Farewell Intern Blog...

It's time to say goodbye to the BG Intern Blog. It's been a wonderful and hectic last month (hence the lack of updates), but it's not really goodbye at all- I am thrilled to be graduating over to BG's Don't Drink The Kool Aid blog! After six months of action-packed interning, I have been hired on as Bailey Gardiner's newest Advertising Account Coordinator. I feel so fortunate to get to continue to work at such a wonderful place and learn from such an outstanding group of

people.

Thanks for reading along throughout my adventure- there will soon be three more outstanding BG interns to share their thoughts and experiences on this blog. Make sure to tune in and I will see you over on the big kid BG blog.

Over and Out.

Alex Tuthill

More additions to the resume...

I haven't posted in a while because I have been very busy accumulating new skills and roles here at BG to further diversify my resume. What might those skills and roles be you ask? They are some of the most coveted skills and titles employers are looking for and I will list them exactly how I have listed them on my resume:

1. OFFICIAL JUDGE OF A 30 HOUR CAROUSEL-RIDING COMPETITION.

I served as official judge for Seaport Village's 30th Anniversary event-- 30 people riding a carousel for 30 hours to win $10,000. This was a very prestigious position-- my primary job was to ensure that nobody barfed. I was also in charge of enforcing the no sleeping, no leaning, no eating, no drinking rules for all 30 riders.

This was a really fantastic event that received a lot of media attention for Seaport. Tons of people came down to cheer on the contestants and Mr. Mark Papenfuss of La Mesa, California took home a giant $10,000 check. It was amazing to see how much time, effort, and attention to detail goes into planning a contest like this.

2. OFFICE GARDEN-GROWER.

Spent hours of time planting words out of flower and radish seeds in prepartion for an event next year. I now have an extensive knowledge of stenciling, planting, gardening, germination, etc. I also have a newfound respect for anyone in the topiary business because I have learned that it is damn hard to make plants cooperate enough to spell things. Despite the difficulty, these are going to turn out really great and are such a unique idea.

3. PROFESSIONAL HALLO-WINER.

I have recently joined the marketing committee for Home Start San Diego, a great organization that helps prevent family abuse and provides assistance to improve parenting. On Tuesday, I attended their annual Hallo-wine event fundraiser, which was a huge success for the organization. There was a great selection of wines to taste, great appetizers, and fabulous gift baskets to bid on. I also discovered the greatest appetizer idea of all time- little grilled cheesies perched on the rim of a martini glass full of tomato soup. Brilliant. (And check out Home Start's blog) 

4. OFFICE DECORATOR.

Melina and I got to spend the afternoon Halloween decoration shopping, and we are making sure that the last Halloween in this office building is the best one. We bought a severed arm, some bloody shower curtains, spiderwebs, skeletons, and bags of candy to make BG as festive and frightening as possible...

"If you write something down, you remember it"...

First off- this article is about CAPTCHAs, and while everyone has encountered one, most people don't know they have a name. CAPTCHA stands for ""Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart" and was coined to describe those pesky type-in word combos required when you buy tickets or post a comment. The purpose of CAPTCHAs is to ensure that it is a real-life person using a site and not a computer posting spam.

Now that we are all on the same page, on to the interesting/exciting news: CAPTCHAs are now advertising space! Ad Age announced that a company is officially launching CAPTCHA ads today and Toyota is one of the first companies to jump on board with it.

How does it work? The CAPTCHA box will now be a small ad and instead of asking the user to type in random letters, they would type in "Toyota Moving Forward" if that's the text that appeared in the ad. Toyota also tested using CAPTCHAs of their car's features like "Star Safety System." The ideas and reasoning behind this are as follows:

1. "If you write something down, you'll remember it"- users will have to type the ad message and are more likely to remember the word or phrase

2. "Banner ads are easy to ignore"- as websites become increasingly cluttered with ads they become easier to ignore, and this is a way that people cannot ignore ads

3. Using "Untapped space where users are forced to spend time"- there are no ads in this area and people are required to see and use the CAPTCHA so it's a new space and more direct way to get people's attention online

I don't know why this is so intriguing and exciting to me, but I like this idea very much. Just when I think advertising has completely taken hold of the internet, something like this comes out and opens up more possibilities. It's like the discovery of a new continent or a new planet... just when we thought we had it charted we find something else! It's going to be really interesting to see how this works out for sites and advertisers; I wouldn't be surprised if in a short while, this became the norm on popular sites.

@Netflix vs. @Blockbuster

All the ad folks here at BG have been assigned a book report to present starting this week. On Thursday I will present my report on a book called "Twitterville: How Businesses Can Thrive in the new Global Neighborhoods" by Shel Israel, and in honor of that, I've decided to do a comparison of two Twitter accounts: Netflix and Blockbuster.

A combination of Twitterville and a C-Net News article titled "Netflix soars as Blockbuster plans bankruptcy" inspired me to take a glance at both of their Twitter accounts. After reading Twitterville, I have become very curious about the correlation between the current success of a company and the content/quality of their tweets and overall presence on Twitter. I am beginning to understand that it's no coincidence that Southwest Airlines and JetBlue are the current superstars of air travel and they have the best Twitter accounts in the industry. In most industries, the companies with the best Twitter accounts are the ones who are successful right now because it means they are understanding the modern landscape of technology and social media while engaging with their customers on a more personal level than ever before. 

These corporate giants that used to seem so far removed from individual customers can now personally interact through Twitter and it's changing the way people see these large companies. The question is- is this personal interaction changing the way customers see companies for the better? For Netflix, it's a yes. For Blockbuster, it's a serious no. Let's look at @Netflix and @Blockbuster and see if the interaction they have with their customers is indicative of their current situations:

Tweets from @Netflix cover a wide variety of topics that cover all things entertainment that engage followers and prompt a response. Almost every tweet ends in a question that asks followers to tell them their favorite movie, show, performance, song, thoughts, etc. Tweets are about box office results, current events (Fashion Week, VMAs, Emmys, film festivals), movie castings, and announcements. @Netflix rarely tweets about the actual company business of Netflix and instead chooses to focus on asserting itself as an authority for entertainment and movie industry news.

It is also clear that @Netflix has a true understanding of the Twitter community: they respond to personal tweets and add an engaging question to make it applicable to all their followers, they retweet, use hashtags and brilliantly incorporate current events and celebrity tweets. Examples:

• Toronto Int’l Film Festival buzz: The Town, Black Swan, 127 Hours & Never Let Me Go. Which are you most excited to see? #TIFF
  
• #dontarguejustacceptit: __________ is the greatest movie ever made.
  
• Sept. 1st - the first day of school at Hogwarts for Harry Potter & Friends! What house would you be sorted into?
  
• What film makes you want to pack your bags @TravelChannel? For us, it’s The Motorcycle Diaries.

Tweets from @Blockbuster are much simpler to explain- 99% of tweets are customer service responses to problems or complaints about service/availability. Although it is good to see Blockbuster trying to individually assist customers over Twitter, it makes it seem as if Blockbuster only has problems. Examples:

• @LivingontheBlock: Sorry for the delay. I talked with a buyer who said we're working with the studio to get Dexter and other titles in ASAP.
  
• @Pharrel1: Please make sure you're reporting them in your Queue so we can pull them for inspection.
  
• @indiestace: Yeah, it's very long wait due to the high demand. I don't have a date yet, sorry.
  

I think the Twitter accounts are indicative of the two companies as a whole- Netflix is modern and has a true understanding of what their customers are looking for in a movie rental service as well as the experience they are looking for from a company. Blockbuster has shown that they are unable to adapt to the current industry and aren't doing a great job impressing the few customers they have left. Because of this, Netflix is on its way up while Blockbuster is headed for bankruptcy.

The way a company interacts with customers and the overall tone and message of their Twitter account can really impact the way people view the company. Netflix is positive, informative, and entertaining, while Blockbuster only further highlights the misfortunes and difficulties their company is currently facing. The bottom line is that while Twitter can be used to enhance customer service, it is not a platform for addressing problems and apologizing; it is a tool to engage positively and personally with customers while keeping them informed and entertained. Netflix understands that, Blockbuster does not. Nice knowin' ya Blockbuster.

Things I am hating right now...

Two months ago while driving on the 5-North en route to Los Angeles, I noticed that there are an unusual number of billboards for "Lap Band Weight Loss" or "1-800-Get-Thin". They caught my attention just by their overwhelming quantity but also because the billboards are painfully tacky and tasteless. I spend most weekends in LA and it seemed like on each trip I noticed and more and more of these terrible billboards. They had taken over the freeways and cities and struck a nerve in me that made me angry every time I saw them. Here is the worst part- THEY HAVE MADE THEIR WAY TO SAN DIEGO. My beloved city is now littered with these awful things and I pass three of them in my 20-minute drive to work. I hate them. 

Here were some of my thoughts and questions:

1. "Holy crap, this must have cost a fortune... how can a medical procedure afford to advertise like this? Most major hospitals can't afford to advertise this ferociously, how is this Lap-Band Procedure making enough to spend this much?" (Things I've learned at BG: Good placements cost good money.)

2. "Goodness these billboards are ugly... if this group can spend so much on billboards, couldn't they spare a few dollars to make a billboard that isn't so basic, tacky, and unappealing?" (Things I've learned at BG: It is always worth it to make sure ads look outstanding.)

3. "There's no way this is legit... very few people can even qualify for a gastric-band procedure so it must be a scam if they can afford to advertise this much to everyone."

That third thought is what motivated me to do some research on this product and company (Things I've learned at BG: research is the key to everything). Here is a brief summary of my findings:

The Weight Loss Centers is a part of a medical group in Beverly Hills called Top Surgeons that is owned by a pair of brother doctors that were featured on Dr. 90201 a few years back. Only nowadays, both of them are no longer doctors because their California medical licenses have been revoked: one for lying about attending UC Irvine (because he was expelled from UCI for stealing exam papers) and the other for negligent practices for unsafe liposuction procedures. The LA Times revealed that a majority of the people involved in this "Lap-Band Miracle" are former doctors with revoked licenses.

The billboards claim that insurance will cover the procedure when, in reality, most insurances only cover gastric-band surgeries for individuals that qualify as morbidly obese on the BMI scale. For anyone who is not covered by insurance, the Top Surgeons company offers a Care Credit Card to put the bill for the procedure on... with an incredibly high interest rate. The company has been scamming people by charging them outrageous fees even if they don't go through with a procedure; there have been a tremendous volume of lawsuits against the company for fraudulent billing, breach of contract, and violating the state consumer protection law. Violating state consumer protection laws is when a business fails to tell you relevant information or misleads you in any way about their rates, return, or warranty.

I feel satisfied in discovering that I was right in all of my assumptions about these billboards- most importantly that this business is a scam. As satisfying as that is, it makes me hate these billboards even more. Not only is it luring desperate people into an serious medical procedure while scamming them out of money, it is this kind of garbage that gives advertising a bad name. So many advertisers like Bailey Gardiner create beautiful, effective and tasteful ads for good clients and it's infuriating to see companies like this use advertising to deceive people. I hope people start realizing how shady this Lap-Band Surgery is and how disreputable Top Surgeons group is so that they can go out of business and I never have to see their awful advertising ever again.

Carrots turning into junk-food...

Okay, maybe that title is a bit misleading- carrots are still going to be as healthy, crunchy, and delicious as ever... but the bag they come in is getting a makeover. A junk-food makeover.

Baby carrot companies are joining forces and planning to let Crispin, Porter + Bogusky spend $25 million of their hard-earned carrot money to repackage and rebrand baby carrots for the masses. The USA Today article provided these campaign plans:

•Packaged in Doritos-like bags. Three different designs are planned.

•Sold out of cool school vending machines. Tests are underway in Cincinnati and Syracuse, N.Y.

•Sporting slogans like this on billboards and packs: "The original orange doodles."

•Touting seasonal tie-ins. Coming this Halloween: scarrots.

•Offering a phone app powered by the sound of folks munching carrots in real time.

•Airing TV spots that tout baby carrots as extreme, futuristic and even, yes, sexy.

The idea is that packaging baby carrots like their junk-food competitors will make kids think carrots are as cool and delicious as other bagged snacks and will taste just as good. Or that seeing a bag of carrots in a vending machine of junk food will eventually make people equate carrots with a fun treat instead of a healthy vegetable.

I am so entertained by this. My first thought is "what is this world coming to when we have to disguise health food with junk food packaging to trick people into eating it" but that is an issue that really cannot be tackled in one blog post. What can be addressed though is how fabulous it is (for everyone in advertising business) that now even individual vegetables require a $25 million campaign to make people eat them. Not just brands, not just products- even an individual vegetable that has been on this planet forever requires advertising services.

It's going to be really interesting to see what CP+B comes up with to pump up the country's interest in carrots and even more interesting to see if other vegetable industries follow suit and roll out big campaigns. It seems like in today's eco-friendly, organic-food climate, this could be surprisingly successful and do really good things for America's veggie industries and our country's waistlines. It may seem a little bit crazy to those of us who have grown up with Cheetos as junk food and carrots as health food, but if we begin seeing both these things as equally cool and equally tasty, maybe this could be the start of a healthier lifestyle for all of us?

Things I am liking right now...

I had so much fun making a numbered list in my last post that I am going to do another one... Today it's going to be a short list of things I really like that have caught my attention recently:

1. I like that today is the first day of my extended internship and my volunteer days are over. I like that very very much. Thanks BG for keeping me around.

2. The Last Exorcism on ChatRoulette:

I have never used ChatRoulette but I am definitely aware of the site (mostly because of the reputation it has built as a constant parade of genitalia). Lionsgate's new movie The Last Exorcism is coming out soon and they've been doing some interesting things with promoting it but this one is definitely my favorite-- they have a pretty girl on ChatRoulette who looks like she's about to start unbuttoning her shirt for the skeezy guys she's connected with. There's two different videos- in one her eyes roll into the back of her head and she attacks the camera, and in the other her neck completely snaps sideways. Both are incredibly creepy and then TheLastExorcism.com flashes on the ChatRoulette screen. They have posted the reactions of the guys on the other side of the chat and they are absolutely hilarious.

There are a lot of companies using these kinds of sites in inefficient or boring ways (Fancy Feast was one of the first) and it's so great to see a cool idea that gets great reactions and publicity. I'm sure this means that other companies will start creative stunts on ChatRoulette that will soon get old, but props to Lionsgate for having one of the first really cool ones.

3. Piperlime's new "Let's Get Dressed" Campaign:

Recently, GAP-brand Piperlime has come under fire for it's "Let's get dressed" campaign that focuses on motivating people (particularly women) to get dressed nicely when they go out in public. Their print campaign has taglines like "Say no to sweat pants," "Hang up the hoodies," and "Step away from the sneakers" while their Facebook page offers advice like "Let's put Saturday-night effort into Sunday afternoon." Some followers of their Facebook page got all offended by the "snotty" and "bitchy-girl status posts" and removed the site from their favorites.

I love this idea and I don't think it's catty or rude at all- let's just all agree to not go to the store in our pajamas or our unflattering workout clothes. I'm all for comfortable and casual but I do not need to stand behind a girl in line wearing spandex pants with a cut-off shirt cut so much i can see 85% of her sports bra. Some things just don't belong out in the world for others to see. As someone trying to make the transition from college campus to working world, I like having a little reminder that how you present yourself is important whenever you're out and about.

4. I recently stumbled across PhotoshopDisasters.com, which I'm sure is not new to a lot of people but I just recently discovered the joys it has to offer. As a self-taught Photoshopper, I really like seeing common mistakes to learn from and also just to laugh at. They have everything from awkward body angles to missing limbs and everything in between... it's incredible to see how easy it is for professionals to mess up photo-editing and it makes me have even more respect for the flawless work that comes from BG's creative team.

Ten-ish reasons why YOU want to be an intern at BG...

Since this is the last few days of my official internship at BG, I am substituting the traditional goodbye post with some excellent reasons why interning at BG is an exciting adventure that you wouldn't want to miss out on:

1. YOU GET TO PUT TOGETHER

EXTRAVAGANT GIFTS FOR CLIENTS.

This is a little package I got to hunt down and assemble one day: a stuffed wiener dog and a wooden hand with decorative mini-beverages as a collar. You would not believe the look I received when I asked an employee at Babies'R'Us if "they carried wiener dogs and wooden hands"... it was like she wasn't sure whether to laugh or call the police.

2. YOU GET TO RIDE THIS BADASS BUTTERFLY BIKE (PURSE NOT INCLUDED).

As an intern at Bailey Gardiner, this beauty will be your primary mode of transportation. It is stunning and it handles like a dream. You are sure to get some serious attention when you ride this bike around town for your errands.

3. YOU GET TO GO TO THE DEL MAR HORSE RACES.

BG has a lot of really cool San Diego clients and a great perk of having cool clients is getting to do cool things. BG Day at the Races is a really good time that you will definitely enjoy.

4. YOU GET TO WATCH ROSCOE SUNBATHE.

Jennifer's dog Roscoe joins us for work every Tuesday  and his favorite past time is working on his tan in the window. He is like a supermodel and this is the reason he is BG's official mascot.

5. YOU GET TO DRIVE AROUND WITH A GIANT GRAPE VINE IN YOUR FRONT SEAT. 

There are days when someone at the office will need a grape vine and it is your job to track one down and bring it to the office. When you return, it will be your job to cut the creatures out of it and decorate it.

6. YOU GET TO HANG OUT IN RECORDING STUDIOS.

When BG records radio commercials you will get to go and hang out at recording studio. Not only will you learn a lot about how a radio commercial comes together, but you'll get to feel pretty cool and tell all your friends.

7. YOU GET TO CREATE THE OFFICE BABY BETTING POOL WHEN THERE'S AN EXPECTING BG'ER.

When there's a baby on the way at BG, you will get to create the chart and take down the bets for what kind of baby that baby will be.

8. PEOPLE HERE DRESS REALLY FANCY.

People here at BG take fashion really seriously- checkered pants and seersucker suits are pretty typical. And when BG'ers dress extra fancy, you will get to take their photo.

9. YOU GET TO GO BOWLING.

I hope you are good at bowling because past BG interns (I'm obviously talking about myself) have really set the bar high for intern performances at BG Bowling. Bring your A-game.

10. YOU GET TO PHOTOGRAPH THE REFRIGERATOR.

You will find that the BG fridge has a lot of wisdom to share and it will be your job to take its picture on a weekly basis and share that wisdom with the world.

AND LASTLY... 

SOMETIMES THERE ARE GORILLAS IN THE OFFICE.

There have been times when a gorilla gets loose in the office and that always makes for a fun day.

This post may have quickly turned into a photo scrapbook of crazy things I've encountered during my time here at Bailey Gardiner, but it really does show how much fun every day is in the office. Not only will you do some really interesting

 things, you will also gain experience in so many different aspects of advertising. You will become a master of research on many different topics and you will get to see how things come together within an agency to make great work. There is no better place to learn the business of advertising and work with some really fantastic people. You would be a fool to want to intern anywhere else. 

Levi's aren't just for dads anymore?

Levi's has never been on the top of my list of "cute jeans I would like to wear" because I've always considered them to be pants for dads. In fact, I have always thought of Levi's as a jean brand for older men and women who wear their pants too high. I know they advertise their jeans as sexy and cool but I have never considered them to be either of those things. 

But I've recently taken notice in Levi's because of their Go Forth campaign commercials-- they're artsy and funky and seem like an attempt to catch the attention of the young-adult hipster crowd. Not that they necessarily appeal to me, but I acknowledge the effort they're putting in to connect with a younger and cooler audience. This was the jump-start to my reconsideration of the Levi's Brand.

Levi's has just launched a new women's line of jeans called Curve ID- and I must say I have found a new appreciation and am beginning to form a new opinion on Levi's as a brand. The Curve ID line uses the tagline "All asses were not created equal" and has three different fits of jeans for three different body types- Slight Curve, Demi Curve, and Bold Curve:

I like this idea as is- I always love clothing brands that recognize the real shapes of women and make clothes that celebrate that- but this Levi's line is especially awesome because of the amount of research that went into creating this line. Levi's (with their agency Wieden+Kennedy) did 60,000 body scans of women and conducted a global survey that they used when creating the three fits for three different body types (that make up 80 percent of women's shapes). The results of the survey are also very interesting to me because I consider myself one of the many girls that dedicates an entire weekend to finding one pair of comfortable jeans:

• 54% of women try on at least 10 pairs of jeans to find one pair they would buy
  
• 87% of women wish they could find jeans that fit better than ones in their closets
  
• 67% of women believe that jeans are designed for women with "ideal" figures
  
• Only 28% of women believe that jeans are designed to fit their body types
  

Not only is Levi's doing a cool thing for society by acknowledging the diverse body shapes of women, but it's a really smart way to interest women in Levi's. I don't know many females my age who would say Levi's is their favorite jean brand, but combining a cool campaign with jeans that look good and actually fit could be the recipe for success with younger women. I'm impressed to the point that I would consider trying a pair on and even if I didn't buy them, at least Levi's has done a good job of changing my perceptions about their brand.

Coke. GIANT COKE....

Since I gave Coke a bit of a hard time in my blog about Pepsi's stunt in Argentina during the World Cup, I have decided to dedicate this blog to the cool things that Coke has been up to in Argentina:

Argentina and other Latin American countries celebrate "Dia del Amigos" (Friend's Day) every year on July 20th and this year Coke joined in on the fun with a giant Coke vending machine. The machine was twice the size of a normal machine and dispensed two Cokes for the price of one- the catch being that one person had to lift their friend up to be able to reach the money and buttons. There was only one machine and it was placed in a sold-out movie theater in Buenos Aires and it sold ten times the amount of bottles that a normal machine does.

Let me get this out of the way-- why is Argentina getting all this great advertising?! How about some American brains start thinking of entertaining and innovative stunts for brands? And I also think it's fantastic that these Latin American countries celebrate Friend's Day to this extent; what a wonderful thing to dedicate an entire day to. It has become so popular in recent years that almost all restaurants are booked days in advance and the mobile network in Argentina temporarily crashed from all of the communication between people on Friend's Day.

Okay, now that I've gotten that out... I love when companies incorporate their brand or product into an event, holiday or occasion. It can be done so well and it's a free partnership that already has its own great publicity. The ultimate success in a stunt like this is that not only did it delight people and draw attention, it upped sales! A lot of companies sink a lot of money into getting their brand out there without seeing their investment pay off in an immediate way (or perhaps at all), and this is a great way to be able to instantly measure success. 

I think Coke hit a home-run with this on a very unique holiday, I just wish they would have done this in more than one location. The lone jumbo vending machine was such a hit, it's a shame they didn't think to roll out vending machines all across Argentina (or all across Latin America even). They had a great idea and they should have run with it... and I'll definitely be paying attention to Dia del Amigos next year to see if Coke can top this one.

BG Day at the Races...

I have been counting down the days until BG Day at the Races... and it was worth every second of anticipation! Yesterday we all headed down to the Del Mar Race Track  (thanks to Melina for the lift) and settled into our perfectly positioned tables to watch the horses go. The weather was perfect and the track was beautiful as always. 

Our table ordered an unreasonable amount of food (I highly recommend the Crunchy Tempura Green Beans from the Stretch Run Grill) and made bets on all 8 races. There were some really great races (including a photo finish) and some really fabulous horse names. I have realized that I have a lot to learn about the horse racing biz and how to not suck at betting... or "voting" as my table calls it. I tried to pick up on the tips and tricks from the masters (Jon, Becca & Susannah) but it still didn't help my awful luck very much.

After a full day at the track, I left $2.80 richer with a pretty interesting sunburn but I had a fantastic time. Thanks to BG for letting me tag along on such a great day.

Macaroni & Cheeeeeese...

I have been waiting to see something dynamic from Kraft Macaroni and Cheese ever since word got out that they moved their business over to Crispin Porter + Bogusky in March of this year. Only recently have I taken notice of their new advertising and it intrigues me as both an adult Mac & Cheese lover and an appreciator of interesting advertising.

But first off, here’s what they’ve got going on:

• Spending $50 million promoting this campaign for the year (30% increase from last year)
  
• Moving from their economy-motivated taglines emphasizing price to slogans that focus on making adults feel like it’s okay for them to love Mac & Cheese too: “You know you love it,” “The most fun you can have with your stove on,” “Outgrow outgrowing it,” “Imported from your childhood,” and “Parents need warm cheesey hugs”
  
• The usual advertising: Commercials, Print, Billboards, Online, Website and Social media
  
• The not-so-usual:
  

1. Noodle Art (20 feet long and 9 feet high macaroni sculptures) placed in national landmarks (Wrigley Field, Fisherman’s Wharf, etc.)
   
2. Interactive store front displays that say “Cheese” and use face recognition technology to make the noodle smile at customers in the top 3 markets
   
3. A Homestyle Tour that visits 15 midwestern state fairs to showcase the Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese
   
4. Die-cut noodles on taxi tops in New York
   
5. Wallscapes in New York, Chicago and LA
   

I really like the new look of all their advertising and think they did a good job of giving it a look that adheres to the traditional Mac & Cheese style but with a more sleek and grown-up feel. And I especially appreciate the fact that this iconic Kraft brand isn't kicking back and letting their very well-known brand continue selling boxes based on their brand recognition- they are out aggressively advertising to a new audience and looking to add another dimension to their brand. 

Not only are they advertising heavily, Kraft and CPB are doing a variety of really interesting things that should set the standard for other major food brands. Even though macaroni sculptures are a little crazy (possibly bordering on obnoxious), it's a cool idea and a fun take on OOH advertising. I really liked the new YouKnowYouLoveIt.com website they launched that has an interactive roulette wheel that you can spin to win points for coupons and I'm also impressed by the amount of social media they're incorporating into their campaign. I also like the idea of adding a tour to the campaign and I think they targeted all the right cities. After attending college in the midwest, I learned very quickly

that "homestyle" anything is the preferred dish of choice there and displays at state fairs is a great way to engage homestyle kind of people in a very direct way.

The only criticism I could present is the overall lack of focus and cohesiveness from this campaign- there's a lot of different taglines and messages and goals- but I think that an enormously popular brand like Mac & Cheese can just barely pull that off. The brand recognition and loyalty have long-been established, they're just looking to gather new customers that are already aware of the brand. I think this is a really cool new take on Mac & Cheese, an interesting new direction for their brand, and an exciting new standard for food product advertising.

A "Brand New Day" for the YMCA...

Everyone knows the YMCA. When someone says this acronym there’s generally no question as to what they’re talking about. Some people may not know that it stands for Young Men’s Christian Association or that it’s one of the oldest and most important non-profit organizations, but just about every person has a familiarity with the letters YMCA.

This is exactly what the YMCA found troubling- every person was familiar with the letters YMCA but a lot of people had no idea what the organization actually did or the values they stood for today. The YMCA realized that there was no clarity or cohesiveness in their logo, brand, or message throughout their thousands of YMCAs across the country and invested time and money into the most extensive research the organization has ever conducted.

With their findings, the YMCA has just rolled out a new nickname and a new style with a clearer message:

• The YMCA will begin being known officially as “The Y.” They will of course be keeping the full YMCA acronym in their brand, but they will be emphasizing their identity as "The Y" because that is how they are known in the community.
  
• Rather than letting every Y branch pick their own style of Y logo (this has been the case for about 50 years and there are thousands out there), there is now only one usable Y logo that comes in 5 colors. The new logo is a more modern, sleek, and vibrant variation on their traditional Y logo
• The Y has had dozens of mottos, slogans, and missions between branches, and they have now replaced their old “We build strong kids, strong families, and strong communities.” The new slogan is: “For Youth Development, For Healthy Living, For Social Responsibility.”

This rebranding campaign was launched ten days ago and all of their websites have already fully incorporated the new logo, as well as making the new logo launch a big part of their Wikipedia page. Although this seems very abrupt, the full integration of this brand revitalization is scheduled to be very gradual with the entire new look and message completely incorporated by 2015.

I did gymnastics at the Y for 13 years, worked at the Y since I was 16 and even spent four years on the San Diego YMCA Board of Directors, so I am no stranger to the organization or its message. I had been hearing whispers of a rebrand for about a year now and I was delighted when they finally unveiled the new logo and ideas at our staff meeting last week (I was the only one taking diligent notes on the presentation).

I am extremely impressed with the direction they're going- I think so many people have really inaccurate and dated perceptions of the YMCA and it's really important for the Y to finally address this. The YMCA has always had strong brand recognition because they are so prominent and well-known but it's really great to see them start to be in control of their brand and pay more attention to the message of their organization. I think a 5-year window is a very realistic goal to get this rebrand in full swing and it's smart to do it at a slow pace so that people aren't thrown off by it or start thinking their "favorite YMCA is trying to get all hip" on them (that's actually what I was told by one of my level three gymnast's grandmothers).

This is a really great move for the YMCA and they are yet again setting the bar for other non-profits to follow. But that is one thing I find so interesting and incredible- even non-profits are now finding it necessary to pay close attention to their public image, perceptions, and brand! Non-profits do wonderful things and amazing work but even that is not enough anymore; companies who do tremendous good are finding it necessary to take a more hands-on and active approach to how they are perceived by the public. I think that just proves how powerful good advertising and PR are for every company and it's amazing to see one of the country's oldest and most influential non-profit organization jumping on board with that.

Intern News...

As a current intern, I have a vested interest in the world of interning… and I finally stumbled across some very interesting news about my little world:

The Facts: New York digital agency MRM is providing five interns a 6-month internship with the company while living rent-free in an Ikea-furnished 3-bedroom Brooklyn apartment. The program is called “The Apartment” and the interns share their experiences in New York and at MRM on a blog.
The Reasoning: MRM Execs say they are offering this to interns in order to better recruit the top ad students because, in recent years, MRM has missed out on top intern talent because students choose to line up at agencies like Weiden & Kennedy or Goodby Silverstein.
The Interesting: The thing I find most interesting is that this is not funded solely by MRM- because the interns are considered billable staff on accounts, MRM clients like Microsoft, Exxon, Mastercard and Diageo will be footing part of the bill to house these interns.

This seems like a really cool idea from an intern perspective- getting to live rent-free in New York while interning? Pretty good deal. But I have two major issues with this and I will address them accordingly:


1. Should clients really be footing the bill to house these interns?
I understand that, when it comes down to it, an agency runs on billing clients. But if I were an MRM client and saw my advertising dollars being spent to put interns up in a Brooklyn apartment, I’m not sure how thrilled I would be about that. MRM definitely has some big-budget clients, but no matter how much money I had to burn, I would much prefer to be putting that into a better campaign rather than funding some students to live in NYC. It’s reasonable that some companies arrange housing for interns, but a deluxe swanky NYC loft seems like an inefficient way to spend client money.

2. If you want to attract the top ad students in the country, put your energies into becoming an attractive top agency rather than just bribing students with extravagant accommodations.
While I can’t knock MRM for launching an effective way to get interns significantly more interested in their program, it does seem like a bit of a cheap way to go about it. They obviously have an abundance of money to throw around and I feel like it would be better spent doing innovative and creative things for their clients to make MRM as attractive and desirable to interns as Weiden & Kennedy or Goodby (or Bailey Gardiner) are.

All-in all, I think this is a dynamite opportunity for interns (I’ll always applaud fellow interns for getting a sweet hook-up and I do love Ikea furniture) and it’s cool to see interns get cool recognition in Ad Age for being involved in something like this. However, from an agency perspective- I’d rather have people intern because of a genuine interest in the company and not because they’re looking to live rent-free. I think, in the long run, I’d prefer to have a company built with loyal people that were all there because they sincerely believed in the work being done.