Filed under: Comment, Daddyhood, Family, Fatherhood, Holiday, Otis, Parents
So today is the last day of work for a week before the Chinese New Year holiday.
I know … I know … I’ve just come back from my Christmas holiday, but this has been going on for 6 years so I don’t know why you’re surprised.
Last year, Chinese New Year was the start of a horrible time.
Mum was rushed into hospital and I flew back to be with her.
She recovered – and even thrived – but 10 days later, when she had her heart operation, it all went terribly wrong.
I’ve written a lot about that so I won’t say anymore for now, but this holiday will be different and I am sure my Mum would be happy about that.
Family is very important.
Sometimes we take them for granted.
We don’t mean to, but pressure and expectation occasionally distracts us from what’s really important and that’s why holidays are so important, because you don’t just get to let go of the distractions, you get to spend uninterrupted time with the people who make you feel fulfilled.
I’m not going to lie … holidays are very different now I have a son, but they are still magical, just in a different way.
When we were in Sydney a few weeks ago, one of the things we did was take Otis to the beach … Balmoral Beach to be precise.
Watching him play in the sand and the sea for the first time in his life was very special for me.
Seeing the joy on his face as he engaged with nature with his Mum and Dad was something that affected me deeply.
China was never going to be our home forever, but being able to easily compare against another way of living – albeit in the bubble of a holiday – certainly brought home what we now view as important.
That doesn’t mean things are going to change immediately – the fact is I still love my job, my life and China – but it does mean the things we want to explore and experiment with in the future have to fit in with certain environmental requirements that we never previously viewed as important. What’s even more amazing is that I no longer see this as a restriction of opportunity, but a sign my life has grown in ways I never previously could imagine.
That would make my parents happy which means that makes me doubly happy.
So while it is true that I am going to have another holiday just weeks after my previous one, it is no longer about me being a work shy, lazy bastard, it’s about spending time with the most important people in my life and even you couldn’t begrudge me that.
OK, you can, but I’m choosing to ignore you.
See you on the 15th.
Happy ‘year of the monkey’.
I’ve written a bunch about my hatred of pushchair companies – hell, I wrote one just last week – but those bastards keep pushing me.
Just yesterday, I saw this …
If you think “The Pushchair” is boastful, wait till you read the body copy …
“Twenty years ago, we designed the World’s first modular pushchair so you and your youngest travellers could explore the World with absolute ease. Iconic, innovative and loaded with functionality, our pushchairs ensure a smooth and smart ride. Built to last, they can be endlessly upgraded to suit your mood, style or journey. Life is truly a great adventure …”
The way they go on about themselves, you’d think they’re selling a Land Rover rather than a fucking pushchair. Yes, a pushchair … something designed to simply transport a kid between home and some other place.
I’m not denying they are good products – I have one for Otis – but all this ‘explore the World’ bollocks does my head in.
Sure, you might take it with you when you’re on holiday but the way they go on, you think they are the tool for every adventurer … from Columbus to Bear Grylls.
I can see it now, Bear is stuck halfway down a mountain … the wind and rain is relentlessly battering his body and he knows he has seconds to make a life changing decision.
Mustering the very last of his strength, he reaches behind his back and after a little struggle, pulls something out of his pack.
It’s an iconic and innovatively designed Bugaboo pram.
He’s saved!!!
By jumping into “The Pushchair” he knows he is now safe, warm and able to roll down the huge mountain side without any fear for his life.
Thank god for Bugaboo.
OK, I’m taking the piss, but they started it with their marketing bullshit.
And if they can be endlessly upgraded, can someone tell me how come they don’t offer an option to turn it into a car when the kid hits 17?
Given the cost of the bloody things, it’s the only way any parent will be able to help their kid buy a real set of wheels.
See, more marketing rubbish from the pushchair federation.
Bastards.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand Suicide, Point Of View
One of the things I hate about marketing is how it now chases customers rather than attracts.
They pander.
They crawl.
They basically say – or do – whatever it is their research says people want from them.
Which not only makes entire categories look, act and behave the same way, but it ultimately undermines the whole point of marketing in the first place.
Sure, every now and then you’ll get a ‘manifesto ad’ where a brands talks about what it believes … however, on closer inspection, you realise most of them are saying nothing whatsoever or are so contrived in their expression, that you realise they’ve been designed to blend in rather than stand out.
Great brands sacrifice.
Great brands polorise.
Great brands stand for something.
Great brands are stubborn bastards.
That doesn’t mean they don’t care about the people who embrace them, they do. The reality is their success is born from not trying to appeal to everyone, but to mean everything to someone.
Where loyalty is disproportionate.
Irrational.
Committed.
But sadly, at least in terms of marketing, those days seem to be over.
Sure, there’s the odd brand out there that still proves the power of a strong point of view – the brands who were born from the culture they operate in – but in the main, the majority of communication out there is a bland, pandering, message of pleading beige.
The equivalent of a teenage boys begging an uninterested girl to love him.
I say this because I recently saw an ad for a wine merchants that gave me a modicum of hope.
Sure, they end it with a bit of a ‘sell out’ exclamation [but they still link it to the standards and quality that they believe makes them different to the competition], but at it’s heart, I like that they’re saying they know their shit and when they think you’re potentially going to make a mistake, they’ll tell you.
A focus group would claim this attitude ‘alienates the customer’.
That the brand is ‘condescending’ to its audience.
That the tone could ‘put someone off from going in the shop’.
That they should talk about their ‘royal seal of approval’ not their attitude.
But I say this … would you rather spend your money at a place that will happily let you walk out with something you might hate or a place that has the knowledge and experience to help you find something that will give a better experience than you originally imagined?
For that alone I congratulate Berry Bros & Rudd.
For ignoring the blandification of the focus group, I stand up and mightly applaud.
Filed under: Brand Suicide, Comment, Crap Marketing Ideas From History!, Marketing Fail
I was at the doctors when, while waiting for my prescription, I saw this …
Now you may think it’s a magazine rack.
A simple, not very attractive, magazine rack that is holding a range of out-of-date periodicals.
A simple, not very attractive, magazine rack that is holding a range of out-of-date periodicals in the vicinity of a bunch of ill people who are waiting for their medicine to be passed to them so they can go home and have a cup of tea.
But you’d be wrong, because apparently it’s a highly targeted media vehicle, designed to appeal to Shanghai’s most affluent individuals.
And adfolk wonder why so many people think we’re a bunch of twats.
Filed under: Comment
So I’m back and yes, I had a lovely time.
I know … I know … there’s nothing worse than hearing about someone else’s holiday [well, after hearing about someone’s dream] so in the spirit of kindness, I’ll end it there.
To continue my generosity, I will not even subject you to a post of my rubbish – nope – instead I’ll ease you back into my blog hell with a little film that should take away the pain that I’m back.
And that it’s Monday.
On a cold [unless you’re in bloody Oz] February morning.
It should also make Dan Wieden feel a bit happier, given as bad as I am, I’m not as bad as the people in this film. At least, not most of them.
Till tomorrow …