Ads: Old-School all the way...

is how Apple is doing it... One must admit they are the funniest ads ever, just because... they are so REAL! I mean brutally real! Vista vs Mac, hmmm... Mac vs Vista... tough one! It's the old washing powder type of marketing that does not need to say more! Point taken! 

Food for thought: Do You Read or Skim?

The so-called French intellectual, Pierre Bayard, after a heavily irritating and blunt interview at the New York Times magazine, reveals the reason why publishing companies are doing better than ever before and people read less than ever before! Skimming is the new way of reading or simply not reading according to Professor Bayard... We live in an age that strong marketing can manage to sell books with the title "How to talk about books you haven't read" and "Confessions of an Heiress" written by Paris Hilton. One would think that it'd be better to use the power of marketing for more influential purposes... like selling Al Gore's book, "An Inconvenient Truth".

Ads: Absolut gets influential...

with its latest ads that bring political, social and environmental awarness issues into play. After its Absolut "Fill-in-the-Blank" campaign that lasted over a decade, Absolut Vodka has turned a new leaf in its influential marketing strategies. With the catch phrase "In an Absolute World", the brand portrays not only funny and expected sexual connotations, but instead it focuses now on issues such as conjested traffic, pollution and global warming. After recognizing the influence of Al Gore to the world, since he was just awarded a Nobel Prize, we cannot help but wonder how many green marketing awards Absolut will win with its "ice-cubes" ad! Simply brilliant...

Tribute: The Business Woman

It is such devastating news for us to learn that Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop, has passed away earlier this month. She suffered "a brain hemorrhage, her family said" as the New York Times reported. Anita, an icon for all women, portrayed in utter perfection the roles of a businesswoman, a marketeer, an activist, a philanthropist and an innovator! From the creation of The Body Shop, a business with a mission to end animal testing and protect the environment, to her numerous campaigns on causes, such as saving the rain forests, debt relief for developing countries and anti-sexism; Anita was an inspiration to every 21st century girl out there! Ms Rodick, we salute you and shall always remember you!

Ads: Most Provocative ad 2007 award

goes to... none other than Tom Ford! And you thought that back in the day, the Gucci ads were raunchy? The marketing sense never has failed on him, one must admit... The creative mind for this campaign had to be Terry Richardson, aka ad-provocateur. The guy, responsible for bring the luxury goods to the masses, is now busy with his new venture... bring premium-uber-luxury back! His new store in Madison Avenue, a men's only haven, is re-emphasizing on tailor-made, one-of-a-kind designs for men. A concept that has never existed before... and targeted to the very few and eclectic, i.e those who can afford it! That's niche for you...

Ads: Hennessy better than Martini?

How long has it been since you last saw a TV commercial and just did not want it to end? The 90's era, when companies invested heavily on producing something ultra-extravagant and premium for the TV sets is long gone... But few connaisseurs still got what it takes to get you back hitched on the ADs game. A true connaiseur for all things luxury is LVMH and its latest ad for Henessy is definitely flaunting its taste! No question, it was voted in this week's top 5 ads in adforum, since it even rivals the status of Martini ads in all its strength points: location, music and sexuality... The mastermind agency that raised eyebrows and created this ad is Berlin Cameron United, who have a trully respectable clientele already. So, sit back, get a glass and enjoy...

Ads: Most Innovative distribution point...

has been the marketing on the baggage claim at the marco Polo di Venezia airport, in order to advertize its Casino di Venezia. The baggage claim has been redressed to look like a russian roulette... Additionally, the Casino provides free tickets to passengers and tourists to gain visits... The result? A 60% increase in the number of visits. Are bettings on what-number-will-your-suitcase-be-on-to currently played?

Walk on water? Naaaah... try better!

Try hopping on it! This new gadget for the extreme sport fanatics, AquaSkipper certainly screams unique... A fun thing to use in order to jump like a looney on the water and be this summer's attention grabber! It's patented design is made of hydrofoil wings and fiberglass spring that let you fly across the water by hopping up and down. It may be fun... it may be totally useless... but who caaaaaares??? Since, there's nothing else like it! One of the best marketing advantages in business is innovation! So, hydro-hopping it is...

How far would you go for Cartier?

You always admire when established brands turn over some of the profits to charitable causes... Like in the case of Cartier, by creating the Love Collection and donating 10% of its worldwide sales to charity organisations all around the world and even declaring June 8th, its official Love Day that is to be celebrated annually (due to this year's tremendous success), this marketing buzz has reached every point on the planet... And if you haven't noticed anything yourself, well then, you must have been sleeping... But what is trully astonishing in this love propaganda, is how a charitable cause has revamped the classic luxury brand more than celebrating the causes per se it supports. At least this case-study marketing tool generates good merits and sets a great example to all kinds of consumer-seller moguls out there...

Best Public Speaker Award...

... without a doubt goes to Al Gore! After his Inconveniently Truthful speech to raise social awareness about global warming in the Megaron in Athens last night, one can only crown him Mr. How-to-capture-an-audience 2007. You can only wonder how on earth did he manage to be once the next President of the United States and did not actually become The President of the United States. Well, if his efforts for the environmental cause follow through and people begin to be proactive... it is all worth it! After a series of opening lines and rechewed jokes, Mr. Vice President engaged the Greek crowd with his wisdom on the definition of the word "crisis" - a word originated from the Greeks of course- which in japanese is translated as danger and opportunity. He said, therefore, that "A time when the climate crisis is the most dangerous obstactle we are faced with is at the same time the greatest opportunity to fight over...". Later on, he hit the audience hard where it pains the most- the current political situation- by saying "Politcal democracy is a renewable resource". After an hour and a half of this environmentally alarmed campaign you just cannot sit back and relax... You got to buy his DVD and book, pronto! And that's how it's done...!!