Hyundai gives SEAT sh#t
Volkswagen SA recently announced that they would cease sales of their SEAT vehicles in South Africa by the end of 2008. Agency Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town and its client Hyundai saw the gap and came up with this cheeky ad which appeals to former owners of the SEAT to consider purchasing a Hyundai instead.
The ad’s headline reads: “Got yourself into sh#@t?” Below this it says: “*pronounced seehât.”
Listen here: Let’s debate Vivienne Westwood
If you wanted to launch a serious debate on culture, and your name is Vivienne Westwood, you would do it using a men’s fashion magazine. Use what you’ve got. Mark admires that.
Her article, “Active resistance to Propaganda” recently published in the Summer/Autumn 08 issue of Arena Homme Plus was interesting on several counts. As an antithesis to culture Westwood names, among others, Non-Stop Distraction, saying: “The more you consume, the less you think.”
I didn’t stop consuming. That is not why we buy magazines. But her words stuck because several weeks later I went back to her article, putting aside the usual daily nonsense for a few minutes to focus on what she was saying.
Westwood argues that society will benefit by cultivating the individual as opposed to following today’s cult of the individual. Here education holds the golden key. Currently, kids don’t get to explore, to find insight interesting, or even worthy of attention. We consume ‘knowledge’ like we consume ‘culture’ – with minimal interest and with just enough effort to pass the exam.
The challenge for business is twofold. The more we get to consume, the harder it’s going to be for your brand to be noticed.
Instead of shoving more money at sport sponsorships, how about pushing some money into our hard-pressed schools for projects that actually engage minds rather than just forcing them to consume more? Your future marketing director might just benefit, and so could you. This is the essence of Mark’s message: your business is not about brands: it’s about people. No, individuals, and the long-term relationships you build with them.
[The launch editorial from Mark – the new digital business magazine about building relationships with people]
If Obama loses I’m leaving the planet
If Obama loses I’m leaving the planet – newest T-shirt from Love Jozi
Mbhazima Sam Shilowa embraces YouTube
Mbhazima Sam Shilowa has embraced the Net and YouTube to invite South Africans to join his National Convention.
JSE building To Let
Amid the deluge of bad financial news and unstable world markets a large ‘To let’ banner now hangs outside the home of the SA stock exchange. But fear not – the banner is in fact an advert for Sanlam Investment Management.
The headline that follows the ‘To Let’ sign reads, “It’s hard not to worry”.
According to the agency “this creative statement dramatises the fear and uncertainty that investors worldwide are experiencing. The ad’s resolve indicates that Sanlam Investment Management understands that human emotions move people and the financial markets. They indicate that understanding these emotions and the shifts they cause is the key to building wealth.”
The campaign was conceptualized by The Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town.
Copy Writer: Nick Gordon
Art Director: Kim McDonald
Related story: No soothing ads for SA’s banking consumers
Green Innovation Awards call for entries
Now in its second year, the Real Simple Green Innovation Awards, in association with Fleur du Cap wines, applauds home-grown green products, services and solutions, as well as entrepreneurs who are turning the eco-problems of today into green solutions of the future.
Comprising nine lifestyle categories (beauty, design, fashion, food, habitat, household, media and education, service, and inspiration) and an overall green innovation winner, entries are driven via Real Simple magazine and its website. A panel of judges will select category winners to be profiled in the April 2009 issue of Real Simple.
To download entry forms visit www.realsimple.co.za
Palin dragging down McCain – poll
The woman that propelled John McCain back into the US presidential race is now dragging him down in the critical week before election day according to a new poll by the New York Times and CBS News. The poll showed that 59% of voters felt Sarah Palin was not prepared for the job of Vice President. This is a 9% increase on a month ago. One third of those polled indicated the Vice Presifential ticket is an important issue for them.
“While a majority viewed Ms. Palin as unqualified for the vice presidency, roughly three-quarters of voters saw Mr. Obama’s running mate, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, as qualified for the job,” the paper writes. “The increase in the number of voters who said Ms. Palin was not prepared was driven almost entirely by Republicans and independents.”
Palin was viewed as unprepared for the job by about 6 in 10 men and women alike.
It seems substance is still rated after all.
Media practitioners hold breath, pass out for Top 100 listing
South African media practitioners are awaiting the announcement of Future Publishing’s list of the 100 most influential people in South African media. The company has announced the list will be published in The Annual – Advertising, Media & Marketing 2008.
Bizcommunity quotes editor Jeremy Maggs (arguably the country’s leading marketing and media journalist as per Future’s website – take that Chris Moerdyk!) that the list “was sourced and compiled by two non-media journalists who approached the project with un-blinkered objectivity”. Around 500 contenders were then presented to a panel of independent judges who argued with each other for a morning.
Future Publishing also publishes Toyota Zone and the African Hunting Directory.
“I’ve never advertised in The Annual – I went into Brands & Branding instead” commented one distraught media owner. “I’m so f*****.”
Musica relaunches brand
Fourteen years ago, The Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town created the ‘Listen with your soul’ positioning for Musica. In the meantime Musica expanded beyond their traditional core music offering to become an entertainment destination for consumers, which includes DVDs, gaming, cellular, lifestyle accessories and online entertainment.
The challenge that Jupiter Cape Town faced was to change the perception of the brand as purely a music destination to the ultimate entertainment location. This desire to escape and Musica’s offering led them to the new positioning ‘A World Awaits’. The launch campaign has been executed together with Masters & Savant.