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Custom made Kinect game for Swedbank bonus program

2012-01-14T21:01:00.004+02:00

So proud of my team. Our client got a custom made X Box Kinect game to promote its bonus program campaign in shopping centres. Simple hand movement triggered the ball-game that reflected the easiness of collecting bonus points while just paying with any Swedbank debit or credit card.

If you understand Estonian or use Google translate, look also here, to learn more about how it came to life.

A video to illustrate the game:

Potato Chip Machine

2011-11-25T19:29:00.001+02:00

And the stupidest media-usage award goes to…

2011-09-08T12:09:00.009+03:00

CitySpa. Congrats. Really, what were you thinking by buying a spread in local women's magazine and placing two ads in the row. Two logos, two slogans. Two different USP s. Please decide what you want to say and say it out clearly with confidence. Do not try to say it all out in a way that screams we have money, but we re stupid and can’t decide what to do. So we just buy media.

The OD caught my attention even before that print disaster on the magazine and I was tempted to photograph it, as it was so senseless, absurd and absolutely unintelligent, considering the fact that they position themselves as an elite gym and spa. The crème de la crème. Good luck in the future. At least it is entertaining to follow their attempts.

Chip-vinyl-book

2011-09-07T20:26:00.002+03:00

Something inspiring from National Library of Estonia. They published a collection from the covers of vinyl records. Rarities for music junkies and nostalgic pieces for every Estonian. Beautifully composed collection is published in a book and an e-book. Designed by Maile Tali. I’m especially excited about the design for the e-book memory stick. Cute and smart.

E-book differs from the paper-back mostly by the function that finding an desire item you want to get acquainted more deeply, it brings you the the library environment to see if the piece is available for rental and where you can find it.

One step further would be if the audio tracks would be available for a listening as well, but that is another era I hope they will reach soon.

Don't drink'n'swim

2011-06-09T16:09:00.007+03:00

Finally something totally brilliant from my home country. The Estonian Rescue Board made a campaign to prevent people going to swim while drinking. So they found that the best way is to alert their friends to look after them. The viral-campaign’s main message is that any method for stopping your drunk friend from going to water, is a good method. I think they have nailed the target group pretty good as well.

Method no 68 – Give wrong directions

Method no 18 – Lure them to the bushes

Method no 2 – Glue them

Planking

2011-06-09T01:22:00.004+03:00

The new generation of young people are considered to be, among other great things, pretty convenient and lazy. Their look of life is that all the fame and fortune should come in an instant and pay check to be relevantly high on their first job. And what do they do on their spare time when they want to be creative, besides video games? Check out planking. Ridiculous, but has it’s own charm and as you can see, is addictive to older generations as well:

Relevance through-the-line

2011-06-02T22:14:00.004+03:00

Audi’s representative in Estonia, Reval Auto’s marketing manager has pointed out that they are identifying themselves as sporty, innovative and prestigious. What kind of previously mentioned values do tea bags carry on?

Here is a gift found from our car after the service. Thank you indeed. Considering the target group they are aiming for and what they are charging, tea bags do not pull the trigger. Perhaps washing the car or even just the windscreen would lift the mood. But this did not happen!

Donate a word

2011-05-29T23:03:00.004+03:00

As a keen admirer of unconventional ideas, media usage and boldness, this is the idea I had to love.

Purple is the new black

2011-05-18T15:05:00.006+03:00

Some pics made from my drive home. Apparently all the marketers who have read Seth Godin’s “Purple Cow” decided to act now. Only forgetting the “cow” part and concentrating on the "purple".

Universal wrappers

2011-03-16T15:22:00.005+02:00

In the web there are cleaver things. Something for the crosswords lovers. A word for every occasion… well almost. See yourself:

Innovation through innovation

2011-03-10T16:10:00.001+02:00

I should call my blog “Cool phone apps blog” as this post again is about one cool app made for smart phones. Volkswagen shows innovation through innovation. Smart.

Let the game begin

2011-03-09T14:56:00.005+02:00

Here is one very nice use of smart-phone capabilities. If I would be younger and had more free time I would totally love games like this. It’s an upgrade to the oh so popular GPS games used around here. And it’s branded. Total brand involvement.

Even better would be if it would be done in the style on The Game movie, launched more than decade ago, but still carries an idea how to excite and suprise.

And what a nice business idea to do personalized adventures in a smart-phone platform. For workshops, team-building events, personal suprises and message delivering etc. Dream, dream, dream.

Making taking my money easier.

2011-01-30T12:02:00.005+02:00

I have good memories of my Hong Kong years. Vibrant, busy, innovative city with very short people and my wallet being lighter and easier to carry. Not like now, just having accepted Euro with all those numerous coins. It was thanks to one simple card.

Octopus card is a rechargeable contactless stored value smart card used to transfer electronic payments in Hong Kong. To say it more simply it’s a card, with what you go close to a certain electronized area and the purchase/identification is made. I used it mainly for public transport, but quickly it became a secure mean for payments in supermarkets, cafes, fast food restaurants, vending machines etc. At that time I took it as a natural part of Asian developed society and enjoyed the benefits of it. Now doing some research: 95 % of Hong Kong citizens aged 16-65 are using it everyday, generating over 11 million transactions worth over 12.8 million USD a day. Wow.

A week ago Strabucks launched a free Starbucks card app for iPhone, iPod Touch and Blackberry owners. This not only enables to pay with their smartphones for the purchase, but also add money to their cards, check balance, locate stores and earn reward stars for free drinks. It works very simply, you just give your phone for a second to the cashier and she/he accesses a bar code on the screen, wipes out a scanner and hands you with your order. Easy. In the era when companies are trying their hardest to outsmart the competitors with new apps, this is actually the one that generates extra value for the Starbucks and is useful at the same time. It’s a win-win for both sides.

So now, being an Estonian and having been introduced to Mobile ID, which allows us to access our bank accounts and digitally sign documents, I believe that there is some more effort to be made. Please combine the idea form octopus card, Starbucks app and Mobile ID and give me a smartphone app, which allows me to pay with my phone, check my balance, locate businesses accepting this app and earn bonus. Estonia is very small, just like Hong Kong, so ideal for a test environment to develop systems like that. I believe that this dream comes true just like this one did as the know how and the demand excists.

Save as .wwf, save a tree.

2010-12-06T19:34:00.007+02:00

So simple, yet brilliant. Out of the box thinking. WWF created a new file format that is in collaboration with the essence of their organization. This new file format .wwf does not allow you to print out the material on that particular file, in order to avoid unnecessary printing. This software is free for downloading for everybody. You can do it here.

Japan gives me shivers

2010-12-05T11:56:00.004+02:00

Good conversations lead to interesting findings. This is not science fiction, this is really happening. This is a virtual anime diva Hatsume Miku, whose voice has been generated with Vocaloid, a computer program developed by Yamaha. She is designed to be a 16-year-old girl and has released many popular singles in Japan. That’s not all folks. Previous stuff did not impress me. The real intrigue comes from the fact that she is giving LIVE concerts to a live audience. And people are just simply going nuts to go and see her. She is being projected as a dynamic hologram that brings her virtually into life. Check it out here:

As crazy as it may sound, here is one more act that leads conservative ATL marketers into a heart attack. The developers have given the brand a possibility to grow with the help of the fan-base and released software that enables the fans to create their own Hatsume Miku songs. Now they have released already additional software that features different tones of Miku’s voice – Soft (gentle, delicate voice), Sweet (young voice), Dark (mature, heartbroken-like voice), Vivid (bright, cheerful voice), Solid (loud, clear voice), and Light (innocent, heavenly voice). Also there is available the MikuMikuDance freeware! program, that helps to produce 3D animations for the character. And the story goes on…

It gives me shivers, what kind of possibilities this creates for the marketers in the near future.

Dunlop tyres – Feel the road

2010-11-07T21:42:00.006+02:00

All my male reader please pardon this post, but I just need to express my womanly opinion. My ride home from work takes 20 minutes. Although there is some construction work going on, it's pretty regular road, considering Estonian road conditions. Yesterday, after coming home, saw a TVC advertising Dunlop tyres. Their international slogan and the slogan also used in this ad was “Feel the road”. I imagine that this was meant the way that this gives bigger control for the driver, the driver can read the car and the road better and lets to enjoy the ride every inch with those tyres. Put please dear advertisers, consider the local road conditions. I do not want to feel the road, as there are holes big as lakes in some country. If I would liked to feel the road I would buy a sports car with proper sports suspension. The ones who buy a sports car in Estonia, are forced to sell it after a short while, because it destroys healthy bone structure and loosens some skrews in their heads. We are not living in Italy or US where the roads are smooth and comfortable. You can actually loose a tyre in the Estonian bumpy roads. So in Estonia “Feel the road” does not equal a comfortable and secure drive.

Perhaps I should buy a plane.

Vacuum cleaners made from the plastic waste collected from The Baltic Sea

2010-10-30T13:47:00.014+03:00

Here is a textbook example of cause marketing. A brilliant example.

Vacuum cleaners are made for cleaning and to make that extra clear, Electrolux took the idea of cleaning into a higher level and decided to collect plastic waste from the world's major oceans and seas, so they could raise public awareness that plastic waste is polluting vulnerable marine habitats and produce a limited number of vacuum cleaners out of the plastic they gathered.

Here is their vacuum cleaners collection made out of plastic derbies:

From left to right: North Sea Edition, Indian Ocean Edition, Medittareanen Sea Edition, Pacific Ocean Edition, Baltic Sea Edition.

The global reach of this project is remarkable, as even me, who lives in a small place called Estonia, is touched by it, as my home country runs alongside the Baltic Sea. Although the waste gatherings were made in Poland, Latvia and Sweden it still rings my bell more, than to hear that someone gathered plastic waste form the Indian Ocean.

Read more about the plastic gatherings and recycling from here and watch the video to illustrate their cause:

Although it's one-time action as we are dealing with the limited edition here, it is still a very smart, simple and inspiring idea. And please note that the pretty vacuum cleaner are not for sale. They are made for making a point. You can buy a piece from their Green Range called Ultraone.

While selecting my country from the webpage, as it forced me to read swedish, I was amazed by the countries list. There was no Estonia, there was European Union. This page did not open. And there were Latvia and Lithuania, but no Estonia. And to my big suprize there was a country called Soviet Union, which to my knowledge stopped from existing 1991. See it yourself from here.

Mouth propaganda

2010-10-27T12:11:00.005+03:00

The answer to my last blog post is not TV, newspaper ads or direct mail. These seemed like wallpaper. I shut my sensors off and did not notice them. The reach and reliability of these messages is not what a marketer dreams of. Not any more.

I analyzed what were the messages that reached me, during this dark time of no internet and the only ones that really affected me were simple recommendations. From friends and family. This is no new revelation. For centuries there has been recommendation letters for recruitment and then there were bibles like "The Tipping Point" and "Buzzmarketing". Online marketing platforms use them, catalogues use them etc. but it is fascinating that mechanically forced recommendations do not work anymore. If a friend sends me an e-mail recommending me to go to a spa or buy a new and better frying pan - I delete the mail. It is already spam for me. It does not matter it came from a friend.

If my relatives and friends discuss over dinner-table that SEB and Swedbank are no good anymore for pension fond portfolio management, and they are moving over to LHV, although they take bigger fee, then this is what I want for my brand. I did not notice the TV ads LHV was running, but I immediately started to think, if the information came from people close to me.

It seems like a spontaneous talk, that cultivated during dinner chit-chat. But was it really? LHV has lately very vigorously spread into ATL and we can see that taking over pension fonds is their goal of the year. And they have invested in it. I'm anxiously waiting for the results as luckily these are measurable. So is it really possible to create massive WOM without ATL support?

Here is a nice graph by Nielsen to make the trust levels very clear. Basically now people believe the talk of the stranger more than TV ads or brand websites. That's the power of online forums. The power of free speech.

To make the merger of business and anthropology make wonders, keep in mind the core principle. You have to earn peoples trust to be effective. The closer/ must respected the recommendation source is to you, the better it works. Please also note that if I see a friend recommending me something every day, it is wallpaper. If I see it once a year, I take it as gold, depending how close/ reliable the person is to me.

The key is to create outstanding experiences in the first place. If the product/ service is not outstanding, then there is no reason to buzz about it. If it is outrageously outstanding then the word will spread around organically, if not, then ATL support is needed, to spread to masses. There is no suits-all solution for all brands and every brand should find out the solution best for their brand.

Three weeks without Internet.

2010-10-21T22:04:00.005+03:00

I consider myself the biggest internet addict I know. I work, consume information, prepare for school, communicate with friends and family, run my everyday errands like banking, shopping, vacation planning and etc. via Internet. And now due to some changes I had to manage without it.

What a shock.

I thought it will be liberating, but was it really? What did I learn? Work – absolutely not possible to manage. Luckily I had a vacation and no harm done, if not to consider some personal projects.

Information came mainly via TV and not in the amount and shape I’m used to. I am used to create my own information flow in the internet, so I consume only the information I’m truly interested in. So not completely satisfied with the local news, as it’s not tailored according to my needs. Although if there would be a hurricane, earth quake or some other major disaster I should know of, I would know and I would not die.

I was totally cut out from social communication as I manage it via msn, Facebook and e-mails, as I’m from the new era of communication and instead of meeting my friends, I tend to communicate electronically. I’m not used to pick up the phone and ask “Hey, what’s up, how you’re doing?”, what’s worse, actually get dressed and visit someone instead of calling. I do it from time to time, but not on the regular basis. So now I get sms-s and calls inquiring “are I still alive?”. As for the known quote: if you’re not online, you do not exist.

There is also one institution who thought there is something wrong. My home bank, because my regular payments were not on time. I dragged myself to the bank office and made my payments manually via payment machine, which was a first time experience for me. Pleasant luckily. It was very easy to handle.

As for the vacation planning, it was a total failure. How do you book something if you do not know how it looks and what is said about it in the forums. How do I know if the price-range is reasonable or is there a room for negotiations? I can handle some background checking via phone in Estonia, but if my interests are behind the national border? How do people without internet travel at all? I do not understand. They look at some packaged offer from the newspaper ad and read from the encyclopedia what the main attractions are? What if I’m into fine dining or extreme tourism? I should then totally rely on the travel agency and that robbes away my independence. Or I can just hit the road and see what tomorrow brings… which is a nice option, but not always. Especially if you plan to travel with kids.

Anyways living without internet in the longer run is expensive. Your choice is limited and the effort made, to consume, bigger. Also the phone bill.

There are still many families who run their everyday lives without internet. My dad for example. I still wonder how he manages all his errands so well. Although I have to admit, the life tempo is from another dimension and comparable to geese migration speed. As a marketer it triggers, how to reach those households, without internet. There in an answer. About it in my next post.

Brainwashed by Disney

2010-10-21T01:23:00.008+03:00

Being a parent, Disney, as a brand, is part of my everyday life. We have different Disney channels via satellite, most of our DVD selection is Disney produced, the kid’s playroom is, let’s say, accompanied with „a few“ Disney books and toys. Trip to Disneyland is a dream, which will come true eventually, as she is very persuasive. And she is only five. She is brand-washed and she loves it. I do not mind. I like Disney as well, as I find it safe, educating, entertaining and I still continiously refuse to grow up. The whole concept is so well targeted and continuously wholesome that it is inspiring, and I let it happen in front of my very own eyes.

If a kid finishes watching a Disney fairytale cartoon on DVD, there are so called extras. which run automatically. These are fully packed with brand conscious materials, which are truly inspiring. There are people behind the hard work, sparkles in their eyes, telling how they made one frame like… 30 days until it was perfect. There are gardeners from the Disneyworld who are talking about the passionate effort they made to build this dream land just for the joy of making it. They have captured the essence that drives kids. Joy of creating something, just because it is fun and makes you feel good. And they sell it good. What an industry.

Disney channels run neo-Disney programs mixed with some traditional programs. But definitely is Disney not resting in its glory. It’s conquering new horizons. Hanna Montana for example and etc. Please look at those pictures made few years ago by Anne Leibovitz, which is an advertising campaign letting people know that Disney is old and safe combined with new and exciting. Lovely pictures.

Scarlett Johannson as Cinderella

David Beckham as Prince Phillip from Sleeping Beauty

Jennifer Lopez as Jasmine and Marc Anthony as Alladin

Roger Federer as King Arthur

Jessica Biel as Pocahontas

Rachel Weisz as Snow White

See the whole photo series from here.

Man's nightmare

2010-09-29T23:30:00.007+03:00

The nightmare of every boy or a man. Underwear as a present. Does not matter how good these ads are. Underwear as a present is a very bad idea. Seriously.

Click on the image to see the fine print.

Small remark: so good it's vice versa, if it comes to women.

Copycats vs Parallel Geniuses

2010-09-10T12:11:00.006+03:00

Yesterday evening I received a call from a journalist who had noticed that the ads Taevas has made for a Raadio Uuno's morning program were extremely similar to the ads made by Miami Art School for Red Bull. You can read the article from here. Use Google translate, if not Estonian.

That’s true, they do use the same technique. This is not some rocket science originality, I admit, but these ads have very well served the purpose they were supposed to and lifted the awareness of Raadio Uunos new morning program. Mission completed. Not so good for the agency, as who wants to be called copycats anyway.

But this case is really interesting. These things happen. All over the world. Parallel geniuses. Thinking the same thoughts. Without knowing about the existence of the others.

Please check out this blog, which has dedicated itself for revealing shameless copycats and exposing just unfortunate coincidences. I’ ll take the privilege to copy some of those revelation into my blog. Please enjoy:

The art of recruitment

2010-09-01T18:54:00.003+03:00

Finding the employees that fit the company’s profile and expectations can be a struggle. I’ve seen some well targeted and composed recruitment ads (like this), but nothing I’ve seen before is comparable to this genius act done in here.

Their main goal was to find an accountant that was more attentive than others and in order to find one, they transferred 1 euro into the competitive ad agencies accounts using the posting line for the job ad.

As you can see from the site, they found what they were looking for.

Estonian Next Top Model

2010-08-10T10:40:00.006+03:00

New Estonian Top Model has born. Last year he did the campaign for Statoil, promoting environmentally friendly carwash and now, all over Estonia, you can witness this amazingly well posed, at ease look he is promoting for this package recycling campaign.

I loved the Statoil ad, as the frog was earning a higher purpose and fitted perfectly into the context. But this package recycling campaign is not really my cup of tea. As from the funny faces in the packages I assume that this is directed to children and the message is clear and well directed, then why is the frog in the picture? This particular frog happens to be in the RED LIST in many countries, but not in Estonia. Estonian kids would have better related to some animal they have fallen in love already. Like this lovely animal, actually living in Estonia and who is in the dangered animals listing.

Perhaps this is a call to think globally, as the globe in his hand refers to. This should be injected to small children at the early age, I agree. But why this iStock frog. Why?

Ok, I’m just jealous, that my time as a supermodel has passed and frogs are taking over.

The art of good casting

2010-08-03T17:30:00.004+03:00

Simple and over-used idea, but I simply just love the casting. Watch until the end.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-28T03:48:00.000+03:00

Crew Uniform Update

2010-06-04T21:09:00.010+03:00

Estonian national airline, Estonian Air, has initiated an online voting for finding the best possible uniform for the flight crew. I like the idea, that Estonian Air is taking measures to become more close to the customers and shows that they care about what the client wants. They have already initiated a complimentary snack and beverage offering program for economy class flights and this Crew Uniform Update competition is only second in their list of ten of becoming more pleasant and comfortable flight operator. Impatiently waiting for the next steps.

Although Estonians are considered a little bit conservative, airline companies are in a desperate need for good reputation building/ maintenance and the weather in here is constantly bad, what’s up with those granny vs. Mary Poppins looks? As Ryan Air has proved numerous times that bad reputation is increasing their profit, then here are some good examples of making people click on your advertisement, in the longer run buy tickets to long distance flights or … loose all family reservations.

Please note that the votes people give, count only 33 %, so this is not a “choosing the best uniform” contest. This is “we pretend to care” image campaign. Good thought though, as the majority does not read fine print and press releases, so probably they will get their way with this one.

Slogans speak up

2010-05-24T22:47:00.000+03:00

As regular recruitment ads are just boring for ad agencies nowadays, it is fun and inspiring to watch how one agency, speaking the language of slogans, makes a point. This recruitment video is made to hire a copywriter to Memac Ogilvy Dubai and actually makes sense. Luckily the idea shines further than the bad acting.

Tyrannybook

2010-05-09T11:34:00.005+03:00

Amnesty International Portugal and Leo Burnett Iberia launched Tyrannybook, a social network that aims to generate a global consciousness about the world leaders who violate human rights the most.

The page itself is a Facebook look-a-like, made in co-operation with Facebook, only using an aggressive red to stress out the cause of this action.

Users can follow the leaders they are the most interested about and the users will be updated about the faults committed by those leaders against human rights. The updates to the tyrants’s profiles will be made by the Amnesty International and also by the users.

As the site acts like a limited version of the Facebook, there is possible to create groups, events, uploads videos, pictures etc.

Although all the information is available in the internet this is the way creating awareness among the Facebook generation, as now the information is wrapped up in the way that they have used to consume information and made easier to understand.

Now the only thing to do, is to wait, until the tyrants destroy the page, which would be the biggest dream of AI’s publicists.

Vacation pictures found a new home.

2010-04-28T15:25:00.002+03:00

For those who love taking photos and always have trouble with sharing i.e. vacation pictures or any other (baby, weddings, birthday-party, nature etc), Trip Advisor launched a new photo-sharing platform called Trip Wow.

You can actually make a movie-like interactive slideshow, which looks good and you can stop it or zoom in any time you like. The coolest feature is the sharing option. You can embed it to your website, blog, send via email or share in Facebook, Twitter, MySpace etc. Only thing missing in my opinion is the commenting feature.

Here is a nice slideshow from the Great Flood in Soomaa during this spring. Welcome to Estonia:

This travel slideshow of Aivar Ruukel’s trip to Parnu was created by TripAdvisor on Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 12:50pm UTC.

Monton on the right track

2010-04-22T10:17:00.003+03:00

Here’s a very good example how Estonian fashion brand Monton has captured the essence of the social media and realized that it is all about two-way communication.

My homebank's new imago

2010-04-21T21:55:00.004+03:00

Hard times in banking, so during the renovating period a hairdressing saloon was opened in SEB branch located in a shopping mall. Wider the area of expertise, bigger the client coverage.

Ok, that’s not quite true. I love my homebank and was very surprised to see this SEB branch turned into a hair saloon last night. Unwillingly and caused by pure boredom I assume.

Here’s a little recommendation. While renovating, please use curtains or do it overnight. Otherwise all those fancy image campaigns do not pay off.

Still, if they finish renovating, i’m hoping for free head massages while waiting for my number. That would be something to remember and buzz about !

Pixels are taking over

2010-04-14T17:46:00.002+03:00

I love the idea and production.

So sweet.

2010-04-12T16:01:00.001+03:00

This ad invites you to personalize your own M&M candies and do it online.

How to start a movement.

2010-04-08T10:55:00.002+03:00

As said in this presentation: If you really care about starting a movement, have the courage to follow and show others how to follow.

Spring sales are here!

2010-04-07T11:11:00.002+03:00

Spring sales are here. Everybody is screaming louder than the others. As my everyday path to the office goes through the main shopping centers in Tallinn, Viru keskus and Kaubamaja, then I had the pleasure to witness the madness this morning myself. Usually I rush through it, but today this beautiful girl caught my eyes. She was telling me where to travel in the serene and relaxing tone. Inside the shopping madness and people with determined eyesight rushing toward the cashiers, she was just glowing. Actually, she was a moving picture and projected to the plexiglas figure, voice coming from speakers. But look at the good signs. She never gets tired, never needs to use the toilet and is always glowing. More - the pictures in her hand are moving to illustrate her words. Just a ray of sunshine inside this gray and rainy day.

Insights from Password 2010 vol.2

2010-04-05T09:10:00.004+03:00

Today I’m talking about Johan Ronnenstam’s speech in Password 2010. First of all: he was outstanding on the stage. Now to the less important matters.

He had a very liberated way of thinking. Should send him to brainwash large monster companies to let go from stamp-thinking what to do and what not to do.

For ages there has been belief that all the traffic related to your company should be inside your own web frames. So you could control it. Better write a blog in your company platform, share news, manage comments and post videos. But today you have to be where your fans are. And if fans are not coming to you, you can go to them. Anyway, why to pay for a web platform if it’s been already invented and working.

You can build your brand in different channels like YouTube, Facebook, Flicker, Wordpress, Wikipedia etc. and manage all the channels not killing your brand but expanding it. As these are the places where the eyes of your fans are. Still you need to provide value to get traffic and conversation, as the media only is not buying peoples eyes.

Another brilliant thought was about compromising/interesting information. If you happen to possess something valuable and you think others could find it interesting as well, do not run with it to the newspaper and get paid peanuts. Invest. Share it to all your friends via social media, you get more responds and in the longer run you DO get your money.

He was fascinated by this guy, Gary Vaynerchuk, doing Wine Library TV in his basement 5 days a week. Let’s face it. He is quite a handful to watch. Wine has really got into him and the charisma really shines through the screen. Check him out. The whole concept is actually so outstanding, that he deserves his own blog post someday.

I’m still waiting for the Best Marketing to publish the answers to the questions asked during the conference from the speakers and were not answered on the stage. If somebody sees them answered, let me know.

Insights from Password 2010 vol.1

2010-03-27T08:33:00.008+02:00

Last week I attended Password 2010 marketing conference that is the biggest and the most important marketing event in Estonia triumphing with the annual advertising awards ceremony Golden Egg. Firstly I’m going to talk about Andy Milligan’s speech about how to build strong brands.

His main message was that a brand has to be simple and memorable to succeed. In order to understand the brand essence it has to be clear even to those who are not bright or determined enough to read the brand diagrams in the main office. As the brand diagrams are complicated to fulfil and usually only those who created it fully understand it. Others simply just do not get it. The brand has to be delivered so everybody can understand it. Ok, that I could have read from the book and probably have already.

When talking about memorability he talked about the Ryan Air who according to research has the worst customer service ever, smallest seat space etc. But the sales are up. Is it because their flights are cheap, their baggage lost rate is significantly lower than in British Airways or is it just the fact that Ryan Air just gets you safely and memorably to the destination. The worst customer service pegged with low prices has given Ryan Air the face that’s hard to forget and that’s what is needed to make a strong brand. Good point.

The most fascinating thing I discovered from his speech was a site called daytum.com. This is a site where you can collect, categorize and communicate your everyday data. Everyday data basically means how much you sleep, eat, drink etc. It lets you track almost everything you do. The clean-cut and simple design makes it easy and pleasant to consume. My need for control is not on that level yet that I would sign up, put see what you can do with it, if you decide to sign up. For free.

For example you can track down how much did you really work today:

How many hours you spent on meetings:

When did you have your last drink:

What have you eaten?

Good things come to those who wait.

2010-03-20T22:29:00.010+02:00

Last night Taevas Ogilvy won the title “Agency of the Year”.

The giant teeth of Kliinik 32 I talked about a while ago got the prizes they deserved among 15 other prizes. The results of "Kuldmuna" advertising awards are posted here. I'm so happy, excited and still smiling that the people I love so much, got what they deserve and now it's official that we... have to work harder than ever to keep up the reputation. If I have recovered from the after-party and back on the ground with my two feet (long way to go), I’ll post some insights from the Password 2010 conference.

The song of the century

2010-03-16T16:48:00.009+02:00

Here is a really deep and mind-blowing musical piece of art.

Listen the masterpiece HERE. And all sing along:

Make The Logo Bigger (Lyrics)

Make the logo big.
Make the logo bigger.
Make the logo big.
Make the logo bigger.

Chorus
Make the logo as big as you can.
And make the logo bigger.

That logo isn't big enough.
So, make the logo bigger.
Bigger, bigger, make it big.
Make the logo bigger.

Chorus
Make the logo as big as you can.
And make the logo bigger.

Yelling
Don't try to be the brave guy!
We don't have a job for you!
You know what you've got to do!
You gotta stick to the process!
Make the damn logo as big as you can!

Chorus
Make the logo as big as you can.
And make the logo bigger.

I don't want to tell you how to do your job.
But, could you make the logo bigger?
Bigger, bigger, make it big.
Make the logo bigger.

Chorus
Make the logo as big as you can.
And make the logo bigger.

What it takes to be a good designer?

2010-03-16T11:54:00.014+02:00

To understand better how people work, it is recommended to use Myers-Briggs Indicator.

Jung Myers-Briggs Type Indicator documents 16 personality types based on four categories: Extroversion vs. Introversion, Intuiting vs. Sensing, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perceiving. ISFJ is said to be the perfect personality if you wish to be a designer.

According to Myers-Briggs Indicator designers are believed to be:

Introverted – likes to work alone, seeks to understand the world, prefers depth over breadth
Sensing – trusts facts and data, accepts the world as it is, prefers practicality
Feeling – seeks harmony, considers the feelings of others
Judging – gains control through planning, focuses on results

Michal Roller was curious if it’s really so and carried out the test among 64 designers, to prove it is not true and designers may have other personality traits and still be creative. The results were following (click on it to see bigger):

Results showed a strong level of Intuition and Judging among the group. And there was no strong personality trait that was the most popular. If you wish to know more about yourself please take the test HERE.

Vimeo takeover

2010-03-01T23:09:00.003+02:00

Vimeo is known as a high-quality competitor to YouTube. Here are same good examples how to take over Vimeo. For full experience please see the Honda video here and my personal favorite Frito Lay Dips video here.

Honda Insight - Let It Shine from Honda on Vimeo.

“And Then There Was Salsa” from Frito Lay Dips on Vimeo.

Pepsi Max's TVC

2010-02-27T23:41:00.001+02:00

Asteroid is coming. Show some love. Now.

Battery test

2010-02-24T12:14:00.003+02:00

I know what happens to kids when they are bored. Some versions are presented here:

The brief given to agency was to increase sales of Energizer Lithium Batteries over the Christmas period. Target audience being parents, due to the amount of batteries being purchased over the Christmas period, namely for toys.

The slogan is: The world’s longest lasting battery.

But here is a very nice time-lapse video test showing which battery actually dies first. So do not let their toys dye, but to not buy Energizer. As these ads do not give a competitive advantage to the Energizer battery and as they are not the market leader then these ads are just nice battery ads, but to not directly increase Energizer sales. This doesn't count that they are saying to be the longest lasting batteries. As they are not telling the truth, obviously, and customers are not simple-minded.

McDonalds in the Vancouver 2010 mode...

2010-02-20T22:26:00.001+02:00

Simple Viral

2010-02-04T16:25:00.004+02:00

Now that Vancouver will be hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics, these are some questions people from all over the world are asking. Believe it or not these questions about Canada were posted on an International Tourism Website. Obviously the answers are a joke; but the questions were really asked!

Q: I have never seen it warm on Canadian TV, so how do the plants grow?(England )

A. We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around and watch them die.

Q: Will I be able to see Polar Bears in the street? ( USA )

A: Depends on how much you've been drinking.

Q: I want to walk from Vancouver to Toronto - can I follow the Railroad tracks? (Sweden )

A: Sure, it's only four thousand miles, take lots of water.

Q: Is it safe to run around in the bushes in Canada ? ( Sweden )

A: So it's true what they say about Swedes.

Q: Are there any ATM's (cash machines) in Canada ? Can you send me a list of them in Toronto , Vancouver , Edmonton and Halifax ? ( England )

A: No, but you'd better bring a few extra furs for trading purposes.

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Canada ? ( USA)

A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe. Ca-na-da is that big country to your North...oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Calgary. Come naked.

Q: Which direction is North in Canada ? ( USA )

A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.

Q: Can I bring cutlery into Canada ?( England )

A: Why? Just use your fingers like we do.

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? ( USA )

A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is...oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in Vancouver and in Calgary, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.

Q: Do you have perfume in Canada ? ( Germany )

A: No, WE don't stink.

Q: I have developed a new product that is the fountain of youth. Where can I sell it in Canada ?( USA )

A: Anywhere significant numbers of Americans gather.

Q: Can you tell me the regions in British Columbia where the female population is smaller than the male population? ( Italy )

A: Yes, gay nightclubs.

Q: Do you celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada ? ( USA )

A: Only at Thanksgiving.

Q: Are there supermarkets in Toronto and is milk available all year round?(Germany )

A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of Vegan hunter/gathers. Milk is illegal.

Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Canada, but I forget its name. It's a kind of big horse with horns. ( USA )

A: It's called a Moose. They are tall and very violent, eating the brains of anyone walking close to them. You can scare them off by spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking.

Q: Will I be able to speak English most places I go? ( USA )

A: Yes, but you will have to learn it first.

The golden rule of Facebook marketing.

2010-02-03T14:43:00.005+02:00

As a keen Facebook user, I think I’m going to explode if another Facebook fan page I belong to, declares sth. like “some more effort and we have e.g. 300, 1000 or 10 000 fans. Go tell everybody... and we will maybe give you a free ticket to the cinema/spa/ or wherever”. I do not want to feel their effort and I do not want to feel that I, as their fan, have become a marketing tool for them. I want to see interesting/useful content and warm-hearted/smart people behind it. Why they have to beg people to become their fans? Earn the trust, do not beg for it.

Teletransporter

2010-01-31T20:30:00.007+02:00

Somebody realized how funny men are when they are lying and campaigned it.

Opera marketing

2010-01-29T13:08:00.007+02:00

Last night was an important day for the Estonian National Opera. Finally they have got the point how real entertainment marketing is made. Although Estonian National Opera has its keen fans and loyal customers, their big dream has been that opera would spread to masses and it would be more popular.

Last night the Estonian National Opera and Estonian Television merged their forces and broadcasted a premiere of a light comedian opera emotionally fed into every Estonian: “The Love for Three Oranges” on two different channels. ETV showed the live performance on stage and ETV2 did live broadcast 1 h before, during and after the show. Estonian National Opera got their fame for musical theatre and Estonian Television had the chance to promote their ETV 2 channel, which has not reached masses yet, using it to broadcast the most interesting behind the scenes part.

The best part is that it did not come out stiff and boring, as to be expected. It was lively, interesting, full of good emotions and what’s most important: showed the side of the opera singers usually kept in vain: a very humorous and humane side. I’m not a big opera fan myself, but this was just a pure pleasure. And those who are afraid that showing a premiere on TV would reduce the ticket sale are totally wrong. Singers are made into the starts, everybody wants to see for themselves and the atmosphere described made even me wanna go and buy opera tickets for an upcoming season. It was a brilliantly conducted image campaign.

Brilliant, just brilliant.

L O G O R A M A

2010-01-28T09:43:00.006+02:00

French guys have completed a short film that consists only of logos. The plot itself seems meaningless, but the execution is very funny and well done. Apparently they have won many prizes. Congrats. See their website.

Authors seem unwilling to share the full 17 min. short movie and already there is buzz that as soon as somebody downloads it to Vimeo or YouTube, it will be removed claiming to be under author protection. Well, I had the lucky chance to see it before removal and can say that all that buzz is not really worth it.

But everybody wants to see the movie everybody is talking about, but only a few have had the chance to see, so I hope that soon we get a nice case study how to generate buzz in order to promote a movie. I’ve made my small contribution here.

Here’s a short trailer:

Fish bouillon cube

2010-01-26T14:16:00.002+02:00

Areas of expertise overlapping. Heavily.

2010-01-12T11:13:00.004+02:00

When I came to advertising it was all black and white to me. Advertising agency does advertisements and marketing strategies, PR takes care of publicity and hard-core lobbying, media broker books the media and Social Media guys keep up the buzz. Today if I were a client I would be very confused, as the lines overlap heavily and in the era of economical slowdown companies have broadened their area of expertise not horizontally but vertically, taking over professions from other area-related sectors. And it’s perfectly wise to have a media-oriented person in classical ad agency to develop well-directed communication strategies or a web-designer in PR company to offer full service online campaign for clients who have decided to use only PR channels for public awareness. But it raises many questions. E.g. who should do the Social Media monitoring? Is it SM provider itself, PR, media or research company? Whom to choose finally to get the best value for money solutions that work: the price leader, the most prestigious one, the most enthusiastic one, the one who promises ROI etc.?

I think the answer relies in every company’s core needs and marketing strategies. But well known fact is that companies do not create effective complex strategies, people behind them do. So trust your inner guts and choose the right people behind your company/brand. Do not only judge by the reputed company name or the wide area of expertise. Choose the best professionals from every field and do not opt for all in one solutions, although it might seem more comfortable. The trick is to put them all working for you in the best way possible, so no one has a chance to get lazy.

Someone got Mini for Christmas !

2010-01-04T16:32:00.008+02:00

Looks like someone got Mini for Christmas and threw the box away.

Ambient campaign by Mini, who placed large boxes on the streets, so garbage men could pick them up.

As an AM, I really want to know the city government who allowed to trash up the city centre. I do not admire the idea as it’s nothing new (look here), I fancy the people behind it.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-03T00:09:00.003+02:00

I’m late? Just a little bit?

As social media communication in marketing has taken over in a rush, then saying this at 00.30 would have done the trick, but now i'm desperately late. Now when you say something has higher importance than what you say. Timing, timing, timing.

PR people have been aiming the timing of their press releases in order to predict when is the right time to hit news on the prime time. Now in the era of instant communication everybody has the possibility to share news at the core moment of their happening. There is so much power in one sentence. This has created a new possibility for the marketers to create marketing communication relevant to the moment. Sharp, determined and fast. Happy New Year.

Discover sharks in Discovery

2009-12-07T16:04:00.002+02:00

See how many sharks there are in Bondi Beach from here.

Leave your heart in Riga.

2009-11-29T23:42:00.007+02:00

The Riga Tourism Development Bureau (RTAB) launched a marketing and communications campaign aimed to promote tourism in Riga for five weeks and invites travelers from Estonia, Russia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland, Germany and Sweden to visit Riga as an attractive destination.

What I like about that campaign:

I love that they have taken one leading idea and visualized it so well. The idea is that once you have visited Riga, you will leave your heart behind. Those hearts are a pleasure to look at and are Latvian by every meaning. The concept of the website is very organized and simple. As a regular tourist I find it as very easy to use while planning a getaway. So I love the brand design and web.

What I do not like about that campaign:

Live Riga consider their symbols – a heart which remains in Riga and the city as the birthplace of the tradition of Christmas trees – are sufficiently powerful and of use both in the West and the East. About that heart they are right. This heart is cute and won my heart, but as a true Estonian, I know that the tradition of Christmas trees originates form Tallinn (Wikipedia), so I consider this money bad spent in this country. They should have picked another approaching angle to Estonians.

They have also brought out that they will be active in social media. That’s good. The funny thing is that Facebook link leads me to nowhere. When I type in Live Riga it is not a community, it is listed as a person and displays only “Limited information”. Second option in Groups is Riga Escort. So much for the reputation-building attempt. In YouTube you can see five different videos starring a person correctly chosen to match the target countries. Those videos are quite boring narratives telling what the person speaking likes the most about Riga. These actually do not speak to me at all.Last but not least. The budget for the campaign is LVL 898,000 (EUR 1 222 909) !

But I still love that heart and probably will visit Riga in the future many times.

What destroys great ideas ?

2009-11-25T08:14:00.005+02:00

Pics made by Scott-C. Thanks to Helene, for sharing.

Augmented Reality

2009-11-24T15:08:00.008+02:00

By now everybody knows that print is dead and internet has taken control. It’s hard to let go. So Esquire magazine figured out how to keep those readers buying magazine, creating a buzz plus raising curiosity in those who have not read it before. They use Augmented Reality meaning reality mixed with virtual content. You need Esquire magazine, webcam and a small downloadable widget. Please check out how it works from here:

I do not think that this is going to save the print. I do not think that they are going to use Augmented Reality in every issue from now on and i do not think that print will have anything to do in the future with entertainment or massive information sharing . But nice try though.

City bacteria in action

2009-11-19T17:45:00.005+02:00

Kliinik 32 initiated a social campaign, focusing on a fact that more you take care of your teeth, less you have to spend on dental care.

2,5 m installation was placed in front of a popular shopping mall giving the citizens the opportunity to act as bacteria and destroy the teeth. In less than two weeks the bacteria had done their work with upper determination and the result is seen here.

They also opened YouTube channel to raise the awareness of the right dental care and teach how the basic everyday moves of hygienic procedures are really carried out. Please check out. A life changing experience.

My favorite video:

Simple life

2009-11-13T14:39:00.007+02:00

As the true minimalist and simple things lover, I got to love those. More minimalist ads from here.

Browse magazines and books online

2009-10-13T15:34:00.003+03:00

I came up with this site searching for a contact I needed for one client and I was totally amazed. As I saw in what quality and simplicity it is possible to browse magazines, documents and any other stuff you normally find in print. In my moments of boredom I have been looking around in Google Books, but this has a different target group and is far more better (read: looks better). The best features in my opinion are that it integrates with social networking sites, you can embed it to anywhere you want (like I did embed it to my blog here) and what’s most important you can search throughout the text inside the documents/magazines.

Besides fashion and advertising magazines I’m interested in, I found Estonian Hooaeg in superb quality. Pure joy. I hope all other Estonian magazines - the ones I usually have pay for- soon find their way to the online, as knowingly Hooaeg if for free.

If you’re interested in online browsing please check up also Issuu’s main competitors Docstoc and Scribd as well.

Photo montage made easy

2009-10-07T17:43:00.006+03:00

PhotoSketch: Internet Image Montage from tao chen on Vimeo.

Now it's made easy to montage e.g. Obama with Martha Stuart into some dreadful composition. AD-s are about to loose their jobs.

Pension from LHV

2009-10-05T14:37:00.006+03:00

I like big, bold and simple things. So I had to love the view from my office window this morning

Because I said so.

2009-10-01T11:19:00.004+03:00

What does that mean? Who are you to tell me that? I do not believe you. This time is over when some authority can sell a brand or an idea by just telling “because I said so”. Even if you are the president. Go and explain yourself. For example this idea is good because: it gives you positive ROI, influences consumers in such and such way, creates buzz in this and that sector and according to research will influence this and that kind on people. Tell me about the brand differentiation and consumer engagement. Do not just assume everybody knows who you are and trusts you just because you said so.

Shower the web away

2009-09-21T11:06:00.002+03:00

Website that browses through different environments with hectic playfulness, finally landing on Facebook. Time consuming but interesting.

See it from HERE

Flaunt your testimonials

2009-09-20T11:46:00.012+03:00

Sunny Saturday. Road trip to Estonia’s summer capital Pärnu. Right in the heart of it, city centre, I found this pearl. “Margit’s beauty parlour” has realized the power of testimonials and knows that a good recommendation is worth more than a slogan that has been sucked out of the pencil.

Besides testimonials there is also the visual context I cannot leave out. Although it is unclear weather this is the result you can expect or the lovely hairdresser.

The power of copywriting

2009-09-19T00:16:00.000+03:00

Living up to the professional standards

2009-09-18T23:25:00.008+03:00

Standardisation is good. It disciplines. Gives a regime to follow and gives you confidence solving problems. But who knows where to draw a line and take a break? Professional standards make you a working robot. Robots knowingly do not have any feelings of thoughts of their own. Robots do not create innovation or long lasting relationships. Where are humanity, social responsibility and just good will? Standardisation killed them.

This post is powered by an emotion received at the local children’s hospital.

The influence of centrifugal force

2009-09-18T12:22:00.000+03:00

Science of motivation

2009-09-11T15:08:00.005+03:00

Now I understand the gap between my 9-5 job and modeling fees.

Think global, drink local.

2009-09-10T21:48:00.007+03:00

I do not drink bottled water, but I do not think that bottled water is the cause of all worlds’ disasters. Some people do. And they have started a movement called tappening. They are acting for a good cause, so please check out www.tappening.com.

The interesting part is the viral concept they have initiated. It sais “Start a lie about bottled water industry. If they can lie, so can you. “ See it from www.startalie.com.

My favourite lie: Chuck Norris doesn't drink bottled water

After telling your lie, you can spread it via e-mail, facebook, twitter or digg.

As badmouthing, in my opinion, is not the best marketing strategy you can come up with, then I hope no one will copy this. Unless you belong to Estonians centrist political party Keskerakond. This is their kind of viral content.

A new level in fashion marketing

2009-09-09T15:46:00.013+03:00

I absolutely adore the concept of this website: www.uniqlo.com/collection

An average person can only dream of going to a fashion show and walking out from there with their favorite outfit. It’s what rich and famous people seem to do.

Here you can see the actual shape and the garment movement , instead of 2D catalogue pics.

This is how I would liked to shop. Monton or Ivo Nikkolo, please take over.

Social media is like teen sex

2009-08-20T23:13:00.005+03:00

How to measure ROI for Social Media. Do not tell me that by the number of followers. All the qualitative benefits like loyalty, trust, passion and brand awareness sound very nice but are not really measurable. Or do nice comments count? I need something quantitative. Like sales increase, new clients etc. But these do not really seem measurable, unless you are specialized on online sales. Only thing that seems reliable is increase in traffic numbers. But are these numbers reliable and generate real cash?

One Indian web analytics guy said: Social media is like teen sex. Everyone wants to do it. Nobody knows how. When it s finally done, there is surprise it s not better.

Well, I think that finally all the teens grow up. And start to know better. As the Indian guy said this 5 months ago then now should be all another era for Social Media.

Internal error

2009-08-16T17:35:00.005+03:00

Do not expect brilliant results from creatives, while they feel comfortable. They need internal error to push them into actions. Internal errors like fatigue, hangover, hunger, sexual tension, messed up personal life etc. Faultlessness does not lead to great success. Imperfection does.

Contemporary Beer

2009-07-24T23:58:00.005+03:00

Years have showed that beer means different things to different people, so it is hard to make an ad that suits every taste.

Although Zoogami has positioned itself very strongly, it still leaves open air to the brand, by letting everyone to create their own image of the brand (in Zoogami frames – just in case)

Check out the website: www.zoogami.net/beer

Im not so overwhelmed by the design nor the result, but Im engaged with the experimental use of media.

Who does not find that link interesting, could find some pleasure of recognition from the beer ad below:

Personal budgeting via Internet bank

2009-07-23T23:52:00.004+03:00

What if I could have a better overview of my incomes and spendings in the Internet bank. What if money movement would be classified and I could follow it in a simple chart. Then I could keep better track and have a clue what to save and how much money do I really have. Mortgage, grocery, entertainment etc. If its too complicated for a bank to make deals while making payment contracts with companies, I could have a possibility to classify those numbers my self (and a program would memorize my moves), what is what and see the result in a simple chart. Far better, it could be pegged to my husbands Internet bank and we could run a family budget together. After all that I would liked to see forecasts and future periods’ planners as well.

Please someone write a program. Not just some excel chart they offer in the Internet, but some kind of a mix-up of what I see, when filling in my tax return papers and Google analytics.

2020 - Traditional is dead

2009-07-01T15:10:00.002+03:00

Baby made on board

2009-06-25T00:08:00.005+03:00

Dodge is a large car. Yes indeed…

The brief was to sell the first Dodge family wagon, while strengthening the macho image of the brand at the same time.

Positioning it just as a macho car would not have done the trick, so they went all the way to the other end. Baby involvement!!!

As test-drive is the main tool for actual selling, then this campaign encourages to test-drive. Instead of picnic baskets or free opera admissions they simply ask test drivers to test the rear seat and make babies. Personally I do not find any other reason why to climb into it.

Idea itself is nothing new, but the image speaks for it self.

Although I’m not really certain that besides many adventurers in the back seat and 72 babies, they managed to create actual increase in sales numbers. Perhaps now after 9 months, when all those babies need a ride… so skip the idea this being a call to test drive and take it as a long term image campaign.

Read the case study here.

Forward thinking

2009-06-19T19:54:00.002+03:00

I got a warmhearted letter from sisustus.ee congratulating me on my birthday. Only thing is, that today is not my birthday. Tomorrow is. Seeing the headline I thought, nice, somebody has messed with their database. But, it was not an accident.

It is known that on birthday you receive so many mails, messages and calls that a message like that would be unnoticed. This letter shows that they have put some thought into customer service and it was totally not unnoticed.

Nice way of forward thinking.

In search of the perfect plane ticket

2009-06-15T22:40:00.007+03:00

It’s summer. Vacation time. Whatever the reason - plane tickets or vacation vouchers might become a subject.

This is the time where " the economical slowdown" has played a trick on decision-making. Airline companies and travel agents have undermined the ground they are walking on by great discounts and if not in a great need, no one wants to purchase a plane ticket with a full price. Perhaps some emotional buyers, filthy rich people or those who have worked hard all year and do not want to get into the hurdle of price wars, they pay what it takes, but major amount of flyers around the world are waiting for the right price or the right offer. As vacation time is limited, this time might never come... to the destination you are dreaming about.

Millions of plane tickets unsold because of the wrong pricing - or the wrong mindset planted by the discounts. Who can tell the difference?

Just delicious

2009-06-10T17:56:00.006+03:00

I think we have done some pretty nice designs for Nipernaadi Vodka. Have a look:

Private Labels taking over

2009-05-28T16:55:00.006+03:00

As counting pennies is the new trend this year, then smart consumers are aware of the percentage added to the product, due to branding. They are not willing to pay it anymore. No Logo and Private Labels have their time to flourish. Anyone can manufacture a product they reason. Their only concern is filling the order on time and under the budget. Supermarkets have figured this out and are forcing their Private Labels in a quite powerful way. Not marketing them. No, that would seem wasteful. But through pricing policy. Together in the shelf with “ordinary” products, Private Labels have the competitive edge by the fact that supermarkets itself direct the prices. They are 15%- 35% cheaper than the others.

To me, they seem like commodities without a soul. Its not that I do not like cheap things. I love cheap things. But I do not like things made to be cheap in the robust way. There is no meaning in these raw objects.

But who says that sugar and eggs have to have a deep corporate mythology behind?

Electronic Time Management - the art of sharing

2009-05-25T17:14:00.003+03:00

I missed appointment with my hairdresser. It’s not that I did not write it down or was not able to go. It just happened to be one of these hectic weeks. Again. You know what I’m talking about.

It would be very nice to receive sms or e-mail form my hairdresser, day before the appointment, to remind me that this very important day is coming and she is waiting for me.

Or she could ask in my first appointment: do I use old-school calendar or telephone/laptop calendar. In old-school’s case she could give me a post-it with dates written red on it and in electronical calendar’s case send me a reminder from her calendar into mine.

It would be just nice. Not some outrageous marketing trick. But just NICE.

The Worst Hotel In The World

2009-05-21T17:16:00.004+03:00

In marketing, sometimes it pays off just being honest. In Hans Brinker Budget Hotel's case in Amsterdam, it brought them 42% increase in occupancy. They’r slogan is: “Similar to hell, but without proper heating.” And it works. Targeted to young backpacers.

It's all about positioning.

Read more.

Apple juice ad gone bad

2009-05-20T20:55:00.006+03:00

Translation: Do you feel the apple’s heart (pit)?

Do I want to know that apple juice contains apple pits? No! I want sweet apples grown in pure nature, carefully selected, sliced and then made into juice. I'm a country girl, therefore know very well how apple juice is made, but is it necessary to advertise the content that nobody wants to acknowledge? Now the image and the slogan tell me it’s juice made of apple pits that usually are thrown away. Logically thinking it should be priced then also as a low budget product. Like fish fingers, which contain fish heads and fish bones. Yak. No more Põltsamaa apple juice for me.

Start a movement TODAY

2009-05-19T21:39:00.002+03:00

He is ugly as hell, but I like how he talks. Seth Godin on tribes:

I also like my find www.ted.com. Entertainment to last a week at least.

Simple truth

2009-05-19T20:48:00.001+03:00

Self-contained and beyond

2009-05-08T14:15:00.003+03:00

Besides fun and arrogant people in advertising, there are some pearls who are introverts in a deepest level. Beyond that. You talk to them, they do not watch you in the eye. You ask, did you understand what the brief was about, they remain silent and stare the giant MAC screen, where nothing happens. You ask, do you have any questions regarding to the ongoing project, you get silent “no”. One day before the deadline you ask to see the progress, you get “ I haven’t started it yet ”. Next day morning, opening the mailbox, you get the most outrageously talented and awesome drafts you even were not able to dream about. Time sent: minutes before midnight.

PS: During time they open up and start even composing complex sentences and arguing back. I think of them as flowers who bloom at night.

Arrogance

2009-05-07T10:13:00.006+03:00

A while ago I was discussing the fact that advertising people seem to be so fun. Today I’m going to the other end and trying to understand why people think that advertising people are arrogant and is it really so?

Firsthand it seemed that they are arrogant, but only with those, whom they do not want to waste their energy on (I’m talking about advertising heavy machinery, not those show-off rookies). Otherwise in their inner circle and with people they like- they are quite ok.

Now I’m forced to acknowledge that yes, there are some positive pearls, but is it the recession or cold weather, damn some are really arrogant. They make you feel small and stupid. Even with the matters less important. Their opinion is "The Gold" and others can turn to dust. Although I admit, they have the experience and the knowledge to think that and I do not doubt that this really is gold, they're saying, but there are more pleasant ways to make yourself heard and respected.

Actually it’s funny to watch. Clients are afraid of them, as they do not want to say anything stupid and get "The Look" that burns in the heartbeat. Young creatives are presenting few ideas, which are crushed in the scratch. Now they are shivering before presenting new ones. Is this the environment to work in? It might suit to some people. To those who need strong guidance and authority, to get the wheels going. But what about teamwork, free spirit, open ideas, synergy? Positive thinking attracts positive results.

Gosh do I love, that I work in a company full of young and free spirits, without a trace of arrogance.

Windvertising

2009-05-06T22:34:00.005+03:00

Windvertising means placing advertisements on turbine blades and creating actual electricity alongside with solar panels installed into the aggregate. The idea originates form WePower, who offers PacWind turbines, cylindrical apparatus lined with blades that create wind power as they spin. The blades display outward, so that a series of images can be shown, creating a short animated advertisement.

Some problems I started to think of :

If there is no wind and sunshine, the images displayed on the turbine are not seen.

The turbine has only very limited options to display advertisement and if not told, lookers on do not understand that this is actually a turbine creating electricity and therefore saving the environment. So here is the challenge to promote your brand in a way so everybody can understand you are using natural resources to create electricity for your billboard. Otherwise it’s a waste of money.

I can imagine it could have been a nice option for Eesti Energia outdoor ads, which advertised lately greener future. So not completely dumb idea. Although the idea they used now, did the trick for estonians also and was cheaper aswell.

Viral marketing does not work

2009-05-05T21:34:00.003+03:00

It's fun (in better cases), but it does not make you go and buy stuff. So no ROI. Go tell everyone.

Social business design

2009-04-20T15:36:00.001+03:00

There are number of companies who think of marketing as directing all efforts and resources into customer service, hoping to generate positive WOM. This has been so from the start. Upgrade to just being good and hoping somebody to notice, is being visibly and actively close to your customers - strategically choosing your channels. Regarding to previous, it would be interesting to stop on social business design, as a great mean to bring your company really close to your customers. It’s a interesting and growing field I would liked to know more about, so anyone more acquainted, please drop me a line here.

CiniMini Wacky Slider

2009-04-14T21:10:00.012+03:00

My kid is a victim of advertising. So I was forced to buy Nestle CiniMinis. As I amuse myself from time to time with clumsy text adaptions, then this package was a real treat for me. This particular package is translated into 5 languages, although in some places 3 of them was chosen, to save some space. How considerate (Estonian was left out).

I can imagine the lengthy process of this package adaption into all these five fabulous languages (Czech, Hungarian, Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian). And the enormous effort the designer has put into compressing all this information into this box. It must have been hard work.

I’m not going into details, as blog entries should maintain a snappy content and length. Let’s just say Google translator is a linguist god compared to this case.

Advertising career evolution.

2009-04-12T13:25:00.001+03:00

Sunday morning speculations

2009-03-29T13:33:00.004+03:00

Everybody is talking about it; few are brave enough to experiment.

Are you using classical media in a classical way to promote classical product or service? If you’re not Procter & Gamble with endless budget, then it means for you driving a car looking in the rear-view mirror. You need to stand out. Be special in what you do. Extraordinary. Otherwise you may be living, but what a life it is, being gray and boring and bringing nobody to think, laugh or cry. If you earn enough to get your mortgage payments in time and are satisfied with it – fine. Your one of those who has a lack of imagination combined with willpower. This is the combination that leads on. Safe is boring. If you do not happen to be a guy with a golden brain - outsource it. Besides that you need to be passionate about your field of activity and smart enough to recognize a good idea.

Although changing marketing mix isn’t the solution anymore. Not today. Very special and extraordinary advertising alone does not give you the long-term results you are longing for. The innovation has to come from the product or service you are offering. Offering a memorable user experience is the key.

In today’s situation consumers are looking for security and many companies are offering secure products and services to survive. No one has the resources, willpower or courage to experiment. It s a perfect ground for creating something outstanding, as the market situation is making it possible. By being outstanding I do not mean outrageous or scandalous. This is already despair. Scandalous redeems itself only if this is the core essence of your brand. But in the longer run intelligent kind of outstanding creates more brand value. The trick is to think small before thinking big. It’s the details that count today.

Second life for killed ideas

2009-03-24T20:25:00.007+02:00

How many times my team has created fabulous, crème de la crème ideas that are a knock out. Some at least… How many times my team has been rejected those brilliant ideas. Countless times. Why?
• It’s very interesting, but we are afraid... (does not matter what follows, client is afraid - that’s it).
• It’s out of our budget range.
• Our CEO does not like it. No comments. Just his face was not happy seeing it.
• They take the idea and send it to the big round inside their company and come back with a totally different idea.
• It’s just too crazy.
• Nobody understands it (except the creative team).
• Sometimes you present many fabulous ideas for one brand and only one is to be chosen, others left out.

Well at least now all those killed ideas have a second chance. Killedideas.com is a place to submit all those ideas that have been rejected for one reason or another. They publish them in a book or/and display on a blog. Although there is a deeper financial meaning for this initiative, as it seems to be a campaign for Blurb - bookmaking software and publishing, its a good idea. Targeting those who won’t get recognition naturally, offering them the tools for being a published author.

Submission ends on 31. March 2009, so few days to go, for running through archives.

If you re not having fun, you re not doing it right.

2009-03-20T12:07:00.007+02:00

My first days in the advertising business brought me to the cold knowledge: I was told that the fun guys in the industry are the ones that can’t be taken seriously. The most successful and respected are the ones that come and leave unnoticed and do their work perfectly and leave a mark in the longer run.

I thought „yeah right“. I was driven by the passion for advertising and had no idea how to suppress it down and work like a machine, showing no passion at all.

Almost 2 years have passed and now I understand. Those people DO have passion for advertising and are no machines. Instead of living their passion out, they live it in and convert it into their work. This is what gives excellent and impressing results. „Fun guys“ waste all energy for being „so fun“ and leave no reserves for actual nut cracking.

I m not going to classify myself, as obviously I m not the serious type- writing this blog, and no fun either- so says my husband. Which leaves me empty handed.

Right now the moto to live by is: if you’re not having fun, you re not doing it right. By not having fun - you start looking fun from elsewhere. Synergy coming from passion directed right can be mind-blowing. Advertising is fun. Not just outside.

Seriously – inside.

You've got mail

2009-03-09T23:21:00.004+02:00

I have a friend who runs a niche business and instead of many suggestions to stop, sends me over totally boring monthly newsletter. I have nothing against receiving this carefully composed newsletter. But I‘m afraid that this newsletter does not serve the purpose he hopes for. I believe his goal is to develop a long-term impact on the readers. It should provide the readers value, which means more than just sales messages. It should contain information, which informs, entertains or otherwise benefits the readers. He invests his time and money on it and value of ROI, I believe, is zero.

So here, dear friend and everybody else, trying to really reach somebody via e-mail, are some soft reminders:

Do not send your newsletter, so everybody can see the entire cc list. It’s just plain rude.

Make a decision. Are you sending a direct mail or a newsletter? Direct mail fits into e-mail without having to open it. Newsletter is usually composed into PDF file, so parties interested can browse through it or print it out and it usually contains more than one page. You can’t be both at the same time.

Avoid plain long text. No one wants to read it. Add a link to your website for further information, if somebody is really interested.

Bring out reader benefit - BIG AND RED - at the beginning, so highly occupied people would have interest to read further.

Be focused and understand what's important for your clients.

It’s very nice that somebody has composed a thorough PDF of your companis summer vacation; two more pitches won and a new improvement on your business. So what? Ditch the information, that is not crucial and put all the emotions into the new product introduction, new skills owned by your staff or innovations in your field of activity.

If you do not have anything important to say, do not send it, just because you think you should… people do not want to read it. Value the time of your customers.

Innovation in your field of activity still exists. Please find it and spread the message. If you are in the dead end and think there is no innovation - be a man, and invent it.

Act like a market leader, not like someone who is trying his best to become one.(Its recommendation just for him , as he is the market leader. Other folks who are not - accept your position and compose your strategies accordingly.)

I understand it is hard to come up with some illustrations or something else that catches the eye. If you already came to a point sending this newsletter, please be so kind to hire somebody who makes it look more edible.

Flogo clouds

2009-03-01T21:16:00.006+02:00

Interesting.

A new way for marketers to use a new form of ambient advertising. “Environmentally friendly” clouds that can be produced to resemble advertising logos etc. called Flogos.

It’s made of soap-based formula mixed with helium and vegetable dye. A new Flogo cloud can be produced after every 7 seconds. Each Flogo lasts approximately 30 minutes.

Watch on YouTube how Flogos are made:

Although it can be used for commercial purposes, an artist Stuart Stemple, used smiley faces in London, to promote the value of creativity. Whatever the reason, most of all it made many people smile ☺

Complex human nature

2009-02-19T16:45:00.014+02:00

There might be an average person who corresponds to the image created by research companies. For example aged 25-35, works, has 2 kids, a dog and drives a Toyota. Stereotypes are easily adapted, but to really reach somebody, a marketer has to realise the complexity of a human nature.

Most marketing people make decisions according to research data. It’s not so black and white. Communities cross and if a person belongs to one group, does not matter that he/she can’t belong to another. For example if a customer flies first class and has higher income than average then it does not automatically mean that he/she likes to drink beer from glass and wear a white shirt and a tie.