Can you reinvent yourself?

Nice to see the phone book trying with this Yellowbook360 direction.

Has it come to this?

A billboard advertising an app that advertises a brand.

Almost as frustrating as the voiceovers in old pharma TV spots that said, "See our ad in People Magazine."

Is your proofreader using your product?

Of course, you want everyone working on your ads to be familiar with your brand. But I wonder if someone got a bit too familiar with Jim Beam during business hours.

 

Can you do a good ad for a bad product?

Of course you can do "great creative" for something you don't believe in. But it's much better to have something authentic to say that you can get behind.


Besides being nice to look at, this ad makes me believe that it's a quality product - just in a bad category.

Who still uses payphones?

Advertisers, that's who. The only reason payphones still exist is to display ads. They’re certainly not generating any profits in quarters and dimes anymore.
But according to Duane Reade, the flu can still be found lurking on those filthy receivers.

You can see their previous work here.
And thanks to Greg for passing this ad along.

If you see an ad you’d like to share, send a pic to me at Ask A Copywriter (at) gmail (dot) com. If I post it, I’ll include a link to your site, just like I did for Greg there.

How are you getting home tonight?

Good media placement over the urinal in bar bathrooms.
The Texas Department of Transportation also has a well designed site highlighting all the ways you can get a ride home.
Plus, a real life version has been making the rounds:

Is Scottrade into wife-swapping?

Looks like his returns aren't the only thing he wants to get up.

Is Anheuser-Busch encouraging drug use?

It depends on what definition of fatty you think of first.
"Wrap your hands around a fatty." Subtle, Natural Light, very subtle.

Is your ad in the right place at the right time?

Havaianas did the sidewalk graffiti thing.

Pointing towards sunset is a nice touch, but not quite as cool in the middle of the day. But I guess at least people are sure to be wearing shoes when they see it.
Of course, some sidewalk ads make more sense than
others.

Get it?

See, you “follow” someone on twitter and “follow that cab” is common line in movies.
Well played, @continental.

Would banning your product be better than actually selling it?

Making something seem more illicit is a tried and true method of getting people to want it.

Sidewalk graffiti for LegalizeCachaca.com, a guerilla campaign declaring this new Brazilian rum’s independence from from other Brazilian rums.
(Other sidewalk ads here, here and here.)
Cachaca also had a crew of shot girls driving a truck around NYC.

How do you get women to buy more business attire?

Jones New York is running a smart campaign to inspire women to excel in their careers.

(I saw this ad in Grand Central on the last day I took the MetroNorth train home.)

Thesite has some gorgeous images shot by Annie Leibovitz in Grand Central Station.

Do you own too much stuff?

If you can’t fit everything you own into your home, you don’t need it.
The exception may be if you live in a NYC apartment.

Not that I’m one to talk. During my move, I consolidated two storage units in two different states into one in Austin.

The headline on the other side reads,
“Storing at your parents’ means having to visit.”
You can see two previous Manhattan Mini Storage campaigns here and here.

Ready for some New York leftovers?

I'm going start posting a few shots that I didn't have time to download before I left town.
After that, who knows?

On hiatus

Sorry, no posts for a week or two.
I'm driving across the country to relocate for a new gig.

In the meantime, you can follow @AskACopywriter on twitter for updates from the road.

When are you better off not advertising?

Does Shell really expect anyone to react positively about a "delivering better energy solutions" campaign after the BP disaster in the Gulf?


I actually like the copy and layout, but terrible timing.

Is your customer a moving target?

I walked past these ads for months without giving them a thought. Now that I'm a new Dad, they've been putting a smile on my face every morning.

How dirty do you like your martini?

Meet "Paul the marketing guy" at 42Below vodka.

Fun if not disgusting play on the common motif of a woman in a martini glass.

What's your bank's story?

Citi’s new campaign features product focused ads and a site called stories.citi.com.
Or as they put it on their corporate site, “Citi has launched a new advertising campaign based around the theme of stories, positioning the brand as an enabler of positive human experiences.”

Could the easy answer be the right one?

Obvious, but it works.

And despite the word "hot" in the product name, they didn't take the “controversial” route of some of their previous lines.

Is this the droid you're looking for?

I’ve always liked the “Droid Does” tagline, so it’s nice to see they’re finally out with a headline that actually makes sense.

Won't you please get ready for some football?

Some buddies talked me into season tickets to the Giants this year. But that has nothing to do with why I just felt sad when I saw this ad.

Are features or benefits more impactful?

I’ve noticed a lot of camera ads lately. Panasonic highlighting features with headlines and Olympus doing so with a virtual demo.

But hitting emotion and versatility might be a more effective way to convince the masses.
Instead of telling me why I'll be able to take great pictures, this ad makes me feel like I don't want to miss that great shot when it comes along.

How do non-Apple people stay in touch?

I’m on my third iPhone, so when a buddy of mine (who’s in sales) recently asked me for my BBM, I thought he meant something medical.
But it actually looks pretty cool.