Tag / advertising

by drey3113

Media and Creativity Collide

The world of advertising is always evolving and changing with the flow of the consumers’ needs. If advertising teams remain stagnant, they become a rock in the river impeding the flow of progress instead of promoting it. The most successful teams are the ones open to change. Sometimes just changing a P to a B is all you need.

Lindsay Rittenhouse gives some insight on how companies are moving with change in this week’s issue of Adweek. IHOP, BP and Westworld are a few examples of how companies are consolidating their media and creative teams to push innovation forward. IHOP’s collaboration with IPG agencies Initiative and Droga5 allowed for the IHOb campaign to come to fruition. All it took was a letter change to blow up Twitter. It would not have happened though if Initiative and Droga5 had not worked so closely throughout the campaign. Consumers in this generation require personalized media and innovative ideas to garner their attention. This creates a need for media teams and creative teams to become synonymous in order to deliver successful media campaigns. BP also had WPP Team Energy create the “Possibilities Everywhere” campaign in order to emphasize its support of transitioning to a lower carbon future. WPP used a single team made up of strategists, media specialists and creatives in order to deliver the campaign instead of splitting up the responsibility into separate teams. Westworld and Giant Spoon also found great commercial success in its campaign for the new TV show. Giant Spoon co-founder Marc Simons stated how they don’t treat media creation like an assembly line. “There’s a central team made up of strategy, creative, media, experiential that is linked to our projects. It’s not just a media-led project or creative-led project,” Simons said.

Advertising has become a creative collaboration. As consumers take in new media their expectations rise. Media and creative teams can no longer act separately if they want to create the next IHOb. Creating innovative media is difficult for one department to do. Everyone can’t be as witty as the International House of Pancakes, or should I say burgers. While collaborations between teams can bring tension and cause individuals to butt heads the pay off is tremendous. IHOP’s campaign speaks for itself garnering 1.2 million tweets and 15,000 media stories in just ten days. There were probably individuals who laughed at the idea of IHOb proclaiming that a letter change won’t create any media buzz. Low and behold though that the IHOb campaign is one of the most successful media strategies in the past few years. Times are changing and with that consumers needs are as well. Advertisers need to take risks and get creative with their media. IHOP and Westworld have shown the industry that consolidating media and creative teams are a step in the right direction in combating an evolving market. Who will use this information to succeed in the market? Only time will tell. It is clear as day though that advertising must do something different or it risks falling to the wayside in the mind of the consumers.

For more information, follow up by reading the article What’s Old is New in Adweek volume 60.

by Kea

What Exactly Are You Selling?

High all! Everyone is hard at work creating fun and exciting projects. In the next few hours, students are going to start posting their versions of Native Ads.

What are Native Ads? Well, to put it simply, Native Ads are paid advertisements that are designed to look like the surrounding content. You’ve probably seen these ads on someone’s Instagram, framed with the words “sponsored content.” Or this New York Times article asking if college is still worth it, sponsored by Discover Student Loans (of course, they said yes).

And let’s not forget the infamous Scientology ad posted by The Atlantic. That didn’t go well for them, but it did raise important questions: First, how should companies go about the business of advertising in a rapidly changing environment. People are not tuning into television for traditional ads. In fact, I just updated my HULU subscription to get rid of ads.

Second, what are the ethics involved in creating advertisements that blend into regular digital media content? The response to The Atlantic article suggests that people want to, in fact, believe they have a right to, know when they are being pitched to.

Everyone in my class agrees that Native Advertisements walk a fine line of ethics. It’s one thing to have very obvious Toyota product placement in an episode of Bones (which is another interesting conversation), but it is another thing altogether to have major publications like The Atlantic housing a propaganda piece. The academic equivalent of this would be a scientist and professor conducting research, writing an article, and publishing an article on the benefits of Fentynal without disclosing that his or her work is sponsored by a pharmaceutical company.

Well, maybe not that dramatic, but this is serious business.

Another thing we have tried to suss-out in this class is what constitutes a native ad. I have a colleague who believes that anything we encounter that presents a call-to-action, especially a call that involves a product or service, is a Native Ad; this includes book reviews or film reviews.

I’m not sure I agree. It is another aspect of advertising that will have to be debated in our new digital age.

In any case, the students had to compose Native Ads. You will see a variety of content. Some of the ads will be in the form of blog posts, and some will take other forms. There are two main goals for this assignment: Try to sell something, but don’t make it obvious that you are trying to sell something. That was the task before them.

This also gives the students some experience with creating ads in digital spaces like WordPress, which is a platform many news organizations use already. I look forward to seeing what they have come up with.

-Dr. W

by drey3113

How Snickers Stole the Superbowl

While many watch the Super Bowl to find out which team will come out on top, others seek to find out which advertisement really wins the game. The advertising world is a ruthless battlefield on game day with each company aiming to make the biggest splash in the consumer market. There must be some secret, some play companies that come out on top make. How does a company like Snickers create one of the longest lasting Super Bowl commercials and win the advertising equivalent of the football trophy? This week’s trade publications in Adweek shed some light on that.

This week in Adweek the Super Bowl is the hot topic with the newest ads, how advertising is evolving and how those in the past were able to succeed in creating a lasting impression. Some say that the ad with the funniest skit or the most emotional story brings home the win, but I’ve discovered that it may not be as simple as making the audience laugh with a boy band singing about the newest chips. Gianfranco Arena and Peter Kain explain how Snickers won the game ten times over in 2010.

Who knew showing an old woman getting tackled would do the trick? Snickers had two main goals for their Super Bowl spot. One was to score high in USA Today’s Ad Meter. The other arguably more important goal was to rejuvenate the brand. They needed something that would not only garner the most attention from the audience but would also establish an identity in the consumer market. While Betty White may not have been the first thing that came to mind when discussing Snickers in 2009, she was able to embody the role of “You’re not you when you’re hungry.” down to a tee. While completely out of her element on the football field being quite a bit far off from the Golden Girls set, she was able to shock the audience by being brought down in typical Super Bowl fashion creating both laughs and a new twist on what hunger really meant.

It was truly enlightening to see how Arena and Kain broke down the methodology of creating the ad. I was amazed discovering how many parts went into creating the Snickers identity other than Betty White getting sacked. It did have a hand in grabbing the attention of the audience though which related to the first step. Starting with a captivating visual moment draws all eyes to the advertisement. From there execution becomes key. The ad may have created a different emotional response had the timing and casting weren’t fleshed out. Also, Arena and Kain emphasized that making the product the hero is essential. Create a problem, in this case hunger, and use the product to solve it by satisfying the need. When a product can satisfy a need while maintaining a unique identity, it is truly successful. The duo said it best. “Just make the most of every second, and you can still be the talk of the game.”

— Darian Arriaga

For more information, take a look at Arena and Kain’s article How Snickers Transformed A Basic Biological Need Into Super Bowl Success Adweek volume 60.

by Kea

Black Panther Needs a Cool Ride

Black Panther

Image Courtesy​ of Walt Disney Pictures and Marvel Entertainment

Ever thought about taking a trip to Wakanda?
Well, don’t forget your Lexus.

In the spirit of true collaboration, Lexus partnered with Marvel’s Black Panther in what proved to be a highly lucrative product campaign for the redesign of its flagship Lexus Sedan and other Lexus Brand vehicles.

The runaway success of the film allowed Lexus to launch a successful global marketing campaign that had the added bonus of connecting the Lexus brand to a multicultural and multiethnic consumer-base.

Writing for Automotive News, Laurence Iliff notes that Marvel has a long history of working with the automotive industry in their films, and it is a relationship that requires faith in the potential success of a film and trust in the Marvel brand to guarantee success and brand exposure.

For Lexus, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. The film premiered on February 16, 2018, which all but guaranteed a premiere Superbowl ad slot, adding to the exposure for both Lexus and the film.

The continuing success of the film, and its subsequent appearance at the 2019 Academy Awards, all but ensures that we will continue to see product collaborations like Black Panther and Lexus in the future because, as Cox Automotive’s vice president of marketing, Greta Crowly notes, “…you start to build a relationship with that audience, […] it gives you the green light to be able to start talking to them outside those platforms.”

-KRW

For more info, check out Laurence Iliff’s “LEAP OF FAITH.” Automotive News, 3/5/2018, Vol. 92, Issue 6819.

by Kea

Upcoming Works

For the next few days, there will be several posts from students (and me), and we will be posting our trade-press release/journal observations on this blog. This assignment is designed to get students in the habit of reading trade magazines from their respective fields, and it helps students practice the strange and mysterious arts of the press release and the blog post.

Here is essentially what you can expect: students will observe/analyze an article about a marketing strategy or ad campaign and write a press release or blog post about it. There will be an emphasis on brevity, especially if it is a press release. It’s about conveying information effectively. The journal/blog post can be a bit longer. I encourage students to choose one or the other: the press release will give students much-needed practice on this valuable skill, but the blog post can help them exercise their writing muscles a bit.

This is, at heart, a rhetorics class, so we are most interested in understanding the different approaches to writing and how these approaches help us learn the most effective way to inform readers on a given product, service, or subject. The rhetorical conventions and strategies necessary for a press release are very different than what is needed for a blog post.

Oh, but what if the press release is the blog post?

Or, what if you are writing specific blog posts for specific reasons?

Each writing is accompanied by its own set of strategies. It will be fun to see what the students come up with.

Until next time,

-KRW

by drey3113

Me and Why You Should Be Interested

Hey guys! Darian here. I just wanted to tell you all a little bit about myself and give some insight on my life so far. I’m a musician that started in engineering, changed to public relations and ended up in advertising. Sounds interesting right?

My time at UF has certainly been anything but boring. I came in with the sole purpose of getting my degree in civil engineering because that’s what everyone expected of me. I picked up math and science subjects pretty well, so obviously I was “destined” to be a stem major right? Well after a little introspection and a couple of mental breakdowns I thought that maybe I could at least double major in something I love like music. I had played saxophone and trumpet in high school, so why not give it a shot here? Well apparently the music based scholarships were only available to oncoming freshmen and of course I discover this after my first semester. I did a little more research and decided that a minor in music was more manageable, fun and didn’t require me to sell an arm and a leg to cover the extra credits. So majoring in music was a bust, so what then? That was when I took my first class in the school of Journalism and Communication.

After taking a class in interpersonal communication I discovered that I love communicating. Learning the ins and outs of how and why people discuss things the way they do was fascinating and a career that involved constant interaction and presentation became my new obsession. This lead me to visit the PATH advising office and switch my major to public relations for my sophomore year. Funnily enough, I ended up switching again to advertising my third year because journalism based classes just weren’t my thing. Especially reporting. Just the thought of it makes me shudder. Anyways, this leads me to my life right now. I got to play in the marching band my freshman year, cried taking calculus, grew as a communicator in multimedia writing, and discovered what I really want in principle of advertising.

I’ll be posting interesting advertising trade posts that really make you scratch your head like how IHOP had one of the most successful campaigns in the past few years just from a name change. My goal is for both me and you to learn a thing or two about how taking risks and being bold can bring success. I’m excited for what the future holds, both with this class and in my career. Hopefully you’ll be looking at the next big advertising account executive in the next couple of years!

by Julia

Advertising Me

Hello! My name is Julia and I am a sophomore looking to get a degree in advertising at UF. I recently made the big change switching my major from Aerospace Engineering which I understand to be a drastic difference from each other. The field of Advertising drew me to it as it is not only prevalent in every person’s life, but also involves so endless creativity and freedom.

I have previously found a creative outlet mainly with music as I have played many instruments including the violin for fourteen years, but I also love reading and doing puzzles in my free time and feel that advertising is a great combination of the creativity and analytical aspects involved in these activities. The aesthetics of design paired with the strategic psychology involved in advertising are what I am hoping to focus on for my future in advertising. I am also looking to eventually work for an agency and help in developing advertising campaigns for companies.

On here, I will mainly write trade press releases regarding important trends seen in advertising. Hopefully, this blog will help me to practice strategically communicating in the style of social media which is deeply relevant to popular work in advertising today.

by graceubben

This is me.

The Palace Theatre in New York City, NY

Hello, I’m Grace – former thespian, now full-time ad major. I’m a passionate UF student pursuing a degree in advertising with a minor in digital design. I love good branding, storytelling and content creation – from beautifully designed static posts to compelling video.

My interests include digital design, blogging, and stakeholder engagement. I love creating content and pairing words with visuals that are compelling and aesthetically pleasing. At the same time, I understand that behind every beautiful, engaging Instagram post is a well thought out strategy and data to back up each decision and detail.

My heart belongs in New York City, specifically on a little block known as Broadway. I am passionate about musical theater and advertising, so I hope to one day blend my two passions by working in the marketing and advertising field with a focus on performing arts promotion.

One of my biggest goals is to graduate college and move to New York to work in advertising for Broadway shows. I would love to run the social media pages for live-entertainment brands and promote the latest smash hits. My goal is to serve as a creative director for a New York ad agency that specializes in arts entertainment and culture.