Categories: Snap Judgments

First Ketel One TV Ad is Insulting and Lame

Posted by: David Kiley on May 22

Follow "David Kiley" on Twitter Okay, this is going to be rough. Ketel One Vodka, long known for its unique print ads (that I happen to like), has ventured into...

IT Took Recession and Looming Bankruptcy for GM To Make Right Brand Moves

Posted by: David Kiley on April 28

This is essentially a transcript of a National Public Radio commentary I recorded for Marketplace on April 27. In the parlance of corporate restructuring, GM is aiming to get “lean...

GM May Need To Think About Killing Its Brand

Posted by: David Kiley on April 01

General Motors' sales and marketing chief Mark LaNeve said today that when the company asks consumers about the GM brand these days, the results come back pretty bad. But...

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...

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...

JC Penney DogHouse Hits Right Viral Mark

Posted by: David Kiley on December 15

The JC Penney "Doghouse Video" is just the right use of viral video from a big advertiser. Created by Saatchi & Saatchi, the long-form video has just enough edge that...

The Recession Upon Us: What Are We Doing?

Posted by: David Kiley on October 14

I thought I would weigh in with a handful of things that my family has done in the last few weeks as we brace for what feels like a prolonged...

McDonald's Is Poster Brand For Credit Crunch

Posted by: David Kiley on October 01

McDonald's has become the poster brand for the credit crunch. But should it be? Both Presidential candidates have repeatedly used the example of McDonald's franchisees not being able to get...

Obama Ad Finally Draws Real Blood From McCain

Posted by: David Kiley on August 21

The Obama campaign finally put together a striking ad retort after weeks of allowing the McCain campaign to set the ad agenda and keep Obama on the defensive. McCain’s ad...

Microsoft's Turn To Seinfeld May Need Virus Protection

Posted by: David Kiley on August 21

When Jerry Seinfeld starts appearing in Microsoft Windows ads, will the fact that he always had a Mac on his desk during the iconic TV series figure into the...

Starbucks to Close 600 Stores - Will It Be Enough?

Posted by: Burth Helm on July 01

Is this the end of the old Starbucks-on-every-corner joke? It should be. It's time to stop thinking about Starbucks as a hot growth company and more like a (sorry, Howard)...

Russert Coverage Ups and Downs

Posted by: David Kiley on June 16

There is no question that the passing of Meet The Press's Tim Russert on Friday leaves a void in Sunday mornings. But it seemed a tad insensitive for www.politico.com's...

Newsweek Has Coffee With Rance Crain---Slurp

Posted by: David Kiley on May 01

As i flew back from New York to Michigan, I was lamenting the slimness of Newsweek. For such good reporting, where have all the ads gone? And then I came...

Absolut Nonsense

Posted by: David Kiley on April 07

Vin & Spirits, the owner of Absolut Vodka until the approvals of Pernod Ricard’s acquisition of the brand go through, yanked an ad in Mexico that stirred up trouble...

Mark Penn's Cynical "Microtrend" View Under The Microscope In Clinton's Fading Campaign

Posted by: David Kiley on February 22

As I have been examining the commercials and stump rhetoric of Senator Hillary Clinton, I keep wondering why the once presumptive Democratic nominee’s message has come across as so cynical....

When It Comes To Service, Definitely Think Local

Posted by: David Kiley on January 02

A week amidst the holidays turned out to be a week of consumer hell, and a reinforcement of why we should do all we can to patronize local businesses in...

For BMW, Volvo Was A Brand Too Far

Posted by: David Kiley on September 27

BMW AG chairman Dr. Norbert Reithofer laid out an extensive plan for expanding and growing BMW’s business. One of the principal aspects of the plan is to create a...

McDonald's "Premium" Coffee

Posted by: Burth Helm on August 23

I had a longer walk than usual to work this morning, and I picked up a cup of McDonald's "premium" coffee on the way. McD's has been advertising it heavily...

Most Cause Marketing Is Wallpaper

Posted by: David Kiley on July 17

The recently released 2007 Cone Cause Evolution Survey, finds that fully two-thirds of Americans consider a company's business practices when deciding what to buy. It also found that 87% of...

CMO Study Not Fair To Pro Marketers

Posted by: David Kiley on July 10

As reported in Advertising Age, a study to be published in the Journal of Marketing will report that over a five-year period chief marketing officers don't have any effect on...

Kaiser Study On Parental Computer Monitoring Shows Little

Posted by: David Kiley on June 21

A new survey of over 1,000 parents by the Kaiser Family Foundation seems, on its surface, to indicate that parents are gaining more control over what their kids see...

A Perfect Ending for The Sopranos

Posted by: David Kiley on June 12

The New York Post headline today: Sopranos Fans Out For Blood. It seems a lot of Sopranos fans are irked by the final episode of the landmark TV series. Producer/Creator...

Failure of Accord Hybrid is a Marketing Fiasco

Posted by: David Kiley on June 05

The cancellation of the Honda Accord hybrid by the Japanese automaker announced this week should be recorded as one of the most spectacular marketing failures of the last five...

Advertisers Must Keep Driving The New National Conversation...If There Really Is One That Is.

Posted by: David Kiley on April 16

In the end, the marketplace of ideas won out to silence Don Imus, at least for now. Though there were politicians, journalists, activists, radio industry executives and other talk-show...

Bud.Tv: So Lame I'm Angry.

Posted by: Burth Helm on February 12

I’ve only watched three sketches and a movie trailer so far on Budweiser's much anticipated and ambitious Bud.TV, a video and entertainment site that the brewer is expected to spend...