Holiday Matinee - Love Your Work. Work Your Love. » advertising

If this video doesn’t make you smile then we shouldn’t be friends.

dave — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:52:14 +0000

Seriously, I mean it, if this video doesn’t make you smile then we shouldn’t be friends. In a strange way, watching this video makes me feel alive and grounded and incredibly excited about the contributions I make on this planet. It’s also a good reminder that such a simple project can produce an enormously profound effect. Here’s to those who continue to believe and contribute to the little things in life. Thank you, you just made my day.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Does Nike’s motivational bench encourage more running or just piss you off?

dave — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:40:19 +0000

Will Nike’s new ad campaign motivate you to run more? It’s definitely a clever attempt but the jury’s still out. What do you think? [via MMet]

The future of rewards

dave — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 22:15:25 +0000

Given I was at AMEX global HQ today, it got me thinking on all the successful social media partnerships they’ve done lately. None have been more impressive than with Foursquare. On so many levels, this integration wins – at the root, it aligns AMEX with supporting small businesses, all while rewarding consumers for checking-in to their favorite, local hotspots. Example: Just last week, I checked-in and ate at my favorite thai restaurant, noticed the deal and with a click of a button, $25 was credited back to my account. Win win.

Best product marketing video ever?

dave — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:16:59 +0000

Wow, I’m officially sold. Nice work BBHNY.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Who knew Willie Nelson covering Coldplay would make me crave Chipotle?

dave — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 13:50:32 +0000

This here is a perfect example of advertising brilliance. Willie Nelson covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist” over an extraordinary animated storyline that leaves me appreciating Chipotle’s surge toward ethical farming. It’s hard to think this company was ever affiliated with McDonald’s but those days are long gone and the brand is moving into much greener pasture. Chalk one up for team creative.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Bold new look for Diet Coke

monique — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 20:39:47 +0000

Dear Diet Coke, you cut to my core. Yes, you are light and refreshing, but you’re also a risk taker. I admire your bravery to experiment with new recipes or slogans, and your preference for chemicals over calories doesn’t bother me either. But most importantly, your aluminum is always looking fresh! I heard your new can was designed by Turner Duckworth, and it is downright sexy. Can’t wait to see you in the stores this fall! xo [via Adweek]

This video will make you hungry for adventure.

hannah — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:00:46 +0000

Back in October, I wrote about this awesome video that portrayed a trip overseas. When my brother, who’s currently living in London (I’m trying maintain my levels of jealousy…), sent me to Rick Mereki’s Vimeo page this morning, I was flooded with the same feeling I had in October: the yearning to travel, explore, and taste the world. Well, right now I’ll just have to live vicariously through Rick’s gorgeous videos of his time spent with friends abroad.

Click here to view the embedded video.

We’re addicted which means Starbucks can get away with ads like this.

dave — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 16:50:09 +0000

Ok, so this isn’t a real ad but the point is heavily taken. And sure, there are several cases of brands committing epic fails (i.e. The Gap) but Starbucks knows they’ve got us by the balls and we’re coming in every day for their crack. You pull off an ad like this – it’ll probably piss off most of America…but damn would I love it.

Reward your geeky achievements with Nerd Merit Badges

monique — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:32:16 +0000

I never made it to Girl Scouts (Brownies, represent!), but I do recall that patches, along with Kumbaya and craft fairs, were all the rage. In fact, their mantra should have been “make new friends, but cut a beezy for a badge.” But who really cares if we can camp together, peddle cookies outside a grocery store, or get high on life anyway? I think these Nerd Merit Badges are much more commendable, and no doubt I’ve diligently earned the “Family Tech Support” and “Inbox Zero” varieties. Unfortunately, the “Printer Hero” badge is the only one that comes with these super fresh letterpress backs from Dolce Press, since a regular copy job couldn’t embody “the heroic vanquishment of these godawful beige-colored killers of our souls.” Hell to the yes, I’ll take one of each please.

When advertising isn’t worth it

kiran — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 18:30:15 +0000

As you might have noticed, we removed just about all advertising from our site. Last summer, we signed on board with an ad network that specializes in indie content. We had high hopes that an additional source of revenue would enable us to kick more ass and potentially quit our day-jobs. So, what happened?

Holiday Matinee in November 2010

As it turned out, the traditional advertising model of CPC just wasn’t a good match for us. To make any significant income, you’d need crazy amount of traffic and the reality is, that model just doesn’t work well in today’s online landscape unless you’re the NY Times or CNN. We had enough of subjecting your eyeballs to crappy American Apparel or ITT Tech ads. It wasn’t worth it. We’re a niche site and it’s okay that we’re not for everyone.

But delivering great content is what’s important. Writing to help, inspire or make you guys laugh means the world to us and gives us a purpose. We should not have let bold advertising interfere with that, but the experiment is over. Moving forward, we’re keeping our day jobs while maintaining an open discussion on how to bring in additional revenue sources so we can keep spreading awesome. One company that we’ve got our eyes on is The Deck. Rather than pay a cost per click, they sell ads on a monthly basis to brands that fit your content and they seem to truly value engagement of your readers rather than the number of site visits. That’s definitely more our speed and hopefully, we’ll make some magic together.

What are your thoughts on blogs with ad models? Do you find yourself relating to a lot of the content thrown in your face? What are your favorite sites that have a good balance between advertising and content? Let us know!

Here’s what I think of blogs who accept money for content.

dave — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 21:33:24 +0000

Dear Dave,

My name is Sarah from Article Writing Services. We have a client who would like to pay you for the opportunity to post some of their content on your website. All of the content is professionally produced and you can select from pieces relevant to your audience. The result is you get some free, interesting content for your readers while getting paid.

In return our client is asking for one link that they specify at the bottom of the content (no porn or gambling). Feel free to contact me with any concerns or clarifications you may have. If you would like to see some examples of our content, please email me so we can begin.

Sincerely,
Sarah Miller
Outreach Manager – Article Writing Services

—

Hi Sarah,
Thanks for being in touch but we don’t accept payment for content. That’s illegal, morally wrong and downright disgusting to ever think of doing to our readers.

Have a wonderful day,
Dave

Things Real People Don’t Say About Advertising

dave — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 21:10:55 +0000

This is why I love Tumblr.