17 July 2015

BULLSEYE: When the Going Gets Tough


When Canada's Finance Minister recently dodged the dreaded 'R' word, the same 'ol marketing debate raged:  "Should I cut my marketing budget?" and "Should I move from brandsell to hardsell".  Time to change the channel on that discussion.


02 July 2015

BULLSEYE: The power of leveraging equity


Anyone Remember Equity?





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There was a time when ad campaigns were designed to last for years.  It was a time that begat Tony the Tiger, the lonely Maytag repairman, and that little Ty-D-Bowl fella patrolling your toilet tank in his rowboat.


In time, these campaigns, their characters, ideas and attitudes work their way into the deeper, more meaningful spaces in the consumer's brain.  Relationships are formed.  Familiarity breeds comfort (and sometimes contempt).  But at least the advertiser reaches that coveted 'memorable' plateau.


Hollywood Gets It

Consider this:  below is a list of the top grossing Hollywood films of all time.  The yellow highlights (added by me) indicate films based on things already familiar to audiences:  established characters or stories, films based on books.  Sequels, remakes and reboots.

The films not highlighted are completely new to audiences. But even they tend to carry the comfort of some familiarity.  It can be argued that James Cameron's reputation helped sell Avatar, as Spielberg's reputation boosted E.T., etc.


HIGHEST GROSSING FILMS
Rank
Title
Worldwide gross
Year
1
Avatar
$2,787,965,087
2009
2
Titanic
$2,186,772,302
1997
3
$1,518,594,910
2012
4
Furious 7 
$1,489,386,455
2015
5
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
$1,341,511,219
2011
6
Frozen
$1,279,852,693
2013
7
Iron Man 3
$1,215,439,994
2013
8
Avengers: Age of Ultron 
$1,148,986,835
2015
9
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
$1,123,794,079
2011
10
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
$1,119,929,521
2003
11
Skyfall
$1,108,561,013
2012
12
Transformers: Age of Extinction
$1,104,039,076
2014
13
The Dark Knight Rises
$1,084,439,099
2012
14
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
$1,066,179,725
2006
15
Toy Story 3
$1,063,171,911
2010
16
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
$1,045,713,802
2011
17
Jurassic Park
$1,029,939,903
1993
18
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
$1,027,044,677
1999
19
Alice in Wonderland
$1,025,467,110
2010
20
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
$1,017,003,568
2012
21
The Dark Knight
$1,004,558,444
2008
22
The Lion King
$987,483,777
1994
23
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
$974,755,371
2001
24
Despicable Me 2
$970,761,885
2013
25
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
$963,420,425
2007
26
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
$960,366,855
2013
27
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
$960,283,305
2010
28
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
$955,119,788
2014
29
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
$939,885,929
2007
30
Finding Nemo
$936,743,261
2003
31
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
$934,416,487
2009
32
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
$926,047,111
2002
33
Shrek 2
$919,838,758
2004
34
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
$896,911,078
2005
35
Spider-Man 3
$890,871,626
2007
36
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
$886,686,817
2009
37
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
$878,979,634
2002
38
Ice Age: Continental Drift
$877,244,782
2012
39
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
$871,530,324
2001
40
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
$864,912,963
2013
41
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
$848,754,768
2005
42
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
$836,303,693
2009
43
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2
$829,685,377
2012
44
Inception
$825,532,764
2010
45
Spider-Man
$821,708,551
2002
46
Independence Day
$817,400,891
1996
47
Shrek the Third
$798,958,162
2007
48
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
$796,688,549
2004
49
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
$792,910,554
1982
50
2012
$791,217,826
2009


Yes, it's the age of short attention spans and disposable relationships.  In this climate, 'faith' and 'patience' are virtues few marketers- and fewer clients- are willing to cultivate.

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19 May 2015

BULLSEYE: The Double Ad Standard

A TV show might portray lovemaking, murder, violence, racism, misogyny, and poor dental hygiene.  While the ads sponsoring that show might be ordered off the air for showing a kid removing the vegetables from a burger, or a woman (legally) riding a bicycle without a helmet.

Here's my BULLSEYE for Marketing TV:




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20 March 2015

BULLSEYE: the Infestation of Micetype.

With feet planted firmly in a post of some months back, here's a look- in 6-point-type, at a new kind of advertising pollution.



WELCOME TO BULLSEYE

BULLSEYE is a new, twice-monthly video commentary I've launched w. the good folks at MARKETING TV.

The title, BULLSEYE, refers to that seductive, elusive perfection creative advertisers pine for.  Like an Academy Award, or Stanley Cup, or Michelin Star, a rare few achieve it, and so often, spend years trying to replicate it.

Anyone who's stared at a blank screen- deadline looming, in Stage 3 panic-denial- knows what I mean.


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