UFC trailer

This is a trailer for an upcoming UFC fight.

What is a Tissue Meeting?

I've been hearing whispers about a new type of trendy meeting. It's called the 'Tissue Meeting'. Now as I'm the type of person who gets his nose wipes from the toilet roll I wondered what on earth this could mean. Is office space so expensive that people are expected to hold meetings in the WC. And would that be in a cubical or by the taps.
I've known a few advertising types in my time who have a penchant for meeting in the cubicals for one reason or another. But I don't recall anyone using the term 'tissue meeting' to arrange such a rendezvous. "Hey. I've got some great gear. Fancy a tissue meeting in the toilet?"

There's only one reason why someone would define a meeting as a'Tissue Meeting'. That's because the people who organise one have got their heads so far up their arses - that they need something to wipe away all the crap.

Have you no pride?

What is wrong with advertising people these days? When I went into the business it was because I liked to create ideas. New ones that I could call my own, or at least mine and my Art Director's. And maybe include a creative Director as well in the credits. I digress. The main point being that I wanted to create stuff that had never been done before, although I accept that everything has its influences.
Lately I seem to be seeing an increasing number of re-hashes of ads that were originally created for other brands. In my mind the worst culprit of all is the brand that adopts the "I'm a ........" as its umbrella idea.

Here are just a few of recent times.

I'm a PC (Microsoft)
I am Nikon (Nikon)
I am  Giulietta (Alfa Romeo.See below)

What I don't understand is who thinks it's so darn good in the first place to want to use it. And even then, don't they know it's been used time and time again.
I can almost hear the researchers and the planners justifying its existence. "The poeple who drive the Guilettarrrhhhh are the type of people who see themselves as Guilettarrrhhhh types." And so they come up with a campaign that simply affirms that simple observation.

Not only is it unoriginal. It's just not creative at all. It's like something someone says in focus group.

Researcher: "If you were a car, what type of car would you be?"
Man1: "I'd be a Ferrari."
Researcher: "Don't you mean. Guilettarrrhhhh?"
Man1: "Oh yes. That's what I meant. Do I still get my 20 quid?"

Day V Lately

I don't actually mind the re-hash of the old Yellow Pages ad...'J R Hartley'. The new one being called 'Day V Lately'. But one thing really bugs me about one aspect of it, which is the Day V Lately part. I mean what kind of name is that? I don't get why his real name is so bizzare. I've never met anyone called 'Day'.
I've met a Ray and a Jay and a Shay.
Ray V Lately would have been much more apt and probably tie in with the timing of his record.

Mobile blogging

So I just got my first smart phone. I'm wondering if it will change the way I comment on the world of advertising. It's now possible for me to see an advert and snap it with my 5 meg button and post it within seconds.
With this amout of freedom to blog any where, anytime, there's a distinct possibility I'll post any old tosh.

I AM out of ideas

Nikon have signed up Jamie Oliver to front their new advertising campaign for some new fangled camera that looks a bit like their other cameras. It's going to be called the 'I Am Nikon' campaign.

I don't know who came up with this idea but isn't that line totally un-original. 'I AM A PC' was done by Microsoft, and I think it is still being used by them, which is saying something because they change their slogans every time the wind changes direction. It's even not even like it's old enough for people to have forgotten it, at least not ad industry types who would know these things.

Didn't anyone in the room at the time say... "We can't use that. It's sounds like we're Microsoft". They must have done, surely. But then maybe some high level suit came back with "No you idiot... We use the word Nikon instead of Microsoft. I want that creative fired."

What kind of advertising slogans can we look forward to in 2011?

The new Ford KA. I AM CAR.

British Rail. I AM WAITING.

Fosters Lager. I AM DRUNK.

Small town advertising

Why is it that good advertising rarely comes out of small town advertising agencies?


I used to think that small town agencies didn't usually have the talent to create good work. I still believe this to be the case in most instances.

Good people usually gravitate towards the good money in the big cities. But this isn't always the case. Good creatives can have their reasons for working in small towns. There isn't the long journey home through traffic and you can actually play with your kids for a good while before they go to bed.

So what happens when a small town agency creates some good work and then shows it to the small town client? Getting the idea made then relies on the client being ad-aware. And this is a rare quality in small town clients, most of who seem to think an advertising idea is defined by what medium they want to use. "We've had a great new idea for a campaign... To use local radio".