A New Take on Boring Butter Ads

A dance-off for butter? You gotta love it. I saw this delightfully silly, kitchy, entertaining spot last night and actually remembered the next day to look for it on youtube. Proof of its stickiness. I suspect the brief had something in there about saliency and breakthrough to overcome a horribly boring category.

As the choreographer for the music production said, "It's embedded in my head and I just can't get it out." The music director said using music like "Turn the Beat Around" harkens back to the days when popular music could drive story in a TV spot.
This is one of those instances when I wish I was the fly in the room when the agency presented the storyboard. It appears the idea was sparked by the reality dance craze we now see on TV.

I have to admit, I found the previous campaign, "The Buttertons," way to cheesy and unappealing. Bravo Unilever brand management for moving forward with the campaign!

Was the "get" always Megan Mullaly? She certainly would have high appeal and awareness among the "middle age female target" the brand seems to be going after. But the mainstream would know her more for her TV work and less for her Broadway and cabaret gigs. I remember seeing Megan at the Rose Room in the Time Warner Center in NYC, singing a duet with the grand dame of Broadway, Elaine Strich. It was magical. Great choice agency on your talent!

Coke's New Focus: Customer-Centricity

Today, AdAge writes about Coke's major marketing event where they lay out their vision for the next 10 years to analysts. Yep--they're going to 2020. Coke says they are reinvigorating their strategies by putting the consumer first--essential to making a connection.

"Our view on consumer connection now has to include not only earned media and PR but all the way into the store and shelf," said Wendy Clark, SVP of integrated marketing. "One hundred forty million people watch the top 10 TV shows in the U.S. And there are 140 million people that go into Walmart stores each week. Is Walmart a media channel? Yes. You have to include in-store activation in your connections thinking to create value for them and build brands."

AdAge reports, "Coke pulled out all the stops at the meeting, its first such confab since 1998. There was a dinner designed by Linton Hopkins, named one of 2009's best new chefs by Food & Wine, using Coca-Cola as a key ingredient." (that's an old move, but I guess it still works).

Speaking of pulling out all the stops--Ms.Clark wore a Coke t-shirt to present. What a cool signal to the analysts... wearing your passion.

New Spoof on Kraft's Miracle Whip Campaign

Colbert sends-up Kraft's Miracle Whip campaign. Snooping on the web, it appears this was a "paid-for" spoof. But how succesful could it be when the code to go viral won't work (I can't embed it!) When I've seen the MW ads on TV, I always thought "Bravo McGarry Bowen for taking the unexpected route to mayo advertising." But when ads get spoofed by comedians, it can be dangerous--even when it's pay-to-play. Remember all the Letterman spoofs on the old Beatrice campaign from the 1980s? I never tell anyone I was involved from a very junior distance on that one.

Anyway, I wondered if Colbert's staff writer, Laura Krafft, had anything to do with writing the send-up. Laura & I worked at Grant Jacoby way back in the late '80s. She left GJ to go on to Second City, Colbert and Emmy awards. Alas, Laura could not have written the segment. She left Colbert last year and is acting and freelance writing. (she was wearing funky glasses before Tina Fey!)

The new "word of the year"

By now, you may have read that the Oxford Dictionary has selected "unfriend" as the word of the year. The choice was made for it's "lex potential," and cultural currency. But a google image search on the word reveals--nada--nothing pops up! You're probably wondering, "what does this old pix of two old guys have to do with the word of the year?" Read on...

Christine Lindberg, Senior Lexicographer for Oxford said unfriend makes "an interesting choice for Word of the Year. Most “un-” prefixed words are adjectives (unacceptable, unpleasant), and there are certainly some familiar “un-” verbs (uncap, unpack), but “unfriend” is different from the norm. It assumes a verb sense of “friend” that is really not used (at least not since maybe the 17th century!).” There is now a debate raging among social networks whether the word "defriend" may have been the better choice.

For me, there is a runner-up word that I would have preferred to see win: deleb. As in dead celebs. Something that captured our culture voraciously this past summer with so many high profile passings.

Forbes just composed a list of the highest earning delebs over the past 12 months. If you search the word or image for "deleb," very little currently pops up. This is a word I think will continue to seed itself into culture. I would have never guessed in a gazillion years that two Broadway guys would rank #2 on the high rollers deleb list recently compiled by Forbes. As the iconic Broadway composers in the pix, Rodgers & Hammerstein, would sing, "Impossible. Things are happening everyday."

Yves Saint Laurent – $350 million
Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein – $235 million (combined)
Michael Jackson – $90m
Elvis Presley – $55m
J.R.R. Tolkien – $50m
Charles Schulz – $35m
John Lennon – $15m
Dr Seuss (Theodor Geisel) – $15m
Albert Einstein – $10m
Michael Crichton – $9m
Jimi Hendrix – $8m
Aaron Spelling – $8m
Andy Warhol – $6m

Re-Branding America:an Irishman's Perspective

"We will support the Millennium Development Goals, and approach next year’s summit with a global plan to make them a reality. And we will set our sights on the eradication of extreme poverty in our time.”

These are words that President Obama spoke at the United Nations last month. They inspired Bono to write an op-ed in last Saturday's NYTimes:

"these 36 words are why I believe Mr. Obama could well be a force for peace and prosperity — if the words signal action. "

Bono's insight into our culture is interesting as he cites our fatigue and malaise with the recession and wars. Interesting, the opinion that American can no longer afford to "pay" for the rest of the world, and"our bucks stop here" was voiced by Alec Baldwin on the Bill Mahr show last Friday. I'm amazed how artists are often first to give voice to a growing sentiment. Sometimes, their thoughts and art seem prescient.

Bono goes on to write that America needs to be rebranded, and that he believes Obama and the people who he has surrounded himself are trying to do just that.

"But an America that’s tired of being the world’s policeman, and is too pinched to be the world’s philanthropist, could still be the world’s partner. And you can’t do that without being, well, loved. Here come the letters to the editor, but let me just say it: Americans are like singers — we just a little bit, kind of like to be loved. The British want to be admired; the Russians, feared; the French, envied. (The Irish, we just want to be listened to.) But the idea of America, from the very start, was supposed to be contagious enough to sweep up and enthrall the world. And it is. The world wants to believe in America again because the world needs to believe in America again. We need your ideas — your idea — at a time when the rest of the world is running out of them."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/18/opinion/18bono

The New Century: The One That Crept Up on Us

I just discovered the musings of David Kamp of Vanity Fair and his provocative article, "The Summer of Death." Kamp asks why we became so involved in the passings of so many iconic figures this past summer. From Ted Kennedy and Walter Cronkite to Michael and Farrah, these were deaths that resonated beyond the mere People magazine cover. Kamp believes they were culturally signficant living links to past glories. The glories of the 20th century. Their passings are a wake-up call for us that time has moved on, as these icons pass from collective memory to wikis to be searched decades later. One of my memorable moments of this past summer is the shock I saw on a client's face when he learned John Hughes death was a leading blog post. He hadn't heard Hughes had died, until I told the story as part of evidence of the trend toward nostalgia. (the client was out of the country when Hughes died).

Kamp raises a very good question: how did it get to be the end of the decade so fast?I'm startled when my favorite radio station has a Saturday morning flashback from 1995. Or seeing a picture of the New Years Eve party I threw in 1999. At first blink, that doesn't seem all that long ago...

Kamp goes on to say the days of big, "shared" cultural moments that united us as a culture are over. He goes on to write that the uncertainties of living in the year 2009 creates the feeling in us all that this new century is on shaky footing. Gore Vidal also riffed and raged about in this territory this past week as well. Vidal says this is the end of the American Century. And when the new Empire, China calls in their loans--that seals the deal. But Vidal thinks we'll be better country, a better people when that day transpires.

Gee. Conjures up wistful feelings and the lyrics of "Twentieth Century Boy." Or to come full circle, how 'bout "Going to the Chapel." The lady in the pix above singing into the mic was Ellie Greenwich, famous songwriter from the bygone Brill Building era of pop hits.

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2009/10/summer-of-death-200910

"Nowism": trend of the times

Trendwatching.com has identified a new mega trend, "Nowism." The desire to have it "now," has always been a key need, but technology makes it possible to have it real-time. People are embracing the now as never before. The lust to collect experiences and share them immediately is one manifestation of the trend at work (hello Facebook. hello my blog)

Mega Trend Defined:
NOWISM “Consumers’ ingrained lust for instant gratification is being satisfied by a host of novel, important (offline and online) real-time products, services and experiences.

Urban Dictionary takes a slight different approach to the phenomenon:
"The present, what you are feeling at this exact moment. A life style as well as outlook on life You are reading this right now. This is Nowism. What you do after this is in the future. This is now."

And the CEO of Radar Networks, Nova Spivack (who also created one of the very first Internet portals), blogged about Nowism this past May.

"I think these are just the beginnings of this movement -- a movement towards a subtle but major shift in the orientation of our civilization's collective attention. This is a shift towards the now, in every dimension of our lives. Our personal lives, professional lives, in business, in government, in technology, and even in religion and spirituality.I have a hypothesis that this philosophy -- this worldview that the "now" is more important than the past or the future, may come to characterize this new century we are embarking on."

Some pretty profound thinking by folk of superior intellect. Gee, that was the motivation for me starting this blog one year ago. I was living the trend, and didn't even k=now it!


http://novaspivack.typepad.com/nova_spivacks_weblog/2009/05/nowism-a-theme-for-the-new-era.html

138 Years Ago Tonight: A New Theory on The Great Chicago Fire

The newest theory on what caused the Great Chicago Fire to start at 9:40 pm on Sunday, October 8th is a meteor shower. Eyewitnesses in the Midwest saw balls of fire falling from the sky that night. A scientist believes a meteor broke up over the vicinity of Lake Michigan, creating the conflagration in Chicago, Peshtigo WI, Port Huron MI and Champagne IL. The Peshtigo fire caused more deaths than any other fire in US history! For a major city, Chicago's casualties (about 200-300) were small in comparison. I like amaze my friends with the ironic fact that the Chicago Firemen Academy is built on the site of the source of the fire, which is the actual address of Mrs. O'Leary's barn (where the meteor fragments hit). One of only five buildings in Chicago to survive the fire is St. Michael's in Old Town (pix). I can see clock tower from my dining room window, which is always a soothing sight.

In those days, this was a big global story. Queen Victoria was moved and donated books to build a new library. IThe spirit of the "city that works," our motto, was clearly exemplified by old man Potter Palmer, the richest man in town. His new hotel that had been opened for a mere 13 days, the Palmer House, burned that night. He quickly rebuilt a new Palmer House, shifting Chicago's commerce section from the old Lake Street district to that great street, "State Street."

Somehow I think the Chicago business community will have the same sprited rebound after the disappointment of losing the Olympic bid.

A New Way to Map the Experience

Something we talk about in meetings all the time--mapping the consumer experience. Lego has developed a simple way to do just that.

The New Way to Exhibit: When Yoko Calls, Answer

This weekend, I saw "Lennon. The New York Years" at the Rock'n Roll Hall of Fame annex in Soho. This engaging, moving and intimate exhibit was created by Yoko, and is one of the most forward-thinking interactive museum experiences I've seen. Yoko's aesthetic imbues the exhibit. Her photo of John's bloody spectacles, shot from their bedroom window high above Central Park, is a chilling reminder of the humanity behind that horrible night. A brown-paper grocery bag containing John's effects, delivered to Yoko weeks after his murder, makes an unforgettable statement about the senselessness of handgun violence. As she wrote in the exhibit, John Lennon was the king of the world, yet he returned to her in this brown paper bag.

As you exit the exhibit, there is a phone with a posting that says if it rings, answer it, it REALLY is Yoko. My friend Sue kept going back and forth past the phone, willing it to ring for her, but it never did. When my friend Nancy passed by the phone, the electronic sensor in her headset began to ring. Nancy then heard a voice that saying, "Allo. Allo, this is Yoko." Nancy thought it was a recording, and didn't respond. We were astonished that she had the opportunity to talk to Yoko, but didn't believe it was real. A missed opportunity (but a great story!)

If you get a chance to see this exhibit in NYC--it's phenomenal. Thank you Yoko for sharing and keeping the things that matter to you and John alive for us to think about and share with others.

New Competition for the Bagel and Pizza

Here's a new concept that is positioning itself as competition to the bagel, but perhaps it's closest competitor is the pizza and the donut. Yesterday in Manhattan, we noticed 5th Ave was shut down to a stream of people decked out in red and white with Polska flags. It duped us. We knew it wasn't Casmir Pulaski Day, or Polish Constitution Day (which falls on my birthday). October is officially Polish American month (who knew?!?)

In my world, Kolache RULE! These fruity babies look a little on the doughy-side, more like the coffee cake my friends call Pizza Kolache, and less like the delicate pastries Grandma Belanski made (I inherited her recipe and secret). But the brilliant twist on this old-world pastry is the savory versions concocted by these CIA-trained chef/proprietors. They're onto something brilliant and they should seriously think about coming to Chi-town, which boasts the largest population of Pole decedents outside Poland.

Look for Kolache Mama just outside Roosevelt Hotel: 45 E 45th St. NYC

One Year Later: The New is Now Anniversary

It was one year ago that I started this blog. Of course, the question is, "what have I learned from the experience?" The answer: it's hard to blog frequently. In fact, nearly impossible if you're working hard and trying to get some z's. I guess that's why some of the bloggers that inspired me most to blog (Russell Davies, planner extrodinaire), have dropped frequent blogging from their lives. The pull of other digital platforms, Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, have all taken hold of me in the past year too, making it harder to find time to write. I'm a walking example of Social media fragmentation at its finest!

When I started writing last October 1st, the world was much more dark and uncertain. The market was tailspinning. The election was a month away. The ad industry was painfully morphing into something--well, does anyone really have a fix on that even today? My inspiration was the tale of Gatsby and the green light at the end of the dock. It was my forward vision, my talisman for a hopeful future.

Is it karmic that I happen to be on my way to Gatsby's NY stomping grounds today? I'd like to think so.

Will this blog continue? Yes! But I know I won't be posting everyday. The secret is that I have another blog that's "just for me." Where I throw up pix and video that are interesting, just for laughs, that I want to archive for the future. If you're interested, check that one out on www.bwaygal.blogspot.com.

A Shot of Joie de Vivre: just what we need

Joy and happiness. We yearn to escape the dark cloud of uncertainty of recession. We strive to fill the void caused by our helplessness with problems facing society. Trendists have been writing about how brands can connect with this emotional territory for several years, but the recession has heightened the need. I suspect the folks at Grand Marnier figured this was fertile territory. These classic French images are the centerpiece of their new digital campaign and special promo package. Love the feeling--Vive La Vie.


Brandweek: Why Grand Marnier Is Pouring More Energy Into Digital Ads, 9/21/09

The Ukulele--just what we need in these times, so says the richest man in the world

The idea of charity concerts isn't new, but 2 guys from Brooklyn have put an indy twist to the culture of Performance Art + Charity. Their concept is Performance Philanthropy. They held a concert for charity, and all the songs were Beatles covers performed in ukulele. The cash they raised was put in a brown paper sack and delivered to the world's richest man. Warren Buffet said he will use the money to buy ukuleles for girls in Omaha. If you're wondering how they got to Mr. Buffet, one of Warren's sons was involved in the project and sings a Beatles cover in this video (FYI...he's a philanthropist too).

The execution of this causal idea is so lighthearted and authentic, so atypical to what we typically see in social marketing. After watching the video, I just get a feeling of happiness. Context research, who just published their latest on what Americans want to feel in these recessionary times, say consumers are searching for happiness and joy. As we've been hearing this past year from consumers, they want to get back-to-basics and celebrate the simple things.

I feel inspired to pick-up the ukulele. I've been thinking about it for sometime, since it's a favorite of one of my fav rockers, Mr. Todd Rundgren. Who knew? Todd and Warren would have something in common!


http://forthebenefitofmrbuffet.blogspot.com/

Knowing the source.... of your food

This new initiative from the government is getting the buzz in food circles this week. I worked in this campaign territory way back at the turn of the century (2000). It's a trend that just keeps growing!

If you've been reading my blog posts over the past year, you'll see this is one of my favorite movements in food culture. Now, what will I buy at the Farmer's Market tomorrow morning?

Remembering: the New Jerusalem

Today, Carly Simon and her children Ben and Sally paid tribute to the memory of the World Trade Center and the victims of 9-11 by singing "Let the River Run." How appropriate. Carly wrote the song (and won an Oscar) for "Working Girl." It's one of my fav movies, and has become more poignant for me as with the scenes of Melanie Griffith crossing the river (Jordan) into the area of the Towers--the new Jerusalem. At the end of the movie, we pull-out from an office window that looks like it's shot from the WTC.

Yesterday, I was looking at "Trend Blend 2009+" map of time and tide. The trendists cited the "fall of US Empire" as a trend. It sent shivers down my spine as I read that. Did the crack start with 9-11-01 and the egg finally break with the fall of Lehman on 9-10-08? Can Humpty Dumpty put us back together again? Sigh.

New Thoughts On Taste: Part II

Love this new social marketing platform from the Wisconsin Cheese Council. Food porn at its finest. If you get the chance, tune in and listen to the sensual audio copy and the clever tweet copy. Manly yes, but I like it too!

Tweets to share:
When was the last time you truly worked out your jaw muscles?
So you think you're a carnivore, huh?
http://www.cheeseandburger.com/bohemian

New Thoughts on Planning

If things had been going better in the ad industry, the annual Planner's Conference would have happened this week in San Francisco. The 4A's is trying to make-up for the cancellation with their "Summer of Planning" series. For $35, I could attend a webinar with a guy I worked with 10 years ago (sorry Dr. Cohen--psychologics is interesting, but not new). I wondered, where is the new thinking about planning? So I googled on over to Slideshare, and lo and behold found a presentation Gareth Kay posted last year. Gareth, considered a leading light in the biz, made news last week as he jumps from Modernista to Goodby.

At Element 79, our thinking, our approach is all about getting to an idea that incites interaction. I guess I shouldn't be surprised--but I am--to see Gareth sharing a similar POV. In a nutshell, Gareth writes:

1. Brands need to have a point-of-view on the world…not a position in a category
2. Brands need a social mission--it drives brand energy (Landor’s BAV model states brands with energy fare better financially)
3. Brands need a social idea (vs. an unsocial idea)
4. A distributed identity is about coherency… not consistency
5. Planners should understand what people are interested in and work backwards
6. Planners need to plan for a different outcome (it’s not about awareness, it’s about interaction)
7. We're in the business of creating ideas that solve business problems in a culturally positive way

Gareth's thoughts are inspiring reminders of where we're going. I wish I had said or thought about some of these things first (although I was the first kid on my block to get excited about Landor's model of brand energy).

Why are ideas so important? Ideas drive our economy. In fact, two-thirds of our country’s GDP is driven by ideas.* A nifty soundbite for the next presentation.


*Cited by John Gerzema, author of the Brand Bubble and CIO of Y&R, based on research conducted by Brand Finance.

Getting Sensual: New thoughts on taste

One of the biggest challenges I've faced in food advertising has been strategizing about "taste." How to portray the benefits of taste while avoiding the cliches. (one of my pet peeves is putting "TASTE" in the headline). Lately, I've been seeing ads that are really doing the whole taste thing in very exciting ways. Now I know you're thinking--mayo ads--exciting? Well I think Hellmans has done something exciting.

The idea of "double whipped" is not only differentiating food news, but supports new thinking from researchers about the impact of sensory stimulus into ad copy. Of course we all know that food ads do impact taste perceptions. However, the article from Journal of Consumer Research reveals ads that use multiple sensory stimulus (language, visuals, sounds)heighten taste perceptions. Like the whisk with the flowery dollop of mayo. Or the icy, breezy motion and sound we "hear and feel" in the ad for 5 gum. Nice, multi-sensory touches!


Jrnl of Consumer Research, June 2009: The Effects of Ad Copy on Sensory Thoughts and Perceived Taste

Chicago 3rd Largest Twitter Location

It must be the "O" effect. A report issued on the State of the Twittersphere places Chicago as the 3rd most popular Twitter location ins the world (LA nad London rank higher).

Why would Chicago be placing so high? Well the report does say English speaking cities twitter more. But I think it must also be due to Obama and Oprah, as well as other local media figures like Richard Roeper and Jerry Taft (ABC local weatherman) who started using Twitter earlier this year. Interestingly, David Armano, formerly of Critical Mass here in Cgo, is one of the top 25 Twitterati in Chicago (he sure tweets a lot!).

Letterman Asks Spacey About "The Twitter"

Letterman's show: 3.7 million viewers of late. Tweeters following Kevin Spacey: 800,000 (including moi). Kevin trying to explain Twitter to Dave... Prioeless.

While Dave scoffs that The Twitter is a waste of time, the number of people following Kevin happens to equal 22% of Dave's nightly audience. 800,000 also happens to be the number of viewers separating Dave's ratings from Conan (now #2 in ratings for late night).

We Knew Where We Were Going Back Then

9:32 a.m. EDT July 16, 1969. Apollo 11 takes off for the moon.

I was just a little kid, but I knew where our country was going. We were going to the moon. It was just that simple. We knew it was fraught with danger. But we were going for it.

If we asked a kid today where the country was going today, what would they say? Today's kids are focused on the earth and the environment, they're a pretty patriotic bunch, but I don't know what they think about space exploration. My young friend Sam joined the Space Club at his highschool, but he may be unique in his interests (even though he's not facile with science). There's been plenty of recent studies that about the optimism of teens and twentysomethings, but nothing I can find about what kids/tweens are thinking as it relates to the future of the country. Could make a great conversation at the dinner table!

A side note, the Tribune Building's windows feature the newspapers from the days Apollo 11 and a piece of "moon rock." Still amazing to gaze at a piece of the moon!

Moms are Cheeky--When It Come to Little Butt Cheeks

I've never quite "separated." That's a key psychological stage of mom & child development, and that's how you might describe me as it relates to the new mom target market. I loved working in the new mom market for so many years. So when I see a new campaigns targeting new moms--I get curious. Huggies new multi-platform campaign has caught my attention. It's a wonderful example of interactivity and energy. The cheeky tone of the campaign is a refreshing departure from much of new mom advertising.

It's always amazed me how new moms are such a positive, energized group. When they are in their Mom-centricity mindset, they have a real appreciation for telling it like it is, yet few marketers have taken a playful approach in their communications. When asked to describe life with toddler, one of the biggest refrains I've heard is, "Hilarious." Playfulness is a top 10 trend for 2009 (Mintel), yet June Cleaver, sappy stereotypes continue to abound.

Kudos to Huggies on taking this very cheeky, playful campaign to new moms. It's hilarious!

Generation O: Multiculturism As A New American Value

Several posts ago, I talked about Levi's new "Go Forth" campaign. I was intrigued with the strategy of equating the values of "pioneer" to the values shared by the Millennial target, and the "find" of Walt Whitman's one-known voice recording reciting his poem "America." That sparked a discussion with my colleague Neal, who was inspired to blog about our core American values (perfect for a July 4th blog on collective-thinking.com). Neal dug up a 1984 paper written by L Robert Kohls called “The Values Americans Live By." Neal and I speculated about how these values have morphed in the past 25 years, and questioned if there was anything new to add to the core list.

Guess the answer is "multiculturism." Evolving from the values of Freedom and Fairness. Everyone knows Millennials are the most multicultural generation in our history. This may be the soft underbelly of the new Levi's work. Some pundits are faulting the new campaign for ignoring this value.

From PSFK's blog: Levi’s and its campaign don’t connect with the great things that are happening in this country, the radiant mix of cultures evolving within it nor the reality of its past. Probably the most appalling ad in the campaign is the one where a young girl runs through a meadow by the words “This Country Was Not Built By Men In Suits”. Now, some of us here (me) didn’t spend a lot of time studying US history but I know that the people who built this country couldn’t even run freely in the fields. Agency Spy spotted graffiti daubed on the ad in New York’s subway which spells out who a little more clearly: “By Slaves”.

Christine Huang, formerly of PSKF, blogs:
I saw one of these ads in NYC’s Spring Street 6 subway station. The copy read, “This country was not built by men in suits” - which someone added to in matching handwritten scrawl: “IT WAS BUILT BY SLAVES”. Up to that point, I hadn’t been able to put my finger on what it was about the campaign that made me feel so uneasy. But with that bit of graffiti, it all came together. Levis (or rather W+K) is glorifying these centuries old American ideals - Optimism! Egoism! Manifest Destiny! - while making paltry gestures towards the reality of American history and what America is today. Besides the few ethnic actors in the video, their print campaign is disappointingly monochromatic and seems almost apologetically alienating. It would have been really amazing to see Levis pay homage to the symbols of true individuality from our past - the freedom riders, abolitionists, suffragists, veterans.”The Frontier” is sexy and all, but how about some real American heroes?

Going Tribal--circa 1969

This coming August marks the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. The world of pop culture has been inundated with tchotchkes and fashions that pay homage to the times. Macy's has a Summer of Love Fashion section, full of fringed purses and peace scarves. Old Navy's annual 4th of July tshirt was a peace-sign flag. Target has a whole paper party and candle set themed to "Three Days of Peace, Love and Music." The trend pundits have been writing about a return nostalgia in marketing and advertising, as we seek to reconnect with comfort and thoughts of a simpler time. This peace cake just showed up on my Facebook feed--a "sign" of the nostalgia for those days.

I am anxiosuly anticipating Ang Lee's latest movie, "Taking Woodstock." When asked about the biggest challenge making the movie, Lee said, “The extras... policing them with their attitudes and even their pubic hair.” Lee set up “hippie camp” to teach the background tribes in the finer points of non-grooming. According to the producer, "Finding skinny extras who who didn’t have gym sculpted bodies was especially difficult. When you think about it, a generation of people who weren’t fat, who weren’t staring at themselves in the mirror all the time, and not shaving everything off down there—it captures the difference of 40 years right there.”

I just bought an original LP recording of the Broadway musical, Hair, marketed as "The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical." "Under the sponsorship of Michael Butler, a resourceful and adventurous Chicago," the liner notes describe Butler, who I remember from childhood as a local bon vivant and scion of a family that owned most of the land that eventually became Oak Brook. Described as "a pagan ritual, a theatrical be-in, a happening and a scandal," the album lists Diane Keaton as one of the original cast members. Hair launched other famous careers, including Meat Loaf and David Carradine, who's daughter Martha Plimpton was conceived during the show.

Interested in a blast of tribal from the past? The full cast of the Broadway revival of Hair will be on the Tonight Show with Conan tonite. Or, if you're in the vicinity of the Boulevard at Element 79, you may be hearing "Aquarius," or "What a Piece of Work Is Man" wafting down the hallways.


source for Ang Lee interview: Brian D. Johnson, Unscreened, May 17, 2009

A Very Merry Jean Shepard 4th of July

I've been ruminating about the Fourth of July and why we love this holiday. Freedom, history, pageantry, ritual are the expected thoughts about the holiday. But I wonder if the real resonance about the holiday is the very celebration of our American Ordinariness. There's a lot of hoak mixed with the ordinary for this holiday--the plethora of Kraft recipes made with Cool Whip, Miracle Whip, Philly Cream Cheese (the list is just endless!) And let's not forget the annual special $5 t-shirt from Gap (although I traded-up to the $10 American Flag/Peace Symbol version this year).

Yes. In this year of great economic stress, we return to our backyards, beaches, front porches and parking lots to come together to celebrate and revel in our very American ordinariness. Garrison Keiler has talked about our love of American stories that profile the very ordinariness of our lives. I think Jean Shepherd may have captured this best in PBS' dramatization of his short story, "The Great American Fourth of July and Other Great Disasters." It's not available on DVD (I have a bootleg), but someone posted a nice clip on YouTube. You may recognize a very young Matt Dillon as the protagonist, Ralphie, and his father played by James Broderick (the real-life father of Mathew Broderick).

Happy Fourth!

Generation O: Millennials as Pioneer

Levi's is breaking its newest campaign from it's new agency W&K on July 4th. The insight for the campaign links the values of Generation "O," (the progressive Millennials who helped tip the youth vote for Obama) to the brand values: America's pioneering spirit and ingenuity. The black and white film imagery is epic (very Terrence Malik's Days of Heaven). Yet the element that's most interesting is the soundtrack. Someone over at W&K had the idea to use the only known recording of Walt Whitman reciting his poem, "America." How did they think of that? A google search on America values? A youtube search? An idea from a long-ago poetry class squirreled away for future use in an ad campaign? I'm curious!

From what I've seen online, there is no reference in the commercial about the poem, the author or the 1890s recording. If one just happened to see the spot in the movie theater this weekend, I wonder what people would think about the track? I found the track on Youtube, along with an animated Whitman spouting the verse (this is not from the campaign). Maybe the agency is thinking "disruption." Maybe they're thinking buzz value (I'm certainly talking about it, but I'm not the target.)

It will be interesting to hear what others have to say about the campaign. I can't think of any contemporary examples of advertising that has used classic poetry. I do suspect that poetry may be considered "cool" among twentysomethings (contemporary songwriters and rappers are considered poets). Poetry always has been cool--yet niche--among that age cohort.

Whitman certainly is an intriguing fellow--iconoclast, poet pioneer, journalist, politically-engaged, humanitarian, nurse, potentially closeted about his sexuality. Can't you just see Anthony Hopkins in the Whitman bio-pic?

A little known fact about me: I learned and recited one of Whitman's most famous poems when I was seven years old. O Captain, My Captain. I can still remember parts of it. I particularly loved reciting the dramatically ghoulish lines, "o hark, hark, hark o those bleeding drops of red, where on the deck my captain lies, fallen, cold and dead."

Scenius: Art Defined by the Social Experience

Brian Eno has been thinking in a new way about art and culture. Hired as curator of the Luminous Festival in Sydney, this month the city became a living canvas of music, light and performance. The Opera House sails were transformed with changing visual designs set to music. Eno said he has been experimenting with a new way cultural position for art, and has coined a new word, "Scenius," to describe it. Scenius is art tapping into the power of collective intelligence. Unlike the old "Genius" model of art created with via the special intelligence of one person, Eno is intrigued with the power of cumulative intelligence as a methold of creating a new idea or experience. (sound like crowdsourcing?)

Hasn't art always been about social engagement? Particularly public art? Or does art take on new powers when it can be shared collectively via social groups? Eno is known for creating the concept of "ambient music," yet I wonder if he has heard about the concept "ambient awareness?" Last September, NYTimes writer Clive Thompson wrote about social awareness as the feeling people have of engaging in a kind of omnipresent opinion... online. Thompson wrote:

"This is the paradox of ambient awareness. Each little update — each individual bit of social information — is insignificant on its own, even supremely mundane. But taken together, over time, the little snippets coalesce into a surprisingly sophisticated portrait of your friends’ and family members’ lives, like thousands of dots making a pointillist painting."

I think Clive and Brian have some thinking in common.

A New Twist on "Giving Back"

I've been reading and talking lately about the "Giving Back" trend. In these recessionary times, consumers still feel it's still important to give back, and want companies to step up and pick up the slack from folk who have cut back due to finances.

Michael Moore's new movie will take an interesting twist on "Giving Back." There's a hillarious line Moore delivers in this teaser, "I already gave at the bail out." According to its release on YouTube, Moore will "explore the root causes of the global economic meltdown and take a comical look at the corporate and political shenanigans that culminated in what Moore described as "the biggest robbery in the history of this country" - the massive transfer of U.S. taxpayer money to private financial institutions."

The lingering anger and mistrust of "fat cats" and big payouts have to be shaping the findings of a study conducted by Boston-based L.E.K. Consulting that was released today. Despite the optimism among some economists and media folk about the economy, U.S. consumers are actually more pessimistic currently than they were in October 2008. Makes sense to me. In depth consumer interviews conducted via ZMET's approach last October revealed the mindset was "greedy people got us here." Stories of greed kept spinning throughout the winter (remember the Wall St bonus blowback?) As Warren Buffet said in a CNBC interview this past March, the economy has changed the very culture of our nation.

Whatever Michael Moore does with the topic, it will surely be provactive.

Laugh Like a Monkey. News on the Origins of Laughter

Wired writes that new research has discovered that the root of human laughter originates with primates. The research mapped the relationship of how human infants and baby primates laughed in response to tickling, finding that there is continuity in what apes do, and in what humans do. Essentially, laughter has been evolving for 16 million years. "Laughter serves as an emotional contagion,” said biologist Jared Taglialatela. “It serves as a way of getting everyone on the same page." The article goes on to talk about laughter as a way we socially interact as humans. A fun little fact: humans are 30 times more likely to laugh when in the company of other humans.

It makes sense why so many ads go for the funny bone with Superbowl, the one time when homosapiens gather and watch together. Where do we go to laugh in the social media space? YouTube obviously has lots of stuff that makes us laugh. FaceBook and Twitter not so much. Hm mm. Lately,we tend to talk about social media as one thing, lump it all in one bucket. But as I noodle this more, where we socialize online really does gives us very different emotional payoffs.

Source: www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/06/evolutionlaughter/

Is Happiness the Road to Fulfillment?

What makes us happy? That's the topic in this month's Atlantic. A 72-year longitudinal study of Harvard graduates suggests that fulfillment doesn't necessarily come from happiness, but from the wisdom, resilience and tolerance to stress and life adversity. Dr. George Valiant has been studying these Harvard men, circa class of 1942, over time in terms of how fulfilled they were at the ends of their lives. The study reveals the men who struggled or had something to prove in life tended to be more successful. Relationships, and the connections we make in life, are essential to fulfillment.

According to Dr. George Valiant "It is social aptitude, not intellectual brilliance or parental social class, that leads to successful aging...the only thing that really matters in life are your relationships to other people.” The article goes on to present Valiant's beliefs that positive emotions —awe, love, compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, joy, hope, and trust (or faith)— are more powerful than negative emotions. Positive emotions make us healthier. However, they are more future-oriented and make us more vulnerable and open to risk of heartbreak and rejection. Negative emotions like fear and sadness, serve as psychological protections that insulate us from risk.

Some interesting anecdotes about the Grant study subjects: JFK and Ben Bradlee participated (JFK's file is sealed until 2040). How "normal" a man appeared to be early in life did not always predict a happy middle age or senior life. The lesson: always enjoy where are you now in your life.

www.theatlantic.com/doc/200906/happiness

Hope & Optimism Still Live: 2007-2037

Way back in 2007, AARP held a YouTube contest asking Millennials to answer the question, "Where do you see yourself when you are 50?" This video is a striking example of the hope and optimism of the Millennial generation. We certainly saw it at work in the Obama campaign. Of course, it was pre-Recession era. However, Yankelovich has identified Hope, Optimism and Responsibility as key values at work in consumer life today, as they track consumer's growing engagement in community, charity and civic life. A coming together for the common good.

A trend that inspires!

Word-of-Mouth Planning: Don't forget the Story

The Keller Fay group serves up smart questions when thinking about WOM. Story+Influencer+Tools+Impact. When brands don't have a story, they can always invent. Like Zuji, an online travel division of Travelocity.

Any thoughts on a pithy acronym? (SITI probably doesn't stick).

1. What’s your story – why should consumers talk about your product?
2. Who will tell it – who are your influencers?
3. How can you facilitate the conversation – what tools can you create?
4. What’s the impact – does WOM lead to positive outcomes for my brand?

Addendum: AdAge 6/5/09 issue interviews CMO of Mtn Dew, who believes having relationships with the right people are the keys to all brand plans today:

"We clearly have moved from impressions as the primary determinate of whether something's successful to answering the question, 'Are we building relationships with the right group of people?'" Mr. Cooper said. "Whether it's a blogger at these events, influencers talking about it, those are more indicators of whether we're reaching the right consumer."

Word-of-Mouth Hoopla

Social Marketing. Buzzworthy, both in the ad biz and culture (Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show is spoofing Twitter). It's easy to get caught up in the hoopla but forget that conversation is as old as man. At last month's ESOMAR conference in Europe, Ed Keller (Keller Fay Group)reminded attendees about the basic dynamics of WOM, and the impact traditional media plays.

WOM is mostly face to face
76% of marketing related conversations take place in person and another 16% on the phone.

WOM is mostly positive
65% of brand references by WOM are positive

Traditional media play a big role in driving WOM
48% of brand conversations refer to marketing and media
15% led by TV
11% led by internet
10% print
20% of all WOM include a reference to advertising

Not all consumers are created equal
Influencers account for 1/3 of all WOM(10% of the US pop are influencers)
Influencers are more actively engaged. They talk more than others, having 80% more conversations than average and are more likely to have more brand conversations
Just this month, the Harvard Business Review reports that 10% of Twitterers account for 90% of the Tweets.

Customer Social Value
Targeting a certain customer may be more profitable based on their effect on others, and this remains a key challenge for the analysis in new media environments

Consumers talk about a lot of different categories with food and dining ranking number one.

Interestingly, Isabelle LeRoy, a French media exec, said something that has been bantered about lately among my colleagues:
"Those who understand the full communications process are becoming a rare beasts---there are very few media practitioners these days who have had broad media experience in a full service agency environment. We are in danger of becoming an industry of narrow specialists."

In my mind, being labelled a "narrow specialist" could be almost as bad as the term "dinosaur."

New Role for the Humble Hot Dog

In an effort to improve relations with Iran, the Obama admin has advised US embassies to invite Iranian government officials to the annual 4th of July parties held at all our embassies. This is the first time since 1979 that Iranian officials will be invited. From news reports, Secretary of State Clinton has been concerned about the growing influence of Iran in countries that are growing in anti-American sentiment, particularly those in South America. Like Venezuela. When I visited that country three years ago, I was told that it was common belief that the Iranians were mining plutonium in the rainforests, under the protection of Chavez.

Can the hot dog be influential in reshaping opinion and policy? What about a "Hot Dog Day" sponsored by the American Embassies on the Fourth? I can see it now: Lil Oscar and national hero Ozzie Guillen, coming together to hand out free hot dogs in Venezuela. Just don't forget the mustard.

Breaking News: Karl Rove says we found WMDs!

That's one of the more interesting and inflammatory things I heard at last night's Speaker Series held in Chicago. Charlie Rose moderated as Rove and Carville volleyed. Rove didn't come off as diabolical as I expected (or wanted). A lot of discussion was spent talking about Iraq, much of the same old stuff I've been reading for the past six years. Of course Rove continued to justify Bush's rationale for Iraq. Rove said the efforts were productive--as we did turn up Weapons of Mass Destruction! In Libya--with Kadafi. Yeh, Momar was so freaked about our intentions to uncover Sadaam's WMDs, Kadafi voluntarily turned over his WMDs over to us. Carville questioned whether it was worth the trillions of dollars or the 130,000 troops expected to be stationed in Iraq until 2019?

Rove was "generous" to Obama at one point, saying he was happy Obama overturned his campaign promise to pull out of Iraq and keep 50,000 troops in Iraq. What transpired with our Iraq strategy reminds me of that old sign posted in my childhood days of the dimestore: "You touch it, you break it, you bought it, SOLD."

I was most interested to hear Rove, a master strategist speak. Last night gives us clues to where the Republicans are going to go strategically in the next election: Job Loss and Creation. Rove said Obama is behind on his promise to create 5 million new jobs and is keeping tabs on his website. As Carville said, "the guy has only been in office for 140 days!"

The thing that disappointed me was that there was little reference to Chicago, and our city's connection to politics and policy. After all, our new President: Chicago. Mary Matalin, associate to Rove and spouse of Carville: Chicago (a southeast-side girl, daughter of a steelworker, began her career at a beauty parlor!)

New Thoughts on Peonies: Chapter Two

After seeing the fabulous Cy Twombly Peony Paintings at the Art Institute, I "stumbled" into another artist's work now featured in the lobby of the Prudential building (next door to where I work). Just think--Peony Paintings flank Millenium Park on the south and north! Happenstance or the purposeful juxtaposition of a clever building manager? (or whoever decides to showcase art in building lobbies).

The artist of this painting is Anna Jaap, who simply had to have been inspired by Twombly.

New Thoughts on Peonies: Chapter One

Last week's big opening of the Modern Wing of the Art Institute of Chicago featured a mind-blowing exhibit of Cy Twombly's Peony Paintings. Perfect timing, as it is indeed peony season in Chicago. In one painting, Twombly riffed on the writings of Takarai Kikaku, who wrote a poem inspired by the 14-century samurai Kusunoki:
AH! The Peonies
For which
Kusonoki
Took off his Armour

Tyombly scratched the word and "Amour" into the wet paint and then squeezed in an "r" to create a delightful pun and tension between what we expect of a warrior (his armour) and what we don't expect (amour). The word "lyrical" came to my mind as a way to describe the power of this work, how the sounds of these words married to the visuals makes such a powerful use of visuals and language.

Seeing these Twombly works reminded me once again of the power of art to move, inspire, shake the soul with a moment of truth. It may sound like artsy BS, but it's truth. (I once witnessed a women with "super-Stendahl who fell to her knees when she saw the Vatican painting of St. John the Baptist beheaded, but that's another story).Who would have thought truth could be found in such lovely, deligtful and friendly flowers like peonies.

The Zeitgeist Now?

This wonderful video retrospective by Slate shows how GM tapped into the zeitgeist through the years of its advertising. GM's latest campaign shifted to what Yankelovich has defined as a key, defining value of our times: "Civic Renewal." Consumers coming together for the collective good. A new focus on community life and civic re-engagement. A time where we re-prioritize what's important. A new context for how we consume and give back.

The Millenial generation is on the cutting edge of this new value realignment. Yesterday, I read that most of the 2009 graduates who worked on the Harvard Crimson have decided not to enter journalism, a major shift from previous classes. These grads know journalism is in flux, Many are deciding to "wait it out," by enrolling in civic programs like Teach for America. For these kids, it's not all about altruism. For the very few who have decided to enter journalism, they are keeping it quiet among their peers because they don't want their peers to consider them "schmucks." And for those who are choosing community goodwill, they see this as a productive way to ride out the recession.
Source; Slatev.com, GM The Telltale Heart of America

Obama Logo: the Tell All Story

I love stories about ideas that get left behind and the ones that move forward. This is probably one of the greatest design successes of our time.David Axelrod the design team two weeks to develop the Obama campaign logo. Sol Sender, one of the designers, talks about what inspired the design and the surprise in creating something that then consumers began to mash-up.

The new design: Visualizing Data

In the age of powerpoint, I've found it challenging (ok--blasted difficult) to visualize info in new and interesting ways. I've bought the Edward Tufte books...too complex for my little brain. For inspiration, I try to tear out the graphic maps that appear in the Sunday NYTimes. Just last month, I felt I had a breakthrough when I used a cloud tag to microencapsulate findings from consumer ethnographies.

Last week, Michael Cannel wrote for Fast Company that visualization of data is the next frontier of design. "It reflects the complexity of the world in simple terms. It is a window onto the world, in all its digital complexity." The article and folks commenting on it provided some helpful resources, including "Wordle," which I used to create the cloud tag (above) from mom interviews about feeding the kids. Cool.

www.wordle.net/create
NYTimes visualization lab: http://vizlab.nytimes.com/

IBM's Many Eyes public graphic tool: http://manyeyes.alphaworks.ibm.com/manyeyes/

MIT's open source tool: http://www.simile-widgets.org/exhibit/

Sources

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/michael-cannell/cannell/visualization-new-frontier-design

http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=161675

The Color of the Year: Mimosa Yellow

Pantone’s color for 2009 is mimosa yellow, which showed up in various shades throughout the Kitchen and Bath show held in Atlanta over the weekend ."The color yellow exemplifies the warmth and nurturing quality of the sun, properties we as humans are naturally drawn to for reassurance. Mimosa also speaks to enlightenment, as it is a hue that sparks imagination and innovation" according to Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. Mimosa showed up in various shades throughout the show. Sunbeam calls it “yellow pepper,” while Fiesta Dinnerware has “marigold," and added lemongrass, inspired by Michelle Obama’s inauguration dress. Others in the home industry note a new source of inspiration for color: HDTV and its vivid colors.“ Pantone chose the color because of these sobering times, believing yellow helps generate feelings of hope and optimism.

No wonder I've been seeing "yellow" on the covers of home mags and Pottery Barn. I thought it was a daring choice to go yellow for my boudoir last year. Guess that makes me "pre-trend."

More from Pantone:

"Best illustrated by the abundant flowers of the Mimosa tree and the sparkle of the brilliantly hued cocktail, the 2009 color of the year represents the hopeful and radiant characteristics associated with the color yellow. Mimosa is a versatile shade that coordinates with any other color, has appeal for men and women, and translates to both fashion and interiors. Look for women's accessories, home furnishings, active sportswear and men's ties and shirts in this vibrant hue."

Food in Bits

FoodTV has just launched (softly) another online food channel targeting younger cooks who are less skilled but nonetheless foodies. The future "celeb chefs" are all twentysomethings, like the dynamic duo of Kelsey & Spike. Or Man Kitchen hosted by The video how-to's are made to order for the Millenial generation. Bit-sized. Fast-cuts. Fast talk. Short ingredient lists. Cheap to make. I have to believe part of the marketing plan is do to some social apps. The network is already signed up as a user with last.fm, flickr and of course twitter (1796 followers as of now).

Last summer, I had the pleasure of talking to Ken Obel (of Cgo's famous specialty retailer Fox & Obel). I told him social networking was still ripe territory for the foodie world since it hadn't reached its full social potential (he scribbled notes as I talked). I think Food2.com has the potential to change the game, just like FoodTV revolutionized food culture back in the 1990s.