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Posts Tagged ‘funny’

Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", Bill Love, branding, Christmas, Christmas Music, expectations, funny, Music, rant
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment 12/10/2010

Let me get the disclaimers out of the way upfront. Crying child

(1) I am an unapologetic traditionalist when it comes to Christmas. Don’t move my Christmas cheese.

(2) The opinions about to be expressed are mine and even though they are rich in undeniable truth, I fully recognize that no matter how wrong you may be, you may not agree with them. Please try to get over it.

(3) If I come off as old and grouchy, it’s because I’m old and grouchy.

Every year at this time, when Christmas music begins filling the airwaves, I begin compiling in my mind a list of Christmas albums that should never have been made. There certainly is no shortage of Christmas music out there and if you listen to enough of it, you will eventually hear songs that you will consider a waste of time and resources. The body of Christmas music was probably fully realized years ago and anything recorded after that is simply redundant and adds no value to the body of work. And unless the music brings something totally new to the arena, I have to wonder why, other than a holiday money-grab, these recordings were ever made in the first place.

Just because you have access to a recording studio and you think you could sell a few Christmas albums to a tiny group of diehard fans, doesn’t mean you should try to find 10 or 12 holiday songs to fill a CD and promote it as if it were something new. It will more than likely end up on someone’s list of Christmas music that never should have been made.

For instance, anything recorded for Christmas by the Ronettes or any other studio girl-band from the 50’s and 60’s. Or anything “holidays” by James Brown. Or Bruce Springsteen, for that matter. He sounds disturbingly upset at the prospect of “Santa Claus Coming To Town!” My teeth itch anytime I hear Eartha Kitt purring, “Santa Baby” and Madonna’s more recent re-recording of that effort just proves my point that it’s possible to waste electricity and vinyl on such ridiculous songs. (Personally, I prefer Miss Piggy’s version to either one of the aforementioned.)

Chuck Berry singing, “run, run Rudolph”?… really?

If I hear Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” many more times, I may swear off of rock AND Christmas trees. I swore off of Brenda Lee years ago. I’m a huge Beach Boys fans, but… a Christmas collection? Painful! Even the sainted Paul McCartney has done some really bad Christmas songs and he’s man enough to admit it.

“Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer”, in my opinion, didn’t happen soon enough or permanently enough. And how about those incredibly talented dog impersonators barking out, “Jingle Bells”? If that ain’t a crowd pleaser! And Jose Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad” doesn’t even make a good musical background for a taco commercial, let alone adding something meaningful to the body of Christmas music.

But nothing even comes close to last year’s release of the barely anticipated Bob Dylan Christmas album. I’m a huge Bob Dylan fan, but… this one leaves me practically speechless. I’m not exaggerating when I confess that blood was spurting from my ears the entire time I listened to this collection. It was a cross between hilarious and homicidal, neither of which, I’m sure, was the intention. Listen to it at your own risk!

After listening to me rant on this subject earlier this month, my wife put the whole thing in perspective for me. She pointed out that if I had 30 days of air time that I had to fill with Christmas music for 24 hours a day, I’d end up scraping the bottom of the barrel, too. Probably so.

But let me conclude by saying to recording artists and music executives everywhere that before being tempted to add to the growing list of worthless, awful, wasteful, tasteless, irritating, redundant, ear ache-inducing Christmas music, consider this:

Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

What Christmas music do you consider a waste of time, talent and natural resources?

- Bill Love

Becoming “You-ier”

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", ad agency, Adam Jensen, advertising agency, advice, brand, branding, creative, funny, Inspiration
Posted in Advertising | No Comments 12/07/2010

I like to think of myself as many things. Irresistibly good-looking. Surprisingly nimble for my size. Pee-your-pants hilarious. All of these sound great to me - but if I can’t back them up, then they don’t mean much to anyone else. I want to be the best version of myself. I like “me,” I just always strive to be a better me. I want to be “me-ier.”

Have you ever thought of your organization as a person? Your business may look good and seem to have itself together from the outside. But inside there is something missing. Consider yourself “the brain” of your organization – you control the body’s movement and thoughts, however without the body you aren’t going very far. More specifically, above all else, your body needs a heart. Every body part including the brain, depends on the heart to drive them. Without that heart, the organization is not the best version of itself. It’s languishing instead of flourishing. How do you change that? It simply takes reflection on the heart of your organization – your brand.

Organizations face many challenges in becoming the best version of themselves. Maybe their service doesn’t quite lineup with what consumers expect. Maybe it’s internal and employees “just do their job” to get by. Perhaps the economy has hit hard and there are tough choices to be made. Much like an individual who is trying to achieve growth, an organization needs to face those obstacles head on. It needs to surround itself with good people, great support partners and implement best practices. An organization needs to back up what it promises and treat others as it would want to be treated. Yes, I just broke out the golden rule. It’s so simple, yet so true – and something easily forgotten in the competitive business realm.

Your brand is what a community feels from you, not what it sees. I believe consistently designed media, a well-told story and a great strategic marketing plan can start you on the right path to giving a great first impression with a consumer – but it’s the passion that a community feels that creates relationships and loyalty. Consumers are concerned about how they are treated and if you deliver on your promises. Isn’t that what a friend is? Isn’t that the golden rule? That passion comes from within the organization. That commitment to what your brand stands for, how you operate and the level of excellence you wish to maintain starts with the people in your organization. That’s the heart of your organization. You need a buy-in from all involved.

We’ve had some great first-hand experience being involved with organizations whose employees have a passion for what they do. They are interested in creating a brand, an experience. It’s contagious when it’s around you. It is even better to be involved in spreading it around and educating others. Telling a story and enhancing a mission is a rewarding experience for everyone involved. When your body is in tune with your heart – there is no stopping it from becoming a better version of itself. Even though an organization will change and grow, if that heart keeps beating it won’t stray from who it is. You flourish. You become the best version of you – you become “you-ier.” Isn’t that what we all strive to be?

Defining Your Area of Suckage

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", ad agency, Advertising, advertising agency, brand, branding, communication, creative, expectations, funny, good marketing, Inspiration, motivation, strategy
Posted in Public Relations | No Comments 7/15/2010

I am a big Dave Barry fan. Not so big that I follow everything he writes – in fact, I just finished my first, and his latest, book entitled “I’ll Mature When I’m Dead”. It was funny. Like, sitting in bed laughing OUTLOUD hoping not to wake the kids kind of funny.

But tucked among the sarcasm, humor and self-deprecation, Dave actually incorporates little nuggets of wisdom, whether he means to or not. Last night I came across one passage that really got me thinking (one reason I liked this book so much right now was that, for the most part, it didn’t require ANY thinking).

Dave was talking about kids’ sports these days and how parents are so involved, sometimes a little too much. He cites examples like screaming on the sidelines and convincing kids of being really great at something they actually show little ability to grasp. Of his own athletic abilities as a child he said,

“I learned, for example, that even though I was not as big, or fast, or strong, or coordinated as the other kids, if I worked really hard—if I gave 100 percent and never quit—I would still be smaller, slower, weaker and less coordinated than the other kids. In other words, I learned that even though I enjoyed playing sports, I sucked at them. And understanding that you suck at some things is useful information in life. The world would be a better place if people were fully cognizant of their areas of suckage.”

Amen. I’m known for being fairly straight-forward, and will readily admit when I’m really not very good at something – math, computers, miniature golf, and swimming for any purpose other than not drowning. And it’s funny, and sometimes incredibly frustrating, when someone tries to convince me otherwise. “Oh, I bet you’d really like mini-golf, and are probably really good at it, if you’d just try.” Ummmm, no. I’ve tried many, many times, and I a) don’t like it at all, and b) really suck at it. TRUST ME.

I started thinking about this in professional terms. How many times have I come across someone who thinks they can do everything for their business? They know what their customers like, they know how to reach and sell to them most effectively, they know how to write copy for things ranging from newsletters to ads. There’s little they don’t know, and by golly, they sure don’t suck at any of this! That’s their business!

No it’s not. Their business is to make a profit (or, in the case of non-profits, to keep the organization going and growing). They are where they are in the business because they know how to do certain things really well. There are areas where they excel, and areas where they really aren’t very good. We all have these. The best thing to do is to admit what you’re NOT good at, and find someone who is good to help you! There is nothing wrong with admitting that. In fact, I admire people who do it.

I’m not going to get specific because everyone is good at different things. I just thought I’d start the reflection process for others as Dave started it for me. What are you good at? What are your areas of suckage? Are you trying to convince others that you’re really good at something you’re not? Why?

Andrea James
President

Fart Bubbles & Other Nefarious Myths

Tags: Advertising, Circut City, communication, funny, Jack Daniels, marketing, Max Factor, myths, Pontiac, silly, the 4 p's of marketing
Posted in Interactive, Media | 1 Comment 4/07/2010

Oh, for the love of the gullible 10-year olds of the world. OR… what an IDIOT I must have been? My uncle Teddy said with such conviction, “If you swallow your gum, you’ll fart a bubble.”

So, for the last 32 years, I’ve actually been swallowing my bubble gum in the hopes that I would prove my uncle his hypothesis true. You CAN fart a bubble!

Well, only part of that is true. I stopped chewing bubble gum quite a while ago – shortly after offending my soon-to-be ex girlfriend and her entire sorority pledge class at a football game in 1992. I actually stopped believing in the mysterious “fart bubble” about 12 minutes after that…

While it’s a humorous story and gets a HUGE giggle out of my own kids, it’s not at all the truth. So why mention it on an ad agency Web site? Because, just like the fart bubble, there are some MAJOR myths out there about advertising, and specifically ad agencies, that… well, let’s just say I’d like to “Clear the air…”

Ad Agency / Advertising Myth #1 – Advertising and marketing do the same thing.

Many people think that advertising is the same thing as marketing. Or that advertising is the same as selling. Aw, heck, they can be interchangeable for all we care…

WRONG!

Marketing encompasses all the activities it takes to move a product from inception to sales. This includes everything from market and demographic research to brand development, integration, design and packaging. Think of a discovery process using the “4 Ps of Marketing” – Product, Price, Promotion and Placement. Once this information has been tallied and compiled, THEN you start thinking about advertising.

Advertising, what I’d consider the more “cerebral” component of the team is the way we “Ad Folks” educate people about a product or service. Advertising can be used to communicate what a product is, how it fills a specific need or enhances someone’s life. Advertising covers how much something costs and where the buyer can get it. And from a branding standpoint, advertising can differentiate a product or develop an image for a specific consumer.

In most cases, it’s when these two are working together that sales happen. Good marketing can build a roadmap to get the product to the consumers, but without advertising stirring up traffic, interest and positioning the product in relation to its competition, not a single widget will be sold.

Hey, ya know what? Uncle Teddy had a great road-kill-skunk carcass-to-jerky machine built in his garage, but couldn’t sell the darn thing. I wonder why?

Speaking of skunk jerky…

Ad Agency / Advertising Myth #2 – Advertising sells you things you don’t want.

If this myth were true, then some ad executive somewhere (and my uncle Teddy) would be sitting pretty on a beach next to his or her own little airport in the Bahamas (or in a triple-wide with a cleaning lady named Trixie… pick yer’ poison). If a secret to advertising success exists, why do 80 percent of new products fail? And, why do seemingly well-established products drop from sight? Can you say, “Max Factor,” or “Circuit City,” or “Pontiac?” (And that was just in 2009!)

People have needs for products and services, but they have choices on how those needs are filled. Their decision to buy a product or service will be based upon their belief that what you offer satisfies their need. It will also be based upon their readiness to buy.

Ad Agency / Advertising Myth #3 – Ad agencies are full of a bunch of narcissists and crooks.

Smarmy Guy When I was interviewed for my first “Ad Agency” job, I distinctly remember saying, “I just want to do good work for good people.” (Jiminy Cricket has nothing on me…). Naive? Sure, but at 22 (and just off the search for the elusive fart bubble) I took relationships pretty seriously. I knew I had the skills to add value to any creative department, but if it wasn’t for “good people,” as I put it, then what would be the point? I might as well just jump right to the “scotch-guzzling, Camel non-filter smoking male chauvinist pig” stage. Thank God I found “Good people…”

Here’s where I bite my tongue. Yes, I’ve seen some pretty frightening things done and said in the name of “Advertising.” But trust me when I say, “There isn’t an industry-wide plot out there to bilk the public out of their valuable pennies.” It’s just not true. Of the handful of agencies I’ve worked for, the value clients receive is directly equal to the quality of craftsmanship and diligence the agency puts into their work. The clients will see results when the heart of the agency is truthful and honest. And consumers will be equally rewarded when it’s time to purchase.

With that, I’ll offer one last uncle Teddy-ism…
(Said through a cloud of smoke and on the breath of Jack Daniels himself…)

“If I spit on yer’ head and tell you it’s raining, would you believe me?” Of course we would uncle Teddy. You’re a very wise man.

Uncle Teddy or not, did I address some of your questions about advertising and ad agencies? What are some other aspects to our industry that may concern you? Please leave a comment and let us know. (I promise not to bring uncle Teddy to the next meeting.)

Andrew B. Clark
Interactive Director

How To Fail Your Way To The Top

Tags: advice, Andrew B. Clark, blog, Dr. Seuss, failure, funny, Henry Ford, interacitve, marketing, Michael Jordan, Social Media Marketing, success, Walt Disney
Posted in Interactive | 2 Comments 3/04/2010

While somewhat out of the norm for my posts, I wanted to intentionally write this as my “a-little-about-me” contribution to the Love Scott & Associates blog. For those out in the “blogosphere” who know me, I’m a man of considerable self-doubt and insecurity. But early in the spring of 2006, I dropped my insecurities and started writing a blog called The Brand Chef. While at first I saw nothing of value in it but the soothing sound that a vacuum makes as it SUCKS empty air; after a month-or-so, I received my first comment.

“Nice Post, Andy…” (from… “nameless”)

So simple. So succinct in it’s depth and meaning. It inspired me. It excited me like a little schoolgirl. I was instantly addicted.

So, does that make you a success?

Yes, it does. I’d broken through the barrier. I walked up to the bull and slapped it right on the nose and lived to tell the story.

We work in the arena of public opinion. Advertisers, marketing folks, creatives of all kind deal with insecurity and criticism on a daily basis. Public opinion is ingrained into process. If your ad, your creative for a TV spot doesn’t “hit” with a specific demographic, you’re going to hear about it. And in this age of instant messaging, texts, tweets, posts, comment threads and video rants, hearing about it isn’t just confined to the corner office or trade publications. You’re going to hear (and read) about it in every platform on the planet. From digital, to print, audio and video, the dissemination of public opinion (and its control) has been relinquished to “the man on the street.” Once I realized this, I discovered one, basic principle to success in social media marketing. You can fail your way to the top.

Now, I’m not saying I’m anywhere near the top of the social media marketing game. In all actuality, I’d put myself closer to the middle (there’s my insecurity coming out again). But with patience, persistence, honesty, and a modicum of intelligence, I’ve gained ground in the social media world – enough to consult clients on the strategies behind social media marketing and using social media to extend their reach and enhance the bottom line.

As a reminder, I keep a list of these famous failures to remind me that it takes a considerable load of failure to recognize (and eventually realize) true success.

–> Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.

–> Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. Jordan once observed, “I’ve failed over and over again in my life. That is why I succeed.”
–> Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because “he lacked imagination and had no good ideas.
–> 27 publishers rejected Dr. Seuss’s first book, “To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street.”

“Take pride and recognize your failures, because success walks within their shadows.”

So, with that, I say, “Welcome to my little corner of the Love Scott & Associates blog!”

Until Next time…

Keep Cooking!
Andrew B. Clark

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