Britain's Got Talent?

I might be wrong, but I reckon that CHI were inspired by Britain's Got Talent when developing their ad for drench water....

Drench Ad?



(you want to look at about 1 min in for the best bit...)

Britain's Got Talent?




Thanks to Simon Law for helping me spot that possible link...

Trade on Trust

About a year ago, at my last agency, I pitched (unsuccessfully) for Royal Mail communications planning. The big idea that we had (thanks to Simon and Graeme) was for RM to transform their SME database into an active and living online community where other people (businesses or consumers) could rate and review SMEs. Rather than a static listing with just the address and web page, SMEs would be humanised.

(...the people behind the numbers, you might say!!!).

We called it 'Trade on Trust'.

It was a big idea, and perhaps too much of a stretch for Royal Mail at the time. But given recent experience with builders, trust is so important in choosing your hired help.

We needed some builders. We went on the East Dulwich Forum. There were quite a few recommendations, but 'Tom & Jay', stood out a mile for their glowing reports. We phoned them, got them in and got a quote. They were about 30% more expensive, and of course, we had to wait 8 weeks more to get them in. The rational brain said that they couldn't possibly be that much better. But then the emotion kicked in. This is the house we want to stay in for years, we really want it to be perfect.

And of course, the emotions won, and we're now living in a tip as Tom and Jay (& Dirk) are at work. As with any building project, the costs already seem to be spiralling.... 'No, that wasn't quoted for.' ... 'actually this would look a lot better with a new wood flooring...'. Hmmm.

And yet, even though I rationally know that we might be being overpriced, the thought of getting another builder / carpenter etc. in for these additional jobs, seems like a bit too much effort. (Which I'm sure is what Tom & Jerry, sorry Jay, are expecting.) But if this was a scam, surely the East Dulwich Forum would have some luke-warm reviews?

I've always suspected that the only reviews written are those that are either really positive or those that are really negative. And who wants to say on a review that they think they might have been ripped off? Particularly when they look at their finished masterpiece and they're filled with emotional pride. (And I have to admit that T&J are doing an excellent job).

Perhaps we have artifically inflated reviews akin to the Hawthorne Effect?

So how can people like me get a 'real' sense of who to trust for projects like this?

Can businesses really 'trade on trust'?

I am sure that there is still an opportunity waiting to be grabbed by a business that has both national scale and local relevance. (Royal Mail / Post Office, Yell, Thomson, Trinity Mirror, BBC, ITV, Job Centre Plus....) But to make it a success, this online resource /portal would need to have a pretty complex recommendation algorithm. Not just an 'average'. An algorithm that measures recency, importance, semantics, context, validity & volatility.

So maybe we'll have to leave it to Google then.

The curse of the planner's advert

As a planner, I spend far too much time deconstructing other companies' communications.

It does annoy friends and family who aren't really that interested in 'advertising', but it keeps me amused.

Who's this for? What's the insight?
What's the proposition? What's the creative idea?
Do I think it will work?

I guess I'm trying to see 'behind the execution' to get a glimpse of another planner's work.

It should be possible to understand and guess at all of this in a well crafted piece of communication.

Some will probably argue against me, but the planning work shouldn't be glaringly obvious in the final communication. (Unless it's a very simple rational offer / message where less creative ideation is needed). The creative development phase should take the planning insight and proposition and transform it into something that connects with people on a number of emotional levels.

And certainly you shouldn't see the planner's work poking out in a car ad.... that pinnacle of artistic endeavour. The most rewarding representation of the TV creatives' art. Subtly playing on the emotions and the senses. Bringing in the compelling rational thinking to help you justify your extortionate spending. Creating ultimate desirability for a hunk of metal on wheels.

So OMG to Kia with this ad for the Cee'd. So bad I had to write about it.

I can see the brief now....

Our target audience are really indifferent about our cars and they just have no desire to buy them. We really need to change their minds with a TV ad.

Watch it. It's appalling.



I know that a good planner's proposition should be good enough to run as a billboard, but this????

Shame. Because in searching for that Kia ad on You Tube, I came across this one for the Sportage 4x4, which is great. If you've got nothing interesting to say about your product, at least make an ad that makes me laugh.

Jealousy?

I've been a bit lucky!

Ages ago I was asked to go and speak at a marketing conference in Moscow.

About three weeks ago I noticed that the date was 22nd and that I would be in Moscow on the night of the Champions League final.

And last week I managed to get hold of tickets for the game.

No one likes a show off. But not sure that I really care right now.

Woo hoo!

(I just hope that the Russians stay up all night drinking vodka tomorrow night so that they're not too bothered to hear about the challenges of CRM in FMCG!)