TV Still Effective - If The Creative's Great

Despite the doom-and-gloom which had been cast in the way of TV as an advertising medium over the past decade or so, a growing body of evidence which suggests not only that TV advertising still works, but that it may be working better than ever.According to AdAge, analyses and studies on advertising effectiveness for years find no evidence that all of the problems TV advertising faces have done anything to render it less effective.

The Media Marketing Assessment (MMA), a unit of Synovate, stated that whilst there hasn't been a significant trend in the erosion of TV effectiveness, TV has in fact emerged as having improved it's effectiveness as an advertising medium. The MMA also has found a surprising spillover effect for TV in digital media: About a third of search queries for brands studied are driven by offline advertising, particularly TV - a higher proportion than that driven by online-display advertising. This finding was corroborated by other research highlighted by the article.

However, despite the improved effectiveness of TV since 1995, more than half of US advertisers (16 of 29) surveyed in the study still lost money by running their TV ads. Unsurprisingly, the reason attributed to successful campaigns rests solely on the quality of the creative thinking.

Via: AdAge

Jack Bauer's New Ride

It'd seem that not every single motor manufacturer had a bad 2008. According to AdWeek, Hyundai posted the US motor industry's highest year-to-year increase in January, selling 24,512 vehicles, a 14.3% improvement versus January 2008. The only other manufacturer to have increased sales was Subaru, which sold 12194 cars and trucks in January - an 8% increase.

The Korean automaker has been making headway in the US market for the past few years now, with the aim to ultimately challenge well-established German and Japanese competitors.


Hyundai's latest effort sees the brand committing to a season-long integration in Fox's hit TV show 24, taking up the slack from Ford, which until recently had enjoyed category exclusivity on the program. It has been revealed that the the Hyundai Genesis will play a pivotal role throughout the season's arc, serving as the primary vehicle for star Kiefer Sutherland's character in the show.

In addition to the product placement, the Hyundai Genesis brand is also featured on News Corp.'s MySpace and Hulu.com.

Via: AdWeek

Samsung's Solar Phone

With "green" and touch-screen phones being all the rage for the past couple of years, it wasonly a matter of time before someone combined the two.

It would seem Samsung would be the first manufacturer to spot this gap. Their new Blue Earth touchscreen phone can be powered by the sun, is partially made out of recycled water bottles and lacks the toxic substances found in many other electronics.

Incorporated in the design is a large solar panel on the back of the device which will be able to fully charge the extremely phone. The manufacturer also plans to incorporate solar cells into their entire product line in the future.

The Blue Earth was showcased at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on February 16th.

Via: PSFK

Roads As Powerstations

An environmentally friendly road that generates its own energy that can be converted into electricity may sound odd - although now entirely possible, thanks to some smart thinking by Haim Abromovich, a scientist from the Israeli Institute of Technology.

The feat has been made possible by placing piezoelectric crystals under the tar that converts vibrations from passing vehicles into energy. The faster and heavier the vehicle is, the more energy the road harvests. Abromovich states that “the crystals can produce 400 kilowatts from a kilometer stretch of a four lane highway. In addition to producing energy, the technology can identify the speed, weight and distance interval of the vehicles. The data can be sent to a control centre and can be used to alert drives, police, road maintenance and emergency services.

The road was developed and marketed by Innowatt Technologies and Abromovich has been appropriately named as the ‘smart road.’

Via: Innowatt Tech

The Truth On Tanning

UK skin cancer charity has launched an interesting integrated campaign to raise awareness of the growing threat of skin cancer.Using print and outdoor ads, street leafleting, PR and digital seeding, a fake company called ComputerTan, offering people the chance to get regular top-up tans from the comfort of their office desk using "revolutionary new technology" was made aware to millions of consumers. The campaign was also supported by a 20 sec informercial that ran on the London Underground digital advertising network of 75 cross track screens at 11 stations over a period of two weeks.

The fake ComputerTan.com site allows people to switch on what they expect to be a free tanning session but once the screen has converted to an array of UV bulbs users are confronted with shocking images and facts about skin cancer as well as a link to Skcin's website for more information.

According to BrandRepublic, the site attracted 30000 hits in the first 24 hours.

Via: BrandRepublic

The Next Advertising Hotshop: Saturday Night Live?

In a move that some ardent viewers considered shocking, cast and crew from "Saturday Night Live" recently crafted three ads for Pepsi that mentions and showcases cans and logos of Pepsi Cola a into three different executions of "MacGruber," a long-running spoof of the old "MacGyver" TV series.


The ads looked just like "SNL" skits but ran during commercial breaks on the Jan. 31 edition of the show. One of the ads also appeared during the recent Super Bowl. AdAge also reports that Pepsi's ad agency, Omnicom Group's TBWA/Chiat/Day, had little if any involvement in the commercials.

"We definitely feel like it's not a one-off," said Pepsi-Cola North America spokeswoman Nicole Bradley, who suggested Pepsi would be interested in working with both "Saturday Night Live" and other TV programs in the future. "It's a very determined step to connect with consumers in a new, contemporary way."

By using a well-established entertainment portfolio in unique ways, brands can certainly get their messaging across in fresh and innovative ways.

Via: AdAge

Revamped Citroen DS For The New Millenium

According to reports, French auto-manufacturer is set to release a new range of cars inspired by the iconic DS model, a move it hopes will tap into the public's lust for nostalgia and ultimately boost ailing automotive sales.

Citroen will also reveal a revamped version of its chevron logo in Paris in conjunction with the launch of the new DS

In line with the rest of the automotive industry, the car manufacturer is suffering from falling demand worldwide but it hopes that its new DS series will help reverse this trend. The new range will be aimed at the more affluent end of the car market and the DS initials will now stand for "Distinctive Series".

Citroen built almost 1.46 million DS cars between 1955 and 1975, impressing consumers with its technological advancements such as pneumatic suspension and power steering.

Via: Asia One Motoring

Ashton Kutcher Series: Exclusively on Facebook

Katalyst Media, the production firm led by Ashton Kutcher, has entered into a partnership with leading social networking apps developer Slide Inc. to launch a Web series on Facebook. The venture marks one of the first examples of original and professional content debuting exclusively on the social network.

The new short-form offering, KatalystHQ, is conceived as a mock reality series providing viewers with a behind-the-scenes look at the goings-on at the Katalyst offices in Los Angeles. The first episode, "Method Acting," features Kutcher preparing a bit too seriously for an upcoming movie role.

Episodes of the show, which debuted yesterday, are being distributed via Slide Inc's FunSpace app, which is used by 150 million users on Facebook.

In terms of monetisation, Slide executives said episodes of KatalystHQ would regularly contain product integration. Cheetos is featured in the first episode.

Via: Brandweek

Fashionable Netbooks

Whilst netbooks have gained increasing popularity over the past year with their user-friendliness and portability, it would seem that the latest trend has mixed the idea of power dressing with that of the cyber world.
HP computers, in collaboration with fashion house Vivienne Tam, recently took to the run way at the 2009 Fall New York Fashion Show, launching the netbook for the fashion conscious. Soon, high profile business women will be able to stay constantly connected with an item that at first glance could be mistaken for a handbag.

The campaign showcases designs from the leaders in the international fashion industry. The concept of power dressing has become high fashion; soon you can have a laptop to match every outfit.

Via: Techworld