Setting the Ad Geek Aside

Being involved in the Ypulse Youth Advisory Board has given me an opportunity to create the "Our Side of the Screen" series, where I write about youth-targeted campaigns.  Since Ypulse is aimed at marketers who talk to ages 8-24, I try to express my reactions to the campaigns from a consumer standpoint, not an ad geek.  To be honest, it's really hard.

I started writing a post about Skittles.com this morning, and I had a tougher time than ever separating my consumer self from my marketing self.  What's that quote about not seeing the forest for the leaves?  The leaves of "OMG they didn't register @skittles_com and @skittlescandy" are blocking my view of the consumer experience.  Is this giving me the information I need?  How does it affect my perception of the brand?  Will I think about it next time I'm in the Target check-out staring at the gum--and not "I wonder if their sales have been impacted by the blog buzz?" but "Mmm, I like Skittles and should buy some"?  Well, I thi--OMG look, Flickr search!

I'm not saying that my own reaction is even close to a substitute for account planning research and analysis, and I don't want to even hint that my impressions are representative of my peer group's.  Article upon article has been written about the importance of putting aside our own biases and mindsets to create campaigns based on our targets' needs, and I could give you dozens of testimonies on the merits of planning research.  But we get so caught up in taking ourselves out of the equation that it almost becomes impossible to put ourselves back in.  

Erin challenged us to expand our horizons with media and events we wouldn't normally experience.  I'm challenging us to explore these experiences with a consumer's eye once in a while.  Not your target's or your agency's, but your own.  It will keep you grounded--not to mention help your sanity.  Now I'm gonna go re-visit Skittles.com as Libby the candy fan, not a researcher or media analyst.

Mixing up My Media

Last night while trying to catch up on Google Reader I came across two posts that are completely unrelated, but when brought together in the right context, make a lot of sense. 

First up, a clever little "photo of the day" post from Whitney Hess , a UX consultant in NYC.  She quickly noted how ridiculous the "wash hands before returning to work" instructions were, but I'm now thinking we need to adapt those instructions for non-foodie related work. 

Next, Advergirl is back in the blogging mode with a killer post highlighting the ways personal media consumption can impact the work that we produce. 

Given Advergirl's ideas about mixing up the media we consume, maybe washing our hands before work is more relevant than we think.  Let me explain.

I've done a lot of things to try and explore media out of my realm, even to the point of watching the Daytona 500 with Libby (with Keystone Light, of course).  But I often fall victim to the same industry blogs, client related news feeds and the familiar podcasts. I do these things so that I will be better at my job, but how much good am I missing out on by not stepping out of my boundaries more often?  I've never been one to play it safe, but when my "catch up on the interwebs" time is cut shorter everyday, it's not always easy to venture away from the go-to blogs or news channels.  

That being said, I'm going to start washing my hands [of familiar media] before work.  Before writing new posts.  And, gasp, even before catching up on daily LOLCats.  The familiar is great, but these two posts have reminded me that even a few minutes on a website, or with a magazine or video clip that I'd never thought I'd stumble upon can have a huge impact on the way I address projects and view the world. 

So let's start now.  This week I will watch the local 10pm news, watch a prime time television show in its natural form (not iTunes), and listen to my dad's favorite talk radio station.  I know it's not going to put me inside the shoes of someone else, but it's a start and it's important to be aware of all the options.  I'm curious to know some of the things you might to do mix up your media.  Do tell!

Skip it

If you are having a tough week (cause you hurt your knee real bad, for example) this precious piece is just perfect for you. It's like zen: It will help you to channel your pent-up aggression and focus it on Mr. Keen. At the same time it will make you laugh.



I am not assuming Mr. Keen is condescending enough to read this, but in case he does (solely for research of course): Yes, I am writing that I consider your tirade unconsidered and embarassing. Nobody forces you or anybody else to do anything online. There is a lot of nonsense or things you would probably consider nonsense and even more sex on the internet. But it's out there in the real world, too. I know that this might be a shock for you, but some people actually like that kind of stuff. The internet doesn't create itself, it just reflects. And as you probably know from your own experience, there are a lot of offline-idiots.

Who do you suggest should control (i.e. censor) the web and tell users what they should know and like? Journalists? Government? Corporations? You? I highly doubt that facebook and co killed your always neutral, up-to-date, high-quality neighborhood newspaper. Maybe you wanna live in North Korea: Free from the Internet. Free from that annyoing idea of democracy, where everybody gets to participate in the way they please. And free from free market, where services and products that people actually use and like are the most successful.

Mr. Keen, if you are reading this, please don't be offended and send the forces of moral hell or legal prosecution my way. You know better, you are better, for I am just a dumb, unconsidered blogger. I don't even understand what I am writing here and neither do the readers of this blog (except you, Mr. Know-it-all, of course). Now, if I would say those sentences out loud on the radio it would be a completely different thing. But even in that case, I would advise you to make no attempts to morally convert or legally accuse me. I live outside your lawyers' and your moral's jurisdiction.

Teen Vogue's Perfect Marketing Event

After working in the media industry for a whopping five months and three days, I've learned that the magazines that offer valuable, engaging events are must-buys for advertisers. Readers love their magazines, especially women. What's better than flipping through People (or AdAge/MediaWeek if you're a loser like me) with a glass of white wine after a long day? Well, cuddling with Erin, but that's beside the point.

So I was completely thrilled with Teen Vogue's pop-up retail concept for the holiday season. They are branding a space in a New Jersey mall where nothing is for sale, but everything is being sold. From the Times article:

Instead, the store will be a place for girls to relax, try on clothes and drink smoothies — all while marketers woo them. [...]

The stores will offer free snacks, informal modeling, a perfume bar, a makeup station, charging stations for cellphones and iPods, a gift-wrapping counter and racks of clothes.

Stylists and attendants at the store will advise visitors on lipstick, shoes and outfits.

And, to the delight of retailers, they will whisk visitors to stores in the mall where they can buy the products.

I am so impressed by this concept. It will succeed because:

• Teens are already immersed in a buying environment--it's not overselling.
• Like they say in the article, girls this age are "impressionable and aspirational." A Teen Vogue professional is knowledgeable but not parental, the ideal source for advice.
• FREE SNACKS.
• It sounds like these Haute Spots will be really laid back--a chance to sit down, have coffee, reapply lip gloss, take inventory of the day's purchases, maybe an impromptu fashion show to see if my new jeans go with her new heels. There's nothing else like this. It's the closest thing you can get to re-creating your best friend's bedroom inside a mall.
• Girls who normally wouldn't pick up a Teen Vogue will be introduced to the brand.

(Of course, I'm assuming the inside of the stores will match have a modern, welcoming, coffee-shop-meets-best-friend's-bedroom atmosphere. Teen Vogue would be smart to lure some of the stylists' younger sisters or a group of interns inside the store to avoid an empty, intimidating space.)

Make sure you read the Times article for all the details. I hope this spreads to MOA in 2009!

It's Like a Pizza With Your Four Favorite Toppings, Only More Delicious

Today I discovered a tool that blends four of my loves: New York Times interactive features, Election 2008, maps, and media. The Times' all-encompassing Election Guide offers an ad spending breakdown between the two majors candidates, complete with their spot TV spending.




After geeking out with this for a good half hour, I came to a few conclusions...

--McCain has spent more nationally ($17.7 million/18%) than Obama ($12.0 million/9%). If this continues to be his strategy in the next 18 days, it's great. I just read an article about how he can't depend on swing states anymore, because polls are starting to put Obama in the lead regardless of how the last 6 undecideds vote. If he can't tip the scales in his favor on a state-by-state basis, McCain needs to campaign--and spend--more nationally. Meanwhile, Obama has a solid foundation locked up. Now his strategy is to flood the airwaves in states that are still up in the air.

--Both candidates are spending similarly in major Ohio cities, but McCain is heavying up in smaller markets like Wheeling-Steubenville ($400M McCain, $163M Obama) and Lima ($231M McCain, $87M Obama). Smart. Neutralize Obama's message as best you can in Columbus and Toledo, but don't pile additional weight on top. Voters in the biggest DMAs have to be saturated by ads at this point. Put additional funding into the smaller markets to gain your advantage.

--Obama is spending the shit out of McCain in Florida. Seriously.

--Obama has more of an all-or-nothing market strategy. He skipped states like South Dakota and California that were set in red or blue from the beginning. For states that seemed to give him an early shot, like North Dakota and Montana, or early worries, like Minnesota, he enough money to actually make an impact and kick off a strong plan before changing strategy and dropping out. McCain, on the other hand, sprinkled his spot spending from coast to coast regardless of how set in stone those votes may have been. Seems weird to me. I wonder if the reporting system is accidentally counting some national buys as spot?

--Before you think to yourself, "Poor Philadelphia. They must see a political ad at every commercial break," remember how spot pricing works. There are going to be tons more eyeballs on the ad that airs in Philly than the ad that airs in Minneapolis, so the Philly placements cost more. If this map could be viewed in weekly TRPs instead of just dollars, my life would be complete.

--Check out DC spending. This isn't an effort to sway voters (DC voted almost 90% for Kerry in '04). It's a PR move to endear government employees and media to our next Commander in Chief. Obama is outspending McCain 2 to 1...who's unprepared to lead now, huh, J. Mac?!

--But don't forget, this is only TV spending, and we all know who's been ruling the interwebs this year. Internet spending probably follows TV pretty closely, except in cities with higher indices of Internet news readers.

And I'm not even getting into the ability to break down the ad spending by issues! I really need to pry myself away and get some work done this afternoon so I'll stop. But if you find me at the bar tomorrow night for a Yaybia birthday party (D, Booze, E. Lam, and I all have October birthdays!), I'll probably start gushing to you about this very map. Prepare yourself.

Back to School: Media Insight Style

One of my favorite reasons for starting Yaybia was the idea that I would get to share insightful experiences that I have with people who actually understand them. It's just not the same coming home to roommates (nursing and global studies majors) and trying to explain to them that your day consisted of battling a leanover (y'know, mini hangover) from the beers you had with clients last night while trying to avoid getting called out by Earl as you struggle with MRI data in your 8am class and then getting thrown into several new business pitches with 50 page RFPs and then trying to tell a client that a 6% CTR is actually really good even when "it's only 6%."

While I was battling a fuzzy brain and trying to sneakily eat a bagel in class this morning, we were discussing the importance that timing plays in a media plan. Earl asked us what time of the year is most popular for Target and several people in class said "back to school", including Danielle and me. Clearly, back to school isn't the biggest time for sales or promotions, it's holiday. While back to school is now a close second (that dorm gear is killer this year!), the holiday season trumps all for cash outflow and inflow. So why did so many of us immediately think "back to school"? I have a few ideas and some of these became more obvious as I thought about them throughout the day, but I think it's important to think about. I welcome your thoughts as well.

1. The age of people and their perception of the economy/related media - for many college students, back to school is the time of year that we spend the most money. Textbooks, security deposits AND rent in the same month, numerous trips to Target and Ikea, ordering pizza 4 times a week and Jimmy John's the other 3. For people this age, the holiday season isn't the most important and will not likely be for at least 5-10 more years. How does this impact retailers, advertisers, and those secret Santa drawings the day after Thanksgiving?

2. Relevance > Reality. It's back to school season. Even though holiday gear may be peeking around the corner, these people won't even notice because it's not relevant. Unless maybe the red and green M&Ms are on sale at the register, because hunger + shopping -- now that's relevant.

3. Target may not be a "typical" holiday store - For 20-somethings, Target is their go-to store. It's fun, we secretly don't mind spending $50 everytime we're there, and who doesn't love the dollar spot? We don't think of Target as a place that our moms went everyday for a week before family Christmas. They went to Kohl's and JC Penny and Best Buy, right? To these younger people, Target isn't like the Sears Santa line or Fleet Farm toy land (yes, I worked there). How will that change as 20-somethings become 29 1/2-somethings?