Samosa Babble

Google, you Autocomplete me

r a j — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:07:31 +0000

Google. Big phat corporation. Still knows how to have a bit of fun sometimes.

The urban jungle is always a canvas

r a j — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:44:20 +0000

it's like snakes and fire escape ladders. But without the...I'll shut up now.

Found on Boing Boing (of course)

GAP going all crazy & shit

r a j — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:11:03 +0000

oh. my. god. where's my shotgun?

"you 86'd the rules, you do what just feels right." Wonderful, Gap breakin' out with the cool shizzle lingo with the United Benettons of Smiley Faces. I'm wondering what the agency and client were smokin' at the time they approved this. and right on through production. To think that people would actually go for this shit. Well who knows, maybe they tested it. I could be wrong. So go boys! Go girls! Go nitwits. And if the ads weren't enough to razzle you up, they've got a 'Cheer Factory' website to spread more of that cheer. Go do whateveryouwannakah. Go send a cheer card and shit.

Subara 'Crowd Rider' wankathon

r a j — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:52:39 +0000

How annoyed does one get from seeing advertising like this? A lot.

Ughhh... sorry...just got a bit distracted picking out the fluff out of my navel. Surely there could've been a better way to spend client budgets than nausea-inducing ads like this which produce itchy trigger fingers on the remote little avenue for engagement. Reminds me of that similarly dull Halifax ad. And ooh, oh, here's another wanktastic one just like it. A whole town galvanised to help prove a brand's promise. Yep, everyone wants to hear that. If there's at least some humour in it or an unexpected ending, it would be far more effectve.

Taggin' up the damn furniture

r a j — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:45:21 +0000

Or IKEA furniture to be more precise. What a novel idea. The simplest of participative ideas. Building awareness through something people already do naturally on Facebook. Tagging!

Maude, we're gonna win some furniture! Maybe even a RUG! It'll tie the room together.

Axe - so long destiny

r a j — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:37:36 +0000

Never thought I'd be posting another AXE ad here. Apart from a few gems (like Ravenstoke, Alaska) the ads have pretty much spiralled into some purile pieces of communications, considering it's a younger laddish audience. But guess it doesn't always have to be that way....every once in a while, a brand can surprise. Like with this lovely piece of storytelling.

Ads have to work hard enough as they do in the short format, but it's nice when they can pull it off with a decent bit of storytelling. And curious if there would be a rich digital component, haven't seen any. Noice work tho. I just dislike the fact that these gents have slightly better (ahem) washboard tummies than I have. Time to hit the abs machine, do some crunches, cut down the carbs. "So long, density."

Message to Snugglers: Get the feck out more

r a j — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:00:48 +0000

Love American informercials, for their comedy value of course. Subaru doesn't feel the same way. Especially about Snuggies.

And in case you missed the genius spoof on the original Snuggie, check this.

If Jeremy Clarkson was an instrument...

r a j — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:47:50 +0000

Can't believe I missed this piece of magic on the tinterweb. I love ol' Jeremy Clarkson, he can be an ass sometimes, but he does make me laugh. Highly talented personality, he really shouldn't be getting paid to have so much fun on his show. Here, through the science of user generated content, he proves he's more than just a wiseass TV personality. He's a beatbox beacon, channeling the gods of electro music bish-bash-bosh to nearly 600,000 views on YouTube and potentially a 79 pence tune on iTunes.

“The thing is, it’s a beatbox, okay? It has one job to do! One job! Pull the lever…make some music. ‘Am I a pencil? Am I a cauliflower? Am I a nuclear power station – NO, I AM the Clarkson beatbox ! Oh, heavens, I’m gonna swap some cogs around!’”

Product placements don't work. Yes, they do.

r a j — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:12:56 +0000

Product placements don't work the way they used to like in the 50s & 60s. Or even earlier. I think I read a report recently that most of the overplacement in Casino Royale didn't make much of a dent in many of the products incorporated into the story. But were they really 'incorporating' them into the story? Now here's an example of how it can work. Alec Baldwin & the 30 Rock crew open up a can of whoopass on product placement marketing for Cisco.

It's probably better placed to work in a comedy format like this, making it a bit more memorable than say some of the James Bond or Mission Improbable flicks where the products are a bit ancillary. Yeah right, they use Sony Vaios and drive Ford Mondeos. True dat. But then again, it's not necessarily impossible. A tough-to- talk-about brand like Cisco definitely wins out in this one. As does Snapple. And Verizon... And...

Just add more goats

r a j — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:04:03 +0000

I've had a curious fascination with goats for a long time. Mind out of the gutter please, not what you're thinking. Maybe. Anyway, they're just the most amusing animals. Go on, just admit you laughed when you saw Fainting Goats. I've even got an amusing ritual with a good friend, Julian W, where we ensure we sneak a mention of a goat into every single conversation. I've known him now for about 10 years. We've spoken of many goats.

Imagine my goattastic excitement when 'The Men Who Stare at Goats' hit the big screens. Now...how do you make a trailer for a goat-based movie even better. Simple. Just add more goats.