February 7, 2010
MIT Faculty T-Shirt Design Contest
February 6, 2010
Our faculty Media Information Technoculture (MIT) held a design contest for our new faculty t-shirt. We had two hours and three themes. This is what I came up with.
*The brands would all be unique. To save time I made several and duplicated them to display the arrangement.
All Marketers Are Liars
January 31, 2010
The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low Trust World
The first thing about Seth Godin’s All Marketers Are Liars that you need to know is that marketers aren’t really liars. He explains that marketers are storytellers and it’s really the consumer that lies to themselves. We pick a story, latch on to it, and our loyalty is theirs. He even argues recycling is a myth! A lie we like to believe. We don’t recycle because it saves money – it’s actually more expensive. We recycle because it makes us feel better. On a more serious note, can this sort of practice apply to organized religion? I won’t go there but think about it.
How about driving an SUV? Come on, we all know they are unsafe gas guzzlers but hell, they make us feel good. They’re certainly cooler than the more fuel efficient minivan. You’d think that with such an expensive decision we’d want to be logical, but we’re not. The problem is that minivans tell a story and as Godin argues, part of that story is that moms are taxi drivers shuttling their kids around to soccer games and dance classes. No mom wants that kind of image attached to her. They want to be cool in their SUV.
Think of the restaurants you like. Why do you like them? Restaurants aren’t about the food but rather, the atmosphere – the feeling we receive when we look around, admire the decor and interact with the friendly and charming staff.
Seth tells the reader of one of his friends, a successful real estate agent. What makes him successful is the way in which he sells a story. He explains how the agent takes a couple for a drive around the neighborhood and takes the opportunity to educate them about the detailed lives of their would-be neighbors. By describing the people that live nearby the couple thinks far beyond the physical house and is sold on a complete story – the story of an active, friendly, and diverse community. The key is not that the agent lies to the couple, because although marketing involves telling a story, that doesn’t mean the story is false. In fact, Godin stresses that it is imperative that the story being told is authentic.
At one point he illustrates authenticity in his own book. He asks, what if this book was actually written by his assistant based on a 3 page outline? Would you be as interested in it? After all, it’s the same words. What does the author matter? The answer: everything. The author’s credibility, the name and story of Seth Godin, is really what sold this book.
Telling a story isn’t an easy task. Godin lets us know that a good story should be subtle – if the slogan for Fox News wasn’t ‘Fair and Balanced’ but instead ‘News for Conservatives’ they probably wouldn’t receive the ratings they do. It should appeal to the senses and not logic (Martin Lindstrom argues this well using his idea of sensory branding in Buyology). This is why the stories told by news agencies are sensationalized and not factual – think of news as being marketed just like any other product. The story should cater to a niche audience and represent an existing worldview that has not yet been tapped into. Marketers don’t create worldviews, they pick one, frame it in such a way that appeals to those that share this worldview and most importantly, they must genuinely embrace it.
Think about these worldviews:
“I believe a home-cooked meal is better for my family.”
“I believe sushi tastes better if the chef is Japanese.”
“Organic food is better.”
A successful story is the Toyato Prius. The Prius endorses a worldview allowing consumers to believe that they are smart (whether they actually are or not) just like the smart features the car offers (the car offers intelligent parking assist, a smart key and other nifty tricks). The story was the foundation but the product was the reality. Essentially, the engineers made the story come true by actually making a smart car. What can we take from this? Transforming the story into an authentic product is the winning combination.
Another story that stuck with me was of a company selling glamorous wine glasses. The company brags that drinking wine in their type of glass actually enhances the taste and experience of wine drinking. Crazy? Apparently not. Placebo or not, people buy it.
Godin argues that people like things that are new and that first impressions are critical as consumers tend to make snap judgments when confronted with an overwhelming amount of choices (Malcolm Gladwell talks about this process in his book Blink).
It is important to understand that marketers aren’t the only storytellers but that consumers too join the fun – they take a major role in telling the story to their friends and help spread the word (again, this is something Gladwell talks about in his book The Tipping Point in reference to agents of change). This is what we can refer to as word of mouth marketing.
Back to big lies: “Who said granola bars are healthy?” asks Godin. Think about it: granola bars are often covered in honey, chocolate and other sugary treats. They’re far from being healthy but the story they sell is enough for us to believe otherwise (Quaker Dark chocolate and Raspberry Almond… mmm).
As my final note, I’ve come to the realization that I have actually lied to myself when reading this book. Why am I even blogging about it? Frankly, it’s not because the book was that informative or even that entertaining to read. The truth is I thought the book was, for the most part, glorified common sense and at times very redundant. All said and done, I bought the book because I had heard the buzz about Seth Godin. I mean, thank goodness it actually was written by him and not his assistant… kidding. Or am I? In all honesty, I had bought into the story that I was being told about him and I wanted to like the book before even reading the first sentence. I had been told he was a wise marketing guru and I wanted to hear more. I guess in some way though, confirming this very idea has taught me something and for that I must thank Seth Godin.
Pepsi
January 18, 2010
Key Numbers (December 2008):
Sales: $43,251.0M
One year growth: 9.6%
Net income: $5,142.0M
Income growth: (9.1%)
Employees: 198,000
The Pepsi beverage was first made in 1898 by a pharmacist named Caleb Bradham from North Carolina, although PepsiCo as we know it today only began in 1965 after merging with Frito Lay adding the variety of complementary snacks to their roster – something decided by two men Donald M. Kendall and Herman W. L. The company was founded in Chicago but is now stationed in Purchase, NY.
Today PepsiCo accounts for brands like KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell as part of the Tricon Global Restaurants marketed by Yum! Brands Inc., along with the Quaker Oats family composed of Aunt Jemima, Cap’n Crunch, Life and several others (to see a full list click here) – all of which are spread over 200 countries.
In 1903 the company was trademarked and although once scribbled by the creator himself under the name “Brad’s Drink,” in 1906 the original Pepsi logo under the name Pepsi was put in use under the slogan “The Original Pure Food Drink.” In response to a sugar crisis in the early thirties, Pepsi doubled their quantities and marketed the beverage as “Refreshing & Healthful.” – a slogan that was dropped after the price soon decreased from ten cents to five. During the war in the following decade, CEO Walter Mack came up with the idea of Pepsi’s famously engraved bottle along with it’s iconic red, blue and white color scheme and moving into the sixties the colors transformed into a bottle cap logo under the slogan”Bigger Drink, Better Taste.”
The actual Pepsi logo we see today with two bulls-eye marks was not introduced until 1962, at which point the logo stayed relatively the same. That is, until last year in 2009 when the Arnell Group revealed their new hip look for Pepsi (including an updated bottle), described here and in more detail, the official design brief. Whether it is effective or not is unknown at this point, but while some like it, others despite it (one opinion I find helpful found here).
Pepsi is well known for their celebrity endorsements with such stars as Brittany Spears and Beyonce (see full list of spokespersons here) but as a whole, Pepsi marketing has always been aimed at their competition with Coca-Cola and has effectively kept in the race with the familiar Pepsi Taste Challenge and other such campaigns. In 2003 however, the brand took a hit after claims were made by people who apparently encountered cans of Pepsi with syringes, bullets and pins in them. Using only the best PR agents the company handled the claims so well that they are now considered a textbook example of how to defend a brand in such circumstances.
Internationally, the brand has made some controversial expansions into Burma and Israel resulting in a loss of market share to Coca-Cola but PepsiCo continues to thrive along side them in India, a once promising beverage market where consumption is now made routine. It wasn’t until 1991 that India even allowed foreign markets into their economy. At that point PepsiCo partnered with government-owned Punjab Agro Industrial Corporation (PAIC) and Voltas India Limited and immediately started making acquisitions. They officially ended the joint venture in 1994 becoming an autonomous powerhouse, although like any other major corporation, the brand has encountered their share of problems along the way.
Despite their share of 95% of the soft-drink market in India, PepsiCo has been developing a bad reputation ever since – during the same year as the syringes media hype (2003) – The Delhi based Center for Science and Environment announced that PepsiCo beverages contained traces of pesticides.
More recently, whether it be related to their growing bad reputation or merely to recent trends, since 2006 under the supervision of Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi the PepsiCo brands have adopted several environmental initiatives into their product and marketing. The campaign is currently being run through The Pepsi Eco Challenge.
Trivia
- In 2004 PepsiCo received a 100 percent rating on the Corporate Equality Index released by the LGBT-advocate group Human Rights Campaign.
- In 2005, after 112 years, the Pepsi beverage finally outsold their number one competitor Coca-Cola.
- In 2009 PepsiCo spent $4.2 million on lobbying towards beverage taxes – a 300 percent increase since 2005.
Sources
http://www.answers.com/topic/pepsico-inc
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/rant/pepsipanic.html
http://www.logoblog.org/pepsi_logo.php
Heinz
January 14, 2010
Key Numbers (April 2009):
Sales: $10,148.1M
One year growth: 0.8%
Net income: $923.1M
Income growth: 9.2%
Employees: 32,500
Heinz is one of today’s most popular and long withstanding brands and although they are most famous for their ketchup, the name accounts for 5,700 products (not by coincidence) and covers countless other brand names like Boston Market, Bagel Bites, Classico, and T.G.I Friday’s. Developed by Henry John Heinz and his brothers, Heinz ketchup has earned it’s right as a permanent condiment in both our kitchens and restaurants for over a century.
The question begs, what makes their ketchup so successful? Does the majority of the population just enjoy tomatoes? Is the taste of Heinz ketchup far superior than other kinds? Is it the extra vinegar as Malcolm Gladwell suggests (Gladwell, 42)? Maybe that’s it. Or is it the brand? I’m sure the product has it’s place among consumers based on it’s own merit, but I can’t help but wonder how much of their longevity had to do with their brand and marketing. After all, the brand held enough power to culturally define a part of passing generations. The brand made it’s way from Pittsburgh in 1869 to the public market in 1946 and into the homes and families we know today. They even brag about it on their website: “Heinz Ketchup is a classic American icon that has been a part of families’ lives for more than 130 years.”
Their logo, for the most part, has not changed since their inception. A few minor subtleties to keep it modern perhaps, but the icon remains just as the company first designed it resembling Pennsylvania, the keystone state, or as some believe, a bean shape.
What’s more important is their marketing strategy. Some time in 1982 Henry Heinz came up with the slogan “57 varieties” after seeing a sign advertising 21 styles of shoes on a train in New York. The numbers 5 and 7 were chosen for personal reasons as the brand encompassed over 60 products at the time. Not much had changed until the 1960’s when they introduced “Beanz Means Heinz” in such copy as “A million housewives every day pick up a tin of Beans and say, Beanz Meanz Heinz”, or “Don’t be mean with the Beans Mum, Beanz Meanz Heinz.” Three decades later c.1996 they started using “Heinz Buildz Britz” however, after sales had declined, it was quickly dropped for a new campaign asking the public “Keep it or can it?” over top of re-run ads from the sixties and seventies. Despite the popular vote of keeping the slogan they went with something new: “The bean. The superbean.” Realizing their mistake in 2004 they tacked on a ‘z’ to Beanz reminding consumers of their original tagline.
Currently the brand is recovering from a hit they took from AMV BBDO’s UK television commercial featuring Heinz Deli Mayonnaise and two men kissing. The ad ran for a few weeks in June 2008 before being withdrawn after a number of serious complaints. To make things worse, the gay rights movement saw the withdrawal as insulting and the brand undertook further damage by removing the commercial, seen here:
More recently, the brand has changed their ketchup label by removing the classic pickle image, a move that has left loyal Heinz fans angry. A Facebook page is currently protesting the change here. The label also carries a new tagline, “Grown not made” which will soon be promoted in late Spring.
Trivia
- In 1900 Heinz made history putting up New York City’s first large electric sign at Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street. A total of 1,200 lights illuminated a 40-foot-long green pickle and its advertising message.
- In deference to the Sabbath, Heinz’s advertisements never ran on Sundays.
- In 1946 the company insignia went to war; the 57th Squadron of the 446th Army Air Force chose for its emblem a winged pickle marked ‘57.’
Sources
http://www.answers.com/topic/h-j-heinz-company
http://www.greenfieldvillageonline.com/biographies/heinz.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._J._Heinz_Company#2008_advertisement_controversy
Gladwell, Malcolm. What The Dog Saw. “The Ketchup Conundrum.” New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2009.
100,000 On The Hill, Climate Day
January 12, 2010
Presented to students at The University of Western Ontario.
Taken from the Climate Day Website:
Our story begins with university student, Gracen Johnson. She heard from David Suzuki, while watching CBC’s The Hour, that our best chance to affect real change in our government’s inaction towards climate change is to fill Parliament Hill with concerned citizens, just like her.
“We need government. We need government to set regulation and to use taxation creatively [...]. There is no reason to feel hopeful about [government action] unless the public begins to really respond [...] If you want to get the government to respond to public concern get a hundred thousand [people] in Ottawa. [...] Whatever is or is not done in the next few years will reverberate throughout the lives of our young people today. They’ve got everything at stake, so I’m challenging them; get your act together [...] go to Ottawa and demand it.” – – David Suzuki, The Hour, 2008
The Motel, Joseph Zentil
A micro site for Joseph Zentil’s short film The Motel, featured in the Milwaukee Short Film Festival.
“The Motel is an observation of a dysfunctional couple on the run. The dynamic of their relationship is directly attributed to a back-story unexplored in the film. The intent of the ambiguity is to evoke the audience to associate their own experiences and interpretations.”
Director: JOSEPH ZENTIL
Producer: MATT H. COHEN
Man: OMER BARNEA
Woman: ALIX LIIV
Casting: GINA RODRIGUEZ
Wardrobe: JORDANA LONGO
Hair and Make-Up: MAIA KERN
Executive Producer: GARRY ZENTIL
Line Producer: MATT COHEN
1st Assistant Director: MATT COHEN
2nd Assistant Director: JASON BEGUE
Director of Photography: GARRETT HARDY DAVIS
1st Assistant Cameraman: ANDY KROMPHARDT
2nd Assistant Cameraman: STEVE ROBBINS
Key Gaffer: MICHAEL INTILE
Best Electric: BRIDGID SWANICK
Best Dog: PRESTON
Key Grip: LINDSAY MANN
Sound Mixer: GILLIAN ARTHUR
Production Assistant: ZAK LONGO
Assistant to the Director: CANARDO GATTI
Editor: JASON BEGUE
Supervising Sound Editor: JESSE IDEN
Composer: BEN LEAR
Capitol Catering Services LTD.
January 11, 2010
All food seen in the website photography was prepared by Capitol Catering Services LTD.
No stock images were used.
Capitol Catering Service Ltd. is a full service and event planning business, established for over 30 years providing service to Toronto, Mississauga, and the GTA.
Catering to:
- Wedding Receptions
- Cocktail Parties
- Office and Boardroom
- Barbeques
- Buffets and Dinner
- Grand Opening and Social Events
- Celebration Parties
- Film Industry
Freakonomics, Stephen Levitt and Stephen Dubner
Selling well over 3 million copies since it was published in 2005, Stephen Levitt and Stephen Dubner have written one of today’s most interesting non fiction books, Freakonomics. As the title suggests, the book delivers a commentary on some rather eclectic economic issues, all while indulging in admittedly random and obscure topics: anything from abortion, to Sumo wrestlers, to the KKK. It’s core thesis lies in one idea: actions are dependent on incentives. With that in mind, I’m sure you can understand the relevance this would have in a world where people are told what to do using the all-encompassing media that is streamed into our daily lives. If anything, this is a book that can help us understand why things are the way they are and why people do the things they do. I am a fan of any kind of media that can help the public understand the subtleties of economics, culture, social practices and so on, so this sat well with me.
I’d like to mention a few examples they explore to give you a taste of how this book works, and more generally, how it can help you think differently. Most importantly, as they reiterate several times, what you’ll learn is how to ask the right questions (they explain that this is the fundamental step in realizing truth).