My daughter and I just went out for breakfast. The waitress commented on my 6 year old’s book-and said she noticed that she is an advanced reader because she is a first grade teacher. Teachers work hard enough all week without having to serve pancakes on weekends. I always feel sad when I am reminded as to how much teachers, nurses, social workers, etc. are undervalued in our country. Now if only I could run into a politician working a drive thru window.  

I sold a guitar the other day. The gent who bought it said that he had left his truck running outside my office while he tried the guitar. He explained that his vehicle needed a starter, and if he shut it off, he may not make it back to work. That being said, he took all the money he had in his wallet and happily purchased the beautiful instrument that he had made sing so well.
This is the type of passion that we can only hope to tap into as marketers. No ad or program could create the need that this gentleman had for that guitar. We need to tap into the customers’ passion and learn to speak their language if we want to motivate them. 

Ever notice how products or services that were never part of our lives can become essential? We all got through a workday just fine without faxes, e-mail and the internet before. Why does productivity come to a crashing halt whenever the server is down? This morning, I used the last disposable plastic baggie that we use to curb our dog. I rolled my eyes and added a new to-do to the frazzled little hard drive I call my head. What happened to shopping bags or better yet, a shovel? I am simply in the habit of using this product and now can’t live without it. Sure makes the case for free sampling!

This question always pops into my head when I’m at the airport. Everyone working there is so miserable and unwilling to smile or offer help. Then I watch how rudely the staff is treated by tired or pushy travelers. I think it would be very difficult to stay positive and upbeat. I try and keep these poor souls in mind on those days when I have to deal with a less than pleasant person.  ”Oh well, at least I don’t work at the airport”.

You hear it all the time-”I just saw this great ad”, “Have you seen that funny ad?” and “oh, that ad is so annoying!”. So what is it that makes advertising effective? Is it humor? Does a funny twist make me want to use a product? I think the Bud Light spots are always funny, but I wouldn’t let you pour one on me if I were on fire. But, the product is well branded and I do remember it.

They give advertising professionals awards for coming up with these ads. 9 times out of 10, these awards are won based on the creativity of the ad or campaign. I would suggest that they only award advertising that sells products, grows businesses or changes consumer behavior. Better yet, why reward advertisers at all? If the ads work, the client makes money, the ad agency keeps the account, everyone should be happy, right? Save the awards for teachers, nurses, social workers, fire fighters and other people who make positive contributions to society.

So tell me about some good advertising that you’ve experienced lately. More importantly, did it work?

So, what do you do when you lose a high profile advertising client? In our case, our new business increased, our bottom line went through the roof and I think some of the color came back to my hair. (OK, I may have had some help with that).

This is all good stuff, right? The only issue is, the former client’s high profile advertising is really weak. The spots are void of humor or concept, are poorly shot and edited, and they feel sort of lazy. This is a client that we represented for a long time. My fear is that people in marketing circles will think poorly of us! Do we run our own ad announcing that “we aren’t doing work with these folks anymore”?

I see that we get hits on our website from people searching our former client’s name. Should we add a note to our site informing visitors “We regret to inform you that this company let us go last year, don’t blame us if you are not moved to act by their current advertising”?

Please advise!

Ever notice that no mater how often you get takeout from the same Chinese place, they still include a takeout menu? Perhaps marketers who take their existing customer’s loyalty for granted should take note…

I hate the new K-FRIED-C ad as much as I love the “Responsibility” campaign from Liberty Mutual. Co-workers are running around an office screaming that their co-worker “has a knife”. The boss tries to talk her into putting it down, and low-and behold, it’s a plastic knife for cutting her tortured, greasy chicken. Poor taste doesn’t begin to describe this mess. For anyone who sends a child to a public school, or has witnessed violence in the workplace (or, simply watches the news), this one cuts to close to home. Is it meant to be funny? Are the screaming employees just chicken? I don’t get it, but I won’t be surprised when I read that the ad has been pulled off the air due to protest.

Retailers, would you ignore a customer at your counter trying to make a purchase? That’s what you are doing every time to do not reply to an e-mail inquiry from your website. If you do not have a staff person that can reply promptly to a potential customers’ e-mail, then don’t post a contact form or e-mail link on your site. It sends a bad message about your business.

(It just happened to me again today…will I ever learn?)