Jaffe Juice

It was actually when I crashed a party and ended up meeting his daughter. He's a pretty forboding character, but once you get to know him, he's a real sweetheart.

The real story is this communal marketing play, which allows consumers to "crash" the trailer of wedding crashers and create their own version using uploaded pics and some minor retouching (you can click to view my version if you are so inclined)

Given the recent string of box office misses which have put the movie biz in the proverbial toilet, what we are witnessing here is two-fold:

Today I'm proud to say that my book, Life after the 30-second spot, broke into the big leagues: (Amazon rankings)

1. It hit #226 in all books

2. #30 in top selling business books (Tipping Point is at number 29)

3. Was the second fastest growing book - up 3097% today

To all Jaffe Juice readers who have already purchased this book, thank you so much for your support. Please be sure to e-mail me your reviews once you've finished the book...I'll post 'em to the blog

Not bad for a book a month old!

Yeah that's what OJ and MJ both said!

So as it transpires (surprise, surprise), meshing hot chicken burgers and "that's hot" won't win any Effies or Grand Prix's any time soon.

As reported in Ad Age, the Paris Hilton - Carls Jr tie-in boosted the equity of only one brand: Paris Hilton. Same store sales for the 4-weeks ending 6/20 were up a "poultry" 1.7% (0.7% for Hardee's)

After a conference call with analysts, here's the real ROI "takeaway":

At least one analyst has downgraded CKE shares after the company reported lower-than-expected earnings yesterday despite higher sales.

Universal McCann's Bob Coen lowered his 2005 US ad spending prediction from 6.4% growth (or $280.6bn) to 5.7% (or $278.7bn) 

He also lowered his national totals from 7.4% increase (or $178.2bn) to 6.5% (or $177.9bn)

(for more, visit Mediaweek)

This was hot on the heels of yesterday's Ad Age AdWatch conference, where TNS Media Intelligence forecasted a moderate 3.4% increase in US Advertising spending for 2005 (to $145.3bn)

The TNS caveat is that their numbers only include media they measure - so for example, their Internet increase of 7.6% growth does not include paid search (which would essentially double it) Coen, on the other hand, has a 15% increase for Internet ad spending.

Personally, I would take the word "Intelligence" out of the TNS name until they figure out how to be truly inclusive/comprehensive, but I guess it is a good relative measure/benchmark (just like Nielsen....!)

Update on the Bald and Egotistical Soap Opera a.k.a. Havas: Jean-Marie Dru has decided to stay with TBWA. Maurice - expect a knock at the door.

Who said there wasn't loyalty in the advertising business.

In an old Jaffe Juice (article) from February 2004, I predicted (as absurd as it sounds) that advertisers may soon begin advertising their advertising.

I've seen this a couple of times already, but nowhere as clearly as on my TiVo today (see pics), where - through a TiVo showcase - consumers can pre-set their TiVo's to record the "world premiere preview" of King Kong, airing simultaneously on NBC, Sci-Fi and USA networks. We're talking about the trailer...we're talking about an ad...a 3 minute ad.

It's pretty cool, if only it wasn't overlapping with Six Feet Under!

A double whammy welcome to AOL who (better late than never) joined the "big leagues" last week with the beta launch of AOL.COM - which looks pretty damn good. It's a big deal as the big 3 are now truly on the same page with respect to being able to offer mainstream marketers a standardized product that has both the left brain (media) and right brain (creative) brand ingredients.

It expands the category, partially addresses Bob Garfield's Chaos Theory and and for better or worse, firmly positions AOL, Yahoo! and MSN as the online equivs of ABC, CBS and NBC.

With thanks to Nick Stoyanoff from AOL, a mobile snap from my visit last week to the folks over at Doner in Motor City.

I am pictured slobbering over a pile of my books (it's really quite obscene, but I've never seen so many of my books in one place before!)

I had the opportunity to address the predominently creative-infused crowd on the subject of "Creativity on the Net - It's not a paradox anymore" and it was really motivating to see the whole agency really passionate and excited about the prospects and potential that lies ahead.

...maybe not the best analogy, given current charges against RK, but an unbelievably cool example of creativity as reported by USA Today

Here's the exec summary:

• Trapped in the Closet is a 5 track story or 5 part track on his new album TP.3 Reloaded, which is a serialized story/drama about a dude (R Kelly) who wakes up in a bed with a strange lady the morning after a wild night of partay-ing.
• Hubby comes home. R heads to the closet, armed with his Beretta. Hubby proceeds to closet
• End of track 1 (cliffhanger number 1)

The full story is on 1 CD and a second CD contains a 17 minute video, which mirrors the audio story.

Sure, folks will no doubt download it (legally or illegally), but all in all, a very cool way to keep the R Kelly brand fresh and even inject some life into the disc biz (even if only for die-hard RK fans and/or dial-up consumers)

LA Times reports on what they call "odd ad placement" whereby PepsiCo, Georgia-Pacific and State Farm pulled their advertising on Yahoo! when they found their ads running adjacent user generated chat rooms discussing child pornography/sex with kids.

The article inadvertently raises several key questions/comments:

1) Accurate or inaccurate match?: Was this a product of a flaw in the contextual/behavioral targeting methodology e.g. keyword "children"

2) (How) should portals/communal oriented publishers accept advertising in less controlled environments (huge Pandora's Box) - from blogs to "spaces"?

3)  Is this being overblown and in the grander scheme of things, a one-off? Remember the example of a hard liquor brand (I think it could even have been ABSOLUT) that ended up sandwiched in a news article about a drunk driver who killed a pedestrian?

Make no mistake, it's completely unacceptable, but surely as the technology evolves, so too will these erroneous anomalies.

In an old Jaffe Juice (when it was still a weekly article), I "predicted" on December 19, 2002 that the US would dominate the cyber category at Cannes. I got it almost right 3 years later (but in my defence, it was out of my control)

USA Today reports:

U.S. agencies and their advertiser clients took 22 awards, including the Grand Prix and two gold Lions, in the Cyber (online advertising) category on Wednesday at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.

Congrats to the folks over at CP+B for their Grand Prix, as well as CP+B, R/GA and Mekanism.

Congrats of course to the other global winners with DDB Brasil at the head of the class for their Grand Prix. I'm just taking this moment to single out the US by virtue of the fact that they've finally shaken the monkey of suckiness off their proverbial backs.

On a slightly off note, still seeing waaaaaay too many websites as opposed to advertising. "I'll take What is Media for $200, Trebek"

"You pay what we pay. Not a cent more." That's the rallying cry from every single piece of communication coming out of General Motors offering consumers the same discounted rates that are offered and available to their employees.

The unprecedented promotion came out incidentally the same week (or thereabouts) that GM announced they were letting over 21,000 employees go (at least they'll still be able to pay what they used to pay)

I've really restrained myself from commenting on this for the simple reason that I don't want to "bash" or kick the slumbering giant when its down and trying to recover. That being said, I do feel that I need to say a few words and if I didn't, I wouldn't be being true to my charge and certainly to the readers of my blog. So here goes...

Let's start with the price wars - the deep discounts and seemingly never ending undercutting - which are starving the dealers. Make no mistake, the consumer wins...but I feel everyone else loses in the process.

From a strategic perspective, continuous discounts and price cuts only devalues and dilutes the brand offering, whereas the ability to command a premium price typically signifies strong brand value (think Starbucks)

In the case of YPWWP (you pay what we pay), it's a precedent which is pretty impossible to follow. How do you beat that? How do you follow that? It reminds me of the story of one trader who says, "times are so tough, I'm selling my inventory at a 10% loss?" A fellow trader says to him, "So how do you make money?" "Don't worry," says the first, "I make it up on volume"

On the flipside, let me defend this (perhaps I'm reaching and perhaps I'm not) with a notion from my book about "Flux Branding" - in a nutshell, I believe the concept of "Lifetime Value of the Customer" is overrated, outdated and unrealistic. Is it LVC or the time of their lives?

In this case, GM will no doubt move a lot of product and once it's in the hands of the thousands of customers who will purchase or lease GM automobiles, there is the hope that the product will sell itself and the satisfaction (Onstar, Satellite, DVD et al) will carry over to the next purchase. In fact GM has 3.2 years to figure out what to do next, and not 3.2 months after the promotion ends.

As reported in Ad Age, the promotion has found the hearts and minds of consumers and GM's competitors are reacting/retaliating:

GM's "employee discount" hype on all its 2005 models is attracting more consumers who had Ford, Chrysler or other non-GM brands on their shopping lists, according to CNW Marketing/Research. CNW found that while 57% of all people who entered a GM dealership last June were already GM "intenders," just 37% were intenders this June. That means, CNW President Art Spinella explained, that the new program is drawing increased numbers of non-GM consumers, and that the showroom traffic is less reliant on those who already own GM vehicles.

The piece also mentions that "savvy consumers can probably negotiate with GM dealers for a better deal than the employee discount."

So in a nutshell, the focused and singular message is resonating and despite some of the competitive overtures, YPWWP is the benchmark or reference point.

My real concern here is the message it sends out to employees of GM. Their employee discount was/is no doubt a huge perk of working for the automaker, and this promotion essentially minimizes or marginalizes this by tearing down the walls between employees and customers. It's a morale issue...especially when I read this morning that GM is now looking to scale back health benefits.

I guess the real issue is whether GM has been able to rally the troops in the process and successfully been able to convince (or fool) them that this promotion is a good thing for the company and for them in the long run. To be honest, I don't even know if the "employees" in the TV spots are in fact real employees...and even if so, I wonder if this "love" is pervasive throughout the corporation.

So that's my take in a nutshell...good for consumers, bad for employees and jury's out with respect to the billion dollar question: will this give the ailing company the jumpstart it needs to get back on track.

Time will tell. I'm off to my local SAAB dealership :) 

That's my hope for it at least. For now I am pleased to say that it has found a home in the Wonderful Wikipedia and in the wiki spirit, feel free to edit accordingly.

I know this has nothing to do with anything, but I couldn't resist. I saw the following picture on Sportsline, and I couldn't help but think of Darrell Hammond's SNL rendition of Sean Connery in Jeopardy. 

I'll take The Penis Mightier for $400, Trebek!

After my posts on Freedom CEO's and the fact that often times, the simplest explanation is often the correct one A.K.A. this is a personality/relationship driven business wrt departing CMO's/CEO's etc., I can't say I was surprised to hear that Freedom Fries ultimately stick together:

Jean-Marie Dru, the father of Disruption at TBWA, is said to be joining Havas as their CEO.

Either I was damn lucky or good, or both, but in my post on Havas' Soap Opera antics, I noted:

Gee, I wonder what Maurice and Jean-Marie think about this?

While I'm on the subject of across the pond, I have to ask what the devil is wrong with the French Advertising Executives. Every damn minute, I have an alert about Alain de Pouzilhac this and Ballore that. Gee, I wonder what Maurice and Jean-Marie think about this?

Since when did the French become the Drama Queens of this business? It's like an eposide of the Bold and the Beautiful, except this time is Prozac versus Ballore. Back-stabbing, nail-biting, bitch-slapping, memos to employees along the lines of: "we have been betrayed by someone who was supposed to help us. It is, sadly, the story of our lives."

Give me a break and go focus on your clients instead of yourselves.

The failing of traditional television advertising is certainly a lot more prevalent in the US, but it would be a mistake to assume that this warning is not applicable abroad.

As posted by Adverblog, the European Interactive Advertising Association (EIAA) released some research that younger Europeans (aged 15-24) are watching less TV as a result of spending time on the Web

In the opening pages of my book I ask readers to "pay me my dime" if they believe there are ideas in the book that are valuable to them. I predicate this on the belief that ideas are the lifeblood of our business and therefore should be embraced, coveted, monetized, rewarded and given credit where credit is due.

And so on my book's website, I used PayPal to give readers the opportunity to put their money where my mouth is and reward me (if they see fit) for any ideas they can use.

As one reader pointed out in an e-mail, shouldn't the $29.95 (or any discounts thereof) be enough capital outlay and why should they pay more? My response was that if they read this book and feel that the worth of the sum total of ideas was below the amount they paid, I would refund them the difference. However, if they felt the value exceeded the amount they paid, then all things being equal they should write me a check for the surplus value they received :)

Well, just now I got my first 10c from a reader. I'm not sure if this means they got only one idea from the book and if so, if they thought that the rate card was 10c/idea, or that the idea was only worth 10c.

Either way, I was thrilled that someone took the time and effort and money to make my day with this gesture + a few very kind accompanying words.

I am now $999,999.90 away from my first million from this book!

I'm in Detroit at an Adcraft meeting (I was the first speaker and Mike Kelly from AOL was the second speaker) listening to Stephen Baker, Senior Writer from Business Week talking about blogs.

He mentioned that he almost took a picture of me using his cell phone and blogged it...to illustrate the ease/speed/simplicity of blogging.

Great idea...but I beat him to it...no picture though :(

jJ

Sent via BlackBerry from Cingular Wireless

Neatly dovetailing with the (breathe in) 52nd Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival (breathe out) which is currently unfolding on the other side of the pond, is this morning's piece from USA Today which zeroes in on life after the 30-second spot.

"If the number of entries at Cannes this year is any indicator, the prominence of TV ads may be waning even here. Entries in the "film" ad competition, long the glitziest category, dropped 2% to 4,995, while the number of entries overall is up 18% to 22,101."

I know the title might suggest otherwise (I couldn't resist), but I actually like this latest print ad in the ongoing MPA trade campaign:

1) It's "on sense" - use magazines to advertise magazines

2) It's honest - a love affair with a magazine (ala previous efforts) is a huge reach, but turning to a magazine after indulging in too much curry is a slam dunk

3) It's irreverent - the tone and angle is a breath of air-freshener and is a welcome relief.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to the little boy's room with a copy of People to lament Retief Goosen's collapse at the US Open!

A 6-minute clip discussing Life after the 30-second spot and the future of advertising from CT-12's "On the Money" - with host Rebecca Surran - which aired this weekend. Enjoy.

I know I'm generalizing, but then again this is what the agency world does best, so why shouldn't I...

In my earlier post, I noted that Fallon and Beamer are parting ways. What I didn't explicitly state - which one my readers caught - was that there had been a CMO change, which is something I wrote about in my book, namely that in this ego-driven industry, an exec change normally means a review (we are in the emotion business after all)

On the same day, Sprint/Nextel announces that they've selected my alma mater, TBWA\Chiat\Day for their new combined account. The interesting point here is that although Sprint acquired Nextel (TBWA\C\D's agency), the new CMO post was given to the Nextel CMO...and his agency was TBWA\C\D. You dig?

I know there's more to both stories, but coincidences are really so, and so often the simplest explanation is more likely than not, the correct one.

BMW Films is, was, and maybe always will be the quintessential poster child of new marketing. Being first has its advantages, but when you're on top...everyone wants a piece of you. Many people demanded to know the ROI before they deemed this to be a success. David Lubars was headhunted to BBDO so they could infuse a Films-like creative-ethos across its tired culture and approach. Jim McDowell nonchalantly sidestepped from BMW to Mini, in order to work on his tan and surf-skills with the folks over at CP+B. The last bastion was Fallon.

And now no more. BMW and Fallon have parted ways.

Moment's silence and credit where it was due. To all sides.

This is a fascinating subject i.e. the rise of Google and Yahoo (codename: Overture) and how search has dominated the interactive landscape. Google + Yahoo!'s joint revenues are now greater than that of CBS, NBC and ABC's Prime Time revenues combined.

It seems that almost every day Google has another product or service offering, and now Yahoo! seems to be joining the frenetic landscape, where innovation and new product introduction has become a price of entry. But one wonders whether this is cart before the horse and an excuse for PR for PR's sake.

With thanks to the Jabber and Marketing Sherpa, an early adopter advertising case study on RSS (stands for Really Simple Syndication which plays out in advertising form as kind of a Google Adsense meets e-mail meets blogs)

I've been thinking about this for a bit and wondering what the future holds for MJ.

Disclaimer: For purposes of this post, let's assume he is in fact not-guilty as decided by a jury of his "peers" - yeah, right about the peers part, not the verdict part. He is after all, one in a few billion...and not really in the best possible way.

As reported across the board, but props to a reader of "Life after the 30-second spot" who sent this to me (...now that's interactivity), Coke - with the help of Cripin, Porter + Bogusky - are bringing back Hilltop (I'd like to teach the world to sing in pefect harmony), except now it's called Chilltop and now we're teaching the world to chill instead (we'll leave the singing to American Idol)

The spot will be shot on a rooftop in Philly (as opposed to a hilltop in Illy) and will dovetail with the launch of Coke Zero.

My 2c is plain and simple:

1) I hope (and fully expect) they'll use a host of new marketing techniques to give this the "amplification" and "extension" it needs/deserves e.g. download the MP3 of the song

2) I draw the connection from CP+B bringing back BK's "Have it your way" to returning to a familiar and comforting hit (literally and figuratively) for the iconic brand. Why reinvent the wheel, when all it takes is to smartly repurpose it?

Coke's iconic brand status is generational and transcends time when it connects the dots between ourselves (past/present/future) and each other. It obliterates borders and bounderies - geographic, language, cultural etc. - when it is able to make the strongest kind of "communal marketing" play.

I'm eager to see how this plays out...

That was a pretty esoteric post title, but what isn't esoteric are the findings from BIGresearch, which should send a chilling message to anyone in the attention business. Here are some excerpts:

• ...the attention spans of media users are not necessarily equitably divided among media, and may in fact migrate from dominant to subordinate positions during multitasking

• media attention spans don't just compete with other media, but with a variety of other non-media activities.

Bob Greenberg, ubercreative and visionary at R/GA, talks about foreground and background, and this data really validates the assertion that the attention business is even more complex than we might have previously thought.

I met my good friend, Derek Hewitt, at an industry conference about 3 years back (although he wasn't my good friend at the time because I had just met him) when he worked for Philips.

Besides being a fellow ex-South African, I was then (and am still now) impressed with his astute and shrewd grasp of the real convergence: that between technology and consumer(ism) in our personal and professional lives.

There's just something creepy about the whole OTT Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes sitting in a tree - SHOW me the Money. And when the Church of Scientology gets added to the mix, there's definitely some drugs/hypnotism/magic in play.

So it makes total sense that a website aptly titled, Free Katie, should sprout up to try and liberate her from this older man (Bring back Dawson...all is forgiven)

If you're looking for an update and outline of Consumer Generated Content (CGC) outside of Chapter 17, check out this week's In Focus feature which I wrote on iMedia.

There are plenty of examples from Jib Jab gets Jobbed, to Paris Hilton meets 1984 to the Converse Gallery, Imagination Cubed, George Masters and of course "Just Did It."

As quiet as I've been on the whole Carls Jr thing, I did want to share some web data which reflects some short term (but for how long) lift from the car wash 'n chicken burger combo at CJ (ask for item #69 on the menu...and supersize it STAT)

They say word-of-mouth is the greatest influencer and driver of considered recommendations. If that's the case, I hope Dave Morgan's words make it to the four corners of the globe. His iMedia Book Club review of my book is very flattering and humbling and it is with great pride that I share it with you.

For those of you who didn't set your alarms this morning (as if), here's my interview with Ron Corning on ABC's World News This Morning which aired live today.

Download world_news_this_morning.wmv

Catch my video interview on imedia on the role of creative in both the interactive and advertising space on the whole.

Starbucks has a really interesting program which from my amateur sleuth work is/has been rolling out across the country.

Essentially they've teamed up with various art musea e.g. Musueum of Contemporary Art in Chicago to showcase and exhbit art created by Starbucks employees.

Proceeds of the ticket sales go to charity.

This is a real interesting Experiential play, which has additional cause-marketing and internal-marketing nodes to boot. So the next time, your barista gives you that Grande No-Whip Extra-Mocha, Mocha-Frappuccino Light, who knows....they could be the next Picasso (or not)

Last night I attended The Webby Awards and was blown away by the turnout, professionalism and slick execution which made me so proud to be associated with this business. Congrats to Neil, Tiffany, Rodger and co on an amazing evening...

Not really, but it could happen (not the everyone invited part)

Scott Donaton commented on a New York Times article which reflects that consumers are staying home and watching DVD's (and other things) instead of waiting in line to see overpriced movies, eating overpriced popcorn and soda and let's not forget the other charges such as parking and babysitter fees, not to mention sitting in the first row because you didn't come at least an hour before. Sheesh

P.S. Scott: I wrote about this over a year ago and it's in my book, so quit dogging the NYTimes. I could say the same about you :)

This is a plog (a mixture between a plug and a publicity log - or plog for short.)

It's my interview with Bloomberg's Lane Bajardi, which aired Saturday, June 4th on their Small Business show.

Download bloomberg_interview_0002.wmv

In a recently released research report, Jupiter states that by 2010, 8 out of 10 online homes will have broadband access.

Thanks Brian Morrissey for clearing this up - I had originally said 8 out of 10 homes, but after digging on the mighty eMarketer, I found out some interesting facts:

By 2008 (which for those of you keeping count is 2 years before 2010), 73% of US households will be online (which again for those as gifted at math as I am, is 3 out of 4 households) and 84% of them will be on broadband. So unless we all move to some remote island to play the world's largest game of Survivor (call Guinness), I would hold that the following assumptions should apply:

1. More households online by 2010

2. Greater ratio of broadband:dial-up (especially given SBC's announcement - see below) than Jupiter predicted.

One of the reasons for this pretty much ubiquitous adoption will be slashed access fees. And just this week, SBC announced that it would be reducing its broadband fees to just $14.95 which makes it competitive with dial-up services, let along high-speed ones!

We're all familiar with 5 year plans. Now it's time for every marketer to implement theirs. You've got 5 years to turn your ships around. And if you don't, you will surely lose.