Jaffe Juice

Jaffe gets a taste of his own medicine

It had to happen I guess. After I decided to hold part 2 of the Podshow interview hostage, arousing the slumbering giant of Adam Curry's ire and rage, it was just a matter of time before I got a dose of my own medicine.

Last week (a week from today in fact), I recorded episode 69 of Across the Sound (simulcast with CalacanisCast Beta) with Jason Calacanis at his home in Brentwood.

It was my first video podcast ever and so naturally I was looking forward to seeing the finished product.

It's been a week now and all I've received from Jason is some line about the file size being too large - blah blah blah. He's got a house full of rocket scientists and a bull dog to boot. Someone has to be able to figure out how to edit and FTP.

Anyway, I hereby withdraw all rights for Jason to air our SimulPodCast until further notice and he becomes my bitch.

I'm sorry it had to come to this. Somewhere, Robert Scoble is smiling.

YouTube Bowl

As we gear up to this year's Stupid Bowl, I thought I'd share some random thoughts on the Big Game, which I must admit I'm looking forward to for the GAME, as opposed to the commercials. Give Peyton his ring already...but also give the Bears the respek they deserve and have earned.

Personally, I've given up on Madison Avenue's ability to hit a home run on Advertising's center stage. As I followed the progress from the risque to the law-abiding (thanks to Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction) to the simply forgettable, it seems like the only buzzworthy element about the commercial side of the extravaganza is a sick inside joke. Besides ourselves, mainstream media and variety shows, do consumers really give a shit about the commercials (besides self-reporting pandering within a 5% margin of error of course)?

Moreover, would someone please produce *any* shred of evidence in the Super Bowl's proven ability to boost sales, awareness, consideration, anything? I've yet to see any shred of validation of late that does anything besides report on intangible "buzz".

This year's biggest story is YouTube and it's hard to believe that just one year ago there was almost no way of an advertiser achieving any kind of scale in terms of extending the views of their commercials. This year, it will be open season on flogging the commercials, but it all seems like a bit of a Hail Mary to me. Don't get me wrong, I'll  be monitoring number of views on YouTube, but unless I'm seeing something north of 2,000,000 (Tea Partay territory), so bloody what?

Marketers and their agencies have still not learned or applied Integration 101 i.e. use the Super Bowl as a "beginning", not an "end"; extend the commercial online, as opposed to simply trying to milk the number of views. I have heard that Snickers will be doing that...

The Super Bowl is still a game of Reverse Russian Roulette, where - unless you're the grand prize winner - you've just flushed $2.6 million down the proverbial toilet.

Then there's the CGC component to the Super Bowl with Doritos, Chevrolet and Emerald (I believe) At the end of the day though, these will just be 30-second spots and I'm not sure how most consumers will even know they were created by other consumers....or care. All the buzz will be "pre" as opposed to "post" i.e. the story behind the story, as opposed to the story itself (which let's face it, should be about selling stuff, no?)

All in all, I'm expecting another yawnfest and borderline desperation attempt. At least this way, I get to be surprised and avoid disappointment.

I'll also be contributing to an Adweek blog as well as recording a live episode of Across the Sound which I hope to post within an hour of the completion of the game. So expect a few surprises (I'll have Shel, Neville, CC and Aaron with me) and a lot of noise in the background when you wake up on Monday morning!

Secret Wall Conversations

There is a sinister underground operation afoot. Popping up in hotel rooms everywhere...where and when you least expect it. Young turks...punks...destroying property and littering the non-descript, stain-filled boxes...I mean rooms or respected hotel chains abound.

This must STOP. TODAY. We simply CANNOT allow any forms of individuality, expression or creativity to get in the way of mass producing bland homes away from homes.

I love this whole movement called Secret Wall Tattoos (thanks Steve!). I have no clue where it is heading, but I will absolutely peer behind every frame in the hotel room I stay in next (unless of course it's nailed to the wall)

Family (self) Portrait

M&M's have a new initiative out, called Become an M&M. They've promoted it like crazy via TV and Print (to name a few)

So I took a visit, based on what I thought would be an incredible mash-up opportunity i.e. upload a photo and have your facial characteristics embedded into a familiar M&M profile.

The reality was a much more basic experience i.e. choose from a fairly limited range of customizable features and characteristics.

Also the "server" wasn't working, so all my family portrait (below) wasn't able to be saved and remixed/used for additional functionality. Guess the M&M maintenance factory is closed on weekends...

All in all, an idea with tons of potential but subdued impact due to a limited execution. Pity.

2006 Brandchannel Reader's Choice Awards

I always look forward to Brandchannel's Reader's Choice Awards, which are conducted amongst marketing-savvy respondents against the criterion of "impact" (fancy that, a brand actually making a difference, instead of cavorting with puppies, bunnies, babies and flowers)

It's unbelievable when you think about it that upstarts like YouTube and Wikipedia are in the global top 5. In fact, Google and YouTube make up a formidable 1-3 punch.

Skype surged ahead of parent, eBay, which is amazing.

Roughly 5 built their "brands" with barely a cent of advertising and 4 of these are under 10 years old. That said, the enduring power of brand is still evident (Coca-Cola), whereas innovation (Nokia) and change (Toyota) are both rewarded.

The 2000 faces of the revolution

Jaffe Juice and Across the Sound are proudly 2/2000.

The initiative began here on Tino's blog. There's still time to add your blog and mug to another link-bait-a-palooza.

Besides a bit of fun and games, I love how this puts a kaleidoscope of faces to blogging and certainly humanizes social media beyond compare.

PS - Can you find me?

PPS - Just had an idea. What if this were the cover of Join the Conversation? 2000 bloggers...what do you think?

Update: Looks like the wisdom of crowds is unanimous that this is a good path to pursue. Let's hear from the rest of you....!

Update on cover design and wiki chapter

Response to the cover design has been ok (in terms of number of submissions) at best. This is David Armano's. I'm holding out on the inner designers in you all to come through at the death :) Come on everyone...especially the agency folks. Let's see what you can do!

Within the next week or so, I will display all the submissions and let you all vote and comment.

There is still time on the wiki chapter, but again I'm a little underwhelmed by the number of you who have taken on this charge. When I said, "why are you so afraid of conversation?" I wasn't referring to you specifically, but I guess I might have been, right? Prove me wrong please... www.jointheconversationwiki.com.

You're all commenting on this on your own blogs every day...now, let's take the conversation outside of our little inner circle to those who need it most.

The Devil doesn't need an advocate. It needs Prada

Seth Godin wrote a very short post this week, which is pretty chewy and digestible.

99% of the time, in my experience, the hard part about creativity isn't coming up with something no one has ever thought of before. The hard part is actually executing the thing you've thought of.

The devil doesn't need an advocate. The brave need supporters, not critics.

Try as I might, I couldn't piece together the 2 statements, so I thought I'd comment on both separately.

I'm torn on the POV that says, ideas are a dime a dozen, it's all about execution. As a small business, that statement basically biases in favor of larger competitors that have the scale and resources to execute, but arguably might not be capable of the kinds of ideas that a boutique or start-up might be able to conjure up for several reasons (specialization, fresh process etc)

That said...a great idea that is poorly executed is just a poor solution (and thus idea) I certainly have come to respect both the ability to execute, as well as the means to do it well.

The implications (from my side of the moon) are two-fold:

1) Partnering/outsourcing/collaboration will be key

2) In the new marketing world, execution is most definitely key. The hallways are littered with poorly executed ideas (from social networks to CGC to fake blogs) Ironically, the larger companies have been poorer at this...

Via a new blog to me, simpleANDlovable :), a POV on the second as well as these comments on working through the devil's advocates amongst us:

• Challenge your ideas, but stay positive
• Hard times come, then they go
• Persist and ideas become reality
• If it wasn't hard, everyone would be doing it (via Dean Gowans)

So I guess the connection between the 2 statements is that in order to be able to execute the idea in the first place, one of the hard parts is selling it through and getting it past the Devils.

Yesterday, I had a meeting with brand marketers and had to deal with a fair amount of pushback (including, podcasts don't work and people who listen don't go back) It's all good and part of a cathartic process which will inevitably help create bridge between skepticism and acceptance; idea and execution.

An ad capable of destroying any loyalty or patronage in just one viewing

The new campaign for Orville Redenbacher is beyond the pale. As NBF George Parker points out, this bizarre and twisted caricature more closely resembles the whacked puppet from the movie, Saw, than the popcorn brand's mascot. I think he's wrong though...clearly this is the reincarnation of Six Flag's Mr Six.

Now while I am happy that Mr Six found work again following his unemployment hiatus, I am deeply concerned about the folks down in Miami at Crispin, Porter + Bogusky, who clearly have not only jumped the shark, but the entire damn acquarium.

What the hell were you thinking? Do you hate the client and were trying to get fired? What possessed you to put together something so obviously twisted?

And as for the client, clearly you have a death wish (see: Saw). That you even posted the horrendous commercial on your website, proves my point.

I am just one human, but I will do my best never to purchase your product again...or at least until you apologize and/or explain the underlying joke, because I never got it.

It's not rocket science, it's just advertising

Current Adweek poll reads as follows:

Opinion Poll Results

The best way to get your money's worth from a Super Bowl ad is to... Post it on YouTube after the game 20% Post it on YouTube before the game 12% Let consumers make it for you 3% Make sure it gets pulled due to complaints 16% Employ a famous director 2% Cast big celebrities 6% Bust the budget with effects, etc. 1% Not do a Super Bowl ad at all 40% TOTAL RESPONSE - 290

As much as I'd like to gloat at the popular choice, i.e. not to do a Super Bowl ad at all, I'd like to put forward another choice: An integrated call-to-action with some kind of site-side experience to qualify, extend and fulfill those interested and inclined to visit.

The extent of stupidity, arrogance and laziness in the industry is overwhelming.