Blog Action Day: Global Warming

Today is BAD. Not a bad day but Blog Action Day and the topic for this year is global warming.

As always I will "talk" about it with an ad, this time one from Brazil. It is a more or less recent campaign (aired in January this year) that uses a very simple analogy to help us perceive what some others are feeling already, thanks to global warming.

The agency behind the commercial is Ponto de Criação from São Paulo. Here, the ad:

While millions of people have seen that last shot more than once, I know that some do not take what is already happening seriously. I believe that this ad successfully conveys the fact that what is happening is not funny. At all.

Nevertheless, there are other arguments to be made about this problem.

I find particularly creative the list compiled by the Center for American Progress, a list towards what I call, "the selfish ones". Titled "The Top 100 Effects of Global Warming", it is not about hunger spreading or crops failing is about how global warming can affect your fun. Yes, your fun.

Some of the things in the list are: Say Goodbye to French Wines, Say Goodbye to Baseball, Say Goodbye to Lobster and Salmon Dinners and Say Hello to More Mosquitoes and Poison Ivy. If you want to read the whole list, here it is.

Global warming is a fact and it will affect all of us, sooner or later. It is really up to us to do something.

What can you do? Here is a list of ten things we can do to help stop climate change. Of course, it may be impossible to do all of them: I know I can consume less and unplug my electronics, but I also know that I will never -ever- go vegetarian willingly (I am from Argentina, remember?)

My point is that this is not about changing your ways all at once, but it is important to start taking as much steps as possible. At the end of the day it is a fact that no one can dispute that we have just one planet.

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Universal Health Care for Dummies

Those that know me, know perfectly well where I stand in this so call "debate" on universal healthcare. Even if you don't know me personally but you read my blog, you probably know where I stand, but so far, I kept my mouth shut (or better said my fingers quiet) and didn't talk about the issue in my blog for two main reasons:

a) I didn't see real debate happening, what the media was showing as "debate" was just a bunch of ignorant/misinformed/selfish/fearful individuals (choose one or all of the above) yelling nonsense.

b) More important so, there was little "creativity" around the issue: at the beginning most of the material available was coming from those against universal healthcare and let's face it, people so afraid of change tend to have little creativity.

But finally those for the plan have started to surface with their own take on the matter and I want to share with you some of the good material I found here and there. (Note: if I am calling these "good material" is not just because I agree with what they say but because of how they say so.)

Let's start with these cards from SomeEcards. I talked about them before, but they have conquered my heart with these e-cards about the issue: my sentiments exactly!





Now, a video that I think it should have been named:

"Universal Healthcare for Dummies"

(Think about it. The water in your house comes from a "socialist" service:
Beware, by drinking it you may become a commie!)

Animated by Andy Lubershane. More comics at http://www.earthlycomics.blogspot.com

So, we all talk about "the facts". The problem being, which facts? Which ones do you believe in? Here is what happened to someone trying to get good, real, reliable info online about the plan (for or against it):

Ze Frank finds out that "It's complicated"

This last video may not be as funny as the ones before, but it clearly presents facts. Facts with names and numbers and parents or kids. Not funny maybe but on the creative side, a little gem. Made with "social" help, giving voice to those that need it the most, and the music of R.E.M.



If you have any doubt, I guess now is obvious that I am all for universal healthcare. I do not need it, I have healthcare here through my job AND I keep my private healthcare in my native country. I simply believe that health is like education: everyone should have access to it on time.

Last but not least, a couple of thoughts.

For those that believe that a public option would be "unfair" for the private companies: have you seen any private university closing their doors due to the "unfair" competition that public schools represent?

For those that do not want to do it now, because "we need to get it right": Do you really believe that 40 years in the making is not time enough? And do you believe that when the actual system fails, you will be able to get it "right" then, in a hurry?

And for those that are just wondering "how we'll pay for it" I hope you never lose the private healthcare you have now. On second thoughts, I hope you lose it. Don't get me wrong, I am not wishing you bad. I am just wishing that you experience the same experience other have. Maybe that way you will understand a bit better how awful it may be to be sick or have your relatives sick and think "how I will pay for what they need"?

The US has an enormous advantage to get it right. We can learn from all the others countries out there with universal healthcare. We can take what works and avoid proven mistakes. We can be creative and start working on a problem when it's in the early stages. You know what? I hate super used slogans, but I will make an exception this time: "Yes, we can".

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A Campaign With an Edge

From Singapur (Singapore), probably the most clever campaign I have ever seen for a product like Play Doh. And the cutest one, in a "Tim Burton" sort of way.

These ads talk to parents directly, reminding them -at the same time- about the thousand of possible things you can make with the product but, even more important, it also reminds them about how safe it is to play with it.

According to my friend Odra -who is living there and sent me the ads-, the whole campaign appeared in one of those small free magazines that you can pick up at the coffee store (in her case it was at Spinelli's) and it is "the type of magazine that let you know what there is out there to do if you want to be young, crazy and informed of the last tendencies...".

Clearly, the target is young, progressive, open minded parents (my friend being one, she also fall in love with the campaign).

Here, the ads (click to enlarge):

Matches Razor Pills Knife

The magazine where she found them is called Navigator and if you are planning to visit Singapur soon, you can also read it online. I don't know the agency behind the campaign but I surely hope they get some recognition!

UPDATE: Hasbro denies the ads were correctly approved (even when they were approved by someone in the company). Read more here!

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On Parents and Education

I can't help but laugh at the "controversy" about the President giving a speech to students about the importance of education on their first day at school. Parents that are complaining about "indoctrination" clearly have no idea what that words means (no surprise there).

You can read Obama's speech here, there is nothing in there that even gets near to political propaganda.

I guess that those parents complaining like cry-babies are threaten by anything that the POTUS may say just because they have little positive to say at all. Or maybe, they really would prefer their kids to become rich and famous the quick way, through reality TV or rap because that would not challenge them (the parents) in any serious way. Something in the lines of "Let's keep 'thinking', 'asking', 'learning' and 'commitment' out of our lives." What is a shame, because if there is something that nurtures creativity is exactly that, the capacity to keep asking questions.

The very sad part is that their complaining just comes to show what kind of parents they are: the lousy type. Good parents are not threaten by that real big world outside their homes that is so full of different ideas. Good parents do care about what their kids are exposed to, of course, but they are powerful enough in their knowledge and conviction, -and most importantly in the eyes of their kids- to talk with them about what they may have seen or heard anywhere and discuss those things with their kids, as another way to teach them.

As I said, I don't see any indoctrination or political propaganda in this speech, but even if there was a hint of it, a good parent could easily rub that off from their kids. Of course, to be able to do that, you need to have half a brain, some basic capacity to articulate coherent sentences and -last but not least-, the ability to talk with your kids (as opposite to give monologues to them.)

Really, parents that do fear a speech like this, should re-evaluate their parenting skills; they obviously do not know what means (or how to be) a good parent. It may sound harsh but it is just a fact of life: Good parents are not threaten by a 20 minutes video that their kids will see just once in their life!

PS: BTW, have you read Reagan's speech for the same occasion? It wasn't exactly what I would call an "objective" one. If you compare them, there is clearly more political propaganda in this one that in Obama's speech, but I guess that was another time. Maybe at the time, those parents that differ in their views knew how to talk to their kids or maybe the type of people that are complaining now would have not complained about Reagan's propaganda because it was "their" propaganda...

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Pepsi Adopts a New (& Old) Name

This campaign for Pepsi Argentina, makes the most of something that -normally- brands hate: having their name mispronounced. Making a long story short, since I was a kid Pepsi was a name that some people just couldn't get it right, and Pepsi was for them "Pecsi" or "Pesi".

In this new campaign, Pepsi cleverly adopts this other name and even praises those that say Pecsi. The ads are all very short, most of them with Carlos "Mostaza" Merlo. "Mostaza" (what means "Mustard" and became his nickname for the color of his hair) is a former football player, that after retiring became a football coach (note: I am talking about what the world knows as football that is known as soccer in this part of the world.)

Anyway, going back to the commercial: Mostaza is well know for mispronouncing soccer English terms as well as the cola brand, and -of course-, that makes him the perfect spokesperson for this campaign.

Here, one of the short ads, with subtitles:

The campaign has several short ads like this one but also a website "Tomás Pecsi" ("You drink Pecsi") that makes the most of the whole mispronouncing English. It has "Daunlos"(downloads) and even a "Pecsipedia" that is pretty funny and allows users to enter new terms that they mispronounce. Is in this dictionary that the brand praises those that say "Pecsi": the brands assumes that it is not that those doing so don't know how some words should be pronounced, but that they don't care.

Interestingly enough, when I first saw the ads I thought it was a great idea but that it was the kind of campaign that could not be understood in any other part of the world. I was wrong: Talking with colleagues from Colombia and Venezuela, I learned that in those countries some people not only say "Pecsi" but also "Petsi" and "Persi"...

Anyone out there knows of yet another way of saying "Pepsi"?

PS: If you understand Spanish, here you can see more ads from this same campaign.

Thanks Mauricio and Ana for the info on Colombia and Venezuela!

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I'm Back!!

Well, at least one of my computers is back!

Yeap, my two computers decided to die almost at the same time and I was left with my small old laptop, that may be great to travel but it is NOT what you want to blog and be a social twitter.

But finally, thanks to my beloved and skillful other half, one of my computers played the rol of Lazarus and came back to life. This does not mean that I will post everyday from now on (lots of stuff going on), but hopefully I will be able to catch up a bit. Meanwhile, my sincere thanks to all those friends and readers that contacted me to know what was going on...., it is nice to know that my ramblings are appreaciate, hey, even miss by some!

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Any Similarity With Real Events...

Sometimes an ad gets extra attention not for its creativity but for the events surrounding its production. This case though, is receiving some press for what happened after it was aired.

As you can see by yourself, this commercial for the UK's Department of Health is not really creative. Yeah, it has a somewhat 'clever' use of words but it is kind of obvious, and for my taste a little too graphic.

So, why the media attention? Simple. In an ironic twist of fate, David McCusker, the actor sneezing in the ad that was supposed to "Catch it, Bin it, Kill it" ("it" being the swine flu) has fallen victim to the swine flu himself.

In a very British tone, he confessed to the DailyMail: "I've been shivering, shaking and spreading it.(...)It was a shock when I found out. I quarantined myself and I've been getting lots of stick from mates."

Via Huffington Post

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The Hottest Sunglasses on Earth (and the Designer Behind Them)

For some people sunglasses are just a fashion accessory. An important one, because it is "in your face" -literally-, but still, just one accessory more in the list.

For some other people, like me, sunglasses are a need: I am slightly photo phobic and I live in sunny South Florida, capisce?

For that sole reason, I have probably around 20 pairs of sunglasses. I need to have always at least one in the car, one in my purse, one at work, several around the house and the ones I use to swim (yes, I do swim with sunglasses). Some are extremely cheap (the "backup" sunglasses, like the ones in the car), some are expensive (those are the ones I make a serious effort to avoid losing).

Now, even if I considered them a need, I do appreciate the fashion side of this object. Again, they are in your face and they can 'make it or break it'. Strangely, there have not been not so many really great "out of the box" innovations when it comes to frames. Until now.

Last year, I wrote a brief posting about a company doing something really, really, really new: the Cinematique frames. Frames made from movies, with actual pieces of 16mm and 35mm film. The film is protected in a waterproof, air tight transparent encasement that allows the light to shine through, making the film to be more visually stunning.

The company, Tipton Eyewear , born in the US but based now in Budapest, Hungary, recycles movies to make this one-of-a-kind frames that are -without any doubt-, a conversation piece as well as whole statement by themselves. As it happens when going to the cinema, the movie you choose for your frames may say a lot about you.

This year they have gone one step further with their new collection of rescued vintage movies that includes topics like: erotica, burlesque, softcore, soviet space missions, and classic black and white cartoons like Popeye and Krazy Kat. Yeap. Nude scenes from Emanuelle in your glasses can make them (literally) the hottest one in the world (see image at the top); Popeye on the other hand can make them(metaphorically) the strongest ones.

When I got the news about this new line, I couldn't help it with my curiosity and decided to interview the designer behind the frames: Zachary Tipton.

But first, check out some of their new frames...

From the Erotica collection



Ford in Black


One of my favorites: Hitchcock in Havannah

Aren't they something?

Moving forward to the interview. I have to admit that when I read that some of the films used included -for example- "original footage of Soviet space missions" my first concern was about the possibility that this recycling may entail losing some valuable material forever. Zach put me at ease: "We do make sure that the media is still available and the ones we can not find on digital media, we digitalized ourselves. This has been done with the vintage erotica from the 1950s, 60s. Others are already available on DVD, like Swinging Cheerleaders and Emanuelle and some are in YouTube: Louis vs Walcott, Popeye, Chaplin...

We have been receiving film from the Hungarian National television. They are in the process of digitalizing their archives. We acquire the footage that has already gone through the process."

I asked Zach if they've considered the possibility of giving some of the not so well known movies with the frames and surely enough they are moving in that direction.

"We are working on a DVD that will be distributed with the frames. There are a few copyright issues that have to be dealt with first: On major motion pictures such as Emanuelle and Swinging Cheerleaders, an original DVD will come with the online purchase of the frame. For the others (anonymous erotic releases from the 40s-70s and old socialist media footage as well as home movies) that we have digitalized ourselves will be distributed with the frames."

So, how the idea to use films started? "My brother (Zoltan) and I had the idea to use film a few years ago. I suppose it stemmed from the original idea of recycling materials (another line we make uses vinyl records for both the frame and case). We had received a roll of film from a friend who worked in the theater and we started experimenting with it. After a year we came upon the idea of inserting it into the temple. The idea grew from there. We then started collecting all the previews from that theater in southern Hungary."

Do you try to get some specific films or you work with what you can get? "We do both, but now are starting to get more specific films. The film makes the product and if we don't put what people want in it, they won't sell. Popular categories are: sex, nudity, fire, patterns, icons (Monroe, Eiffel Tower, etc), art directors (Kubrick, Allen, Tarantino) airplanes, planets, space... vintage. Not so popular categories are: darkness, recognizable faces, certain actors, credits..."

What percentage is usable from a film? (I understand that you try to use scenes that can be seen in the frames so I am guessing there is a lot of material you can't use) "Unfortunately a big precentage of the film is unusable: dramas (too many face close ups and people don't like wearing other peoples faces... plus they are usually monotonous in color). Horror movies because they tend to be dark. Credits (people don't like a lot of text, especially if they can't read it). But don't fear! the unused stuff gets recycled too: packing material (instead of styrofoam puffs) and window displays."
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If you think I am totally in love with the idea and the product, you are right. The fact that is recycled material makes them "green" but the actual material gives them an almost intellectual side that no other frames can have. Shallow and deep, cold and hot, customized to your choice and rare as the movies from the 40's they use, this new line definitely has an European soul that can attract the "pure fashionista" and the almost geeky "movies-savvy" at the same time.

Believe it or not, here in South Florida there is not yet a store carrying this frames (Miami, come on!) but stores in NYC, Chicago, Califnornia, Oregon and Minnesota already have some Tipton eyewear. And if you already know what style goes better with your face, they also have a small part of their collection available online but there are several stores accross the world carrying the line: from Europe to Japan, from Australia to Malaysia, Canada and Singapore, specialty stores already have Tipton frames available.

These are not cheap frames, of course, but if you think about how unique they are you will not find them outrageous expensive either. Prices range from 250 to 350 Euros, but hey! who else has a Hitchcock movie around their eyes?

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The Moon Landing: A Friendly Reminder

The day the man arrived to the moon is a very special day in my native country, Argentina: ror us, it is Friend's Day.

An Argentine teacher, musician, and dentist, Enrique Febbraro, lobbied to turn the anniversary of the first moon landing into an international day of friendship. He argued that on this particular day, the whole world had been friends of the three astronauts.

From my point of view he was very accurate in his assesment. Not so many events in modern history were so celebrated by people in every corner of the world.

He never got his wish in the sense that this day became Friend's Day just in Argentina and Uruguay, but in both countries is a big day. In Argentina, Friend's Day is a good excuse for a common friendly gathering, though people also employ the day to get in contact with old and seldom-met friends and greet them.

For that reason, brands tend to have special campaigns just for this date and they are either heart-touching or extremely funny. I prefer the last ones, of course.

So here is a recent ad from Fernet Branca celebrating friends. I picked this one not only because it is hilarious but also because it represents pretty well how I think about friendship....

My friends know what to expect from me. Ninety-nine percent of the time, simply the truth. Sometimes... well..., I could soooo easily be the one laughing in the commercial!

Happy Friend's Day, chicuelos, wherever you are!

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Intel & Cisco, Branding the Invisible

Not so long ago (well, maybe 30 or 40 years) we already have a differentiation between products and services and when it came to advertising the difference was -basically-, that you could "touch" the former but you could just "experience" the latter.

Coca-Cola, Toyota or Tupperware were clearly products, that you could touch, feel, taste. Thirty years ago, services were things like American Express, StateFarm or Bank of America. Services were also called the intangibles.

Computers, and later on the internet, change this quite a bit. Companies selling their products directly online now were in need of branding their products but also to take care of their online service. On the other hand, software is at the same time a service and a product. It is not by chance that a lot of software out there allows you to have a free trial: it is their way of allowing us to interact with the product, to measure it against similar ones or against our own expectations.

And then there is the hardware. We can argue that hardware is a product because we can touch it, but that is not so true when it boils down to things like chips or processors. We can touch a processor, yeah, but... how many of us has ever touch one? Processors for us end up being more of a service as they translate into performance.

The intangibles are not easy to work with in advertising. They can be easy (or not) to explain, to show in action or to talk about, but not to so easy to position in a catchy, short, non-boring way.

Maybe that is why I truly love the new campaign from Intel "Our Rock Stars Aren't Like Your Rock stars". It's simply brilliant. If you haven't seen it yet, here it is:

What makes this campaign so good? To start with it's catchy, it easily gets your attention. Also, they make fun of themselves ("yes, we are geeks") but without getting to the extreme ("we know what rock stars are and how to react to them").But the true genius is that they are able to communicate a philosophy in a very simple way. They are positioning the company in a way that not also is good for the products but for the brand beyond the products. What I mean is that -for example-, it may also help in attracting more candidates to any job opening they may have. And they are talking in plain English.

Not so brilliant, but good enough, is the Cisco campaign for their "Collaboration Technologies" a follow up from another good enough campaign "The Human Network". My favorite ad from this campaign (due to personal and professional reasons) is without doubt, this one:



Anyone that knows me, knows already the personal reasons. "I Will Survive" is one of my favorites songs ever. But from a professional viewpoint, I think that choosing that song was a great idea and not only because it "translated" well to what they were trying to say but mostly because it is a song that resonates with most of the target they are talking to. Kids are not afraid of new technologies changing the way they communicate but as we get older, we tend to resist these new ways. The commercial succeeds in both getting the attention and delivering the message.

They are both exceptions to the rule. Online services (like websites or services delivered online) and computer products (with the exception of Mac), normally can't avoid the trap of overexplaining themselves and they end up being boring even for their own target.

Intel and Cisco have successfully managed to talk to their target in a really different way. Hat tip to both the ad agencies involved and the companies' management that decided to go this way!

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