Did the Super Bowl commercials make an impression?

Super Bowl commercials are expected to be the cream of the crop – the agency’s best. I did not watch the game this year, but I heard the commercials were not too hot. Are our expectations becoming too high? Do people want too much from a commercial? I looked up some ads on YouTube and I was not that impressed either. However, some of them stood out to me.

Watch this Axe Peace ad and see for yourself what I mean.

I found this ad extremely captivating and quite creative. The team that made the ad thought about the essence of Axe. The main benefit that men want from Axe is manliness and everything that comes along with that. The ad highlights how men can have power and get the girl. However, it also appeals to women in the sense that they want men to have the characteristic of being tough and powerful, but still romantic and sweet. I found the ad to be brilliant. The dramatic music and details made it for me. The doll’s eye popping out to the one personal line “Mikhail” to the emperor’s smile made the ad more persuasive and powerful. Its message appeals to everyone since anyone who has even experienced war in the slightest would agree it is horrible and that love needs to conquer. Now I wonder if the millions of dollars for the commercial were worth it for the company.

Pinterest Passion

Pinterest is one of the newest and hottest social media sites out there currently. With more than 70 million users, its population is slightly larger than Thailand’s. It features about 5 million pins of a variety of things from food, crafts, travel and fashion. Pinterest is now a billion dollar company, but only started about three years ago.

One of the cofounders Ben Silbermann gave a speech on how Pinterest came into existence. Such a creative and innovative idea took a lot of work and time. He spent years trying to get funding and partners before Pinterest was ever launched. He also had first created an app called Tote that was not a big success. The two main things I took away from the Pinterest story were that brilliant ideas do not just happen and that failure usually comes before a grand success. It takes a lot of hard work and patience. In addition, you cannot give up because you never know if your very next idea will be it.

On top of all that, look at how much creativity Pinterest has sparked in others. As an avid Pinterest user, I can say that Pinterest brings out my imagination and resourcefulness in allowing me to explore new things that I would normally never get the chance to do. I think our culture is moving in the trend of getting out of our comfort zones or at least pretending to. I believe that in order for there to be more innovation in the world people are going to have to challenge themselves to do things never done before. Pinterest is a tool that is beginning to help people get there.

Go ahead. Try Pinterest. Explore and discover something new. Then do it. Comment below on what challenged you.

Here are some similar articles where I got some info.

http://www.businessinsider.com/pinterest-founding-story-2012-4?op=1

http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/pinterest-stats/#.UuhXS7ROnIU

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/01/27/pinterest-launches-interests-tool-let-users-explore-topics-find-pins-like/#!tIeuM

On one knee. Please say yes.

The American culture is totally wrapped up in weddings. It also just may be that I am in the stage of my life where all of my friends are getting married. There are bridal showers, decorations, invitations, bachelor parties and much more. Pinterest has thousands upon thousands of pins directly related to planning or attending a wedding. There are businesses that only deal with weddings, like certain caterers or photographers. However, what is at the root of all the hype? Is it all just culture?

I think weddings are so cherished because they represent beginnings and the feeling of new. They are a time to celebrate life and family. Weddings are romantic and cute. They make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. Noticing that most all Americans enjoy weddings, gives great insight into making an ad. By just creating those emotions or memories, people can easily be swayed.

Watch this video advertisement on YouTube for Tiffany & Co.

They did an awesome job at making the ad. It was cute, memorable, funny and sweet. The innocence of the kids makes you forget that it is trying to persuade you of something – that Tiffany & Co. rings are the best. It precisely hits the emotions associated with proposing and getting married. By making viewers feel lighthearted and cheerful, they begin to feel that way towards the brand.

A lot of creativity in ads comes from looking at the essence of a product or the fundamental benefit it provides. By analyzing how and why people feel good, tactics can be employed to persuade. But generalities cannot be applied to everyone all the time.

On one knee. Please don’t ask.

Service Stampede

More often than not, we now see many big name brands trying to add onto their image that they “do good.” During October, every brand supports breast cancer research in some way, whether it is Pepperidge Farm, Nike or Dove. Almost every company is somehow giving back to the community on a regular basis, through helping the earth, veterans or sick children, to name a few. It has become standard for businesses to do something good for the world and it is called social responsibility. However, not to purposefully be cynical, how much of a brand’s service is meant for image and promotion?

Agencies and businesses are becoming more aware that people want to feel good in the sense of helping others with their purchases, and they are jumping on it to create successful and profitable companies. Check out this article from AdAge that briefly talks about some of the most growing businesses with social responsibility as their focus.

http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/10-companies-social-responsibility-core/143323/

I personally love when a purchase I make can also have a positive impact elsewhere, but my concern is whether advertising that effect of a buy negates the purpose. Does trying to increase sales through promoting the brand’s “good” character make it not so “good?”

I volunteered at Stampede for Service this weekend along with 2500 others. The event was terrific, but I asked myself whether people wanted to volunteer because they genuinely wanted to or because they felt obligated or felt like it was an event to do in college. I believe if America actually wants to promote a society that cares for one another, making service a “popular” thing to do is not the right route. Service is about sacrifice – where you might have a loss. It isn’t just something cool. It isn’t just something to be advertised.

Creativity: where does it come from

Creativity is defined in Webster’s dictionary as “the ability to make new things or think of new ideas.” Some people believe you are either born with the gift, while others argue it can be taught. I think creativity stems from the human nature of desiring ownership in the world. People want to stake a claim in their reality and make sense of what’s around them. Some of my most creative moments were when I was a child. I either didn’t have the new toy or time to play with a friend so I would create games, activities and fantasies. When I thought I was lacking something or when I wanted to make something my own, then my brain would be full of terrific ideas. I don’t believe creativity can be called upon at a specific moment; however, you can train yourself to think more creatively every day. Through critiquing culture and looking at the world’s new ideas with the intention of discovering its source, I hope to train myself in becoming a more creative and critical thinker. Feel free to read along and join me in this quest.