Still a Place for Humor in Marketing
A Dummy's Puppet's Ramblings - from Chip MartinMannequin American views and guidelines on marketing/PR trends, news from the world of puppets and ventriloquism, bits of humor and other interesting but useless information. I post every Tuesday and Friday.
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Your "Brand" (Name, Reputation, Image, etc.) is an Asset. Start Treating it as Such
Here's yet another reason not to cut your marketing budget during a recession or anytime for that matter...whether or not you're income stream seems to rationalize it.
A new survey drives the point home by pointing out that most corporate executives see marketing as a cost center, not as an investment. But this study apparently removes all doubt that brands are assets and should be managed as such.
To simplify things, the study reveals that building a strong brand via marketing reduces risk and raises a company's overall value ... which can be of special help during a downturn.
Well, there you have it. Now go out and increase your company's asset value by marketing effectively. (Call me. I can help.)
A Use for Those Old Barbies
I ran across this somewhere in the ether. It's a Barbie foosball table. Finally you can do something with all of those old Barbies on the floor of your daughter's closet. A little creepy without arms, though.
Yes, There's Still a Place for Humor in Marketing
Charlie Chaplin rose to fame because he dared to make people laugh during the Great Depression. And he often dealt with serious subjects. Humor and its chief side effect, laughter, are inherently therapeutic. Let's face it; humans are hard-wired to appreciate fun.
Companies that incorporate humor in their marketing and employee communications appear confident, approachable and trustworthy. All of those things help to sell products and communicate messages during a sour economy. Humor doesn't "degrade" your image. To the contrary, it "enhances" your status. That's why company executives hire me to take part in empolyee meetings and ask questions that employees would love to have the opportunity and the nerve to ask. I get away with it because I provide some levity. But the answers that company representatives give are serious. The fact that they're confident enough to use humor in an employee meetings makes them appear more approachable, confident and credible.
Yes, "brands" can be humorous while remaining smart, informative, useful and responsible. (You're reading an example right now.) So dare to be entertaining. Seriously, it's important. And it's effective. (Call me. I can help.)
Where are the Environmentalists on this One?
Thanks to Gene Mueller at 620WTMJ for this.
We spend millions of dollars every year to remind people to "Give a Hoot, Don't Pollute,"to"Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,"and "Think Globally and Act Locally," but when 40,000 of us get together to watch a baseball game ... that crap goes out the window. When we're through with something at the ballpark, what do we do with it? We drop it where we sit. Which begs the question: Why do we do at the ballpark something we'd never THINK of doing anywhere else?
Just to underline how gross this all is, take a look at the cleanup process in the bleachers after a game at Wrigley Field. It's a good thing Mannequin Americans aren't built with gag reflexes, or I think mine would have been triggered.
I like the Monte Carlo, but ...
Here are some things that I like.
- I've always liked the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, so I assume I'll like the recently opened refurbished version as well.
- I like clever, thought-provoking and humorous marketing messages.
- More often than not, I appreciate the intelligent and sometimes not so intelligent, use of sex in marketing.
Here are some things that I don't like.
- Over-the-top use of sex in advertising. (Even a Mannequin American has to have standards.)
- Stupid copy that adds nothing to the visuals.
- The new ad campaign for the Monte Carlo.
Below is a print ad for the new Monte Carlo, with the tag line, "Unpretentiously Luxurious."
First of all, what's "luxurious" about "Debauchery" ... ooops, sorry "Duh Botch Or EE"? (That's so stupid I won't even make a comment about it.)
Let's see, there's a woman laying on the bed with her underwear around one ankle and a sleep mask on her head, a camera on the bed, lots of empty champagne bottles, at least four empty champagne glasses, a phone off the hook, a guy apparently passed out on the floor, another person's feet are visible laying on the floor behind the partially opened door and I think there's an apple with a bite taken out of it lying on the bed. Now that can all add up to a lot of things, but "Unpretentiously Luxurious" isn't one of them. (If they read this, I may never work at the Monte Carlo again.)
You can view three more print ads from the series here, here and here.
How Original is 30 Rock?
Okay this made me laugh and also resulted in my never again being able to watch one of my favorite shows, 30 Rock, without thinking of the Muppets.
Brian Lynch has written a humorous post on his blog alleging that the NBC comedy 30 Rock is a rip off of The Muppet Show. This is a tongue in cheek article, but the similarities are actually kind of striking and very funny. Click here to see them.
