Apple's 3G iPhone Ad has been BANNED in the UK!

(photo from the BBC)
Apparently because it exaggerated the speed of the new 3G iPhones, claiming the new 3G model was "really fast" and showed it loading internet pages in under a second, which as anyone who owns one knows, never happens.

People were misled into buying it based on its performance in the ad. It makes me happy because I hate false advertising, and really they get away with murder sometimes. Recently, for example, I bought a screen-capturing software. On the website they showed a "demo" of the software, where everything was moving smoothly at about 30 frames per second, but the software I bought only worked at 10fps. The people who make the software said they wouldn't give me my money back, saying "we never said we used OUR software to make the demo"

Does that make sense to you?

Cool video ad from Toshiba warps time and space!

This is a truly innovative and cool looking ad.

Marketers Turn To Flip Books in Ailing Economy

Great article from MarketWatch.com!

" Recognized as one of the earliest forms of interactive media on record, flip books are making a comeback despite a rapidly declining U.S. economy and slashed marketing budgets. "Marketers are taking cues from the past in order to harness feelings of comfort and stability for their current marketing communications. As a result, they've rediscovered flip books," said Jeffrey Kay, President of Flippies, who produces millions of custom flip books annually for businesses who use them primarily as interactive brochures, event giveaways and trade show handouts.

"History has demonstrated that flip books are the ultimate recession-proof marketing tool," said Kay, who points out that flip books have successfully survived -- and even thrived -- through six previous U.S. recessions, the Great Depression and countless economic downturns. "Right now, flip books are to marketers what meatloaf is to comfort food. And in this age of multi-platform, high-tech interactive marketing -- the simplicity of flip books is not only refreshing, but its illusion is more captivating and engaging than ever."
...
Companies or individuals interested in creating their own custom flip books can visit Flippies online at http://www.flippies.com for more information.
"
read the full article >

Wacky "Got Milk?" Campaign (White Gold)

is this old? I'm not sure. It's pretty nutty. Worth checking out because of the design and humor guaranteed to make you snicker, but I'm not sure wtf is going on with the navigation.

http://www.whitegoldiswhitegold.com/

Secret Codes on Websites...Immersive Games

Trent Reznor is doing some cool promotional games...check out this Wired article:
http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_args

Photo: Robert Maxwell

Funny Ad Campaign from CareerBuilder

Here are the YouTube videos, and really clever e-cards where you can record your voice and the monkey talks-- you have to see this if you haven't already! It's a really great idea, I'd love to know what agency came up with this campaign.



Monkeys are just funny.

Thanks to Brad McCormick for the link

Another Big Budget Web Ad: Got Milk?

Very bizarre campaign-- Brittleactica: A Planet in Need-- a miracle white elixir saves all....beautiful Matthew Barney-esque graphics(or is it Star Wars? sometimes my cultural references blend together)

check it out >

thanks to Joo Yeon Yoo from Ruder Finn for all the cool links today!

More Big Budget Web Ads: Coke (I mean, WOW)

This is really beautiful 3D animation, the soundtrack is incredible, and the story is very LOTResque. They call it the Happiness Factory >

Big budget web ads are here: Absolut Vodka

Be forewarned: it's a musical!

check it out >

Funniest Holiday card yet: ElfYourself!

too much...still crying...you upload photos of yourself and friends and you become...dancing elves!

Hilarious!

Bizzarrely, it's an OfficeMax campaign.

check it out: http://elfyourself.com/

Google Masseuse becomes Multi-millionnaire by exercising stock options

Bonnie Brown started working there in 1999, when there were only 40 Google employees, and was given a bunch of options she thought would never be worth anything...8 years later she is rolling in it.

A friend of mine was just telling me how she turned down a job in text ads at Google in 1999 and is kicking herself...everyone has a career faux pas or two they regret...it's easy to look back and say, "How could I be so dumb?" in hindsight, but what's the point?

Also, I think what's happening with Google (and it's former masseuses!) is an exception. It's not generally that easy to make millions of dollars working for someone else. Better to start your own company...then you'll either make millions or lose millions!

read the NY Times article >

Web game gives free rice to hungry people

from the BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7088447.stm

An internet word game has generated enough rice to feed 50,000 people for one day, according to the UN's World Food Program.

The game, FreeRice, tests the vocabulary of participants. For each click on a correct answer, the website donates money to buy 10 grains of rice.

Companies advertising on the website provide the money to the WFP to buy and distribute the rice.

FreeRice went online in early October and has now raised 1 billion grains of rice, enough rice to feed 50,000 people for one day.

FreeRice is the invention of US online fundraising pioneer John Breen.

TrendWatching.com

Trendwatching is kind of an interesting concept, and of course essential to marketing and advertising.

There's a website that I've been enjoying a lot, called trendwatching.com -- I get their emails, and there's always some good stuff in them (don't be fooled by the spoof last month where they talked about marketing to unborn babies!)

Check out the site (trendwatching.com) to learn about (sometimes hilarious but actually serious) trends such as:

5*STAR*LIVING

(AFTER) SPOILING DATE

BEING SPACES

BRAND SPACES

BRANDED BRANDS

COUNTER-GOOGLING

COUNTERVALS

CRIBTIMONIALS

CROWD CLOUT

CURATED CONSUMPTION

CUSTOMER-MADE

DAILY LUBRICANTS

DIASPORA MANAGEMENT

DIGITAL EMBRACE

DORMANDISE

EARLY BIRDING

EASY-ASIA

EXCUSUMPTION

FEEDER BUSINESSES

FEUDLESS FAMILIES

FLORIDASATION

GARAGE INFLUENTIALS

GENERATION C

GENERATION C(ASH)

GLOBAL GARAGE SALES

GRAND BOUTIQUE

GRAVANITY

HOME TROTTING

HYGIENIA

HYPERTASKING

IMMI-MERCE

INFOLUST

INNOVATION OVERLOAD

INSPERIENCE

IT-ISM

JINGLE CASTING

LIFE CACHING

MASS CLASS

MASSCLUSIVITY

MASTERS OF THE YOUNIVERSE

MATURED GOODS

MATURIALISM

MINIPRENEURS

NATIONS*LITE*

NETHOODS

NO-FRILLS CHIC

NON-CYCLICAL RICH

NOUVEAU NICHE

OBC

OLDBIES

ONLINE OXYGEN

PLANNED SPONTANEITY

POP-UP RETAIL

PROSPERITY DENIAL

PULSE PUBLICATIONS

READY-TO-KNOW

RECONSTRUCTURING

RESORT REBIRTH

SACHET MARKETING

SECOND .COMING

SEE-HEAR-BUY

SNOBMODDITIES

STARBUCKING

STATUS SKILLS

STILL MADE HERE

SWARM SIGHTINGS

SYMPVERTISING

THRILLBOARDS

TRANSUMERISM

TRANSPARENCY TYRANNY

TRANSUMERS

TRYSUMERS

TRYVERTISING

TWINSUMER

UBER PREMIUM

VIRTUAL ANTHROPOLOGY

YOUNIVERSAL BRANDING

Hilariously clever Flash E-Commerce site -- a must-see

Everything goes haywire, the products start interacting with each other.

Check it out >

http://producten.hema.nl/

Interactive Jitter Video Installation for Chanel

I finally uploaded some photos for an installation for which I did the Interaction Design and Jitter programming -- it was a video installation in Chanel's NY storefront to publicize the release of their new perfume (promoted by Kiera Knightly) in September 2007.


We had a large projection screen and bright projector, and the challenge was really to get the interference from the street outside and the reflections on the glass not to trigger the animations. It was not easy to get the infrared cameras to see only the people in front of the projection.

With Vilamedia and Scharff Weisberg doing the projection and camera equipment setup, and myself doing interaction design and programming and Diego Bauducco also doing programming.

DUDE! Watch this!

The lovely and talented Clay Weiner sent me his most recent work - A Bud Lite commercial that debuted yesterday and already has over a million views. Check it out.

Bionic Assessment Test

This is really really cool -- press SKIP immediately to skip the intro, it's very loud.

The tests are really creative and challenging-- make sure you listen to and read the instructions carefully!

obviously, it's an ad for the show-- but it's very clever and engaging.

check it out: http://bat-test.com/

"Hook up" with TiVo

I love personal ads-- back in the day, my roommate and I used to read them in the Village Voice and put the funny ones on our fridge. Anyway, this PR campaign is pretty clever--they're inviting people to get creative and write their own personal ad, kind of like a "desperately seeking TiVo"--and it really works because they're tying in a TV show ("The Bachelor"), personal ads, and TiVo into this kind of playful game. (TiVo's whole look is kind of playful too)

I recently did some user research for another DVR maker and everyone we talked to spoke about their TiVo as if they really loved it...and they seem to be capitalizing on that emotional relationship people have with their TiVos with this here campaign.

The idea is that you write a tongue-in-cheek personal ad and you could win a TiVo. "All day I dream of coming home from work at night to relax and unwind in front of the TV. But I'm tired of spending my nights with a no-good DVR..."

There are 2 rounds of submissions to the competition:

1. write a personal ad
2. if you get picked, send a video personal

it's pretty funny to read what other people have submitted so far.

http://www.hookupwithtivo.com/

The final round is judged by the dude from the Bachelor, Chris Harrison. Not that I know who that is. I don't have a TV!

Rayman Raving Rabbids -- promo videos

I am working on promoting a game right now and remembered these funny videos. I thought I would share...

Short code on your T-shirt

People use their cell phones to text a number on your t-shirt and get whatever message you set for them--

You just design and order the shirt online and set the message, then later you can send people more info if they text you.

http://reactee.com/

i love this as it relates to one of my grad school projects...

TRYSUMERS - interesting Trend Watching report

http://www.trendwatching.com/briefing/

They mention GPS devices, Nike Trial vans, "Tryvertising", the use of samples to create a "brand connection". They even have some good stats about the Apple store. Interesting stuff to think about. Advertisers are getting cleverer and sneakier, but I find it fascinating how they really manage to work with peoples' psychology.

Their report has a ton of examples and photos, so it's better to read it on their site, but here's a sample of the text:

- Living in a world of abundance means there’s loads to try out, and it doesn’t hurt that millions of members of GENERATION C(ONTENT) are adding to the pile of unique, original niche content and products. Niche of course being the new mass, as consumer societies are now about standing out, not conformity. Which in turn means an encouragement to explore one’s often broader-than-assumed taste, aided by recommendations from TWINSUMER sites like thisnext.com.

- As saturated, experienced consumers can draw on plenty of past experiences, and know that many more experiences will follow, it's easier to cope with possible disappointment stemming from trying out the unknown. For example, a weekend spoilt by bad weather is more acceptable knowing another three or four are planned for the rest of the year.