Lewis Lazare looks again at the fact that Chicago can be a tough town for advertising creatives. I'm careful to say, "cab be" not "is," for Chicago has plenty of ad luminaries, now and in the past. Ros King's first year at the helm of JWT/Chicago hasn't exactly been the smashing success she no doubt hoped when she took on the daunting task of turning around a local ad agency that has sagged badly in recent years. And …
The Debut Of Freaky Fritos
With the recent trend of wholesome snack foods reaching "truly ridiculous proportions," Frito-Lay announced Monday that it would, against its better judgment, roll out a new line of healthy fruit-and-vegetable-based chips next February. "Here," said Frito-Lay CEO Al Carey as he disgustedly tossed a bag of the company's new Flat Earth-brand snack crisps onto the lectern during a meeting with shareholders and members …
Hypertargeting a.k.a. Stalking
The Wall Street Journal looks at Unisys' attempt to reach key influencers. Advertising has long been a game of pitches to the masses, an approach still employed by makers of soda and fast food, among many others. Increasingly however, marketers who sell to other businesses are recognizing that aiming their advertising more narrowly can be more effective at driving sales. According to the story, around 20 …
Put Their Pants On
Irene Done done found her a show to watch. According to Broadcasting and Cable, Best Damn Sports Show Period is set to flash some skin in order to sell clothes (yes, it's paradoxical). Fox Sports Net's Best Damn Sports Show Period will partner with Haggar clothing for a product placement consisting of five-minute segments on the show featuring male models battling for the prize of becoming the new face--and body--of …
Man Smashes Machine In Moment Of Electoral Rage
As we now know, America collectively showed their present frustrations at the ballot box yesterday. One man, took his moment to vent a bit further than the rest. According to The Morning Call: A man who reportedly believed Republicans were conspiring to steal today's election entered an Allentown polling site, signed in and proceeded to smash the screen of one of the electronic voting machines with a metal cat …
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Thank Google For PayPal’s Pay Out
Pay Pal is preparing to give money away. Lots of money at twenty bucks a pop. According to USA Today: Millions of PayPal customers will be eligible to receive cash rebate offers of up to $20 when paying with PayPal Nov. 23 through May 15, 2007. The unit of online marketplace eBay said it will pay up to $100 million in promotional incentives to customers who use the service on up to 100,000 merchant sites in North …
We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Ads
Philips Electronics is getting serious about branded entertainment. Last Saturday, during the Oklahoma State v. Texas game the company bought all the national ad time available from TBS. Philips paid $2.5 million, the going rate, for the 33-minute block of national ad time and network promotions. Phillips ran four 90-second videos during the broadcast. The bulk of the time was made available to TBS to expand its …
If There’s No Record, There’s No Youthful Indiscretion
Wired looks at a new startup promising to scrub unflattering data--that could foil potential job offers--from the internets. The mistakes you make on the internet can live forever -- unless you hire somebody to clean up after you. A new startup, ReputationDefender, will act on your behalf by contacting data hosting services and requesting the removal of any materials that threaten your good social standing. Any web …
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