THESCRAPBOOK

Spotlight Ideas have a list of the top 100 branding, design, SEO, strategy, marketing, PR, media blogs. Totally based on their own opinion by the way, there’s no data or rigour behind it, and indeed some are more interesting than others, but it’s a good selection for all of us in “media land”, whatever your discipline. It is perhaps focussed on those who use words and phrases such as ‘marketing mix’, ‘integrated’, ‘holistic approach’, ‘communications’, ‘brand conversations’ or something equally appropriate for the 2008 version of Bullshit Bingo!

TOP 20 BLOGS

• PSFK - Cultural and business trends
• Seth Godin’s Blog - Branding / general business ideas
• Branding Strategy Insider - Branding: general
• Russel Davies - Account planning
• Jaffe Juice - Marketing: general
• One Degree - Digital marketing
• Micro Persuasion - Digital trends
• Pronet Advertising - Online marketing
• BannerBlog - Online advertising
• AdRants - Advertising news
• Search Engine Land - SEO and affiliate marketing
• Richard Edelman - PR: general
• PRBlogger - PR and technology
• Social Media Explorer - Social media: general
• Centre Networks - Social networking
• ProBlogger - Blogging
• Copyblogger - Copywriting
• David Airey - Graphic design
• Logic + Emotion - Design: general
• Ads of the World - Advertising ads archive

The rest are available to view here though I warn you, I steal many of my entries for TheScrapBook from these so it kind of undermines my postings… ah well, in the interests of the new media age and all that!

Wow. This is exactly how NOT to do it. Garnier has taken the embarrassment stakes in advertising to a whole new level. Memphis Bleek, by the way, has taken hip hop to an even more disgusting level. In contrast to the more subtle moves that Chris Brown and Wrigley’s made, this new “music video” (sorry, but it’s an advert through and through) for Garnier Fructis has really riled me.

I thought that the worst thing was in fact that it was getting so many plaudits from the YouTube community… what’s even worse is that now I’m actually suspicious of them; they’re probably planted comments:

“ahh, id put this on my ipod, and upload the video–this video is freakn amazing! [sic]”

“Awesome!!!! 5 stars! This is the most creative ad I’ve ever seen. The song is something I’d buy for my iPod. Te video is great. I want some Garnier. [sic]“

I think the agency involved should be shot. I wonder if it was Translation Advertising… Memphis Bleek is on Rock-A-Fella after all. How funny if that were the case…

As ThreeBillion says, “Fructis? Fructdat.”

Thanks Ruby.

Here’s some much better music and marketing - N.E.R.D, Julian Casablancas and Santogold.

Fitzrovia, where else, is the site of Monocle’s first newsagent sponsorship deal. The new-look Charlotte Street News bears the magazine’s livery inside and out: a signature awning protects browsers from the vagaries of the UK weather, and slick Monocle-black strips divide the shelves of titles within - making for a smarter way to consume printed matter. (their words, not mine. Can you tell?)

I read a lot of shit books over the holiday (no link, cos that’d be unfair) but I read two great ones that I highly recommend. The first is Herd: How to Change Mass Behaviour by Harnessing Our True Nature, by Mark Earls. I can genuinely say I’ve not read a business / marketing book that I’ve agreed with so much for a very long time. It’s filled with the sort of accessible psychology and sociology that you’ll have read in the likes of Tipping Point but with an applicability and research rigour that I certainly will quote from.

Looking at a “new” (though actually founded upon our core animal nature) approach to marketing based on the power of groups, Herd explains the ‘why’ of our struggles to influence mass behaviour. It reveals that most of us misunderstand the mechanics (the ‘how’) of mass behaviour because we have misplaced notions of what it means to be human.

Earls challenges some of our deepest ideas to reveal the truth about who we are and what marketers, managers, and governments can do to set about influencing mass behavior. He reveals that most of us misunderstand the mechanics of mass behavior because we have misplaced notions of what it means to be human.

Mark Earls challenges some of our deepest ideas to reveal the truth about who we are and what marketers, managers, and governments can do to set about influencing mass behavior. Bold in its conception and engaging in its execution, Herd offers the most radical new theory of consumer behavior in a generation.

The other one was No Country For Old Men, which is a beautifully written tale about greed, opportunity, and old age. I’ve not seen the film yet, but the book is stunning.

R&B singer Chris Brown has a top 10 hit out at the moment called “Forever”. The chorus has the line “Double your pleasure/double your fun” - sound familiar?

“Forever” is an extended version of a new Doublemint jingle written by Chris Brown and scheduled to begin airing next month in 30-second spots for Wrigley’s green-packaged chewing gum. Turns out that Chris Brown is hired by ad agency Translation Advertising to update the images of three of Wrigley’s best-known brands. It’s a product placement scheme, and all the artists are looking at sampling sounds from previous Wrigley’s advertising jingles.

I thought this was nothing new, but the Wall Street Journal and PSFK both seem surprised enough to deem it newsworthy. Maybe the only surprise is that someone’s releasing Chris Brown singles… or more seriously that whilst Busta Rhymes’ hit “Pass the Courvoisier” was an unashamed nod towards a brand, this time round it’s actually been paid for in advance by Wrigley’s to promote Double Mint. More on “Push the Courvoisier” here. DJ Premier, Nas, KRS-One and Kanye’s hit “Classic” was commonly accepted as a clear push for Nike (the song’s an homage to the Air Force One shoe). And what about the deal between Bacardi and Groove Armada?

The most interesting thing about this appears to be that Jay Z is behind it all (surprise surprise!) as he’s a partner in Translation Advertising - read the New York Times article for more!

Read At Work:

Dont Click It

Two great websites that deserve to be here on TheScrapBook. Play with them yourself to appreciate what they’re all about!

Clever data capture opportunity from Absolut, following on from the infomercial we showed last week.

The copy says:

• Press 1 to begin the registration process to become a groupie
• Press 2 to join Kanye’s absolutely fabulous entourage
• Press 3 for the absolute summertime cocktail
• Press 4 for the BeKanye tablet, which “unleashes the superstar within” and “turns you into Kanye West for a few hours or the rest of your life” (more at www.bekanyenow.com)
• Press 5 to be directly connected to Kanye West’s cell phone

Each option asks you to put in your phone number, but to what extent will people be irritated by this coming from a brand, Absolut? I think not too much, given the type of brand that it is. It’s more akin to Groove Armada and Bacardi’s relationship in my opinion - alcohol is a social lubricant, viral ads are conversation starters, and Kanye West is a party animal. Sounds good in my experience!

Have we posted this before? Can’t remember! Click the images to view the film

It’s in the same vein as Designer Slash Model

Outdoor advertisements for AEG-Electrolux’s quiet running washing machines highlight noise pollution too. Bringing attention to otherwise abstract public concerns and making them slightly more tangible is an interesting aside.

I’m not late on this, I just thought that someone should post it up. The Uniclock is lovely, charming, and vaguely useful. The music is great too!