This may not be big news per se, but it's big enough to prompt the creation of a new category on Jaffe Juice - Cause New Marketing (or Cause Marketing - New Marketing style) Both David Verklin and myself (in ye old booke) have spoken about the emerging importance and growth of cause marketing.
Besides actually doing good (there's a novel idea), it's also going to help major marketers and brands break through the clutter with both conviction and credibility.
In this particular case (as posted by Adrants), Staples has decided to sell it's Easy Button. Yes, people will pay for the strangest things...take those who actually ordered the Crispin created DVD designed to help spot counterfeit mini's! Yes, cubicles nationwide have always coveted the Dilbert Calendar, ejector seat key for your keyboard and koosh ball. Yes - in some cases, advertising is inextricably linked to popular culture which can manifest itself in new additions to our lexicon such as WHASSUP for example.
But there's something more here...it's the fact that the Staples Foundation for Learning⢠will donate the proceeds (up to $1 million) to Boys & Girls Club of America. It's the difference between my critique and congratulations (for the record, I'm going with the latter)
On its own, I hated the campaign. The oversimplified easy button was yet another reason to look forward to the next agency's work in a category which is neither memorable or engaging. But now, somehow it's all al little more believable and real.
I don't know the behind-the-scenes reasons behind the decision to sell the Easy button. Perhaps it was PR...perhaps it was the product of overdosing on Kool-Aid. Perhaps it was dumb luck and perhaps it was genius. Perhaps there was no demand and perhaps there was a ton of it.
Either way, I'm impressed. Now THAT was Easy.
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