Above is an image I shot on the way to work. I was flabbergasted, or whatever today’s version of that word is, that any brand would spend all that money without actually saying anything.
The brand identifier was in the small red horizontal space on the top left. I covered up the name to protect the guilty. I am willing to bet that based on this poster, you can’t guess the brand. And I would double down that you couldn’t even guess the category.
Yes, a phone company might be a good guess, based on the only copy in the ad, “Life’s better when we’re connected.” But it would be wrong.
And it’s not an ad for a genealogy website, leash manufacturer, or duct tape.
Point is, a cliché image and a non-relevant headline is a big waste of your time, money and creativity.
For the most part, Staples does a really good job with its programs. Free next day delivery with only a $50.00 minimum. Or free shipping with no minimum, if you order online. Plus 5% back in rewards. Plus lots of great “buy this item and get back the entire price in Staples rewards.”
So when they mess up, it is so out of character it bears mentioning. As you can see from the coupon above, the deal was a free pack of markers. And yes, it does indeed point out that it is valid only while supplies last. But it is still very disappointing when you go to three different Staples locations, some more than once, only to be told, “Sorry we have none left. And we don’t do rain checks for the weekly deals.”
Each of the salespeople I spoke to did suggest that if I had come in a day before there were plenty of the markers. Or if I could return in a few days, they were expecting a big shipment. Which I did, and no, they still didn’t have any.
Now, I am not suggesting any skullduggery. Nor am I suggesting that anyone who actually uses a word like “skullduggery” deserves free anythings. But I am suggesting that a cynical New Yorker would have serious questions about this offer. After all, what is to prevent Staples from offering a free computer, and then saying sorry, we just ran out, and there are no rain checks. Well, there are laws about this type of thing, but I’m just saying…
In the spirit of trying to be helpful, maybe Staples should rethink their free offers if they get slammed and run out so often. Perhaps they should simply have more of the items on hand. Perhaps they should offer rain checks, even if good for only a limited time. Maybe instead of free, they should charge a dollar; still a good deal for the customer and this would reduce their exposure and allow them to increase the inventory on hand.
I am sure Staples can think of many more ways to make promotions like this be more effective and not exasperate their customers. But what about you? Do you do a good job of honoring your offers, or do you take sanctuary behind the small print? The point, after all, is to have satisfied, happy customers. Which you will not get if they feel the slightest bit mistreated, fairly or not.
A quiz can indeed help get readers involved in an ad. But, without overstating it, this particular one has to be one of the silliest ideas I have seen in quite a while.
Cottonelle is actually asking you to compare what you clean your car with to what your clean your bottom with. And they suggest that if you use cloth and water to clean your car, you should therefore use their moist wipes on your butt.
Now forget for the moment that they are featuring a prominent visual of their toilet paper in the ad, which I guess we are supposed to ignore, since they are not suggesting that you should clean your car with tissue paper.
And also forget that the choices they list for cleaning your car include a bowling ball. Because I am sure the creators of this ad are still giggling over how funny that thought is.
And perhaps forget that people often use sponges to clean their car, rather than using a cloth. Though some do use steel wool pads on the car’s tires, if Cottonelle would like to apply that analogy.
The main question is why they felt the necessity of any comparison between cleaning your body and cleaning a car. I don’t see the logic, or the humor. Feel free, of course, to disagree. But if you create an ad with a quiz in it, perhaps make sure that the answers to your test are actually relevant to your product. And in good taste. And, if you use humor, well, make it actually funny.
Actually, the ad ran last week. But, to quote Stuart Elliott, advertising columnist at The New York Times, “It would have appealed more to viewers during the Eisenhower, Nixon, Reagan or Clinton administrations.”
OK, Stuart was referring to his opinion of most of last Sunday’s Super Bowl commercials. But he could just as easily have been referring to the ad above.
The headline is a strong contender for silliest of the year award. As is the thought that the reader actually believes the premise, and has thanked Gillette for this important benefit. Which is the only reason for the “Thank you” in the headline. And leave us not even try to figure out the ancient decade in which the photograph might have caught someone’s attention.
Now, there is an idea hidden in the lower left corner; the thought of less irritation, even on sensitive skin, might be the basis of an ad. But no one involved with the creation of this advertisement seemed to want to actually convince anyone of anything.
As a business owner, do you have to where all the hats?
“Hey, what’s one little typo? Everyone makes ‘em, most people never notice them. And I always use spell checkers.”
That’s how most people feel when I go on and on about typos. And when I give the usual suspect examples (they’re, their, too, to) I sense as many yawns as at the latest Schwarzenegger movie.
But when I spotted this headline, I thought I’d try one more time to show how devastating one little word can be to your credibility.
The caption above is from an email from a business coach with seemingly very impressive credentials. He is a certified business coach, with 25+ years in corporate America. But it seems to me that the impact of his headline decimates his credibility on many levels. (I have my own list of reasons it is so off-putting; you can create your own.)
And to add grammatical insult to homonym injury, here is another error, albeit a more common one, in the text: “That’s why I insist on a few complementary meetings first.”
Yes, many make that same mistake and many will not even notice it. But this pattern of errors from someone who wants to guide your business success is different from typos in a pitch from a florist or accountant. Proposing to be a business coach does presuppose some degree of literacy.
Perhaps I’m just being cranky—my blood sugar may be low because I have not yet eaten breakfast. But still, be careful out there.
I have always liked, and have even blogged about, the slogan that The Metropolitan Museum in New York has used since 2009: “It’s Time We Met.”
I guess I am not the only one who has responded favorably to that thought, as evidenced by the above ad for Chase Private Client. I can’t believe that no one at JP Morgan Chase knew about the Met Museum campaign, but I also can’t believe it is a coincidence.
So it’s time we talked about vetting your tagline, headline, graphic. Obviously the first thing to do is Google it, to see if any anyone is using the same visual or combination of words. If you do find it elsewhere, then you have to decide if a business located in (fill in name of obscure geographic locality) is truly a relevant concern, legally or realistically.
Finally, you have to decide whether to change what you have created (and probably find your new version online also) or take the position that it’s better to apologize than ask permission.
I am not certain if the museum has even noticed the Chase similarity, or what they might do about it. And there is even, I guess, the possibility that Chase got there first. Just suggesting that you be careful out there.
Above is an ad for Bond No. 9 perfume. On the bottle it says you can get a refill “on us.” The headline shouts “A free refill.” The copy says bring in an empty bottle and they’ll give you a free refill.
But oops…what does that small size type in the parentheses say? Oh, this free stuff is only “With the purchase of two bond products.” And they even exclude their pocket spray from the offer.
Now, if they had had an asterisk in the headline, to alert us “Chicanery ahead,” that would have been adequate and predictable. But this is pure misleading baloney, (which is not the word I was going for, but since this is usually a PG rated blog, it will suffice).
Today, when everyone is talking about yesterday’s outstanding creative Super Bowl commercials, I thought I would zag and mention a truly terrible spot I saw a week ago. When it came on, my wife and I each thought that it must be a spoof. We hoped that there would be a payoff that would make everything make sense, like the new JCPenney commercials, with coupons and screaming ladies do. No such luck.
Now, I realize all this may be generational, and the commercials are meant for my daughters, not me. But I am adamant in my belief that the campaign for Sun Drop is simply dreadful. And since this is A) my blog, and B) I have had a book published about ideas and you probably haven’t, I am undoubtedly correct. Although the millions of hits the campaign has received on YouTube does suggest that there are other opinions.
According to Wikipedia, Sun Drop is a citrus-flavored soda produced by the Dr Pepper Snapple Group. It is known for its high caffeine content, and the formula goes back to 1930. And below is what the commercial looks like. In general, I think, Dr. Pepper’s marketing for their brands leaves much to be desired. And not that my ad agency is looking to pitch their business, but my email Information is on this page.
I have been noticing commercials and print ads for Capital One bank featuring Jerry Stiller. Yes, he is a living comedy legend.
But I personally, for many reasons, don’t understand his value as a spokesperson for the bank. Does Stiller represent honesty? Trust? Truth? Youth? Confidence? And why does he call me "baby"? (Full disclosure: I have never watched “King of Queens,” and more surprisingly, have never seen a full “Seinfeld” episode.)
However, in the warmhearted sprit of the season, I am willing to assume I am wrong, and he is a perfect person to represent Capital One. But still, who the heck are they trying to fool with their math? Bah Humbug!
This site spells it our far better than I could. Here’s a brief excerpt. “Let’s split the difference and call the national average 0.005%. That’s one five-thousandth of a percent. I multiply this number by 5 and get 0.025%. Exactly one quarter of a percent interest on my checking account.” Even if the number the bank quotes,1.01% APY, is more accurate, it doesn't quite sound like "High Yield" to me. Nor does the fact that to get that rate, I must maintain a $5,000 monthly balance.
A typical commercial is below. Sorry, not crazy about it…and don’t get me started on the Visigoths/Vikings commercials for the bank.
Selecting a spokesperson is always fraught. Any scandal that affects them will hurt you. But a positive association can pay off exceptionally well. The choice, as always, is yours. But no matter your decision, make sure the claim associated with the campaign isn't misleading. Because then the more the ads are noticed, the more you will be shooting yourself.
In many New York restaurants it is common to have a tip added to your bill if you have a large party, or if it is after a certain time in the evening. This makes sense, as the restaurant wants to insure that the wait staff won’t get stiffed. The usual gratuity is 15% to 20%, and the inclusion is clearly indicated on the check, and pointed out by the server.
However…if you look closely—very, very closely— at the check above, you may perhaps notice a tiny 18% right above a very large “TOTAL.” There is absolutely no indication that this amount is for a tip, no indication anywhere on the check that the tip has been already included, and the server never mentioned it to us. (Also, we were just a party of three, not four as the check indicates; certainly not large enough to expect a pre-added gratuity, especially during lunchtime.)
Now, this is probably a subject for the consumerist blog, but to me it is a marketing issue. These decisions don’t just happen. Management decided to include the tip on all checks, management chose not to care about the size of the party or the hour, and management chose not point out that the tip was included. And the server, who may or may not reflect management’s wishes, certainly did not feel any obligation to do the right thing. This is an audacious example of customer disservice.
If you feel you have to add on a shipping charge, include an adjustment in a bill, or do anything that has a cost that could possibly be missed by a customer, be certain to point it out. Clearly, boldly and often. As a wise man once said to me, “Be careful what you do on a Wednesday. It can turn around and bite you on your butt on Friday.”
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