gibberish


The latest from Planet Blog

Here’s a little something I created this morning for my professional blog writing company www.planetblog.co.



Creative Edinburgh, Creative and Corporate Love tonight in Leith

Creative Edinburgh Logo

I bet you’d enjoy this.  But you can’t, because you were too slow off the mark.

It’s the latest Creative Edinburgh event tonight on The Leith Agency’s Mary De Guise Barge.

As our membership grows (it’s well over 500 now) our events are getting more and more popular.  That’s why this one’s sold out.

Ed Brooke (Ed of Leith) will share the speaker’s podium with award winning photographer Jannica Honey and Arts Learning Specialist and Drama Artist Fi Milligan Rennie.

Keep an eye on the Creative Edinburgh website for our future evens (we’ve planned hosting and curating of over 50 already this year)

Better still.  Become a member.  It costs very little.  Or pop along to Creative Circles at Brew-Lab.  it’s free.



Advertising’s new “way”

I’m looking at a lot of interesting advertising at the moment because I’m teaching a module at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s BA Digital Film and TV degree course.It’s required me to look for examples of old classics and new.

I’ve been struck by what’s winning the gongs these days.

Nothing, but nothing is short.

And a lot of it frankly isn’t really that good.

The most awarded ad in the world last year was this one for Canal +.

It’s OK. And it’s only 60″  (that’s short)

This is good mind. The Guardian’s 3 Little Pigs (120″)

This is great.  It’s for Chipotle (and their sustainable/organic farming approach to sourcing – if you believe it) and takes a Coldplay song and covers it by Willie Nelson.  It’s 2 minutes 20″ long.

Metro Trains from Melbourne have made this 3 minute monster. And it’s garnered 38million YouTube hits so far.

But this is the one.  This is the absolute king of the pack.  It’s for Expedia and it brought a tear to my sorry old eyes.  It too is a beast weighing in at 3 minutes 20″

What though, happened to 30″ spots?

 



New schools have popped up all over Edinburgh. Why not Portobello?
January 23, 2013, 1:59 pm
Filed under: advertising, creativity | Tags: , ,

Even the Jambos got a new one.  Come on folks.  Support the campaign.

Here’s an ad my pal made for it.



2001 Lance Armstrong Nike ad.

“What am I on?  I’m on my bike, that’s what I’m on.”

(And I’m off my face on Cortisone, steroids, EPO and stuff.)

This further adds to the Armstrong fallacy.  It used to be a legacy.



the Fiat 500L rap
January 7, 2013, 5:07 pm
Filed under: advertising, creativity | Tags: ,

This is nearly brilliant.  It’s good.



This year’s best Christmas TV ad.
December 4, 2012, 11:55 pm
Filed under: advertising, business, creativity | Tags: , , ,

Watch it again and again and again…



Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit? I think not.
October 29, 2012, 10:55 am
Filed under: advertising, creativity, humour | Tags: ,



Lena Dunham of “Girls” backs Obama in “lose your virginity” call.

It’s an interesting and tightly targeted ad albeit presented slightly patronisingly by US TV star, Lena Dunham; creator and star of the excellent “Girls”.



Extraordinarily brave advertising from the most unexpected of sources
October 19, 2012, 4:04 pm
Filed under: advertising, business, creativity, humour | Tags: ,

After years of skydiving and rollerblading Bodyform are forced to admit what “the Curse” is really like.

It’s a response to a facebook post that soon went viral.

Here’s what it said…

“Hi , as a man I must ask why you have lied to us for all these years . As a child I watched your advertisements with interest as to how at this wonderful time of the month that the female gets to enjoy so many things ,I felt a little jealous. I mean bike riding , rollercoasters, dancing, parachuting, why couldn’t I get to enjoy this time of joy and ‘blue water’ and wings !! Dam my penis!! Then I got a girlfriend, was so happy and couldn’t wait for this joyous adventurous time of the month to happen …..you lied !! There was no joy , no extreme sports , no blue water spilling over wings and no rocking soundtrack oh no no no. Instead I had to fight against every male urge I had to resist screaming wooaaahhhhh bodddyyyyyyfooorrrmmm bodyformed for youuuuuuu as my lady changed from the loving , gentle, normal skin coloured lady to the little girl from the exorcist with added venom and extra 360 degree head spin. Thanks for setting me up for a fall bodyform , you crafty bugger”

I suspect this response will go more viral.



The saints go marching in
July 5, 2012, 6:54 pm
Filed under: advertising, creativity, football, humour | Tags: , , , ,

Napoli figurines.



Thought you might like the birthday card that Doug did for me
June 5, 2012, 3:24 pm
Filed under: advertising, Arts, creativity, humour, movies, photography | Tags: ,

 



You probably saw this. Doesn’t stop it being funny though.

It’s Point of sale from a  Japanese Department store.



A rather more Heath Robinson take on Honda’s cog ad…

I love this ad.  I really do.

But this is a neat twist.  (thanks to Tommy Mackay for spotting it.)



2011. In hindsight.

2011. That was the year that was.

2011 was rather less fraught than 2010.  I didn’t work to such ridiculous extremes, and the year end saw my portfolio change quite considerably compared to 12 months ago.  Three big new clients at year end were Maidsafe, Vets2 and Front Page Design, all autumnal starters and all brilliant to work with.  My STV contract finally came to an end after three years but its been great and I am very grateful to them for all the work.

Some old troopers still stand by me; 60 Watt, Paligap, The Usability Lab, Corporation Pop, Ampersand and LA Media, with occassional work from a small number of others.

To you all; slainte and have a great 2012.

If my golf was bad in 2010 it beggared belief in 2011.  I gave up my membership at Dundas Park and clearly that did not have a galvanising effect on my game.  I was shit awful on both trips of the year and even my winter game has been poor.

We didn’t go away as a family in 2011, for a variety of reasons but I had the holiday (maybe an exaggeration to call it that) of a lifetime in June when Ria and I went to Glastonbury.  To say it was memorable would be something of an understatement.  There is one abiding memory of it, I have to say…the bogs.

Not good. And this was on day 1

But there were other memorable sights and moments, like this…

Not good. Day 4.

And this…

All good. Day 4.

Which brings me onto my musical highlights of the year.

My best of CD which you can have if you like included these tracks…

In a good year for music my song of the year, without question, was Video Games by Lana Del Rey.

My albums of the year were;

Bad as Me by Tom Waits (overall my favourite record)

Let England Shake by PJ Harvey

You and I by The Pierces

The English Riviera by Metronomy

A creature I don’t know by Laura Marling

50 Words for Snow by Kate Bush

Hotel Shampoo by Gruff Rhyss

Build a Rocket Boys by Elbow who also performed the gig of the year at Glastonbury (closely followed by King Creosote at The Liquid Rooms)

A different Kind of Love by Bombay Bicycle Club

21 by Adele

I did a lot of cinema in 2011…

Here’s what I thought of what I saw in my IMDB profile…

Two ten out of tens and a few nines show that it was also a good year for movies.  In retrospect I plump for three as my best of the year

Senna

A Separation and

Drive.

On TV This is England 2008 moved me to tears and was by far the year’s greatest offering.  I liked Top Boy too.

I didn’t read a great deal this year but have really enjoyed

The Brothers Sisters by Patrick DeWitt.

The Childrens Hospital by Chris Adrtian.

And Filthy English, The How, Why When and What of Everyday Swearing by Pete Silverton.

But the best read of the year by far was…The Guardian which I grow deeper in love with.

This was a big year of theatre for me.  I reckon I saw at least 20 different productions but easily the stand out was Dance Marathon in which Jeana and I and Chris and Liam danced our asses off for five hours before I was told I was relentless by the Producer.  We also had amazing nights at The Kings for James Cordon in One Man, Two Guvnors and The Lyceum for both Dunsinane and Age of Arousal.

This year was sadly marked by way too much illness among our friends for me to want to dwell on but Matt, David and Jenny I am thinking of you now.

Also, we lost James King, Joyce Cambell and Fiona Pirie from FCT and Rachel Appolinari at the outrageous age of 19.  RIP all of you. xxx

All of the family have blossomed in the past year, thank God, and long may it continue.  In particular Amy has shown an almost exponential growth in confidence and skills in many different areas.

2012 is University year for Tom and Ria should they both choose to go down that path.

And so, to 2012.  It’s the year I turn 50, Amy 21, Tom and Ria 18 and I aim, with Pete the Meat, to lose at least 50 pounds each before we turn 50 in May. We are raising money to do so and you’ll soon hear of our plans.

Thanks for being my reader once again in 2011.  My year end Technorati rating was an all time high closing in on a top 1% of all the blogs in the world rating.

16,000th out of 1.2 million.



The work I’m most proud of this year

I worked with STV Creative’s team to create this commercial about Domestic Abuse that ran on TV screens in Strathclyde over Christmas.

I think it packs a real emotional punch and is fantastically spare in its execution.

I can hardly say I hope you enjoy it but I do hope you admire it.



OK. This made me smile. Hope it makes you do so too.
December 22, 2011, 10:09 am
Filed under: advertising, creativity, movies | Tags:



Off to the SEX party.

I have a lot of clients and this year seems to have been the year of the party.  I did two on the same day,  a week past Friday,  following one the day before that.  I did one each last Thursday and Friday and I have two more.  One today and one tomorrow night.

Today is the big one.  The SEX party.

Everyone has a great time at it, getting very relaxed, slipping into more comfortable gear, unwinding with much pre-prandial chat before diving deep into platefuls of turkey et al in the Shore Restaurant.

Yes, the SEX (Self Employed Xmas) party has it all.

Wish me luck.



Got a van? Got an ad campaign!

Years ago I was responsible for taking a brief from my then client, Edinburgh Zoo.

They wanted their logo put on the side of their new van.

“That’s surely a bit of a missed opportunity is it not?” I asked.

“Why?” was the response “It’s just a van.”

“No it’s not” was my firm retort. “It’s a poster. And what’s more the media cost of it is free.”

I asked them to leave it with me and not long after I presented them with the idea (created by Rufus Wedderburn, now at Newhaven Communications) of creating a visual gag which made it look as if a Rhino was being transported across Edinburgh and that its horn had burst through the van’s roof.

They bought it.  And here she is in all her glory.

It won every ad award going and the citizens (and visitors) of Edinburgh delighted in seeing it every time it passed through the street.



Old Spice US campaign keeps going along nicely.
November 22, 2011, 7:13 pm
Filed under: advertising, business, creativity | Tags:

Like the new strapline too…



David Ogilvy. The Original Mad Man on BBC radio Scotland.

Next Monday myself and Graeme Atha will be in conversation with Victor Brierley in a special one off documentary investigating the legend that was David Ogilvy.

Here’s a link to the 30 minute programme that goes out on Monday afternoon at 2.05.



Quite simply, this makes me proud to work in advertising.

John Lewis has moved rapidly (just like M &S) from the ranks of advertising naysayers into amongst the greatest proponents of the craft.

This new Chrisrtmas outing is no exception with a sucker punch to die for.

use of The Smiths song, reinterpreted by Slow Moving Millie works to great effect and although carrying a few cliches and some slightly naff acting by the wee lad it is, nevertheless, a little bundle of Christmas joy.

Bless



Please help me support a hero supporting heroes tomorrow night.

I am auctioning around 35 incredible lots tomorrow night at Newhaven Communications’ fabulous Ambulance House, prompted by the one and only Gareth Howells.

It’s for a guy called Billy Strathdee who had his right leg blown off as an acting soldier in Ulster.

He is fitter than a butcher’s dog and is about to set off on an incredible adventure wherein he swims the English channel then cycles to Grangemouth before running to John O’Groats.

On a prosthetic leg.

All funds go to a charity close to my heart; Poppyscotland.

Please support this, either by coming along for what will be a fantastic evening. Drinks at 6 and the auction starts at 8.

All of the details can be found here.

And if you can’t make it you can put in an advance bid.

We are probably talking bargains for a lot of photography and jewellery and designer breaks and stuff.



Well chuffed…

I introduced one of the FCT cast to the production team at STV when they wre casting for their recent STV Appeal commercials and wee Emma Simpson got the job…

So far the appeal has raised over £1.2m.



I think this may be my favourite commercial of all time…

I’ve been looking for it for ages but have never been able to track it down.

So it was a eureka! moment last night when I looked again to demonstrate a point to a client.  And there it was…

It is the most perfect exposition of a proposition I think I’ve ever seen. The style doesn’t get in the way of the substance and it’s an incredibly compelling way of demonstrating the power of the Union movement and how working collaboratively (in unison) can have a far greater impact than ploughing ones own furrow.

The thinking behind this can apply to many industries, trade bodies and organisations.



Great observation from the ad contrarian…
September 9, 2011, 8:33 am
Filed under: advertising, work | Tags: ,

“What was once digital advertising’s dirty little secret is now its big, ugly problem. Online ad performance figures are dismal…” Adweek, 8/24/11

Just when you thought banner ads couldn’t get any less effective, oops, click-through rates dropped another 10% last year.

Mashable reports that a Google study, seen as the “the industry standard” reported recently that click-through rates dropped from .1% to .09% in 2010. That means that CTRs dropped from 1 in a thousand to 9 in ten thousand.

So, Mr. Online Advertiser, for every 10,000 times your online ad appeared, you got a solid 9 clicks. Good job.

If you were a shortstop, you’d be batting .0009

Oh, and by the way, the 9 people who clicked are no more likely to buy your product than the 9,991 people who didn’t.

“A click means nothing, earns no revenue and creates no brand equity.” says Starcom USA SVP/Director, Research & Analytics John Lowell.

Which, I’m afraid, is not a terribly encouraging statement about the value of “interactivity.”

Meanwhile, undeterred, the advertising industry continues selling clients more and more display ads. In June, eMarketer doubled its projection for online ad spending in 2011.

You may be asking yourself how display ads — with such “dismal” performance — can continue to provide large income to online publishers? This, my friend, may go down as one of the greatcon sales jobs in advertising history. The logic, again from Mashable, goes like this:

“…banners work like most advertising, which is to say in a fairly complex manner.

For instance, click-through is actually a poor measure of performance. It’s impossible to click through a billboard ad, for example, but that doesn’t mean it’s not effective…

The same is true for TV ads…”

Oh, I see. The now famous “nobody ever clicked on a TV spot” defense.

So here’s what has really happened. Online ad hustlers experts told us that banner ads were much more effective than traditional advertising because they were so “measurable” and “interactive.” Then the facts started rolling in and they shit their pants refined their message.

Now the story goes like this: Banner ads really arent any more measurable or interactive than traditional advertising. In fact, the erstwhile key metric — the click — don’t mean shit. Now, we are told, banner ads work just like traditional advertising, in a “fairly complex” manner.

The only trouble with this baloney new story is that you have to be both blind and delusional to believe that some invisible ad on your Facebook page is as conspicuous as a TV spot or a billboard. In fact, while your average TV spot or billboard is an annoying, intrusive pain in the ass, nobody ever complains about Facebook ads. Which is just another way of saying nobody notices the darn things.

It seems that the worse online advertising performs the more of it we can sell. C’mon gang, if we can just get the click-through rate down to zero, we’ll all be rich



Fringe Detritus



STA TRavel ads from Australia. Hit the mark. Especially Move.
August 15, 2011, 3:13 pm
Filed under: advertising, Arts, creativity | Tags: , ,

Shot in 44 days in 11 Countries.

Move

Eat

Learn



It would not be difficult to find fault with this new Levis commercial
August 10, 2011, 4:32 pm
Filed under: advertising, Arts, creativity | Tags:

But I rather admire it.



A wonderful piece of brand thinking.
July 25, 2011, 12:25 pm
Filed under: advertising, Arts, business, creativity, theatre, Youtube | Tags: , ,

A beautiful piece of commercial branding for Sydney Opera House that captures range and emotion in equal measure.  A Nick Cave song (the Ship Song) in case you were wondering.




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