the headline will actually help to make sales, rather than just act as a passing amusement to its readers. The Inside Secrets Of Free Publicity For Your Business Product publicity is the "secret pathway" to business success everyone wants. In simple terms, product publicity is a kind of advertising that costs you nothing, yet brings in the orders for you. Driving Customers to You - Your Car as a Marketing Vehicle You can turn your vehicle into a rolling advertisement. Costs start at just a few dollars, and you can put your business name, slogan, phone number and web site URL in front of thousands of potential customers while you are driving along the freeway, stuck in traffic or even while you are parked. Here are some of the best ways to use your vehicle as a marketing tool. Online Classifieds Choosing a Classified Website and creating your advertisements. Creativity and Getting Outside of the Box Sitting in front of a blank piece of paper? Wondering where in the world to start? I have a suggestion. Turn the page upside down. Or better yet flip it over onto it's backside. Let it know who's boss. If your first idea is terrible, write it down anyway. If the next one is silly, redundant or stupid, write it down. Who knows, it may end up being a comedy direction and that first terrible line may end up being the punch line. You never know. You are jumping off a precipice into the unknown world of creativity and you need to be a leaf at the mercy of the wind or you will come crashing down with your fears in a ball flames every time. Placemat Ad Advertising Starting a placemat ad business can create more business for you; free advertising and income all while helping other local small businesses advertise their business all at a reasonable price. Imprinted Promotional Items ? Their Many Marketing Applications There are many uses for promotional items. This means that they are just not used as freebies for a grand opening special. Knowing all the uses for these nifty items, often called "swag," will open up many opportunities for your place of business. What Is Most Important ? Copy Or Pic? When, some little time ago now, I first descended upon the advertising scene, we were a good deal more concerned than most people seem to be today about the nature of the business we found ourselves in. We were always holding debates ? in the saloon bar of the Coach & Horses in New Bond Street, to be tiresomely precise ? about the meaning of advertising, the significance of advertising, and the past, present and future of advertising. And an unconscionably serious lot we no doubt were. Not to mention drunk. Predictions for 2010 2005 puts us at the mid-point of the first decade of the new millenium. What will things look like at the end of the 1st decade of the new millenium in the world of advertising? I thought I'd project where the ad industry is headed and what 2010 (or sooner) might look like. This two-part article will take those discussions a few steps further. First, we'll look at a scenario that is likely to be common by 2010 when the heretofore separate worlds of TV advertising, search marketing, behavioral targeting and inventory yield management blend together. If you buy some of this scenario, it's interesting to look at the implications for ad agencies. In part two, I'll speculate on the likelihood of Google being the biggest "ad agency" in world. If you look through the prism I lay out, it will cause you to think differently about where the industry is headed whether or not you agree with some of the specifics. Mortgage Marketing - Broadcast Advertising vs Direct Advertising Do you know how to design and deploy a marketing campaign? The Internet and Beyond - 12 Tips on Writing Better Brochures Every year thousands of online businesses fail. None of them begin with the idea they'll fail, in fact they have high hopes of success, but they fail all the same. One of the main reasons for the high failure rate is an over reliance on one marketing channel?the Internet. Juice - Scam of the Decade or Opportunity of the Century If you are an ardent web surfer and MLMer like I am, then I am sure you would have seen the sales pitch "Give away free broadband and earn £27 GBP each time".
|
|
|
|
|
Comment by Frank O'Donnell
