I’m pretty glad that finally I have a productive outlet for my interest in all things digital. It should be a good challenge working for a company that has not yet really ventured into the digital sphere. Speaking of which I came across another company that has finally dipped it’s feet into digital waters – Aston Martin.

Aston has decided to draw on it’s Bond heritage to create an immersive, social, alternative reality-esque film. There is an accompanying micro-site and a “code” which if solved, gives you the chance to win prizes from luxury brands like Ozwald Boateng and Bang & Olufsen. Sounds good.

Several problems. I guess whoever made this looked at BMW’s short films and thought that was a good idea. However this lacks any of BMW’s stylistic execution, lacks any real insight (how many people on FB/Twitter would be encouraged to buy an Aston because of social media?) and if it was just a branding exercise why make a (terrible) bond-lite, when if really required they could probably put Daniel Craig in a “rapide” and let him drive around Monte Carlo a bit.

The comments on YouTube tend to agree with me, which for the brand is hugely damaging. Even worse there are basic errors like non-working links. The fact that there is a code of sorts should mean you go back and watch again and again. Technically this is a good idea only let down by sloppy execution. For me this is super frustrating. This is exactly the sort of campaigns brands should be looking to develop. When done well they create a buzz, make brands cool on many levels and encourage others to innovate and take risks. When done badly you get ignored by the masses, slaughtered by social media types and the result is less cool campaigns and more of this.

It’s nice to have a break and forget everything while the snow amazes and distracts us. The cold weather gives us an excuse to eat more before burning it off with a good snowball fight.  I don’t want to sound like Scrooge or whatever the equivalent is, but I thought there was an economic crisis right now? While the rest of the world is slowly getting back on track, the UK seems pretty happy to let a bit of snow cover up the problems.

According to The Times, the snow has cost the country £1 billion in 48 hours.  Now I’m pretty sure it snows in other countries.  Canada probably gets a bit,  yet businesses and schools seem to get on with it. Admittedly there is a lot of snow falling today, but there is no more than you’d get in Scandinavia and their public transport system does not shut down at the first sight of a snowflake.

Sure they are used to it, but this pretty much happens every year, so wouldn’t a sensible person prepare for this every year? Well yes obviously, but then I would have nothing to complain about, the media would have nothing to report and climate change doubters would not be able to say stupid things!

Snow falling does not disprove climate change. What is happening right now is called weather,  it changes a lot, which for some reason seems to have confused people in the UK who have grown accustomed to something more predictable.

p.s.

I have to say it’s pretty shameful on the part of the Labour MP’s trying to leave Gordon Brown out in the cold at a time like this…

Cinnamon Chasers – Luv Delux

4-5-1 happened. Teams got scared of losing and so in any big game someone plays 4-5-1. To be fair it is the optimal solution. There’s one striker – a Torres or a Drogba or a Carlton Cole. Then there’s the wide men, who may have been strikers previously. I know that teams have tried to resurrect the partnership. Robbie Keane didn’t work with Torres, Berba and Rooney have failed. It is a shame. There’s nothing quite like two strikers with a good understanding tearing a defense apart. Pity that it’s a dying art.

If you think about it the best teams out there are now built on great midfield partnerships. Xavi –Iniesta, Lampard – Essien, Gattuso – Pirlo. I was a big fan of the Fabregas – Flamini partnership even though Flamini was crap. No one could have predicted the impact of losing Xabi Alonso but just look where Liverpool are in the league!

Weird then that the first priority for pretty much everyone on Fifa or Pro is to sort out a good strike partnership. When building a team on Football Manager it’s all about building that outrageous, fantasy strike force – Aguero and Ronaldo have served me well. It’s ingrained in us. Pity that the next generation will probably get as excited about any midfield pairing that features Javier Mascherano…

I got to the cake store after about 30mins of what was basically skiing but then realized I had to get cash out. I joined a surprisingly large queue with people who kept leaving the machine looking bemused. I thought something was up but continued to listen Dusty Kid.  Anyway no one said anything and the queue crawled forwards. The guy in front of me had his go – he was done really quickly and had that same bemused look – My turn.

Turns out there wasn’t any cash in the machine. Couldn’t ANYONE have said this earlier rather than just looking surprised? Anyway I turned round and told the rest of the queue about this. So I started walking to the next cash machine – but the people who were behind me in the queue, and who I had kindly informed about the lack of cash, accelerated off to be in front of me in the next one!

So I’m not a happy bunny, but I didn’t say anything for once. Anyway after a long wait I eventually got my cash out and headed to the cake shop. If you’ve ever watched Curb Your Enthusiasm you know what is coming next. For people who haven’t watched it – seriously watch it. Once I got to the cake shop I noticed the woman who was directly behind me in the first cash point queue was now buying a cake. I didn’t have to turn to the fridge to see there was nothing left in there. Last cake gone, taken by woman who I had helped.  She even turned round and saw me and gave me a smile. The evil, scheming…

So anyway after walking for 30minutes in the snow, waiting in line for a broken cash machine and getting overtaken by people I had helped, I was going to return cakeless? I don’t think so.

“Excuse me, I’m not being funny but this is a joke – I let you know about the cash machine, you run off and now you’re buying the last cake?”

She looked utterly bemused – reminded me of the people in the cash point queue earlier.

Ignoring her expression I continued, “I need this cake it’s my mum’s birthday what are you buying it for?”

“It’s my sister’s birthday and I don’t understand your problem..” she still looked fairly stunned.

“Well it’s my mum’s favourite cake and I promised it to her and I let you know about the cash machine – if it wasn’t for me you would never be here!”

I then looked over at the guy behind the counter. He was Turkish and I look vaguely like I could be from that area so for some reason I thought he might side with me. “Excuse me, I just wanted to let you know that this woman who pushed in front of me after I had kindly told her the cash machine was broken, is now buying the cake that I promised my mum for her birthday and I know there’s nothing you can do about it, but I just think it is a shame that when you do something nice these days you don’t get rewarded for it and..”

“My young friend,” He interrupted, “calm down, I have about ten more cakes in the back.”

Ok so most people would feel pretty stupid at this point and I was no exception. I got my cake and so did the pusher inner who suffered no consequences whatsoever. I ended up looking like a psycho and I probably should learn to be more patient from this experience. But I know full well that I learned nothing except that next time I try to help, I should adopt a more strategic view.

Great looks, nice branding, good intuitive use of the iPhone’s accelerometer and makes ordering fun and visually exciting. I think I would have to order some wings just looking at them. The games a bit gimmicky but hey, I’d still probably play it.

This app shows some really deep audience insight. iPhone = young people. Ok so maybe that’s not so deep. But something I’ve noticed (especially at university) is that people will do almost anything to get out of calling up and placing the order, especially when it’s for a group. This app destroys the issue. I’d prefer to speak to someone personally, but I’m definitely in the minority there.

Probably more importantly, it establishes Pizza Hut as a more convenient brand.  In a market place full of much faster food or more sophisticated food, Pizza Hut sits somewhere in the middle.  This move towards convenience is a great step. It’s already generated $1million of sales in the US…

They really ought to get it out in the UK asap.

The new massive Guinness “Bring it to Life” campaign is a great example.

Take a product with pretty much nothing green about it (except maybe its Irish heritage) and make a campaign that casts it as an almost God like creator of all things that are good and green. The advert has come in for some stick but when you have to replace something as iconic as “Good Things Come to Those Who Wait” that is always going to happen.

To me it seems like a starting point for a new direction and a focus on togetherness which is becoming more and more common amongst brand messages. Concepts and words like “natural” are becoming interlinked with terms like “sustainable” and are drawing attention to the environment, climate change and the like. I think this is great, especially as this is an issue that really has lost a lot of the media spotlight due to the financial crisis.

The issue has been set back a few years because of this and even attitudes on climate change have changed in that time. MP’s on Question Time yesterday claimed they were still not sure about global warming and that people who had decided either way were on a bandwagon- which is not only quite ignorant, but a dangerously irresponsible attitude to have and to broadcast.

It’s great that brands and agencies are looking to take the initiative to really lead on this and not wait around for governments to make their mind up. Even multinationals and the great evil oil industry (shell in particular) have actually shown a huge amount of concern. Albeit maybe for the cameras. But at least the public are environmentally aware even and I can see the ball beginning to really drop now.

As the decade comes to an end, I think we are being given slightly more cause to be optimistic and I’m personally very excited to see how advertising uses its influence to inspire change in society.

This is literally the first result that came up.

That is just too scary.

To take something so cool and then strap on  ”arm chair viewing: redefined” as the concept is really almost sickeningly cheesy. But then cheesy sometimes works.

I think the only redeeming aspect of this commercial is that it makes space travel seem ridiculously achievable in a “balloon boy” sort of way.

If the world was ending tomorrow I’d give it a shot.

Toshiba have come up with this Cloverfield-esque way of promoting something which to be honest is intriguing but at the same time can’t really be anything other than a TV realistically. Do Toshiba make anything else anymore?

Anyway have to  wait till 16.11.2009 apparently…