Archives: February 2009

Arnell Strikes Again: Orange You Glad You Hired Him Tropicana?

Posted by: David Kiley on February 27

Few people like to revel in the failure of Peter Arnell more than I do. I say that upfront. The overly precious, bloviated, and usually wrong, bespectacled design “guru,”...

Miller's One-Second Super Bowl Should Make Ad Makers Quiver

Posted by: David Kiley on February 24

Miller High Life’s one-second Super Bowl ad may have seemed like a stunt, but according to post-game analysis by AC Nielsen, it moved the sales needle just as much as...

"Oscar" Campaign for Frito's TrueNorth Snacks Taps "Yes We Can" Inspiration

Posted by: David Kiley on February 20

During the Academy Awards broadcast February 22, hold the popcorn and pass the nuts. Viewers, especially women, will be asked to be inspired by nuts. Yes, nuts. Frito-Lay, which launched...

Goodbye, Bud.Tv, and Good Riddance

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 19

Bud.TV, Anheuser-Busch's ambitious but deeply flawed video website, is officially closed. Personally, I hope A-B closed the site down not because the bleak economy and some cruel InBev overlord...

Do Americans Prefer McDonald’s or Starbucks?

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 18

Over on boss-man John Byrne’s twitter feed, there’s a link to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center about Starbucks and McDonald’s. When asked, "Just for fun: Would you...

SiriusXM Should have Filed Chapter 11

Posted by: David Kiley on February 18

Liberty Media's move to invest an aggregate $530 million in the form of loans to Sirius XM in exchange for a 40 percent equity interest in the company allows...

Lays Ad: It's Just Chips. Really!

Posted by: David Kiley on February 10

This ad from Lays is of a particular genre I have yet to find a name for. I’m open for suggestion from you readers, though. I describe the genre this...

Fast Food's Newest Combo Meal: Cold Stone and Tim Horton's

Posted by: Michael Arndt on February 06

Cold Stone Creamery boasts that it offers 11 million combinations of ice cream and mix-ins such as candies, nuts, fruit, and baked foods. Soon the premium ice-cream chain will...

Teleflora's Super Bowl Ad Got Best Online Buzz for the Buck

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 04

That's according to a quick study by social media tracker Networked Insights, which looked at the online searches and discussions about each Super Bowl advertiser in the few days before...

Two Million People Swarm Denny's for a Grand Slam Breakfast

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 03

Denny's hit, ahem, a grand slam with its Super Bowl promotion. On Sunday during its Super Bowl ad, Denny's announced that it would serve a free "Grand Slam" breakfast (eggs,...

Inane Doritos Ad Wins Super Bowl Poll. Do we smell a rat?

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 02

This morning USA Today released the results of its "Ad Meter", the yardstick advertisers use to judge their Super Bowl ads. Not all of the scores jibe with our assessment...

Monday Morning Quarterbacking: Memos To Super Bowl Advertisers 2009

Posted by: David Kiley on February 02

A few memos on the Super Bowl ads. Memo To Hyundai: If you are going to tout the fact that the Genesis won the North American Car of the Year...