Been off the blog radar for a few days. I am in Kuala Lumpur and soon Thailand for a month of business and fun. Stay tuned.
Insights
Watch This Pasta Video FR: 72andSunny Amsterdam
This is a sweet, funny, brand-building, long-form video story with some social media promotion tossed in. And, isn’t this the kind of integrated-advertising your agency wants be cooking up?
From 72andSunny…
Meet Lele, the Sleepover Chef*.
He just arrived in New York to share his love for pasta and show you what Neapolitan hospitality is about.
You can invite him to come cook a Neapolitan dinner at your place.
Drop a post on the Garofalo Facebook page, telling him why he should come to your home, and maybe he will.
CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE CONTEST ON FACEBOOK
Be creative, only two dinners are up for grabs.
* DISCLAIMER: You can let Lele sleep on your couch, but you don’t have to.
Attention, Interest, Decision, Action
The savvy Rebecca Armstrong, Principle and Managing Director of Portland’s ad agency North, recently wrote the following to me about her perspective on new business. About creating a holistic approach. About creating the total package. About the realization that it takes a plan. I agree.
New business for me is a very holistic package of having an excellent creative and strategic reputation, having a strong, singular and differentiating POV, having vocal advocates in your existing client base, having kick-ass PR counsel, growing a culture of new business in the organization, chasing culturally-aligned clients yadda yadda. And then there’s the pitch, which is an art in itself.
It also requires…
Attention, Interest, Decision, Action
As Alec Baldwin said, “ABC. Always be closing.” Its called sales pressure. This may sound a bit intense. But, isn’t employing some form of ABC, maybe your own way of ABCing it, what it all comes down to? In the case of advertising agencies, I suggest keeping the new business machine working 24/7. Something we can do given our digital and social tools.
Full disclosure: I am not advocating a full-on old-fashioned way of doing that thing that puts fear into the hearts of advertising agencies — SALES. I am simply pointing out, by showing you one of your favorite movie scenes, that only employing passive business development efforts won’t work. You will need to find your own special sweet spot between doing nothing, building that holistic program and acting like Alec Baldwin.
So… for some of my very own ABC, think David Mamet or, in my case, Mario Puzo. Just call me. Think Corleone.
What Do Advertising People Actually Do?
What do advertising people do for a living? Finally, there is an answer. They curate, design apps, they work on spaces, change graphics, network, freelance, they interdicinplanary, make stock, go viral, drink bottled water, make platforms for Syria, are sustainable, white board…
Check out “Concept Space”, a video that explains it all from the YouTube comedy channel Slackatory.
The Sweet “Why’s” of Online Video
According to eMarketer, advertisers are using online video for awareness and branding. No surprise there. This is how “commercials” have been used for years.
Read on…
So, What Are The Sweet Why’s?
- The use of online brand video as “old-fashioned” TV commercials is why agencies that know how to write and produce TV commercials have a leg up on the young digital upstarts.
- The use of online brand video is why young upstart agencies need to begin to act like old-fashioned TV advertisers. I often hear newish digital agencies ask, “how do I do TV advertising?”
What goes around goes around.
OK, one more thing. Remember when the digital guys said that interruption advertising was dead. Well, guess what, it ain’t. Just try to watch a video on YouTube without a commercial interruption.
OK, OK. Sure things will change. And, yes the TV creative director generation will die off. But, it will be a slow death. Why? TV commercials WORK!