Can we just quit with the ad spending predictions?

Awoke this morning to closed schools and a prediction by Barclays that ad spending would be down by 10 percent next year, a revision downward from a prediction a mere two months ago of a 5.5 percent decline. At this point, having read so many of these spending predictions, I feel like we're all trapped in a game in which the winner is the advertising analyst who can predict the most doom-and-gloom. Maybe next week, ZenithOptimedia or someone will come out saying ad spending will be down 11 percent next year. Do I hear 12? Who's gonna predict 12?

The problem with these predictions of ad spending declines, of course, is that they're self-fulfilling. That has always been the case, but this time it's worse. Predicting that ad spending will be down by 10 percent seems to cause many to cut ad spending by 10 percent, like there's some unwritten rule they must follow along. I'm not saying things aren't bad out there: they are. But this is getting ridiculous. Thus, I hereby declare a moratorium on all ad spending predictions for 2009. We can pick up the topic again about a year from now.

Happy Christmas from AKQA

Enjoy. And heat up some soup while you're at it.

Sorry not to be posting so much!

Hi, loyal readers. You may wonder why Adverganza has been oddly quiet of late. The answer is that I've had a tsunami of work, which (all together now) especially in these troubles times, is taking priority. That doesn't mean I'm not posting at all, but that it's certainly more intermittent than I'd like.

Rothenberg says, "c'mon everybody let's simplify"

While I could have been at the Interactive Advertising Bureau audience measurement conference, or at the UBS Global Media Conference watching the world crumble around me, I've been sitting at home these last few days. Actually, maybe that's not such a bad thing. However, had I gone to the IAB meeting, I could've heard IAB chief Randall Rothenberg decry the increasing complexity of online measurement. Sounding an alarming note, Rothenberg said: "What if [medical research] got so complex that doctors didn't know how to do operations? ... that's kind of where we're heading in interactive media and interactive media research." Citing a McKinsey & Co. study in which 80 percent of marketers admitted that much of their media decision-making was either guesswork or based on the previous year's numbers, Rothenberg said that there are only three conclusions which can be drawn from that fact. No. 1 was "All marketers are stupid," No. 2 was "All marketers are lazy." To see what no. 3 was, watch the clip above from 3 Minute Ad Age. You can guess which one Rothenberg chose.

Adverganza's Monday morning picks, 12.08.08

Wherein I scan the Monday morning headlines as quickly as humanly possible because I've got a lot to do today.

From Advertising Age:

--You can read this Ad Age white paper on how to make it through the recession, but it's gonna cost ya.
--Even Nascar is facing a slowdown.
--30,000 fewer of us are now working in media.
--The connection between Walmart's strong sales and lower gas prices.
--Media owners getting run over by Detroit.
--Microsoft's new online services prez, Qi Lu, isn't just another pin-headed engineer. Really.
--What media companies are worth buying.
--Four Olympics sponsors no longer Olympics sponsors.
--Not the greatest of times at JWT Chicago.
--Will NBC have to lower the price of a Super Bowl ad?
--Crispin and BK want a Whopper Virgin backlash.
--True fact: L'Oreal spends more in advertising than General Motors.

From Adweek:

--Predicting ad spending declines is all the rage. Most depressing estimate so far: ZenithOptimedia's 5.7 percent drop.
--Hmmm. New Geico commercials featuring "Kash." Commendable use of Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me", but don't know if they've got the execution quite right yet. Take a look:



--What we really think about our healthcare.
--Looks like we're suffering from apps-athy.
--Barbara Lippert feels sorry for the Whopper Virgins. If you've missed this latest Crispin marketing stunt, one of the spots is below.



--Mark Wnek loves data.
--Chuck Brymer lobbies for the chief community officer.
--Clients continue to consolidate with one holding company.
--Auto ad spending prepares to suck even further.
--Diet Coke mixes sponsorship and digital distribution; hopes to produce fizz.
--New in-store ad network launches, giving consumers customized ads.

From Brandweek:

--Here's to guerrilla marketers, and, no, I'm not talking about Cadbury.
--Q&A with Del Monte CMO Bill Pearce.
--Heinz mashed potatoes are hot.
--Saving money more important than buying organic.
--Lions Brewery gets its 15 minutes of fame on "The Office."

From Mediapost:

--Jameson Whiskey ad actually stalks you!
--Faith Hill, the fragrance.
--Bristol-Myers launches campaign in Mandarin to tell Chinese-Americans about hepatitis B.
--You, yes, you can be a hostess at Talbot's.
--CMOs blame their own companies for their inability to reach some customers.
--Major media agencies still predicting that online ad spending will be up in '09.
--Times exec Denise Warren gets GM post at nytimes.com.
--Brightcove forms the Brightcove Alliance among those that use its services.
--C3 ratings don't decline as much as live program ratings.
--ESPN.com wants feedback on beta version of its new site.
--A dozen let go from The Hollywood Reporter.
--Newsday cuts 100 jobs.

From Mediaweek:

--More bad news about the media economy.
--It's a buyer's market in the magazine industry.
--So much for innovation in online marketing from the car companies.
--Ex-Newsweek president Greg Osberg goes mobile.
--Mike Shields on the firestorm that followed his "death of display" story about online display ads. (Sorry. Can't find the original story.)

From The New York Post:

--If you work at an ad agency, don't be surprised if the new year greets you with a pink slip.
--Will Walmart be offering a $99 iPhone?
--Bob Pittman part of $1.5 million investment in Wowowow.

From The New York Times:

--The new "Meet the Press."
--All those media channels are making us feel really bad.
--Christie Hefner to step down from Playboy.
--More on why what sucks for Detroit sucks for the ad biz.
--If you care about the future of TV Guide, read this.
--The New York Times Co. plans to borrow against its building. Now there's a home equity line for ya.
--Is McClatchy looking to sell the Miami Herald?

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Ouch. Tribune Co. might file for bankruptcy. Free.

That's it for today. Depressing, huh?

Axl Rose says Dr Pepper violated his rights. Sure.

So, how hilarious is it that now Axl Rose is asking Dr Pepper to apologize for hijacking the Guns n' Roses brand in the name of free soda? If you've been living in a dumpster, maybe you don't know that Dr Pepper years ago said it would offer everyone in the U.S. a can of free soda if the band ever released another album, which it did last week, 17 years after the last one.

Now, according to Ad Age, lead singer/procrastinator extraordinaire Rose had his lawyer send Dr Pepper a letter which " ... stated that Dr Pepper's campaign had exploited the singer's reputation and the 'eagerly awaited' album, and stated that payment would be sought for the unauthorized use of the Guns N' Roses brand." Sheesh. Axl, I got some news for ya: you exploited your own reputation by setting a new world's record for length of time between albums. The soda didn't make you do it.

Apparently the letter goes to great lengths to portray the Dr Pepper promotion as a failure because it was actually hard to get the free can of soda. True. But I still think the lovely loopiness of the promotional idea outweighs the frustration on the part of some consumers. It was sheer genius, marred by an executional hiccup. From what I've read, the album, "Chinese Democracy," doesn't rise to the same standard.

Adverganza's Monday morning picks, 12.01.08

Wherein I scan the Monday morning headlines so you don't have to.

From Advertising Age:

--Yes, you are seeing the same ads over and over and over again.
--Bob Garfield asks: "Whatsa matter with widgets?"
--Time more popular with college students than People, allegedly.
--Don't expect Tiger Woods to do another car endorsement deal soon.
--Unilever moves to producing less colors for its packaging. If that's not a sign of an economic downturn, I don't know what is.
--Even life at the Google-plex isn't as fun as it used to be. The search giant cuts back, a little bit anyway.
--First came Black Friday; then Cyber Monday. But what about Mobile Tuesday?
--Q&A with American Airlines' VP-corporate communications and advertising, Roger Frizzell.
--Japanese way into the crowd-sourcing.
--What your response to logos has to do with your nucleus accumbens.
--Down with the economy, up with smartphones.
--This holiday season, you may find that Jameson really, really speaks to you.
--What brands will die in a GM bailout.
--Regis Philbin upset with Commerce Bank merger with TD.



--Hispanic market feeling the economic crisis blues.

From Adweek:

--Still not many people of color and other ethnicities in the ad business. Not that you should be falling over with shock.
--Adweek asks if marketers can be the savior of the holidays.
--CEO Robert Lerwill leaves Aegis.
--Deutsch lives to work again with Sports Authority, winning the media planning and buying biz.
--The return of barter to buy ads.
--Barbara Lippert finds that Macy's endorsers aren't exactly dripping in Christmas cheer. See what she means.



--Q&A with Robert Rasmussen, executive cd of innovation at Bartle Bogle Hegarty, New York. (Question: Shouldn't all cds be on top of the innovation thing?)
--Benjamin Palmer asks if impressions are really just views.
--Ad of a Couple of Days Ago: American Express embraces Dave Matthews, Gwyneth Paltrow, Brian Grazer and Tina Turner (who even make a side reference to that Ike guy).
--WPP's Team Detroit gets an assignment that isn't Ford, which is a good thing.
--Online ad spending stable, with direct response ads leading the way.
--More evidence that ad guys will never lose their movie-mogul aspirations.

From Brandweek:

--What really happens to the advertising and marketing business during a recession. Good news for ad agencies; more bad news for CMOs.
--Procter & Gamble uses "What Not to Wear"'s Stacy London to change its strategy for Pantene again.
--Food companies associate themselves with a rodent, an animated one.
--P&G launches brandSaver Live!, a coupon event, at 57th and Sixth.
--Recession means marketers won't go mobile next year.

From Mediapost:

--Holiday shoppers say screw the economic crisis!
--People liking the car-buying process. Maybe because it's full of deals, deals, deals!
--7-Eleven launches its own packaged-goods line.
--Banks find a new use for direct mail: resurrecting their lousy image.
--Digitas Sweden opens.
--AOL opens gamesavvy.com, which helps us dumb parents figure out what the hell we're buying for our kids. I'm heading over there now.
--Will the recession make people even more likely to watch free content? You betcha!

From Mediaweek:

--HBO thinks consumers will pay $54.95 for Saturday's Oscar De La Hoya-Manny Pacquiao fight, but is giving out coupons which offer discounts too.
--Out-of-home says it will fully recover in 2010 after a tough 2009.
--More of us watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade this year. Was it the performance by Rick Astley? No, that was a surprise.
--Why aren't publishers using more widgets?

From The New York Post:

--Lenny Dykstra discovers publishing a magazine is harder than it looks.
--Ad sales for the Super Bowl are described as "sluggish."

From The New York Times:

--CNN nudges in on the AP's turf.
--Turns out U.S. media companies didn't enhance the country's international image in the post-9/11 world.
--Pity the aging local news anchor.
--Stuart Elliott asks 20 questions, including: "Will Citibank have to change its slogan, 'Citi never sleeps,' because it now suggests that anxious executives, worried about solvency, are staying up all night?" Good one.
--Time publishes high-end Time Style & Design magazine. A company spokesperson says it put the issue together in October, when things were just lousy instead of super lousy.
--David Carr says the news media is partly to blame for the death of that Wal-Mart worker.

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Axe men's haircare products launch. Subscription required. Because I know you're dying to see it, here's one of the ads (though in the pantheon of great Axe commercials, it's a little disappointing):



-"Four Christmases" does well at the box office, while no one cares about "Australia." Free.
--Cable: panacea for a recession-plagued populace. Subscription required.

That's it. Oy, that first Monday back from Thanksgiving is rough.

Adverganza's Tuesday morning picks, 11.25.08

Wherein I scan the Tuesday morning headlines so you don't have to.

From Advertising Age:

--Looks like we won't see any obnoxious ads with huge bows on cars this year. Silver lining to economic crisis!
--In case you hadn't heard, GM decided it wasn't worth paying Tiger Woods all that endorsement money.
--"Redemption" doesn't totally redeem Sunday night.
--At least GM is no. 1 in something: it's got the lead spot on the Parents Television Council list of worst advertisers.
--3 Minute Ad Age: Macy's Christmas windows still draw a crowd, but, c'mon, they're free.

From Adweek:

--IDC is up with social media traffic; down with its ad revenue.
--BBDO wins Starbucks, thus advertisiing new caffeine infusion device.
--Mediacom makes some senior appointments.
--Ad of the Day: xBox 360 from T.A.G. and starring Burt Reynolds. It's below.



From Brandweek:

--Adidas to launch commercial for Adidas Originals starring David Beckham, DMC, Method Man. T'ain't on YouTube yet so I can't stream it for you.

From Mediapost:

--Buy a Subaru, have the company send a charity a $250 donation. Awwww.
--83 percent of retailers doing a holiday price promotion.
--The talking tub is back for Parkay margarine.
--Times Square goes down the toilet with Charmin.
--Apple sues a wiki. Not that wiki.
--We're watching even more TV.

From Mediaweek:

--American Association of Hispanic Agencies is not pleased with Arbitron.
--Time Inc.-ers! You have one week left to take that buyout offer.
--Is anyone watching new shows from Sony's Crackle.com?
--USA Today looking for 20 volunteers to walk the plank.

From The New York Times:

--Will Sumner Redstone sell off his movie theaters?
--Fox gets rid of Saturday morning cartoons.
--Advertisers starting to give away cold, hard cash.

From The Wall Street Journal:

--First Bailey's campaign from JWT. Subscription required, but a stream of the ad is below.



That's it. The Thanksgiving news slowdown is upon us.

Adverganza's Monday morning picks, 11.24.08

Wherein I scan the Monday morning headlines so you don't have to.

From Advertising Age (couldn't find the cover online, which I know is a massive disappointment):

--A guide to deceased magazines. Personally, I think we can still go on to lead productive, happy lives without Luxury Spa Finder.
--We're still lured by in-store displays.
--Wal-Mart, unlike Motrin, woos the Mommy bloggers.
--This year, your gift card could also be a camera.
--Film at 11! Big Three automakers may cause Madison Avenue to make cuts!
--How Michael Phelps, avowed McDonald's lover, wound up pitching Subway.
--Bob Garfield is pissed at Pepsi for dumping BBDO.
--Chinese ad auction global financial crisis-proof.
--Ben Silverman, good for a lot of things, but not NBC's ratings.
--DraftFCB gets an assignment that lives up to part of its name.
--Watch out for Henry Waxman.
--Yet more dissection of l'affaire Motrin.
--3 Minute Ad Age: See that massive Walgreen's Times Square billboard.

From Adweek:

--DraftFCB, Initiative, Kinetic win MillerCoors media.
--Angela Steele leaves Publicis for The Hyperfactory.
--This Christmas, even the kids are getting scrooged.
--Q&A with new JWT creative chairman for Latin America and Continental Europe, Fernando Vega Olmos.
--Nielsen creeping onto Arbitron's turf.
--Ad of the Day: Awww. It's a down-homey commercial for Musselman's applesauce.

From Brandweek:

--V8 courtin' the old folks. Decided it would be in poor taste to make a joke about this being a dying market, even though it is.
--New spot for T-Mobile's Fave5 featuring Yao Ming. Funny. See below:



--BestBuy getting warm and fuzzy this holiday season, too.

From Mediapost:

--Zero percent financing is back in a big way. Somehow not surprising that Toyota was the only one smart enough to license "Saved by Zero."
--Now, via JC Penney, you can put your s.o. in the doghouse for giving lousy gifts. Not that warm and fuzzy, eh? The doghouse site is here, created by Razorfish.
--The third phase of Sharp's Aquos campaign. Does anyone have the patience for a three-phase campaign anymore.
--What the world needs now is another performance-based ad network.
--Actually, what the world needs now is a public education campaign from Consumer Reports about the perils of debt. And we've got one!
--The AP, Newspaper Guild, plan to cut their staffs.
--ESPN.com asks users to pay up.
--Change.org and MySpace team up to keep the electorate engaged.
--Radio ad revenue down 9 percent last quarter.
--Vijay Ravindran named Washington Post Co.'s chief digital officer.
--Here's a new way to close a magazine, courtesy of SI Latino: say it's on hiatus.

From Mediaweek:

--Will the recession kill the online display ad?
--IGN.com launches a video channel. Guess you can watch when your thumbs get tired.
--NBC's "Crusoe" moves from Fridays to Saturdays, which sounds like the blueprint for a death spiral to me.
--Long-term Wall Street is bullish about the entertainment industry. Personally, I think we will all need some escape from this.
--At least Infiniti is spending; it upped its sponsorship deal with "The Colbert Report."
--Mr. TV discusses really horrible TV shows.
--Video: Marc Berman interviews Gene Simmons. Turns out he's a cock-eyed optimist. Seriously.



--There are also interviews with this year's Mediaweek All-Stars here.

From The New York Post:

--Delta Air Lines can't commit; signs deals with both Mets and Yankees.

From The New York Times:

--Late link: totally forgot to put this in. "Multiscreen Mad Men" interview, in which R/GA's Robert Rasmussen, AKQA's Lars Bastholm and Barbarian Group's Benjamin Palmer give Katie Couric a makeover.
--This year, hold back on the candelabras on the heads.
--All about Mary Berner's Reader's Digest.
--We've already spent about $200 million on "Obamabilia."
--The Kaiser Family Foundation gets into the journalism business.
--Typepad introduces The Typepad Journalist Bailout Program. The name of the program is in upper-lowercase, so it must be real.

From The Wall Street Journal:

--"Twilight" scores more than $70 million in ticket sales. Free.
--Monster, CareerBuilder in Super Bowl ad matchup. Subscription required.
--NFL! In 3D! Yeah, but you will you have to sit in your living room wearing those dopey glasses? Free.

Woo-hoo! Done by 10:15. Have a good day.

Adverganza's Friday morning picks, 11.21.08

Wherein I scan the Friday morning headlines so you can prepare for the weekend.

From Advertising Age:

--Michael Phelps pitches Subway, but Jared, he's not.
--Vhat to do about "Valkyrie."
--No, really, this economy is an opportunity.
--The relationship between Linda Kaplan Thaler and her assistant is much longer than many marriages. I don't wanna know but it's via Forbes.com.
--The growth curve in interactive advertising stops being so much of a curve.
--Management changes at Anheuser-Busch, now, depressingly, a unit of InBev.
--3 Minute Ad Age: Will the alternatively-powered Chevy Volt give new power to GM?

From Adweek:

--Hey, news media junkie, here's your fix: breakingnews.com.
--Wanna pitch Wedgwood?
--Good god no! Crispin sponsors Mr. Internet. See below:



--Check out this guy's faux-hawk. Then ponder that he's moving from R/GA to BBH.
--Ad of the Day: Commercial for Gold's Gyms from McKinney. I could care less since my exercise comes strictly through Pelham Rec.

From Brandweek:

--Kmart the latest store to get cozy again with the layaway.
--The NFL wants you to vote on its Super Bowl ad.
--Buy a video game at 7-Eleven.

From Mediapost:

--Motrin's pain already going away.
--Film at 11! The Organic Trade Association promoting cause of organic food.
--Which book retailer saw its sales drop 4.4 percent in the third quarter?
--Everyone's lovin' the Blackberry Storm.
--400,000 people download the MySpace Blackberry app, a new record.
--T-Mobile gives a thumbs-up to Yahoo mobile search.
--Renegade gets out from under Dentsu.
--In a shocking development, the head of the Versus network doesn't think the NHL would be better off being with ESPN, the much bigger, more powerful network.


From Mediaweek:

--Up with interactive advertising, according to Q3 numbers released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
--NBC News tests your iCue on Facebook.
--Go to the gas pump, see if you're ready for digital TV.
--Two Wall Street analysts downgrade Arbitron stock.
--The AP could lose 10 percent of its staff next year.
--McClatchy numbers suck.

From The New York Post:

--Memo from a disgruntled ex-Time Inc. employee.

From The New York Times:

--The Times cuts its dividend.
--Whatever happened to the Beijing ad bounce?

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Disney duels pirates, but not the ones off the coast of Africa. Free.
--Life & Style, In Touch lower audience promise to advertisers. Subscription required.

Au revoir until next week.

Adverganza's Thursday morning picks, 11.20.08

Wherein I finally get around to scanning the Thursday morning headlines because I went to bed early last night for once.

From Advertising Age:

--Ballmer says he doesn't want Microsoft to marry Google, but he would be willing to fool around with it, in search.
--Logic alert: NIH says "Banning Fast Foods Ads Will Make Kids Less Fat."
--Ad Age's AdMarket 50 stock index hits is as low as it's been since 2000 launch. Intuitively, we knew that, didn't we?
--3 Minute Ad Age: Cable TV industry: there's a lesson in Scion.

From Adweek:

--HP's Technology Solutions Group pitch down to Havas, Omnicom and WPP. In other words, Publicis and Interpublic are out.
--Alphabet soup: OMD wins CBS's media planning and buying.
--Out with Jeff McClelland as CEO of Cliff Freeman; in with Clayton Ruebensaal III.
--Ad of the Day: Welch's Grape Juice gets all academic about polyphenols and stuff. Was above my head except that I guess it's good for you, though I prefer my grapes in wine flavor.

From Brandweek:

--Everything you wanted to know about YouTube Live from its CMO Chris Di Cesare.
--Del Monte fruit strips down in its new campaign. I guess sex sells, even if you're a pineapple.
--Jeffrey Hayzlett named CMO of Eastman Kodak.
--Ziibii, a new social media app for the iPhone.

From Mediapost:

--Despite continued popularity of Barbie, looks like a Nintendo and Disney Christmas to me.
--Speaking of which, Nintendo's Wii Fit the most memorable product of the year.
--Big sale at CVS! And I need to go there this afternoon. Woo-hoo!
--Walgreen's, recent killer of the beloved Thruway Diner in New Rochelle, not to mention the Clam Shell in Littleton, New Hampshire, takes over Times Square with gazillion stories high billboard. Are you happy now? (Outrage partly manufactured.)
--Once again I'm not inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame.
--Your favorite brands, now featured in Facebook's public search listings.
--Make your computer spurt blood.
--Meredith makes minority investment in social site Real Girls Network.
--MRM Worldwide jumps on the offshore production bandwagon.
--Next Yahoo CEO should be into the mobile thing.
--eHarmony opens to gays and lesbians.
--No March boondoggle to Las Vegas for Nielsen clients.
--Nielsen Monitor-Plus says auto ad spending dropped 10 percent in the first half of 2008, and that's before things really went in the shitter.
--Thanks for playing, PC Magazine.

From Mediaweek:

--The Daytime Emmys on cable?
--Another one of those sponsorship deals that's too complicated for me to suss out. Something to do with The Killers, Fuse and the Guitar Hero World Tour.
--Monthly uniques up, time spent on sites down, for newspaper Web sites.
--Arbitron says shift of Clear Channel and Cumulus to Nielsen's new radio research product will cost $10 million in revenue in first year.

From The New York Post:

--Thought they'd done this before, but anyway, Lifetime sues NBC about that "Project Runway" show.

From The New York Times:

--More on that humongoid Walgreen's billboard in Times Square. Guess they'll be a Walgreen's store at the bottom, which, at least, passes the logic test.
--Lengthy discourse on the demise of the print version of PC Magazine.
--The "Twilight" phenomenon. Why do we love vampires so much?

From The Wall Street Journal:

--At least advertising in China is supposed to be up. Subscription required.

Woo. I work faster when I've had a decent amount of sleep. I know that's shocking. Have a good day, which may be possible only by not repeatedly checking the Dow.

More to come ...

Adverganza's Wednesday morning picks, 11.19.08

Wherein I scan the Wednesday morning headlines so you don't have to.

From Advertising Age:

--Do U want ur turkey 2 txt U?
--No one gives a sh*t about "Australia".
--Private equity guy Shaun Holliday joins MPG as CEO; Charlie Rutman will become senior adviser to agency in January.
--Jose Cabaco, chief creative officer of Euro RSCG N.A. for an entire seven months, leaves.
--3 Minute Ad Age: If you're into public body scanning and thermal underwear, on the other hand it's from the Uniqlock people so maybe we should all check it out.

From Adweek:

--OfficeMax tells "Elf Yourself" shops Toy New York and EVB to go f*ck themselves for Christmas this year. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) Hire JibJab to do this year's version.
--Crispin breaks its campaign for Microsoft's Zune. You can see the spot below. It ain't bad, but it ain't no iPod killer, either.



--New media. Good or bad for TV? Discuss.
--Ad of the Day: Disembodied lips sing A-ha's "Take On Me."

From Brandweek:

--New Sony "Green Glove" service installs new TV, recycles old one.
--Speaking of which, Q&A with Jonathan Dodd, exec vp/director of strategy of G2 on green.
--More green. Q&A with Danny Seo, who spearheads J.C. Penney's "light green" program.

From Mediapost:

--We're talking about Kraft, Folgers and Olay.
--UPS is hiring! Via mobile phone.
--Southern Comfort brings you "A Colbert Christmas."
--A full Thanksgiving dinner, with wine, for only $35. It must include Boone's Farm, or buying a bunch of grapes and stomping on them in the tub.
--Nuggnuts.com, an online community, opens to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the McNugget. I'm going there right now!
--Optimists, pessimists converge on the topic of online ad spending.
--But in this study, the optimists win.

From Mediaweek:

--Westwood One will no longer be traded on the NYSE.
--Cooking Light publisher Chris Allen leaves the building.
--Which Spanish language media company had a $3.5 billion loss in the third quarter?
--As expected, ESPN gets the Bowl Championships.
--Life, now on its umpteenth life, launches Life Photo Search with Google.
--Marc Berman's Programming Insider: Looks like CBS will win the week, in part thanks to Barack.

From The New York Post:

--Keith Kelly, grim reaper: 250 to get shown the door at Time Inc. today, magazine group also closes up Cottage Living.

From The New York Times:

--So what becomes of Yahoo now?
--Dr Pepper hires first, um, sports endorser, guy who plays Halo 3. I hear he's got super-strong thumb muscles, on both hands.
--Oops. The AARP has to launch investigation of how its own health plans are marketed.
--Will "Project Runway" ever see a catwalk again?

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Even more speculation on what's to become of Yahoo. Subscription required.
--Google, Procter & Gamble employees temporarily swap jobs. Subscription required, but get a copy of it if you don't have one.
--Publicis buy Tribal. (It's a digital agency, but it's not Tribal DDB). Subscription required.
--Another talking stain ads from Tide. The video is below.



Ok gang. See ya later.

Adverganza's Tuesday morning picks, 11.18.08

Wherein I scan as many of the Tuesday morning headlines as I can before having to fulfill other commitments.

From Advertising Age:

--Pepsi, well, cans BBDO giving the business to sister shops TBWA/Chiat/Day and Arnell. Andrew Robertson may be crying in his cola, but not John Wren.
--Procter & Gamble's Ted McConnell says about advertising in social media: ""What in heaven's name made you think you could monetize the real estate in which somebody is breaking up with their girlfriend?"
--Surprisingly detailed analysis of the Motrin baby-wearing ad controversy, given that Ad Age did this in less than a day.
--Anheuser-Busch's vp/global media and sports marketing, Tony Ponturo, retires.
--3 Minute Ad Age: Nestle Waters CEO is pissed off at the demonization of bottled water.

From Adweek:

--Adweek's take on the shift of Pepsi out of BBDO.
--Didya hear that Jerry Yang is no longer CEO at Yahoo?
--George Hayes, IPG settle age discrimination lawsuit.
--Since I gave rather short shrift to the Adweek 30th issue yesterday, here are a few more links.
--Who is influential now.
--Barbara Lippert's three greatest campaigns of the last 30 years. You'll have to click here to find out.
--How technology has changed brand story-telling.
--Mark Dolliver on the "cultural Botox" that has left pop culture about where it was 30 years ago.

From Brandweek:

--Perception of private-label brands catching up to so-called "name" brands since, like, uh, they're cheaper, and cheap is in!
--Order Domino's Pizza via TiVo. Heaven.

From Mediapost:

--Black Friday, Cyber Monday, will be no big deal say CMOs. We knew that already, didn't we?
--Lowe's, Target, also feel the pain.
--Pentax tries to lure new camera enthusiasts.
--DeBeers says it will double U.S. ad spending. God knows why.
--New Levi's women's jean, called Ultimate Lift. Sounds like a bra.
--Online ad market sucking to a greater extent than we thought says Citi analyst. Maybe they're just all feeling a little bit glass empty over there these days.
--Things really smell over at AOL.
--Enfatico hires former imc (squared) exec David Shulman as chief digital officer.

From Mediaweek:

--Forbes cans 43 people in integrating its print and online sales and marketing staffs.
--Fox opts out of bidding on the Bowl Championship games. It's all yours ESPN!
--Zenith Optimedia radio guru Matt Feinberg leaves as part of new layoff round.
--Obama interview gives "60 Minutes" its highest ratings in years. Maybe he can save the economy just by showing up on TV.
--Yahoo Telemundo site shuts down.

From The New York Post:

--More, more, more Jerry Yang.
--Keith Kelly, bearer of bad news: in addition to Forbes, layoffs at TV Guide, and Play, the Times' sports magazine goes the way of the stegosaurus.
--Maybe DeBeers isn't nuts: high-end jewelers opening up on Madison Avenue.

From The New York Times:

--The definitive story about the BBDO/Pepsi split, featuring picture of Britney Spears on a surfboard.
--Nielsen starts to listen to radio.
--Oh, right, Jerry Yang is out as CEO at Yahoo.

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Another Pepsi/BBDO story. This time featuring picture of Cindy Crawford. Subscription required, but you know the story.
--More on that pesky Motrin ad. Subscription required.
--Did you hear about Jerry Yang? Free.

Gotta run! I'm late for exercise class!

Anatomy of Motrin's PR disaster

OK, let's get today's Motrin controversy out of the way. (Well, I guess it started this weekend, but I wasn't wearing my baby, who now weighs just under 45 pounds; we were cleaning the house.) Although there are about 400 links one could choose from to outline the controversy, I'll do it for you here in three simple visuals. One, the ad about "baby-wearing" that got a lot of mothers tied up in their Baby Bjorns:



The offending ad, probably not conceived (forgive the pun) by a mother, was from Taxi NYC. Now, here's one of the many YouTube responses about the ad, a nine-minute montage, mainly consisting of tweets expressing outrage about the ad, to the strains of, inexplicably, "Ol' Danny Boy." (Watch about 45 seconds, and I assure you, you'll get the point.)



Finally, the letter that was posted sometime today on the Motrin Web site:











I'll admit I don't really know what to make of all this since this silly little ad isn't the kind of thing that gets me all excited, even as the mother of the two greatest children in the world. Someone poisoning the Tylenol? Now that's a problem. Was the Motrin ad snarky? Hell, yeah. But the angry response to it seems out of line with what it represented. Had it not rained all weekend--at least on the east coast--would the outcry have been more muted because more of us Moms would have been at the playground instead of hanging out on Twitter? Maybe what Motrin is learning here, and what other marketers will as well, is just what can happen when you put production and distribution tools in the hands of everybody. When everybody gets mad, they don't know when to stop.

Adverganza's Monday morning picks, 11.17.08

Wherein I scan the Monday morning headlines so you don't have to.

From Advertising Age:

--How, precisely, the collapse of Detroit would suck for agencies and media companies.
--Old Spice vs. Axe, if grooming products aimed at male teenagers is your gig.
--BBH branches out into vegetarian meals and personal alarms.
--You should still care about Yahoo.
--All about addressable advertising. Pipe dream or a way to use pipes to fulfill a dream? Whoa, calm down, Adverganza.
--Reckitt Benckiser rocks.
--The Association of Magazine Editors tries to honor the advertising/edit divide, while one unidentified editor says, "I could give a fuck about ASME." Ouch.
--Retailers get ready for a lousy little Christmas.
--Even if you're not yet out of the magazine business, maybe it's time to get out of the magazine business.
--Awww. We still no how to give.
--We're eating more cereal. Don't think that's a good thing.
--Film at 11! We're going to drink less bubbly this holiday season!
--Bob Garfield gives Honeyshed one pitiful star.

From Adweek:

--Adweek's 30th anniversary package. Who's been influential, best ads of the last 30 years, and so forth.
--Video to celebrate Adweek's 30th, featuring interviews with WPP CEO Martin Sorrell, TBWA Chiat/Day's Lee Clow, Cliff Freeman, more.
--What you don't know about your target's media consumption habits.
--Six finalists in Levi's creative review, if you care.
--Donovan Data Systems and Interpublic renew their deal.
--Buzzmaker Crispin gets the assignment for Microsoft's Zune, which could be, well, intriguing, as the Zune has just about no buzz.
--BMW of North America dealers to Grey West.
--Gap's Christmas campaign .... Dixie Chicks plus Sandra Bernhard ... other weird celebrity juxtapositions ... see below or ... click here ... via Laird & Partners.



From Brandweek:

--It's a bird, it's a plane, it's superfruit.
--New Tic Tac packaging. Thrilling.
--Mercedes gets ready to start a new online community.
--Target gets bloggers to go mobile for Christina Aguilera CD launch.

From Mediapost:

--SunTrust's "Live Solid. Bank Solid" tag is a sign of the times.
--Consumerism is dead. Long live causism.
--Speaking of which, a new online magazine for "people who want to live well and do good deeds."
--Interview with About.com chief Cella Irvine.
--Thanks for playing, ForbesAutos.com.
--AT&T a backer of a new privacy thinktank: the Future of Privacy Forum.
--Citadel, Emmis and Clear Channel sign up for radio audience measurement in real-time.
--Despite their combative ad campaigns, telcos, cable companies and satellite companies are starting to actually selling ads together.
--Call for a six-month moratorium on new billboards in L.A.
--



From Mediaweek:

--Scatter for sports in Q4 kind of lacking in that demand thing.
--Which two publishing companies laid off staff late last week?
--The online video shakeout is upon us.
--Cable advertising is still happenin' as NCC does $1 billion in sales.
--The TVB wants live-plus-three.
--Former Rolling Stone publisher Ray Chelstowski to run new luxury magazine. In this economy, good luck.

From The New York Post:

--Yeah, TV development budgets are down too.

From The New York Times:

--If you read my blog, you know this already: Michelle Obama wears J. Crew.
--The National Review discovers that online discourse can get nasty.
--Say "Au Revoir" to "TRL."
--Epoch Films sprouts Dandelion to tell stories about brands. You mean, like, "Once upon a time there was a brand ... "?
--Despite ad cutbacks, there will be no shortage of people walking around wearing logos.

From The Wall Street Journal:

--Will the economic downturn finally kill off the yellow pages? Subscription required.
--James Bond flick takes in over $70 million this weekend. Free.
--Pirates are ripping off Blu-Ray. Subscription required.
--Home Depot launches Spanish version of its Web site. Subscription required.
--Reed Elsevier CEO Gerard van de Aast to leave company. Subscription required.

That's it for today.