Big Orange Slide

Budweiser wins Super Bowl XLIV!

February 8, 2010 by Dave Hamilton

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 8, 2010.

THE NEWS
Budweiser wins Super Bowl XLIV.

THE DETAILS
Budweiser Canada and its agency, Grip Limited of Toronto, scored a big social media win on Super Bowl Sunday.

In a first for Canadian marketers, Budweiser created four different 15-second spots that leveraged the Bud Plane Flight Attendants, driving consumers to Facebook for a chance to win the first row of seats aboard the Bud Plane to next year’s Super Bowl XLV. The promotion ran only on game day. And the winner was announced immediately following the game.

The Bud Plane and Super Bowl activation are well-established assets for Budweiser (60+ lucky fans earned their way to South Florida for the game this year), but the social media one-day-only promotion was a first for the brand and for Grip.

“The promotion began at 12:01 am on Sunday, but the real traction came after the first spot aired,” says Adam Luck, Director, Interactive. A fact that dialed up urgency but defies conventional wisdom about seed times for contest communication.

THE RESULTS
• 30,000+ new fans of Budweiser on Facebook in one day.
• 126,000+ total fans of Budweiser on Facebook.
• Thousands of contest entrants.
• 1 very happy client.
• 1 very exhausted technical team.
• 1 very excited winner (and three of their friends).

Grip’s Superbowl XLIV activation for Budweiser enabled the brand to reclaim its title as the largest Facebook beer page in Canada.

ABOUT GRIP LIMITED
Grip Limited is a Toronto-based integrated communications company providing expertise in advertising, design and digital. Services include strategy and planning, creative development and production for traditional and non-traditional media, brand identity and package design. Grip’s coveted client roster includes: AB-InBev, Honda Canada Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim, Expedia.ca, Cadbury Adams and Johnson & Johnson. The company is privately held. For more information, visit www.bigorangeslide.com

MEDIA CONTACT
Dave Hamilton, Partner – Creative • (416) 340-7111

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The iPhad

Design
February 5, 2010 by Jacoub Bondre

How Apple’s hot new tablet misses the boat.

Unless you’ve been hiding under an iRock for the past year, you already know that Apple’s got a brand new bag. It’s called the “iPad.” It’s about the size of a small diary. And it’s supposed to be an e-reader and netbook in one, only better.

Apple touts this as its “most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device . . .”

If you watch the product launch keynote, or the promotional video on their site, you could be forgiven for believing they have just unleashed a new technology that will revolutionize the world in the same way the personal computer has.

When I first heard Apple was releasing a tablet, visions of a device similar in nature to the sleek and slim MacBook Air, except a tablet with a really nice stylus, danced in my head. Could this be the perfect computer for the creative mind?

Unfortunately, my hopes were dashed last week when Apple unveiled its tablet.

My first thought was, “Wow – ‘iPad’ – what an unfortunate name.”

My second thought was that it seemed to be an iPod Touch that doesn’t fit in your pocket. The more I learned about the device, the more that impression was confirmed.

So, is it a good product? Depends on what you’re looking for. Here’s my list of iPad hits and misses, divided into “Smarts” and “Stupids”:

Smart – Apps:
Whether the iPad is a “real” computer or not, having access to the Apple App Store is smart. I rarely buy new software for my computers. I used to think it was because I had what I needed and that was it. But after having an iPhone for quite some time I realized it was more about access. And if I had access to cheap novelty apps as a built-in mechanism on my MacBook, it would be making fart sounds 24-7.

Stupid – No multitasking
So there is Steve Jobs, sitting on a couch, talking about how fun and productive you can be using your iPad. Checking email, surfing the web . . . but not at the same time. If you want to come close to competing with netbooks, you need multitasking.

Stupid – No full-featured web browser
Mr. Jobs (which seems like an appropriate name right now) also claimed that it was the best web browsing experience, period. Really?! No third-party plug-in support. No Unity. No Flash. Nothing? 33% of web content is Flash. I’d hardly call not being able to access 33% of the web “the best experience.” Not to mention the lack of support for Hulu (Flash Player). When I was living in The Big Apple (see what I did there?), all my TV viewing was done during lunch watching Hulu, along with millions of other Americans. No Flash = no Hulu = :-(

Smart – iBooks
This goes back to my comment about accessibility to product. The iBook store will make finding and buying books easier than ever. And when something is easy to do, humans will tend to do it. Even when we shouldn’t.

Smart – Same hardware as iPhone
By using the same processor and other hardware elements that the iPhone and iPod Touch use, Apple was able to keep costs on the product low. Given that the product is larger in dimension, Apple was also able to cram in a bigger battery to power low-demand hardware. This translates into impressive battery life. But still not as good as the Kindle.

Stupid – Same hardware as iPhone
Really?! Here is the most anticipated product launch since the iPhone. A product that your customers want as a Notebook/Netbook alternative. And you give it a phone’s CPU? You can’t run anything of substance on it! It is just not powerful enough. It feels like Steve has created something for himself here, not considering the needs and wants of his customers.

Smart – iTunes for movies and TV
The biggest barrier that I have had to buying TV shows and movies from iTunes has been not having a comfortable venue to watch said shows. And I’ll be damned if I buy yet another piece of electronics and attach it to my TV (AppleTV, hello?). Having access to iTunes, a comfortable chair, and an iPad is an intriguing prospect.

Smart – Its screen
Having a big, bright colourful screen will be a bonus to many people. That screen will make movie buying and watching worthwhile.

Stupid – Its screen
If one of the reasons Apple wants you to buy an iPad is to read books, then they should have used a screen technology that is easier on the eyes. The Kindle and Sony Reader’s ePaper screens reflect light similar to paper, so they reduce eye strain.

Stupid – Not a real computer/no stylus or pen
The iPad is not a real computer. What I mean by that is that it is not a full-service operating system. It doesn’t have a full-powered CPU, with proper inputs and outputs (USB). People were looking for a real computer. People were looking for a lightweight Apple alternative to a netbook. What they got was literally an oversized iPhone – except it doesn’t fit in your pocket, and you can’t make a phone call with it. It doesn’t even have a stylus or handwriting recognition. What good is a tablet you can’t write or draw on? The only benefit you get from this device being a tablet is that it is nice to hold.

Stupid – Its name
The “iPad” . . . Really?! What about this device is pad like? Is it like a landing pad? A pad of paper? A feminine hygiene pad? There is nothing pad-like about this product. Or is there? On top of all this, people in Massachusetts are wondering how to differentiate talking about their iPod and their iPad. (Accent joke!)

Stupid – It’s not positioned well against anything
I struggle to try to figure out what the iPad is great for. What is it positioned against? Is it a reader with added features? Well if you were going to buy a digital reader, you would likely want something that is pleasurable to read. The iPad’s bright LED screen can and will cause eye-strain. Let’s look at the iPad versus the Kindle.

iPad has video.
iPad has colour.
Kindle is easier on the eyes for reading.
Kindle is smaller and more portable.
Kindle is cheaper.

For an e-reader, advantage: Kindle.

If you are in the market for a sub-$500 Notebook or netbook, you are likely going to want something that is powerful enough to run the applications you need, and perform the functions you want it to. You would likely want something you can plug external devices into like a USB key, hard drive, or even your iPod. If we compare the iPad versus a netbook . . .

Netbooks are cheaper.
Netbooks are more powerful.
Netbooks have full browsers.
Netbooks can multi-task.
Netbooks have USB and external interfaces.
Netbooks are real computers.

For a sub-$500 computer, advantage: Netbook.

Conclusion
Overall, the iPad is on the wrong side of dull. It’s a product that tries to fill many roles, but fills all of them poorly. It is positioned between two high-demand products, without anything close to an advantage that would make the average person want to buy it.

Apple will likely sell thousands of iPads simply due to the brand following and “cool” factor of new technology. Over the long run, however, unless Apple positions themselves better in the market, I can see the iPad hurting their overall brand image.

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Don’t be a “Desperate Marketer”

At Large
February 4, 2010 by Dave Hamilton

I was working on a “best practices” blog post I thought might be of interest to advertisers getting ready to dip their toes into social media . . .

(Grip has had a lot of success in this channel, thanks largely to learning we’ve gleaned from our Young Adult initiatives for brands such as Kokanee, Budweiser and Bud Light.)

. . . but no sooner had I begun to hone my list of “dos and don’ts” when Colin Craig, Associate Partner, Creative (and designer of this here blog), flipped me this: How to suck at Facebook.

Cartoonist Matthew Inman of The Oatmeal describes nine social media personality fails: people who make Facebook worse for everybody. He’s spot on – and I’m not just referring to his “Desperate Marketer” example.

Each of the social media behaviours Inman lampoons offers important lessons for advertisers and marketers venturing into social media.

How do I figure? Because in this new and powerful channel, brands are no longer sponsors underwriting the cost of programming. They are fellow citizens and they’re expected to behave and conduct themselves accordingly.

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Brand like Batman

Strategy
February 3, 2010 by Ian Mackenzie

You’ve heard of Batman, right? Orphaned son of Thomas and Martha Wayne? Billionaire playboy by day? Caped crime fighter by night? World’s greatest detective? Butler named Alfred? Protégé named Robin?

That guy.

How do you know all that stuff? How do you know that the local insane asylum is Arkham? That Batman’s nemesis is a clown called Joker? That he drives a Batmobile? Lives in Gotham City? There’s a good chance you even know the name of the Police Commissioner.

There’s more. Small stuff, but just as important: Batman never uses a gun. He protects his identity to protect those he loves. His super power is discipline. And he’s motivated by a need to shield others from the senseless violence that ruined his own life.

He’s in comics, movies, TV shows, cartoons, action figures, playing cards, lunch boxes, Halloween costumes, fine art, pulp fiction and roller coasters.

Batman is a one-man, multi-billion-dollar industry. And he’s one of branding’s all-time greatest success stories.

How does he do it?

He started with a compelling story.
Batman’s tragic origin story contains a fundamental human insight: we’re all afraid of losing those closest to us. Nearly all of the great Batman stories make at least passing reference to the killing of Bruce Wayne’s parents by a common thug. That’s rich narrative terrain. And it provides a dependable platform for brand growth.

He’s surrounded by well-structured brand elements.
The core elements of the Batman universe have back-stories nearly as robust as his own. The Joker: a failed standup comedian involved in a botched robbery and driven insane by a toxic chemical dunk. Alfred: the loyal butler sworn to support the Wayne orphan any way he can. Gotham City: a crime-ridden metropolis on the edge of chaos. These are highly articulated brand elements – as important to the Batman franchise as the looping cursive typeface is to Coca-Cola’s.

He never underestimates his audience.
OK. This isn’t entirely true. There’s plenty of bad Batman out there. But more than most brands of its ilk, Batman reaches for the highest common denominator. The Batman library’s masterpieces – including Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, Alan Moore’s The Killing Joke and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight – ask much of their audience. But not too much. It’s a fine line, and at his best, Batman treads it fearlessly.

He never breaks his own rules.
Batman lives by a strict code of conduct – as do all the characters in his world. Gotham is always in danger. The Joker is always crazy. The Riddler always speaks in riddles. That consistency provides comfort for consumers. But it also provides parameters, at the edges of which big ideas are born. In other words, good Batman stories test the limits of the brand rules while simultaneously reinforcing them. When you have a strong set of rules, you empower your brand and its practitioners to play at the edges without getting lost in the wilderness.

He knows the difference between pictures and words.
This is a lesson from comics: The picture tells some of the story. The words tell some of the story. And together they are greater than the sum of their parts. It’s also an advertising fundamental. And good Batman easily stands among the ad industry’s best picture-headline work. Check out Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo’s Joker for proof.

There’s more. Much more. Much too much to get into here. Suffice to say, as marketers we’d all do well to worship at the altar of the Dark Knight.

I mention all of this not because I’ve mastered the lessons – far from it – but because Batman has. We ignore them at our brands’ peril.

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Too young for Twitter?

Digital
February 2, 2010 by Dave Hamilton

Admittedly, I’m not sure what my marketing angle is on this post. Perhaps, as a new father, I’m simply wrestling the privacy concerns this little idea might raise versus the obvious charm (and by “charm” I mean “marketability”) of receiving tweets from the fruit of one’s loins.

The Twoddler is a prototype device, developed by a team at Hasselt University in Belgium. Essentially, it interfaces a Fisher Price toy to a Twitter account, such that when the toddler performs different actions, the account is updated.

Here’s how the team describes it:

“The software captures sensor data from the activity centre and tries to select a predefined text that is related to that sensor data. We are extending the system so it becomes easier to relate certain patterns of sensor readings with a set of strings.

“For example: when Yorin plays with mommy’s picture for over three minutes, a Twitter message will be posted saying, ‘@mommy_yorin Yorin misses mommy and looks forward to playing with her this evening.’ Or when Yorin is hitting the doorbell button four times in a row, a Twitter message will be posted saying, ‘Yorin is showing off his music skills with a new tune.’ We hope to even support dynamic composition of new strings in the future.”

See this diabolical/charming little project in action.

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Best of January

Culture
February 1, 2010 by Ian Mackenzie

You hit “refresh” like a thousand times a day, and yet you still managed to miss a couple of last month’s posts? Not to worry. For your convenience, a selection of January’s best:

Grip interviews: Kevin Lynch – by Dave Hamilton
Some people are born smart, funny and handsome. Kevin Lynch might be one of them. If not, he’s doing a great job of faking it.

Social media in healthcare marketing – by Ravi Dindayal and Holly Broome
How is one of marketing’s most highly regulated branches – healthcare – supposed to navigate social media? Two Grip staffers offer this insightful 9-page report.

The digital “why?” – by Jacoub Bondre
More than traditional, interactive advertising needs to create its own value proposition for the consumer. Find out why.

Vinyl comes full circle – by David Faris
Records are back. So what’s behind the trend, and are there implications for other media? One of our most Retweeted posts to date.

Mobile flexes fundraising muscle – by Patrick Robinson
When Haiti got hit hard, fast-thinking cell phone carriers helped Canadians send cash. Robinson breaks down the numbers.

What’s Anton wearing? – by Haley Fiege
Grip’s best-dressed man endures the envy of his peers. With style.

Thanks for reading. There’s much more to come in February. And if you want more than that, you can follow Big Orange Slide on Twitter. Here.

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What’s Anton wearing?

Culture
January 29, 2010 by Haley Fiege

Anton Ratinsky is an Art Director and possibly the best dressed person here at Grip Limited. (Sorry Bob Goulart.) While the rest of us in the creative department are kicking it in flip flops and jeans, Anton routinely shows up in immaculately pressed pants and ties, perfectly chosen to match from his vast collection. (25 ties and counting!)

We documented Anton’s looks for a week and then asked some other slightly less well-healed Grip staffers to weigh in:

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Vinyl comes full circle

Essay
January 28, 2010 by David Faris

An unexpected resurgence has taken place in the music marketplace: vinyl is back. In a media landscape that’s moving overwhelmingly in an digital direction, the strong comeback of a seemingly outdated analog format is nothing less than paradigm-challenging. What’s behind the trend, and are there implications for other media? Let’s take a step back.

The traditional evolution of media has always been linear. It is driven forward by technological advance at an ever-accelerating pace.

Over the past 30 years, recorded music has been marketed in a variety of different formats: First, the analog media of vinyl and audio tape, then digital formats (CD, MiniDisc, etc.), and finally audio files (MP3).

A similar progression has taken place in home video, moving from VHS to DVD to downloadable media, while consumer recording and camera technology followed suit. And when competing formats arrive on the marketplace at the same time, it’s survival of the fittest, or perhaps “survival of the best marketed,” as the VHS vs. Betamax or DCC vs. MiniDisc wars confirmed.

As demand for physical copies of albums and films has diminished with the predominance of home computers and digital media players, it seems incredible that an antiquated medium such as the vinyl record would return to retail shelves. But stranger things have happened. It would be unthinkable, for instance, for Super 8 home movie cameras to suddenly reappear on the market, or for VHS to have a second life. But in an industry that’s seen a steady decline in sales for more than a decade, vinyl was one of the big success stories of 2009.

Rolling Stone magazine recently reported that vinyl sales jumped 37% in 2009, “an unexpected bright spot in the slumping retail music market . . . a record in the CD era” (Issue #1093, Dec. 10, 2009). Similarly, Toronto’s weekly, NOW ran a sidebar to its Jan. 14, 2010 cover story, asking the question “Is vinyl the new black?” The piece quoted an unprecedented 37% rise in vinyl sales in Canada in 2009, as well as noting that a new vinyl-pressing plant, RIP-V, had opened in Quebec – a clear indication that a significant demand for the medium exists and is expected to continue.

What is it about this medium that gives it such staying power? In truth, vinyl records never really disappeared completely, but the format did make a decisive exit from the mainstream. Audiophiles, record collectors, and music fanatics have always gravitated to the format, and it’s been kept alive in various music communities, such as dance, hip hop, punk, and jazz. The nostalgia factor certainly comes into play, as the vinyl record is a direct link to music of decades gone by. The tangible, tactile experience of listening to music on a turntable has not been carried into the iPod generation, and perhaps the proliferation of cheap USB turntables has inadvertently sparked some new interest in vinyl records.

Corus Entertainment tapped into this nostalgic link in late 2009, when it rebranded its Hamilton country station to a new “classic hits” format, naming it Vinyl 95.3 FM, with the tagline “Tune into your memories.”

And it keeps going: Vinyl racks have returned not only to your local High Fidelity-style indie music retailer, but to large chains such as HMV and Sunrise Records. Even big-box giant Best Buy is selling records – confirmation that the demand is being taken seriously on a mainstream level.

So while larger music retailers have had to diversify to hawking DVDs, video games, books, and digital music players and accessories to stay alive, it’s strange to see old fashioned albums back on display. It’s not like vinyl’s going to recapture the market in a big way . . . still its presence has been duly noted and embraced.

Besides stalwart labels such as Sundazed and Rhino Records reissuing classic albums on high-quality 180-gram wax, it has become almost compulsory for any notable new release to be pressed on vinyl. And saavy music labels have made it a win/win prospect to purchase the vinyl edition, by including a free download code so that consumers can receive a digital copy of the release to add to their MP3 player.

You can’t listen to your hot new vinyl purchase on the streetcar on your way to work, after all.

The return of the vinyl record album is also good news for the design world. Packaging has always been an important component of music releases, helping define the identity of an album and the brand identity of the band. But in the MP3 era, record covers have been reduced to thumbnail jpegs, a fact bemoaned by designers and music enthusiasts alike. Designers will no doubt savour the opportunity to work large again, and embrace a format that has in the past allowed for much innovation in type design, photography, and packaging.

Whether the dramatic upswing in vinyl sales is merely a temporary, nostalgia-driven trend, or a more long-term phenomena, it remains a landmark turn of events in the evolution of media.

Perhaps vinyl records simply offer something that can’t be duplicated in the digital domain. There is a place for them in the marketplace despite the overwhelming dominance of MP3 players. As Apple has proven over the years, it isn’t necessary to be the biggest player in the market to be a strong presence and a survivor.

So it seems there is indeed a place in the market for both apples and oranges. Make that apples and round black discs.

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Please Retweet

Culture
January 27, 2010 by Ian Mackenzie

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Mobile flexes fundraising muscle

Design
January 26, 2010 by Patrick Robinson

As early as five years ago, only organizations such as World Vision and the Red Cross or governments with armies could mobilize and respond quickly to massive humanitarian crises. Today, technology connects us in ways that enable, empower and compel us to do more than lament. We can act on our intentions by giving in extraordinary ways.

Case in point: There has been an overwhelming response to the recent Haitian crisis. Largely, it has been achieved by harnessing quick, real-time applications such as Twitter, texting and Facebook. Companies large and small are all thinking creatively and quickly to set up fundraising for these platforms. People have been able to immediately share the ways that they’ve given with their friends, which has inspired (and pressured) others to respond as well.

In the hours and days immediately following the disaster, you could text “HAITI” to 45678 on your Rogers, Bell, Virgin or Telus cell phone and $5 would automatically be directed towards The Salvation Army from your monthly bill. (More details here.) Rogers has promised to donate $250,000 to relief efforts, and customers can donate $5 by texting “HELP” to shortcode 1291. You can also text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross relief for Haiti.

How much money are we talking here? The Red Cross has reported that as a result of the mass social network campaign, it received $35 million in donations in the first 48 hours after the earthquake — more than half through online contributions and at least $8 million by text.

Great results, but a word of caution: beware of jumping on the fundraising bandwagon without proper research. Many companies and non-profits may not be organized to direct the funds to the right place. There have also been a number of false fundraisers setting up collection bins on Facebook and other websites. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has even released a Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud Alert.

Personally, I like the transparency of the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund. Donors can give to the efforts, then connect with up-to-date information via email, Facebook or Twitter. Once you’ve donated, you can tell all your friends by posting links and buttons, tweeting and blogging.

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