The Todd Blog

Check out this new ad campaign from Pepsi, highlighting their one-calorie PepsiMax beverage. (Click the images for a larger view.)

“One very lonely calorie.”

I’ve always thought there was too little suicide imagery in advertising today, haven’t you?

I don’t think I’m too conservative when it comes to things like this, but even I think this is in very poor taste.

If the Motrin Moms can go crazy over a relatively tame ad, I wonder what the outcry will be over something like this?

What do you think of the campaign?

Let’s pretend that you worked for a company that was looking for a branding/marketing/advertising partner. Caveat: If you really are working for a company that is looking for a branding/marketing/advertising partner, please be yourself.

Imagine that you heard about an ad agency from one of your business friends or heard a representative from the agency speak at an association luncheon. You can imagine the chicken breast and steamed vegetables that were served at the luncheon if you want – it’s not necessary, but more power to you.

You type the agency name into the Google (a really good search engine) and you’re taken to the agency’s page. You’re initial impression is positive – the site is clean and the navigation seems to be logical. You click through their portfolio and then head to the About section to read more. Remember, we’re imagining here – in imagination-land it is not outside the realm of possibility that you actually read this kind of stuff.

Once you’ve landed on the About, what do you want to read there? What do you care about? What do you want to learn?

Thanks in advance for the thoughts.

So I was checking my gMail when I noticed an intriguing ad at the top of my screen:

I wasn’t aware that there was a guy named Kevin Johnson running for mayor of Wichita – I didn’t even know we were having a mayoral election this year! Intrigued, I clicked the ad and was taken to this site:

Upon my arrival to the site, I saw that this wasn’t just any Kevin Johnson – this was the Kevin Johnson I remember fondly from NBA Jam. Johnson was a guard for the Phoenix Suns for 12 years and is now, apparently, pursuing a political career. In Sacramento, Cali. Approximately 1,691 miles from my house.

Ok, so what’s the lesson? Google adwords can be effective – I clicked it. But Google adwords can also be targeted. By region. By state. By city. And this one wasn’t targeted at all. Which means that I wasted anywhere from 5 cents up to a number of dollars of KJ’s campaign money.

The power of interactive, search-specific advertising is being able to present your ads to people who are in a position to either be interested in or, at the least, the target of your message. Blitzing the United States and people who couldn’t care less about the Sacramento mayoral race is a waste of money.

Check out this new commercial from Subway:

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=fwz_N4vi4uY]

I think the Subway creative team grew envious of the Burger King creative team and wanted to out-weird their burger-competition. Unfortunately, it appears they were either derailed by a conservative corporate culture or just chickened out, showing traditional product information (sans Jared) at the end and completely losing whatever quirk-factor they had established.

I think it’s a pretty weak spot, but the jingle is stupidly catchy.

What do you think of Subway’s latest campaign?