The Planner’s Psyche

A couple of weeks into a search or a new Planning Director for our London office I am already tired of hearing that ‘planners just aren’t moving jobs at the moment’.

It’s a cool role with a great team, great clients and a generous package for someone doing a similar ATL / Integrated / Digital role today (or wanting to step up from a Senior Planner position) but the CVs just aren’t flying in.

Apparently it’s all down to the economic environment and a natural tendency of planners to be more cautious as a result. Really? I thought Sir Martin had called the bottom?

Anyway, the hunt goes on ……. richard.mabbott@gyrohsr.com

Brand v Demand - Summit, Research and Lord Heseltine

Last week over 100 delegates attended our (Gyro:HSR's) first B2B Marketing Summit in the UK.

The event was held in Manchester Town Hall, a fantastic venue which – Danny our Manchester MD assures me - harks back to when the city was last a commercial power house. We had some fantastic speakers from some great brands including Fujitsu, Google, HSS and Pearson along with our own Rick Segal and the legend that is Michael Heseltine.

I had the pleasure of sharing the stage (albeit a good hour or so after he spoke) with Lord Heseltine to host a panel debate on the theme of the event:

Brand v Demand – do brand custodians too often disinvest their brands in favour of short term demand generating activities?

We had conducted qualitative research with clients and contacts through 2009 and used the findings to stimulate the debate. In my mind the question is somewhat of a false dichotomy but there are still interesting views from both sides of the fence.

We have produced a summary report of the findings which people are welcome to download at:

http://www.brandordemand.com/

There is also the opportunity to share your point of view should you fancy.

Ten things ....

As the Sunday papers clamour to provide us with their predictions for the year ahead, I had a think about a few things the past 12 months have taught us / me.

Here are ten to start with:

1/ 0.02mm is interesting in the right hands. Especially if those hands are the D&AD award winning team behind Sagami’s ‘Love Distance’ campaign http://awards.dandad.org/2009/categories/onln/online-advertising/25046/love-distance

2/ Markets can behave irrationally. How else can we explain UK bookmakers making England second favourites for the World Cup? (Yes I know, it’s the punters not the market that are behaving irrationally).

3/ We’ve gone real time. We’re texting, twittering, facebooking like …. It’s all about ‘Now’. Admittedly Vodafone cottoned onto that a while ago but Samsung tapped into that nicely with ‘impatience is a virtue http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8tWLEsLpxs

4/ Hash can be bad for your health - hash tags that is - as Habitat found out earlier in the year when trying to use coverage of the Iranian election to sell sofas. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/twitter/5621970/Habitat-apologises-for-Twitter-hashtag-spam.html

5/ The success of a campaign can be judged on recall of a TV execution? That was the argument some experts made to explain why an ad by ‘Confused.com’ had performed better than one by ‘Compare the Market’. Missing the point I think when you see that Mr. Aleksandr Orlov now has well over 600K facebook fans.

6/ That being said, TV advertising is far from dead. Comcast proved that without question – simply genius http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYAOLKSAaBM

7/ There is more than one way to skin a cat. Or launch a new car. As VW showed with the Golf GTI in the US http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/golf-gti-iphone-usa-2009-10-29

8/ You really are only as good as your last burger. See Fallon + Sony + Balls.

9/ Baku is interesting the first time you visit. On each subsequent trip it is blustery, dusty and a long way from home. Bakcell were doing well when we left them though.

And finally, one other thing that I now know all too well.

10/ Nappies are easy. Not pleasant, but easy. Thanks for every one Avie x.

The Jam used to tell us that the bitterest pill was hard to swallow.

But as I watch the political landscape here in the UK develop it seems our current and future political leaders no longer feel that holds true.

As the parties set out their respective stalls ahead of next years’ contest, I wonder if ever before an election has been contested on the basis of ‘vote X, it’s going to be much worse with us’!

It tells us something about the world we live in today I guess. That the levels of trust we have for our leaders have fallen to such a low level that they now feel the only course of action is to be honest with us.

Research Gyro conducted a year or so back showed that in the midst of the credit crunch less than 17% of us (believe we) trust advertising…. . if you’re a bank brand I doubt things have improved.

Marketers of course know all this. They also know that consumers are savvier, more informed and – in theory at least – should have more control over their choices.

And as such the best brands and agencies are responding. Day after day we see, dream up and argue over various brand attempts at collaboration, co-creation and participation.

So as we move forward into 2010 and beyond, we will undoubtedly see more and more stunning ideas in this area as we all become used to these changing times.

We’re going to see more openness, more honesty and less spin. And personally, I think I look forward to it. It can only be good for the soul.

The Real Thing?

Coca Cola’s lawyers obviously need a holiday … to Corsica.

On a recent trip there I discovered the locals have their very own version of The Real Thing – Corsica Cola - and they haven’t been shy in using the Coke packaging as the inspiration for their own e.g.

http://www.fractal-angel.org/photo/img/photo0829.jpg

At first I assumed that Coke must own or license the brand but I am reliably informed that the Pietra brewery on the island actually launched it in 2003.

So how have they managed to create something so similar to and seemingly ‘get away with it’? Of course I’m no lawyer so maybe there simply isn’t a case to answer but if there is then what could the story be?

Well what became very evident whilst travelling around was the fierce pride in being Corsican. Road signs are presented in both French and the local Corse language but the French version is almost always painted (or sometimes shot!) out. Advertising celebrates a ‘made in Corsica’ sentiment. And restaurants delight in serving up all manner of traditional and very local delights.

So one theory has to be that a judgement call has been made at Coke HQ that the newspaper headlines created by tackling Pietra in the courts would do the brand more harm than good on this very proud island.

Maybe. Maybe not. Either way one final question remains.

Does Corsica Cola taste like The Real Thing?

Simply, no! Though certain other brands sold by the Pietra brewery do come recommended.

U2 Love Blackberry .... and Apple

I have always been told to Zig when your competitors Zag … or Zag when your competitors … you get the picture!

I’ve just seen the new Blackberry ad, “We Love U2”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx_wdg-BSaY

I like it … but it reminded me of something …

What was it … of course, the iPod U2 ad!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nljs4kzpebU

A mistake? An oversight?

No, I can’t believe it’s anything but a conscious effort to take a leaf out of the iPod book of marketing.

After all, if you want to emulate them and beating them is not really on the agenda, why not copy them? Mmmmm ….

Wally

It’s awards season and over the last couple of days I’ve found some time to look through a selection of entrants and winners from both the D&ADs and Cannes Lions.

There are plenty more to look through but I’m currently dothing my cap to a couple of nice uses of outdoor and one barnstormer of an idea that blasts through all channels.

Virgin Trains and the guys at Spike did the talking billboard which, no matter how often I see it, still gives me that envious, ‘why didn’t we think of that’ feeling!

http://www.spikeuk.com/vtposter.html

The next bit of outdoor magic comes from Australia and it’s a beauty. It’s a fantastically simple, fun and engaging way to get money out of people’s pockets (via their phone bills) and improve the lives of Sydney’s dogs and cats.

http://awards.dandad.org/2009/categories/mmkt/mobile-marketing/20776/throw-us-a-bone

The last one is a BIG IDEA. And it’s a little more hardcore. In fact you might want to look at it first and then use the previous two to relax.

If you haven’t seen this before I won’t spoil the fun. Just hit the link below to Meet Wally’s Heart.

http://awards.dandad.org/2009/categories/intg/integrated/18822/meet-wallys-heart