-
Opinion
What's in a name?
In this guest post, Moensie Rossier wonders about the power of names for brands and marketers.
Brands have been having a bit of fun with names lately, not to mention a fair bit of success. Interbrand just named a headhunting firm Cloak & Dagger. And ‘Share a Coke’ showed how much power there is in a name.
The Coke campaign effectively short-circuited the usual mechanics of communication. It undoubtedly stroked people’s egos. But, I believe, its success stems from the fact that it directly and automatically affected people’s behaviour, rather than doing so indirectly by shaping attitudes.
Best ads from Super Bowl 2012
The Super Bowl is all done and a team from North America won. But as well as some sort of sporting event, it’s the world’s biggest advertising showcase. See the best of them right here… and please tell us what you think.
How to debunk media myths
In this post, UWS’s Ullrich Ecker, John Cook and Stephen Lewandowsky argue that cognitive science can help PRs form strategies in managing media misreporting.
A growing cohort of commentators has bemoaned the descent of contemporary political “debate” into a largely fact-free zone.
How about simply focusing on what consumers want?
In this guest post, Peter Mountford argues that brands should think more about what is really going on for consumers
Who here is hoping their favourite brand of toilet paper is going to be organizing a flash mob on their way home from work today?
What the Optus web copyright victory means
In this analysis first published on The Conversation, RMIT’s Marita Shelly examines the implications of Telstra’s defeat over the online rights to the AFL broadcast deal
This week’s Federal Court ruling that Optus customers are able to view sporting matches minutes after they are streamed live without breaching copyright is a landmark decision that alters our understanding of copyright law, and has significant implications for the AFL’s broadcasting rights deal.
Does Gina Rinehart’s bite of a chunk of Fairfax make her an oligarch?
In an article that first appeared in The Conversation, Mark Rolfe wonders whether the mining magnate’s move could turn Fairfax into something resembling America’s Fox network.
Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart has moved to increase her stake in Fairfax Media, owner of The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and a number of radio stations. Rinehart has already shown her desire to play a role in public life, campaigning against former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s aborted mining tax. She has also demonstrated a willingness to make media investments to ensure her pro-business worldview is promulgated.
What does this latest move by Rinehart mean?
Gillard's Australia Day crisis
PM Julia Gillard’s media adviser Tony Hodges has been forced to resign over the Australia Day tent embassy debacle.
It came after it emerged he had revealed opposition leader Tony Abbott’s whereabouts, leading to both politicians being rescued by police in ugly scenes.
Mumbrella editor Tim Burrowes and advertising practitioner Jane Caro debate the topic on Weekend Sunrise’s masters of Spin segment:
The biggest cock-up I made in business
In this guest post, Chris Savage urges agency staff to live the brand.I still shudder when I think about how incredibly stupid I was when I made the biggest stuff up of my career. And then, 18 years later, I did it again. Do not make this mistake with your clients. Ever.
Hey Groupon. Thanks for fucking up email
In this guest post, Daniel Monheit warns that group deal overload is devaluing email marketingEmail marketing used to be fabulous. Back in the heady days of 2010, brands would work hard to build up well qualified databases, upon which they’d bestow carefully crafted correspondence filled with information, offers and incentives. The recipients, of course would be delighted: “Oh look! An email! From one of my favourite brands! And it’s 40 cents off at Woolies this week!”.
The staggering sway of Harold Mitchell
The Power Index today names Aegis Media chairman Harold Mitchell as the most powerful person in Melbourne. Andrew Crook profiles him.
Harold Mitchell takes pride in dispensing with the niceties. When The Power Index visited his South Melbourne private office before Christmas, fresh remains were scattered all over the boardroom table.
Share a Coke with… the moronic masses
The most-read story on Mumbrella last year, with not far off 100,000 page views, was a fairly humdrum yarn about the launch of Coca-Cola’s name-on-a-bottle campaign.The headline, “Coca-Cola puts people’s names on bottles in ‘Share a Coke’ campaign”, though hated by any self-respecting sub-editor, was loved by Google. And in rushed what can be politely described as the public.
Assumptions kill creativity
In this guest post, Gual Barwell disagrees that the sales success of the Old Spice social media campaign was overstated.Yesterday’s post from Cathie McGinn suggested the Old Spice campaign failed to connect with consumers. Based on the facts and figures, I disagree.
What Old Spice and Wieden + Kennedy has done and done phenomenally well is to create a franchise.
The SMH's readers (are wrong) editor
We are now about five months into the reign of Australia’s first readers’ editor. And I don’t think it is working.
It struck me at the time of Judy Prisk’s appointment to the Sydney Morning Herald that the fact that her boss was editor-in-chief Peter Fray was not going to be ideal if she was going to be the independent voice of the reader.
The emperor's new fragrance: Old Spice’s campaign failure
In this guest post, Cathie McGinn slays a sacred cow of 21st century marketing – the highly awarded Old Spice campaign.One of the biggest myths of recent times (by which I mean a story of great heroism and triumph we’d all like to believe but deep down know to be untrue) is the Old Spice social media campaign. It’s been much lauded and awarded as an example of outstanding content, a creative and collaborative way of connecting with consumers and driving a record increase in sales.
How reliable are radio ratings?
In this guest posting, Jason ‘Jabba’ Davis wonders how accurate radio ratings can be, since the data is collated from handwritten diaries.
So, the radio ratings season gets underway tomorrow. After a well-earned break, Australia’s commercial radio stations will renew their obsession with figures to see how many of us are listening. Are they winning or losing the ratings war?
The much feared radio survey is the only way to measure the success or failure of a station’s playlist, talent, promotions or even good old Black Thunder crosses. With six-figure salaries riding on the make-or-break nature of ratings, just how accurate are Australia’s radio survey results?
CommBank unveils its new direction and moves on from comedy ad agency
Hours after a planned press conference to launch the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s new ads was cancelled, the organisation has quietly released the first of the new work online instead.
The campaign, which marks a move away from the inept fictional American ad agency created by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners instead focuses on talking up the bank’s relationship with the community.
It was due to be unveiled today but called off yesterday afternoon by the CBA which cited the need to finish editing.
However, it was uploaded onto CommBank’s Youtube channel without any fanfare a couple of hours ago.
Like the original campaign, it still retains a postmodern twist, with the voiceover in the style of a film script beginning: “We open on a girl. She will show us all the things that make her happy.” And it concludes with a reference to the logo.
The ad makes its debut on television on Sunday.
Yesterday The Australian quoted Jeff Goodby as predicting that unlike the original campaign, the new ads would reach widespread popularity. He said:
“The anonymous bloggers can get some sleep.”
AdNews reports that the campaign has been directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who also directed the movie Amelie.
June 18th, 2010 at 5:26 pm
-
Follow Us
-
Email Newsletter
Latest Jobs- Online Business Operations and Community Coordinator - Ultimo, Sydney
- Project Managers - Sydney & Perth
- Account Manager - Online Display - Sydney
- Senior Account Manager - Online - Melbourne
- Senior Digital Project Manager - Sydney
- Digital Marketing & Sales Manager - Ultimo, Sydney
- Front End Developer - Sydney
- Front End Developer - Large eCommerce Company! - Sydney
- Digital Account Executive - Sydney, NSW
- Social Media Content Manager - O/S Posting - Ho Chi Minh City, VIETNAM
Comments
18 Jun 10
5:32 pm
Can see the Amelie reference (shameless rip off?)
But I like it!
18 Jun 10
5:35 pm
Thank heavens for that.
A good ad, nothing great, yet still beats those horrid agency ones. Don’t think the snide comment by Goodby was needed.
‘The anonymous bloggers can get some sleep’ – Wanker, 2010.
18 Jun 10
5:54 pm
All this song and dance about nothing.
How much of my CBA interest mortgage money is going towards paying for this pedophilia ad, do you think this relates in any way of form to children in need. Fat cat pays certianly clouds you judgment Mr Buckman.
I do think its about time you pull your arse into gear and do something good for the people instead of wasting another 300k-500k on an ad telling people you giving grants of 10k to needed kids. Determined to be different, no need to shout of it and tell the world. Why not shout about giving the 500k or so it cost to make the ad to the children in need or maybe buy them a home and care for them.
I certainly would love to see my interest money used more wisely by these fat cats, Mr Rolf Harris, what are your thoughts on this?
18 Jun 10
6:21 pm
Needs colour.
David, it’s by the same director as Amelie. Not so much a ripoff as it is the style he’s famous for and why they hired him.
I don’t hate it, nor am I amazed by it either.
18 Jun 10
6:21 pm
Can they please can the wanky post-modern meta referencing. It was bad enough with the last campaign being all about the ad industry, but this one also assumes that you’re going to like the voiceover dude faffing on about ad industry jargon. Message to ad producers: no one actually likes you, so don’t insert yourself between the product and the consumer.
18 Jun 10
8:00 pm
this is definitely different.No question that it clearly has cost a lot but it will definitely cut through. The only negative – i had narratives…
18 Jun 10
9:39 pm
I couldn’t tell the difference.
18 Jun 10
10:27 pm
I think the ad was cute and adorable (so is the girl in it).
And I don’t think rip-offs exist anymore. They will just say it’s an homage or something.
19 Jun 10
10:57 am
I totally agree with Paul about the meta-referencing — I came here to post the same comment myself. What is it with CBA’s obsession with abstracting itself from the advertising process and commentating on it in its ads — what is wrong with just presenting your message in the ad, in the traditional way?
19 Jun 10
11:23 am
The tone and pace of this spot is so remarkably different to the seppo ad agency stuff. No wonder people feel disengaged with banks – they are constantly “reinventing” themselves with new expensie advertising campaigns and taglines. Do they honestly expect us to believe CBA are being “different” by giving to charity? Or have they been sold a lemon by Goodby that the answer to all their troubles is a new stylised TVC?
At least “Which Bank?” differentiated the bank with a light-hearted personality we could all enjoy for 30 seconds before going to make a cuppa. And they stuck with it
19 Jun 10
12:30 pm
Marin,
Calm. Down.
19 Jun 10
12:34 pm
looking like the whole add campaign is going to be an Amelie remake
are there any original ideas in advertising today ?
19 Jun 10
12:59 pm
Newsflash >>>
Jean Pierre Jeunet has agreed to agreed to direct the new
David Jones advertising campaign in the same vein as his
recent Chanel No.5 Audrey Tautou here. http://bit.ly/g5hCp
The ads will feature appropriate conduct of staff when travelling
19 Jun 10
11:53 pm
Wasn’t it a fictional *American* ad agency in those Commonwealth ads? (Check the second paragraph.)
20 Jun 10
10:31 am
How can someone rip off their own style?
Cute over content, but then animals are equally over-used.
20 Jun 10
12:46 pm
Marin.
Perhaps they should put their money into your education.
Rolf Harris…… Who is he?
Ralph.
20 Jun 10
1:29 pm
More advertising from a bank targeting their own marketing team. Is that crazy voiceover referencing the logo, etc about try to prove it’s connected with the ad agency campaign?! Perhaps a return to “Which Bank” is just around the corner once they are different and not just determined to be. It’s just more of the same big bank advertising where they got absolutely nothing to say. Let’s hope those challenger banks start to get a bit more traction!
20 Jun 10
1:54 pm
Saw a comment on another blog.
“It’s like buying a Bugatti Veyron to cart firewood around the paddock”
Have to agree.
Hey, let’s get Stephen King to direct our “Down, down, the prices are down” commercial!
21 Jun 10
7:39 am
You’re right, Daniel – my bad, now updated.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
21 Jun 10
11:29 am
so let me get this right….. an American agency gets a French director to make an ad with the hope of making the CBA Australia’s most loved bank…. and this is after the self indulgent ‘fake agency’ dross that they served up before? How does Buckman get away with it??
21 Jun 10
12:26 pm
I prefer the American agency ads – they made me laugh; even if it took a while to warm to them. I still crack up when I think of them referring to cricket as a sport invented before elbows.
Marin; here’s a suggestion. Change banks regarding homeloans. Sure, there are cancellation fees, but the savings on interest will make up for it.
21 Jun 10
12:41 pm
Love the Ad. Love the new direction.
21 Jun 10
2:23 pm
‘commonwealth bank staff’
Seems to me they’re doing a bit of an internal / culture job, as much as a customer one with this ad.
21 Jun 10
3:52 pm
Solid ad, and a VAST improvement on those woeful ‘look at us, we’re ad creatives’ ads.
But can’t see the point of the self-referential ad/copy writer lines. Seems superfluous/pretentious.
21 Jun 10
4:11 pm
The other ads were great and tonnes of Aussies loved them. The only people who didn’t are marketing arse holes and bitter agencies hacks.
I hope this new direction isn’t because of those inept fools on the blog.
21 Jun 10
4:11 pm
I do not hate this ad.
21 Jun 10
4:34 pm
I don’t understand why they didn’t use the opportunity to call out for organisations to apply for grants: same outcome – we know they give to charity. Totally different approach (ie not self congratultory). Maybe this isn’t as clever and sophisticated but we’d feel good about them instead of thinking they are w*nkers.
21 Jun 10
4:38 pm
FYI – I liked the old ads
21 Jun 10
5:01 pm
I think I would have preferred to see a grass roots campaign where CBA demonstrates exactly what these donations are actually doing for children.
$10k grants seem insignificant when compared to the profits quoted by banks these days. Maybe better to have said:, “this year our staff have donated a total of $xxx (is the bank tipping in/topping up?) and achieved bla bla bla. Next year we’re on target to achieving blab bla bla. Log into our website for updates on how our donations are making a difference. We’re investing in your community. In terms of the delivery, the ad seems grandiose to me when actually CBA is a bank for all people – even poor people. It is not a boutique international outfit therefore does not require a European inspired piece of art to demonstrate why it is good. I also like the idea of saying that the Bank donated the cost of the ad towards a project.
21 Jun 10
5:36 pm
Worth it just for Marin’s Rolf Harris comment!
Marin, whatever it is you are on … either halve or double the dose, because it ain’t working buddy!
21 Jun 10
6:27 pm
This is a joke. Banks f**k you. We all know that. Why are they trying to convince MUM’s and DAD’s that they give back. We all get the commonwealth special every month with fee’s and over priced mortgages. Its just not believable. Do they think that we are idiot yanks that believe everything we see.
21 Jun 10
7:29 pm
p.s. there is nothing sweet and sugary about under privileged children. I think this is what I am odds with. The ad is very pretty but everyone knows, deep down inside, that the problem is very ugly. Maybe the ad should be a little less pretty?
21 Jun 10
8:28 pm
Bottom Line: Banks are banks. No TVC or campaign will change our view (of banks). We love to hate them, no matter what they throw in our face or for how ever many months a year a particular themed campaign is ‘alive’. We work for our money, they store it, and take what they feel is fair from that. It’s not ‘fair’, as it is near impossible to get through life without a financial institutions assistance at some stage. Thus we ‘must’ use them for this. Their adverts, self congratulatory or not, will not turn enough people to choose any bank over another. The actions of their executives and staff will.
22 Jun 10
9:34 am
Oh Lord grant me a bucket in which I can spew.
22 Jun 10
10:54 am
no amount of rationale or pr can turn this turkey into a xmas dinner
22 Jun 10
2:13 pm
I assume that the Dr @ 4.11, 21 June did a phd in not having a clue
22 Jun 10
4:34 pm
Nate dog. Think bigger. Why do they have to absorb so much of our cash? A fairer banking system means individuals can use that surplus money to help not banks. Lets not pretend they are the almighty saviors.
28 Jun 10
1:44 pm
Over the last 93 years we have made over $100 billion in profits. Apply now for your $10 000 grant.
28 Jun 10
2:17 pm
The first round of Goodby ads for CBA were highly successful and did everything they were suppose to….does that even count?…or a you lot all above them for artistic quality?….were all still talking about them
28 Jun 10
2:36 pm
“Over the last two decades the Commonwealth Bank has made negotiations regarding pay rises with our staff very difficult. This years payrise is a mere 1.5% – below the rate of inflation. Apply now for your $10 000 grant.”
29 Jun 10
7:33 pm
Saw the second one in the series tonight, apparently just as it launched. Can check it via Commbank’s YouTube channel (uploaded in the last hour):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl2LQybo_qc
Would love to hear your thoughts, Tim! For me, it doesn’t sit well. At least, not as well as the Grants one.
29 Jun 10
8:09 pm
Commonwealth Bank TV Ad # 4 – Charity starts at Home
Fade In. We open on a Commonwealth Bank Board Meeting.
The decision has been made, All Bank fee for the 2011 Fiscal Year 2011 will be donated to charitable causes !!
Exterior. 48 Martin Place. Branch. Signs of Mass Excitment as long queues of other bank customers start to transfer there accounts to the Commonwealth Bank !!!
Fade to 1st Female PM Press Conference as she announces an end to poverty and homelessness in Australia by 2011.
30 Jun 10
10:37 am
That a bank would actually put an advertisement to air promoting that they would return a phone call shows you just how bad public preception of the banking industry actually is.
So the Commonwealth Bank returns phone calls – BIG DEAL!
1 Jul 10
9:24 am
Great add pity its not truthful…..speaking from experience that you make arrangements for them to call you at a certain time .you make sure you are free and they dont call…so you make another appointment and the same thing happens.so 3 times a charm nah noo doing…..i gave up… and then they rang not at anytime i arranged day or time….great add though..dont let the truth hinder a great add campaign…
1 Jul 10
4:36 pm
Does any marketer really believe any consumer thinks banks are different?
Consumers don’t – because banks aren’t.
Just try an ad like ” our money is cheaper to rent than theirs” – we don’t want a relationship with a bank – who wants a relationship with a egomaniacal, money hungry, fat philistine (oops I can here some spouses of banking execs inhaling) who will screw you while telling you how much they love you (now I hear my spouse inhaling!).
Damn it – it’s such a waste of time and money – anyone ever had to deal with the CBA marketing department?
15 Jul 10
8:18 pm
I hate these ads. No one cares!