You are here: Home > love it or hate it?

Archive | love it or hate it?

RSS feed for this section

So tasty: Schweddy Balls Ice Cream

By on September 7, 2011 in corporate responsibility, love it or hate it?, responsible or not?, word of mouth

Ben and Jerry’s has announced a new limited edition batch of ice cream, “Schweddy Balls.” For the uninitiated, here’s the SNL skit it’s based upon: It’s funny. Really, really funny. Surely some people will be offended, right? Of course. Some people will are offended when you say “darn,” too. I’d argue “Schweddy Balls” is responsible. [...]

Read full story • Comments { 1 }

Lumpy mail. Love it or hate it?

By on July 19, 2011 in direct marketing, environmentally responsible, love it or hate it?

You’ve received them before—an unsolicited package that has something in that you just have to open. Because of it’s lumpy nature, this form of direct marketing is called “lumpy mail.” Sometimes there’s something interesting but usually it’s just trash and trinkets. Still, it grabbed your attention and you opened the package, right? Response rates for [...]

Read full story • Comments { 2 }

El Pollo Loco adds heat to KFC challenge

By on May 11, 2009 in advertising, competition, execution responsible, love it or hate it?, social media, videos, word of mouth

One way or the other, you probably heard about KFC last week. If you didn’t see one of their ads for their new Kentucky Grilled Chicken (the largest ad blitz in KFC history) you probably heard about the Oprah catastrophy. KFC was caught off guard when a promotion for a free two-piece meal featuring its [...]

Read full story • Comments { 0 }

Rude, crude and funny ads: Love ‘em or hate ‘em?

By on February 13, 2009 in advertising, love it or hate it?, videos, word of mouth

We all love to laugh, and when we find something genuinely funny, we love to share it. But humor is subjective and what’s funny to some is offensive to others. Case in point: One of the following ads was banned, the other wasn’t. View this video on YouTube View this video on YouTube I’ll admit, [...]

Read full story • Comments { 9 }

Facebook disables BK’s Whopper Sacrifice app

By on January 15, 2009 in creativity, love it or hate it?, privacy, viral marketing, word of mouth

Facebook “helps you connect and share with the people in your life.” But as anyone that has used the service knows, sometimes those connections can become, well, tenuous. Enter Burger King, who last week saw this as not a problem, but an opportunity to help Facebook users cull the unworthy using an un-friend app at [...]

Read full story • Comments { 7 }

Comparitive advertising: Love it or hate it?

By on December 18, 2008 in competition, love it or hate it?, message responsible, videos

You’ve probably noticed there’s a lot more comparative advertising being done lately. Miller Lite v. Bud Light, Whopper v. Big Mac, Campbells v. Progresso and Dunkin’ Donuts (or McDonalds) v. Starbucks all immediately come to mind. Of course, the poster child for comparative advertising is Mac v. PC: View Mac v. PC on YouTube Is [...]

Read full story • Comments { 5 }

The JCPenney Doghouse: Love it or hate it?

By on December 11, 2008 in creativity, love it or hate it?, message responsible, socially responsible, videos, viral marketing

When I was a boy, a trip to JCPenney for school clothes was like a trip to hell. Their clothing was so—Penneys, and though I was able to persuade my parents to let me shop where the cool kids shopped when I got older, I still avoid the store today. I can’t tell you what [...]

Read full story • Comments { 4 }

Love it or hate it? “Kiss my Astra”

By on August 12, 2008 in corporate responsibility, love it or hate it?, social networking, viral marketing, word of mouth

Do you want to Kiss my Astra? I didn’t think so. But Saturn’s new campaign asks you to do just that, then share it with the world. Join Saturn’s Ning-powered ImSaturn social network, then upload a picture of you kissing a Saturn Astra and you could win one. Is “Kiss my Astra,” just a low-brow [...]

Read full story • Comments { 4 }

Love it or hate it: Jawbone viral video campaign

By on July 23, 2008 in love it or hate it?, message responsible, videos, viral marketing

Surely you are familiar with Jawbone, the makers of the excellent noise-canceling Bluetooth headsets for mobile phones. The product really is amazing. I love mine. But I don’t love their attempt at creating buzz. I’d rate the first video PG-13. View the video on YouTube Two women are sitting in a pub having a casual [...]

Read full story • Comments { 4 }

Viral video: A little mystery goes a long way

By on May 8, 2008 in advertainment, creativity, execution responsible, love it or hate it?, videos, viral marketing, word of mouth

In the last week, the above video has been viewed 444,117 times on YouTube. Question is, what is it? I did some sleuthing for you. Go to the video’s YouTube page, and you’ll find a link that takes you to a splash page: Click on the splash page and you’ll find another page with the [...]

Read full story • Comments { 0 }

Love it or hate it? Heineken’s “Share the Good”

By on April 24, 2008 in branding, love it or hate it?, videos, word of mouth

With the title “Share the Good,” Heineken’s new campaign sounds promising. But it’s not about Katrina relief, reducing the company’s carbon footprint or feeding hungry children. Nope. It’s all about the beer, and sharing your Heineken with a stranger. While the ad is visually interesting and the art direction is quite good, something isn’t quite [...]

Read full story • Comments { 9 }

Easter Bunny hogtied, candy stolen. Story at 11.

By on March 21, 2008 in creativity, love it or hate it?, word of mouth

Rest assured, I understand no bunnies were harmed during the photo shoot for this ad. This is from the following ad for Shaw’s Candies of San Francisco: + enlarge The other ads in the campaign include X-rays of teeth and a belt from folks that couldn’t resist their chocolates. Kind of makes me think of [...]

Read full story • Comments { 0 }

Love it or hate it: The Thomas Kinkade marketing machine

By on December 28, 2007 in commercialization, love it or hate it?, responsible or not?

My partner, Bill Boyd, ABC, sent me an email I thought blogworthy. Here it is: Patrick, I spent time with two brands over the holidays. One carefully guards every aspect of its interactions with the public. This company can demand (and get) premium prices. There’s never any discounting, and no products that don’t convey an [...]

Read full story • Comments { 2 }

Santa: Love him or hate him?

By on December 24, 2007 in commercialization, love it or hate it?

Do you love Santa? Or do you hate him for his role in the commercialization of Christmas? I’m torn. I’ve played Santa for our neighbors’ kids the last three years. I don’t have his beard or build, but the suit works. Their kids haven’t realized it’s me, and though I have to sneak away from [...]

Read full story • Comments { 0 }