While this may seem a bit random, this game show was just so ridiculously funny that I can't help but talk about it.
Premiering last Tuesday on June 24, ten Americans were about to find out what it's really like out in Japan... on one of their game shows. We all know about the crazy stuff Japanese people get into on those shows - flying down the French Alps with only wearing a towel, relinquishing privacy in port-a-pottys, and any other crazy stunts people can think up. Except this time.. yes, they are Americans competing. And they didn't see this coming.
It basically is a reality tv show, following the contestants' wins and struggles throughout their stay.. and personally, I'm kind of excited about it - it is simply hillarious. I mean, would I want to do it? Probably not. But who says I'm not allowed to sit back and laugh at the people who do?
I have realized two things from watching the premier - I would love to go to Japan someday (or out of the country.. if not Japan, Italy or Ireland.. maybe Australia). Secondly, if I do ever go to Japan, I will never eat mocchi balls (gummy rice balls), a popular Japanese snack.
There are simply many more tasty snacks. Just like any American, I'd rather go to McDonald's and get a nice, juicy burger.. or maybe those addicting apple dippers.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
PR vs. Advertising
PR and advertising.. pretty similar concepts, yet distinctively different all at once - kind of how men and women are. And yes, the whole dating scene can fit in nicely with this. I'll explain.
Both PR and advertsing are part of the whole marketing process (the 4 'P's' - price, product, place, and promotion). PR and advertising fall under the promotion part of the large umbrella. This is about where the similarities end, though. Many different elements, for example, are controlled by the media in public relations. For advertising, however, you have free reign as to exercising creativity for ads. Basically... advertising = more creative outlets. Not to say the use of creativity is restricted in PR.. not true at all! The fundamental difference is that ultimately, in PR, the media has control over what runs and what does not.
Also, of course... money. PR = free publicity for company, ads = paid publicity. Because of this, consumers know when they are bombarded with ads, trying to be sold a product or serve. But with PR, consumers are less likely to be turned away from the message and more likely to view the source as credible/reliable. There are also stylistic differences, too. (ads = buzz words to get product sold, and PR is in a no-nonsense news format). The list goes on and on.
Even though this is only a glimpse into some of the differences between public relations and advertising, it is clear that both are very different in many ways. And, as with men and women, all it takes is a little getting to know the other side in order to understand just what the heck is going on in their crazy world.
I read a simple description somewhere on the differences between PR and advertising, and it went like this:
Advertising: "What if I told you I'm awesome? Would you want to go out tonight?"
PR: What if I told you my friend was awesome? Want to go out with him tonight?"
Pretty self-explanatory. Let's just hope the guy above doing the PR is all suited-up... and people like him. And has a way with the ladies.
About the dating, though. It's all about how you present yourself to someone, whether it is directly (ads) or indirectly (PR). Just got an awesome new tan and wanting to show it off? Time for some advertising.. "hey, I bet you can't pass this tan up.." Or.. just lost an awesome tan and wanting to pretend it NEVER happened? "me.. tan? nah.." Hello PR.
Indeed, the world is one big game of advertising and PR. Make sure you look presentable.
And if you don't have a tan..... get the spray-on kind. Maybe they will never know.
Both PR and advertsing are part of the whole marketing process (the 4 'P's' - price, product, place, and promotion). PR and advertising fall under the promotion part of the large umbrella. This is about where the similarities end, though. Many different elements, for example, are controlled by the media in public relations. For advertising, however, you have free reign as to exercising creativity for ads. Basically... advertising = more creative outlets. Not to say the use of creativity is restricted in PR.. not true at all! The fundamental difference is that ultimately, in PR, the media has control over what runs and what does not.
Also, of course... money. PR = free publicity for company, ads = paid publicity. Because of this, consumers know when they are bombarded with ads, trying to be sold a product or serve. But with PR, consumers are less likely to be turned away from the message and more likely to view the source as credible/reliable. There are also stylistic differences, too. (ads = buzz words to get product sold, and PR is in a no-nonsense news format). The list goes on and on.
Even though this is only a glimpse into some of the differences between public relations and advertising, it is clear that both are very different in many ways. And, as with men and women, all it takes is a little getting to know the other side in order to understand just what the heck is going on in their crazy world.
I read a simple description somewhere on the differences between PR and advertising, and it went like this:
Advertising: "What if I told you I'm awesome? Would you want to go out tonight?"
PR: What if I told you my friend was awesome? Want to go out with him tonight?"
Pretty self-explanatory. Let's just hope the guy above doing the PR is all suited-up... and people like him. And has a way with the ladies.
About the dating, though. It's all about how you present yourself to someone, whether it is directly (ads) or indirectly (PR). Just got an awesome new tan and wanting to show it off? Time for some advertising.. "hey, I bet you can't pass this tan up.." Or.. just lost an awesome tan and wanting to pretend it NEVER happened? "me.. tan? nah.." Hello PR.
Indeed, the world is one big game of advertising and PR. Make sure you look presentable.
And if you don't have a tan..... get the spray-on kind. Maybe they will never know.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Marketing Research: Measuring vs. Molding Public Opinion?
After about a week or so of not sharing random insights... I am back on the blogging scene.
And once again, I was inspired by the book I have been reading, "Hey Whipple, Squeeze This," for my blog. It provides way too many insights for me not to mention something about it once in a while!
The other day, I participated in an interview with a marketing research company here in Cincinnati, Ohio. It involved testing mock-ups of different package designs for a particular shampoo. While there was the alluring incentive of getting $60 from participating, I wasn't just interested in this reward - marketing research and consumer perceptions have always caught my interest.
First of all, I will say that marketing research is invaluable - there will always be a need for it. Some place, somewhere, a company will be looking to improve/create a brand image that will tell consumers to "look no further, the best product in the category has arrived." It is essential to understand just what the consumer wants, and why they want it. After all... isn't the goal to get the product in consumers' hands? Before a strategy or campaign can even be created, marketers must have some of an idea for what would appeal to the target consumer.
With this said, I want to point out a few things I read in "Whipple." Of course, in the book, he is referring to advertising research -a specialized form of marketing research. Even so, it is still research that has one, ultimate goal: to guage consumers' feelings/perceptions on ideas and concepts. However, Luke Sullivan (yes, still the author of "Whipple") made some interesting points on research in general. Just keep in mind what I had to say about research at first (it is essential and interesting).
"We are so busy measuring public opinion, we forget we can mold it."
Examples provided: Wendy's "Where's the beef?" campaign - researchers told writers to not run these ads. They ran them anyways. After sales shot up 25 percent for the year, the writers didn't mind. Volkswagon ads, the campaign that some call the best of the 20th century - no pre-testing. None. The point? These brands knew better than to solely rely on measuring public opinion. No, they wanted to go further - mold the brand into something consumers will remember.
So, you never know. Like I said, though, I still think marketing research is important and interesting. It may provide insight, it may not. Either way, I'm sure you will learn something along the way.
And once again, I was inspired by the book I have been reading, "Hey Whipple, Squeeze This," for my blog. It provides way too many insights for me not to mention something about it once in a while!
The other day, I participated in an interview with a marketing research company here in Cincinnati, Ohio. It involved testing mock-ups of different package designs for a particular shampoo. While there was the alluring incentive of getting $60 from participating, I wasn't just interested in this reward - marketing research and consumer perceptions have always caught my interest.
First of all, I will say that marketing research is invaluable - there will always be a need for it. Some place, somewhere, a company will be looking to improve/create a brand image that will tell consumers to "look no further, the best product in the category has arrived." It is essential to understand just what the consumer wants, and why they want it. After all... isn't the goal to get the product in consumers' hands? Before a strategy or campaign can even be created, marketers must have some of an idea for what would appeal to the target consumer.
With this said, I want to point out a few things I read in "Whipple." Of course, in the book, he is referring to advertising research -a specialized form of marketing research. Even so, it is still research that has one, ultimate goal: to guage consumers' feelings/perceptions on ideas and concepts. However, Luke Sullivan (yes, still the author of "Whipple") made some interesting points on research in general. Just keep in mind what I had to say about research at first (it is essential and interesting).
"We are so busy measuring public opinion, we forget we can mold it."
Examples provided: Wendy's "Where's the beef?" campaign - researchers told writers to not run these ads. They ran them anyways. After sales shot up 25 percent for the year, the writers didn't mind. Volkswagon ads, the campaign that some call the best of the 20th century - no pre-testing. None. The point? These brands knew better than to solely rely on measuring public opinion. No, they wanted to go further - mold the brand into something consumers will remember.
So, you never know. Like I said, though, I still think marketing research is important and interesting. It may provide insight, it may not. Either way, I'm sure you will learn something along the way.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Cicada Song
Yep, they're back. And with full force.
After about four years of comforting silence, cicadas have decided to come back on the scene with their loud, annoying shrieking. I was reminded of this when one landed on me yesterday... yeah, I'm not so much into them.
The good news is that they will be gone in a couple of weeks.. hopefully. They only live for about a month once they do come up from the ground. Here is a lovely picture of one in the grass (a little hard to see, I know.. but oh, I can always tell when I see one..)
After about four years of comforting silence, cicadas have decided to come back on the scene with their loud, annoying shrieking. I was reminded of this when one landed on me yesterday... yeah, I'm not so much into them.
The good news is that they will be gone in a couple of weeks.. hopefully. They only live for about a month once they do come up from the ground. Here is a lovely picture of one in the grass (a little hard to see, I know.. but oh, I can always tell when I see one..)
Saturday, June 7, 2008
"Please Don't Squeeze the Charmin"
These were the words that millions of Americans heard over and over on their tv sets in the 1970's. Thanks to that one Charmin commericial back in the day, many people are able to easily associate this phrase with the infamous Mr. Whipple - the annoying man in the commercial who just wouldn't leave people alone in their living rooms, yet seemed to have a way with driving up sales (okay, I'll do a quick recap. Grocer sees teenage girls squeezing Charmin rolls in isle. Grocer tells them "please don't squeeze the Charmin. Girls stop and walk away. Grocer walks over and squeezes it himself). Yep, that's it. The end.
"And there is the crux of the problem. The mystery. How did Whipple's commercials sell so much toliot paper? Even if you figure that part out, the question then becomes, why?"
Luke Sullivan posed this question in the beginning of his book, "Hey Whipple Squeeze This." He starts out by emphasizing the importance of a solid idea - definitely not Whipple. Yes, Whipple drove up sales, but was it a truly great advertising idea? It is from there that he goes on to explain the frantic, pressured world of advertising - what to expect and how to get through it. That's definitely not all, though. Not only does he give people a glimpse into the advertising world, but he also explains how to write great copy - for print, radio, tv, billboard - everything. He even talks about thinking outside the box - for example, thinking in terms of if there was no print or tv. How would you advertise? Where do you start? Better yet.. how do you even come up with ideas in the first place? It's questions like these that really get you thinking.
I can easily say it's the best book I've read in a while. It's very insightful, yet interesting and always engaging. It's also my kind of writing I enjoy - informative yet entertaining. Never gets boring. While I still have a little bit more to read, I've been able to appreciate it a lot.
The jist: Advertising is a tough, tough world out there - and Luke really lets you know it. But if you work hard, stay focused, and KNOW it's a tough world - you just may have a chance.
For anyone looking to obtain some great insight into the advertising world, I highly recommend this book!
"And there is the crux of the problem. The mystery. How did Whipple's commercials sell so much toliot paper? Even if you figure that part out, the question then becomes, why?"
Luke Sullivan posed this question in the beginning of his book, "Hey Whipple Squeeze This." He starts out by emphasizing the importance of a solid idea - definitely not Whipple. Yes, Whipple drove up sales, but was it a truly great advertising idea? It is from there that he goes on to explain the frantic, pressured world of advertising - what to expect and how to get through it. That's definitely not all, though. Not only does he give people a glimpse into the advertising world, but he also explains how to write great copy - for print, radio, tv, billboard - everything. He even talks about thinking outside the box - for example, thinking in terms of if there was no print or tv. How would you advertise? Where do you start? Better yet.. how do you even come up with ideas in the first place? It's questions like these that really get you thinking.
I can easily say it's the best book I've read in a while. It's very insightful, yet interesting and always engaging. It's also my kind of writing I enjoy - informative yet entertaining. Never gets boring. While I still have a little bit more to read, I've been able to appreciate it a lot.
The jist: Advertising is a tough, tough world out there - and Luke really lets you know it. But if you work hard, stay focused, and KNOW it's a tough world - you just may have a chance.
For anyone looking to obtain some great insight into the advertising world, I highly recommend this book!
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