The UK bookseller Waterstones [sic] has been doing some odd things lately. Last week, much to the horror of grammarians, the store announced it was dropping its apostrophe. This is not the first instance of the company’s strange behaviour though. Just before Christmas I spotted one of its posters, shown on the left. So, what’s […]
Modern marketing seems so different from older forms, doesn’t it? With things like social media and content marketing, it’s easy to believe that advertising has changed fundamentally. But has it really? On the left is something interesting I stumbled across the other day. You can enlarge it by clicking here. It looks like an old […]
Some say traditional advertising is dead. Or dying pretty quickly. They say we’re living in a post-advertising age, where the “interruptive” ad no longer works. I say nonsense. Below are examples of companies using old media to grow their digital-age brands. Before jumping ahead though, allow me to indulge in a little rant. Not so […]
Nine brilliant campaigns/ideas from 2010 that I wish I’d done Below is a collection of some of my favourite ads and marketing ideas, done by others, from the past 12 months. I’d have liked to include some long copy and a piece of offline DM, but I couldn’t recall any examples that had really wowed […]
What advertiser in their right mind would knock their own product? Volkswagen, that’s who. The ad on the left is over 40 years old, yet it’s far more daring than most of the ads you see today. Customers expect advertisers to boast about their products, not to say something negative, as this ad does. When […]
I saw an extraordinary guy walking through Golden Square the other evening. He had a style all his own. A lean, wiry chap of at least 60 years, and white haired, he wore an incredibly loud sky-blue, close-cut suit. He also had on white shoes, a bright tie and a red wool ear warmer, which […]
Help me. I don’t know what to make of the video above. Campaign magazine chose it as their ad of the week. Is it an ad? Or is it a music video with product placement? And is it any good? Supposedly, it’s for Converse shoes. But the sell is so soft, the idea so recessive, […]
Phew! What a busy few weeks I’ve had. I’ve been typing my way out from under a mountain of briefs. The work is what marketing people call CRM. And what we copywriters call letter writing. The direct marketing specialists say that such work involves skills distinct from those of advertising. And I agree, up to […]
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