Nothing new at this year’s Super Bowl

Building hype for commercials – what an age we live in!

For the last few years, advertisers have used social media teasers in hopes of cultivating additional interest and intrigue for impeding Game Day ads.

From obscure behind-the-scenes photos or video to full-blown commercial-length preview spots, advertisers who committed to the Big Game made sure you stayed glued to the screen for their 30-seconds of fame.

But this year, previewing the WHOLE commercial spot!?

Tebow for T-Mobile, a Full House reunion over spilled Oikos, a Cheerios first, Clydesdale puppy-love, and Audi’s Doberhuahua. (Just to name a few)

I was browsing YouTube last Friday and the Volkswagen ‘Wings’ spot even popped up as a rollover.

At $4 million per 30-seconds, you’d think advertisers would want to keep things under wraps as long as possible. You know, really get their monies worth!

There is plenty of time to “go viral” POST game day! Seriously, why spend so much cash on a creative repeat?

Why advertise during the Super Bowl at all?!

Enter the brilliance of Newcastle Brown Ale.

So the promotion of Super Bowl advertising is evolving…fast.

If everyone’s Game Day ad is going to run BEFORE Game Day, there’s gotta be a way to capture similar hype and just skip the placement (and GYNORMOUS cost) all together.

And that’s precisely what Newcastle did.

First of all, ever heard of ‘em? I hadn’t, but again, NOT a beer drinker.

Their “If We Made It” campaign is pure genius.

The whole premise was built around the notion that Newcastle had every intention of producing a spot for the Super Bowl, but then didn’t. It was too expensive, the story concepting process was mismanaged, (never mind that Budweiser basically owns the Super Bowl).

Popping up nearly a week in advance, the campaign’s hub, www.ifwemadeit.com, is self-deprecating humor at its best.

Video testimonials by:

• Actress Anna Kendrick, sitting in hair and makeup, going off on the brewer while doing a little self-diagnosis in the process. “I’m hot. But, like, ‘Beer Commercial’ Hot?”
• Former NFL wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson takes us through a story board of how he was to provide voice over for a skateboarding cat. “Bad decisions. Bad management. Bad Newcastle.”    
• A series on a focus group session where Newcastle gauges REAL audience reaction to the ‘concept.’ “It’s just all the worst trends. Feels a little desperate.”

But they didn’t stop there.

On Super Bowl Sunday, Newcastle watched the actual ads along with us, ‘recreating’ a selection of them via storyboard animation. Selected ads that Newcastle made more ‘MEGA HUGE’ included Wonderful Pistachio, Chobani and GoDaddy (twice), just to name a few.

Brilliant.

Seriously, when you consider it costs $4 million for 30 seconds. And that’s just placement, never mind all the costs associated with the spot’s production…

Newcastle spent less, built MORE and, by most estimates, stole a huge handful of exposure and acclaim at this year’s Super Bowl.

…without actually producing a spot FOR the Super Bowl.

Hats off, Newcastle! Can we expect a Part 2 in 2015?

Happy Monday,
-Daniel :)

Afterthought: What’s next in the Super Bowl Advertising Evolution?

If everything is previewed in advance, how will marketers in the next 3-5 to 10 years REALLY secure (actual) Game Day impact?

Answer: Total Shock and Awe

Think mega-huge giveaways, a total change in brand or positioning – no previews or warnings, no hints whatsoever we’re talking Beyoncé surprise-album-dropping-at-midnight hysteria here.

Brands have dabbled with it already. Denny’s Free Grand Slam breakfast in 2012. Really two this year: U2’s “Invisible”, given for free in support of (RED) and eSurance’s $1.5M post-game spot savings giveaway.

Every brand, each more shocking then the last (all, no doubt, with paths into social-share). But wouldn’t that make for a thrilling night of TV? Almost like watching a high-stakes sporting event, or something!

Can’t wait. :)

Beer beans?! TGIF!

Oh for hype’s sake… 

That’s right; the same brilliant minds that brought us the cult-favorite buttered popcorn jellybean have something new on tap!

Official Draft Beer Bean launch page

Years in the making, Jelly Belly is confident they got the formula right – pure hefeweizen ale goodness! (Sounds a bit too yeasty for me, but then again, I’m not a big beer guy).

But why make a candy that tastes like hops and wheat?

Why make candy that tastes like popcorn?

It’s for the mystique and awe! To spike intrigue (read: business and sales).

The market for jellied beans has got to be, what? 40-50 years beyond mature?

To carve out new business, you’ve got to churn out nodes of differentiation!

I used to manage a Yankee Candle store. Every time we received new fragrances, it was the same old thing with slight variations. Macintosh Apple….now, with peach! How about a “Just Because We Can” line? A candle that smells like gasoline!? Sure, no one would want to take it home and burn it (flammable?!) – but it would foster intrigue! It would get more people (*new people) into stores, hungry for a whiff. Turn those drifters into new sales, and the hype has done its job.

Kids are gonna think they’re so cool, chomping on beer beans. And actually, ‘Draft Beer’ is late to the (adult) party! Other mixed-drink faves like Mai Tai and Pina Colada were perfected by Jelly Belly in the 80s.

So give Draft Beer a try! I know I’ll be eying the shelves for its arrival.

*Just remember, "beer before liquor, never sicker!" – pop your beans in the right order.

Happy Friday!
-DS :)

(New) MySpace set to launch in 3, 2, 1...

https://new.myspace.com/

Will we finally hear “lift off?”

Can this social media juggernaut learn from past mistakes and finally breakthrough re-entry of the social media cosmos?

It finally looks like it may be all systems go.

Intrigued? Heck, this cynic was. I even downloaded the song (“Heartbeat” by JJAMZ). The design team at MySpace recently announced that the site is being “rebuilt from scratch,” and will soon be re-born as an entertainment-focused community.

Wait, do we really need (or even want) another social media community?

We can already connect with/grow to hate the people we know through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Foursquare and LinkedIn (just to name a few).

And Facebook has the music side of things covered with Spotify.

And you can follow your favorite artists on Twitter.

Here’s why MySpace is better situated for a comeback now than ever before.

They’ve got a cool front man.
To grab attention of the masses, you need a magnetizing leader. Everyone likes J-Timberlake. Ever since “Dick in a Box,” the former N-SYNC lead has won over even the most macho of men. The musician turned actor turned MySpace majority stakeholder is just the ticket MySpace needs to bring sexy back (sorry, I just had to).

Their UI is kick-ass.

Floating tiles, translucent layers that slide, and edgeless video plugins. The MySpace dashboard/home screen is a breath of fresh air for those fatigued with the columnar design of Facebook.

But video of one user in a test environment in one thing; repetitious use in real-world another. If it proves clunky and full of glitches, sophisticated users will tire quickly and abandon.

Most importantly, (we think) they know their place.

If you can’t beat ‘em, wrap around ‘em!

A bit of humility goes a long way. Instead of asking users to open and build out YET ANOTHER social media profile and presence, MySpace lets prospect users “login via Facebook or Twitter” (Or so it seems in the video). Unlike Google+, MySpace isn’t interested in dethroning other platforms. 

They’re content just filling holes.

Because we DON’T need (or want) another Social Media site.

The next big thing will be the thing that connects all things (are you following me here?).

Wouldn’t it be cool to access your now disparate social world through one central electronic gateway?  Imagine selecting a connection and having a way to open one interactive snapshot of all their social media activity (Facebook albums, Instagram captures, recent check-ins, tweets and posted videos). Imagine mobile extensions that would actually link directly to text and the lost art of placing a phone call.

Instead of simply being a new take on an already heavily saturated, matured and fatigued market; asking users to do all the heavy lifting – why not go back to internet fundamentals? Why not fill in the gaps and make connecting between platforms easy.

Could MySpace be the next big thing….again? :)

We're on the list to find out...

Toys R Us offers parents a jump-start on Santa...

 99 days – the “Countdown to Christmas” is officially down to double-digits.

And in the far back reaches of some of our favorite Big Box retailers, a section or two of aisle way is already dedicated to red and green.

Ah yes, the greeting cards are always first to arrive...

“But I’m still wearing shorts and laying poolside!”

Yeah, yeah – we know for most of you, it’s “too much, too soon.”  Just try to bear with our excitement, will you? This year, Toys R Us seems to be celebrating us “Christmas can never start too early” nut-jobs.

The tycoon toy-eria is set to unveil a new reservation program with this year’s “Hot Toy List.”

Due out later this month, the annual list of kid-approved must-haves will incentivize shopping early.

How it Will Work:

Gift-givers can reserve any toy on the list prior to October 31^st. By putting 20% down, shoppers are placed in a virtual queue to receive stock as it arrives in-store.

Reservation holders will be notified via email when merchandise is available for pick up. They will have until December 16^th to do so.

Holds that are cancelled and any reservations not able to be filled prior to the Dec. 16 deadline will be refunded.

Help or Hurt the search for this year’s Hottest Toys?

For us, the promotion boasts two distinct mantras:

Customer-facing: “Stress-free shopping! Stop wasting time/energy with multiple trips in-store to simply check stock – we’ll tell you when your merchandise is here!”

Internal-facing: “Curse those online retailers and secondary web market – stealing from our bottom line. It’s time we take back what’s rightfully ours!”

Look, every parent wants to see their child smile on Christmas morning. But ever since their rise to power in the mid-90’s, online retailers and the secondary/peer-to-peer web markets have offered something brick and mortar cannot. Guaranteed product (ergo, guaranteed satisfaction under the tree).

In-store you pay retail price but deal with spotty availability. Online you have 100% availability but premium pricing.

Genius?

The Toys R Us promo looks to offer the best of both worlds; availability at retail price.

Reserve before November and you won’t have to pay 3-10x retail for “Let’s Rock Elmo.” The Hot Toys Reservation List is the perfect fix (in theory).

Will the promo allow gift givers to rest a little easier knowing they’ll secured all their holiday must-haves, or will it lull them into a false sense of security?

Only time will tell.

But in its pilot year, there are bound to be glitches.

How many units of in-demand product can each store expect to receive?

What percentage of that total can/should be made available to reserve? (They can’t leave the entire store floor devoid of all in-demand product).

What percentage of reservations made will end up being no-shows? (Non-participants be outside waiting come Monday December 17^th - you may be able to pick up expired reservations; making their way to the floor for the first time).

Look, we don’t have visibility into the store’s supply chain. And we’re living in a retail world of big data; no doubt Toys R Us has considered these and hundreds of other scenarios.

Still, the cynic in me can’t help but fear TRU will be sending out a lot of reservation cancellation notices come Dec. 16. A less than idyllic situation that would leave would-be shoppers scrambling to find items online (the very action this blogger predicts Toys R Us is hoping the program will curtail).

With holiday shopping the stakes are (always) high. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me.  Toys R Us may only have one year to get it right.

Ho, Ho, Hmmmm…

Let’s see what unfolds by year-end!

Ice cream, with a side of bacon

You know, Burger King launched a “new menu” back on April 1^st.

April Fools!

Don’t take it personal, David Beckham. The chain’s largest menu expansion since inception boasted nothing more than what had already been available at McDonald’s for years. Premium salads and coffees, snack wraps and smoothies – it’s no wonder it fell largely on death deaf ears!   

Summer Do-Over

With the official start of summer next week, the big 3 fast food chains are shaking up their menus – eager to attract sun-soaked, famished snackers.

McDonald’s added a S’mores Pie, new smoothies, and dropped the price of their vanilla cones to a mere 50 cents at some locations (if interested in a map of participating locations in Chicago, let me know – I tour them in a vicious cycle).

Wendy’s brought back their summer favorite Berry Almond Chicken Salad and beefed up their Frosty line to include a strawberry shortcake parfait.

Burger King is throwing a nationwide BBQ

The number 3 fast food chain (that’s right, Wendy’s took over the number 2 spot late last year) just unveiled a line of southern-inspired menu items. For a limited time, patrons can order sweet potato fries, BBQ pork, chicken, and beef sandwiches and, a bacon sundae.

That’s right, a bacon sundae

The vanilla soft serve is topped with fudge, caramel, and bacon crumbles and is paired with a slice of bacon “for dipping.” It weighs in at 510 calories, 18 grams of fat, and 61 grams of sugar.

At first it just sounds disgusting; an artery-clogging, food coma-inducing nightmare.  But hold on, BK might be on to something here. The cool, sweet vanilla would pair nicely with the rich, maple spiced bacon – a sort of salty/sweet swirl in your mouth.

BK’s Bearded Lady

So the sundae might have some (marginal) culinary street cred, but that’s not the point.

It’s the “bearded lady” of BK’s circus; an attraction designed to lure curious gawkers and non-believers (KFC’s ‘Double Down,’ anyone?) You may try it, you may not. But once inside, Burger King hopes you order something. It’s their chance to dazzle you with their “new menu” in the flesh. Who knows? Maybe you’ll discover a new favorite and visit again.

I’m intrigued (and I’m an unusually healthy guy).

Maybe it’s just that it’s close to lunch and I’m famished, but I’m onboard. Heck, I’m a sweet potato fry/pulled pork junkie – I might go for the gold and try all three!  

(...after my trip to Costa Rica next week)

If you stop by your local BK this weekend and decide to give it a try, report back!