The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

You are right of course but that’s because agencies like cynic CP+B and Droga5 think of advertising in broader, more active terms when most clients actually want more traditional advertising campaigns even though they talk up the importance of “through the line big ideas”.
I think the reason for this is because they and their bosses feel “safe” with the usual because not only is it quantifiable but has a structured pricing policy they feel comfortable with.
Even fantastic agencies like WK, Mother and BBH still tend to primarily think / create via the classic ad channels which is why I consider companies like Naked or promotional companies far more of a competitior than any traditional agency model.
You can read more about the awful Svedka campaign by going to adrants. http://www.adrants.com/2005/09/svedka-launches-futuristic-unpc-campaign.php

What’s all this rubbish about leaving the harsh and opinionated comments to me and Andy? Just because you are way, way, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more diplomatic doesn’t mean you character assasinations aren’t as potent, ha!

I love both of your comments – they show more insight into the World of communication than 99% of industry ‘probes’ … and as regards your WK evaluation [especially with Nokia] I hope they prove us both wrong because as it stands, I believe [and know that they know] they have a massive challenge on their hands, not least in maintaining their corporate culture and – to a certain extent – maintaining their independence given they find themselves having to work with the greatest smiling assasins of corporateland, JWT/WPP!

Saying all that, Nokia know WK have created brands that actually mean something to people so if they let them get on with it [and WK realise it’ll take more than just ads to achieve the goal] then I have faith it could all end ‘happily ever after’.

I’ve always thought Nokia was a brand punching well below its potential – it should be what Apple aspires to be like not the other way round – so I hope WK succeed in moving them forward because apart from selling the benefit of ‘smaller agency thinking’ to a bunch of other massive corporations – it would also mean that company would go through the most exciting time of their lives and if anyone deserves continual glory, it’s them.

Less harsh and more measured? Haven’t you just described the entire population of Sweden there Fred? 🙂

I think you’ll find the reason George is more ‘aggressive’ is because he’s been away from his family for a few days so his ‘masculine genes’ are coming back to the fore. Abit like you were when Annie and the kids left you for a month 🙂

Yes Fred, with those circumstances being …

1 Wife and kids away [preferably another country]

2 Business meeting outside of your ‘home’ country

3 A client who loves eating at great places

4 None-stop wine

5 Copious amounts of food

6 A late start the following day

Does that about cover it? And I don’t think that’s exclusive to Swedish people, look at George’s behaviour at Cannes 🙂

That’s funny, George said exactly the same thing!

First rule of advertising – if in doubt, it’s a whole pile of self-indulgent wank.

Its fun watching bickering AND intellectual discussion swap around a bit.

Question for me is was it the agency or the client being self indulgent?

nice to know that even in the future women have great tits. shocked they still need a great big fucking bra to hold them up though.

for the second day now i am finding myself in agreement with campbell, this campaign had potential but then they went or were forced to go with pointless, cliche shit. theres nothing self indulgent in it, its just fucking lazy advertising that is trying hard to be cool but feels like some ford ad for a “youth car”.

andy has spoken.

Its still better than the new Mazda “It’s Fit” ad. Makes me want to key some cars…

I am not grumpy – I am filled with the joys of a rain-sodden October morning (as opposed to the sunshine and 70 I was promised).

Is that clear? Good!

Right now – back to serious George style – Who actually cares about 2033 – it’s random, too far away in the future and yet not far enough away to suggest real futurism. And why would I want to identify with a suck-up? (leave it brown!)

You’re quite right Dodds. A man of your age and considerable virility has no need for futuristic appliances of suction.

Couldn’t anyone tell that my comment was a desperate attempt to ditch my “boring” tag?

No need – but I’m always open to them.

fuck, george is doing comedy now!

this blog place has been too quiet for a while, you get fucking ranting mortimer, kick start reaction.

Seriously. Has anybody gone and have a look at http://www.svedka.com

Your blood will boil. This strategy is doomed and the Brand shackled to it forever.

Let’s have a vote

Who spotted George’s desparation?

Was he successful in shifting his personal brand?

i spotted georges desperate attempt at acceptance but as hes my business partner, i thought it best not to fucking humiliate him in front of all of you bastards.

by the way john, billy is now in full on loved up mode so hes no longer running on full. saying that the lothario is currently stuck on his own in brazil so hes probably building up pressure as we speak.

like elton john has hair again?

At first glance this strategy appears to be quite clever; it seems to give the brand access to all kinds of stuff – stuff that it can make up. But does a Vodka that has to make stuff up really interest me? And does it really interest the “party generation” that it is trying to reach with this “future of adult entertainment”. And I think this is key to what they are up to.

My take on this is that they are trying to tap into future adults. Not necessarily children, but young adults around 16-25. The promise is a future where “celebrity worship is the fastest growing religion” – which sounds like hire-and-fire in a “pop-idol” culture.

I also find the strategy reminiscent of the coldness of the world that can be found in Brett Easton Ellis. Yes, the strategy is very cold. There is little warmth here.

It terms of the Brand being shackled I would say this. How many times have we been disappointed by dates? 1984, Space 1999, 2000 A.D not forgetting the dubious duty free shops called “Mobile 2000” that you’ll find around the central stations of most European cities. The strategy forces the brand to keep going for if it stops then it was all I bunch of lies (which of course it is) and the closer it gets to 2033 the more the brand can be benchmarked against the promise it has made over the years. Then of course, 2033 comes and goes and the brand end’s up looking like the rather embarrassing remnant of the “Mobile 2000” shop.

Is there an aim of ‘anti celebrity’ style? If so its badly done.

As for my Mazda rant Andy, check my blog in about an hour.

It’s this: http://www.richprosecco.com/

you can pretty much track the decline of intellectual discussion by the length of the comments on this post. what started off with enormous chunks of weighty argument and discussion, ended with quick pithy throwaway one-liners. some things never change, i see.

does it make me incredibly shallow to actually prefer the ‘tired of sucking up’ positioning to the ‘vodka of 2033’ positioning? not vodka as a liquid to save the future or the world or make a big fucking grand statement, but just enough to take the edge of a completely shit day at work?

i love a brand that makes a difference to the world, but if they can’t do that (which vodka will never do, no matter what smirnoff think), make a small difference to a person’s day.

guess who took too long to write her comment and looks way behind… a little like this ad..

I’ve just read Lauren’s comment (I daren’t mention Fredrik’s) and totally agree that too much alcohol advertising tries to be deep and meaningful without any substance behind it, just like too much alcohol advertising uses mindless behaviour to represent “fun”.
The thing is that I don’t believe Svedka falls into either of those camps. The endline sets up something interesting but nothing actually backs that vision up, you just look away.
“Forget The Day” would be great promise for an alcohol brand and it will be something I file away for another day however I’d be amazed if any alcohol brand was brave enough to do it given they all are trying to demonstrate responsibility to local governments in a bid to lobby for tax breaks.

bang out of order Boucher.

ive just had marcus give me a blog bollocking so at the risk of me losing my hard man image, i apologise to fred if my last comment went too far. i accept it wasnt nice especially because being a swede you suffer enough already.

anyone else want to kick me in the fucking nuts?

ive just had george give me a boring telling off so at the risk of me losing my hard man image, i apologise to fred if my last comment went too far. i accept it wasnt nice especially because being a swede you suffer enough already.

ive just said sorry more times than i did in 3 marriages, enough already.

george, im leaving for virgin now, meet you there in about 40 mins.

I didn’t read the Sony ad as being in the future George – it worked so well for me because it was about being robotic rather than human and being robotic is very much of the present both literally and metaphorically. Which is another reason why Svedka doesn’t evince the future. Indeed having scrolled up (to remind myself what the brand actually was) it makes me think of Fritz Lang’s metropolis which was a view of the fuutre made in the 1930s I think.

Sorry John you’re right. I didn’t mean to say the Sony ad was based in the future, I meant that I liked the way the guys had used a robot as a negative metaphor of our lives rather than as a subliminal symbol for advanced technology.
Though I do seem to remember Rob telling me the client thought the robots were all about futuristic technology which begs the question why they didn’t object when they metamorphisised into a human being. Clients, strange lot.
Katerina you wonderful, where would we be without you? Must fly, a certain gentlemen is waiting for me 🙂

However hard I try, I fail to see the humour in that comment of yours Andy. I sincerely hope for your sake, and your wife’s, that it wasn’t only peer pressure from your friends/colleagues that made you produce an apology. But I accept it.

fred i hope you got my e, i am sorry and know i acted like a complete fucking prat.

i might not be a planner but even i managed to work out id stepped over the mark so please accept my apology and know it is sincere, not because others took exception to what i wrote.

kick me in the nuts next time you see me, though be prepared to have to wait in a queue for a while.

you do realise were a role model for world peace?

Then we are doomed.