Where in the World is Tom Cruise?

He’s in Pittsburgh!

No wait, he’s in LA!!...or is it the Taj Mahal?

Well, wherever he is, he is promoting his newest film Mission Impossible.

Celebrities themselves are walking billboards and 3-D advertisements. GOOD AND BAD.

Wherever they go, the press follows.

Thousands and thousands of photographs have been taken of Tom Cruise, a few even captured by yours truly, since he has been in Pittsburgh filming his upcoming movie One Shot.

Each photo that is shared on Facebook or Twitter is a free advertisment for Tom and his superstar brand.

Who needs to pay for advertising when the public itself is spreading the news of Tom Cruise?

Far from a Tyrannosaurus Wreck

WPXI Presents: My Macy’s Holiday Parade

could be seen November 26^th from 9am-11am on the streets of Downtown Pittsburgh.

Everything went smoothly throughout the broadcast and all of the parade attendees went home with smiles and cotton candy.

Two hours of broadcast time took five months of preparation.

Incredible, I know.

For three of those months I got to experience the world of advertising and event planning for this parade through my internship at WPXI. Because of this, I was named one of the associate producers.

Exciting, I know.

Anyway, as an intern in the programming department, I was given the job of writing scripts for the broadcast of the parade. Each act of the parade had to be contacted and important information had to be gathered.

Scripts were written up for WPXI anchors David Johnson and Peggy Finnegan so they could read the copy as acts, floats, and giant balloons strolled down Fifth Avenue.

Each of these scripts seemed to be a mini-commercial or advertisement.

There were even “mandatory mentions” that had to be said during the live broadcast because of special contract agreements.

Mentions included sponsors such as the Post-Gazette, Mini of Pittsburgh, and Kennywood Park.

I will never forget the day I became an Associate Producer.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7gEaVBYjETonbjz9SL3ojLxcwvk0x8bI2k9a7WZdWv5lEdVx2CsaLwHY4yOKDS43EzjqocZh83Udfw8qLjkQS4SbLJFknKs-u_8hpzdSLOugZDr4cXglQVZKcuo_pVnGEiy9Eu1aEGtit/s320/IMG_1140.JPG

So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Good Night

Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu!

Pittsburgh was the official bat cave for several weeks this summer while Director Christopher Nolan captured shots for the newest installment of the Batman film series, The Dark Knight Rises.

While closures in the heart of Downtown Pittsburgh became common, residents and commuters alike had to plan their schedules around the BatMobile’s voyages around town.

Pittsburgh city folk endured weeks of summer snowfall, blocked intersections and highways, and low-swooping helicopters.

With all of the Batman hustle and bustle that occurred during the production, Nolan felt as though a THANK YOU was in order.

After the final cut, cast and crew quickly disappeared. Anne Hathaway and the Tumbler were no where to be seen.

But Nolan left behind his official THANK YOU, PITTSBURGH advertisement that he posted in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Nolan decided on a full one-page ad of The Dark Knight Rises poster, expressing his gratitude to the city.

THANK YOU, PITTSBURGH was printed in the middle of the batman logo

amidst crumbling city skyscrapers. Along with Nolan, the ad was signed by Produc

ers Emma Thomas and Charles Roven.

For all who endured the hectic film production schedule, this ad was a souvenir to remember all of the ROAD CLOSED signs and detours.

You're welcome Christopher Nolan.

You are welcome.

Re-Re-Re-Release

NOW AVAILABLE ON VIDEOCASSETTE

What do Aladdin, Simba, Aurora, and Snow White have in common?

They all live in the Disney Vault, located somewhere between Timbuktu and Lala Land.

Realistically, the Disney Vault is an advertising and selling scheme, and also a cute way of saying

“Buy this now, or be charged more for it later.”

Starting in 1937, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment began a policy in which Disney animated features would be put on moratorium or suspended sales for varied periods of time.

When this period of sales is over, the classics would be placed “back in the vault” until another release, scheduled years later.

This advertising tactic has been used for decades. The Disney Vault campaign emphasizes that certain animated films from the Disney Golden Age will be sold for limited amounts of time.

These pre-established windows of time allow for re-release money and the opportunity to sell to new, younger generations.

Oh, and don't believe everything you hear.

Jim Henson is not trapped in the Disney Vault.

MMMhop ba do be dop ba doo hop?

Bands making brands is a popular trend among artists, from Bob Dylan to Justin Bieber.

Perfume, board games, clothing lines: all part of developing an artist’s persona.

But what if the brand takes a wrong turn somewhere along the way?

The Hanson Brothers, a band of brothers...obviously...popular for their ’97 hit “Mmmbop” have recently announced their plan to release an Indian Pale Ale in 2012 called “MMMhop”. This beer is supposed to appeal to fans over 21 and beer lovers.

14 years after their hit, the Hanson’s fan following is made up of mostly women, all over the age of 21. Perfect timing, huh?

I am not opposed to the brothers having their own string of beer flavors, but change the name, please?

I am actually begging here.

Change.

The.

Name.

Whoever came up with this name probably thought that they were brilliant, but I just don’t see it. Why not call it “HANSON BEER” or “HANSON EST. ‘97”?

If it were my brand, I would keep it simple and the wittiness to a minimum. Being a fan of Hanson since their early days, even I admit that the beer brand name is more than slightly corny.

Hansonopoly didn’t go over too well, why would one think MMMhop would be any different?

Dear Taylor, Zac, and Isaac:

Stick to the bop and nix the hop.

Sincerely,

Me.

It's that time of year again

Every year around Christmas time when I turn on my TV, I feel like I always see the same movie playing; Miracle on 34th Street. While I know it is a holiday classical and many people watch it every year as a tradition, I can't help but think of how Macy's must really love the free advertising. Macy's and Gimbels are two very big parts of that movie and while I'm sure they don't boast about the free advertising every year, they had to have thought about it when that holiday classic was being created.

Product placement is a very common thing now a days and has been for a very long time, but it makes me wonder if Macy's involvement in Miracle on 34th Street is product placement of the 1940's. Miracle on 34th Street is played all Christmas season and since Macy's is still a powerful department store, they get free advertising all Christmas season. I do shop at Macy's and my mother did manage one at a point in her life so I'm not bashing Macy's, but more on the lines of congratulating them for being clever enough to decide to be in Miracle on 34th Street.

Moms at 42?

When my younger brother was born, my mother had just turned 40 and the doctors were surprised that at her age, she was having a child. Now, according to this ad, women can become mothers at 42 and even possibly older. I've heard of the 60 year old ladies having 'miracle babies' before, but I thought that older women having children was just a miracle.

When I saw this ad I was very surprised and interested. While the life span of Americans has been increasing over the decades, along with people getting married and such, I am surprised that a company like Nature Made would target older women having children because while there are an increased amount, it's still not that large of a demographic.

Now I'm all for waiting to have children, because we all know we don't need anymore teenage mothers, but aren't health risks for the children still an issue for older mothers? I don't know the answers or the risks really, so I guess this ad really did do it's job since I am so curious now after seeing it.

Intriguing picture, great message

When I came across this image on the internet, I didn't quite understand it at first glance. Having no real color to it, it didn't originally catch my eye. After analyzing it a little bit longer, I realized how clever of an ad it really is. A helmets job is to protect one's head and as this ad obviously shows, the Lazer helmet being advertised definitely protected the mans head from a serious accident.

While this ad is comical, the underlying story is kind of sad. This man was obviously in a very serious accident if he's in a full body cast, minus the top of his head. Terrible accidents are a rather touchy topic for a lot of people so the way they approached portraying this ad was very well done. If they would have had the man in a flat position with he eyes shut, it may have been harder to grasp the comical aspects of the ad, but the awkward positioning of the man's body was just right to make the humor and the helmet safety the focus.

http://spyrestudios.com/hilarious-print-ads/

Target's secret strategy

Have you ever noticed when you walk into Target that there is never any music playing? I never actually noticed it until my roommate mentioned it the other day. Target chooses not to play music to allow the customer to not focus on anything except what they are purchasing in the store. It's like targets secret weapon. As simple as that seems, it's actually a very complex decision that companies have to make. Music is a very large impact on one's experience.

I work at a Barnes and Noble cafe and deciding on the music to be played is ridiculously complex. Since we serve Starbucks coffee, we originally were told we had to have the 'Starbucks atmophsere' to go along with it; which meant loud, obnoxious music. Starbucks music at the required level is supposed to be actually quite distracting and annoying. At my work, we obviously decided not to follow their standards and play enjoyable music for our customers.

For as simple as music is, no music at Target kind of surprises me, but what I'm even more curious about is the fact that I never seem to have cell service in Targets either. Another one of their secret strategies? Maybe.

The media's image of family

When you type 'family' into google image search, nearly every picture is of the same thing; a mom, dad, and at least two kids and they're all white. Media and advertising has created a very specific and precise image of family. Even after all of the changes in our society and growth of minorities, the media still has a hard time portraying anything other than that 'perfect white family'.

Within the past decade, minorities have been more prominent in advertising than every before, but every image of family still tends to be that perfect white family. Toyota has actually released a statement that they are targeting minorities because they are such a large market and while that is great that companies are recognizing minorities, they still aren't being portrayed in advertising.

The main reason advertising doesn't portray mixed families is because advertising is meant to be universal and since there are still people who get uncomfortable about minorities, they choose to stick to the universally excepted. If media wanted to change the image of family, they could because media can change any topic if they really wanted to. Pretty ridiculous if you ask me, but an interesting tactic in both the media's part, as well as advertising's part.

Some extra cash from blogging?

While it isn't a relatively new idea for quality bloggers to get payment for their craft as writers, it's certainly cutting-edge for users of Wordpress.com. Their plans to partner with Federated Media will ensure that individuals who regularly update blogs with a particular niche topic, will be made through advertisements featured on their sites. The new WordAds feature will be optional and geared toward bloggers who want to earn money by allowing "high-quality" ads to appear on their blogs, the company said. Only blogs that are publicly viewed blogs with customizable domains will be allowed to join the program. But there will always be room for expansion in the future for users that are not initially selected.


No other details concerning this new idea have been released yet, but the overall concept is a good idea. I think a lot of freelance writers would benefit by making a few extra bucks that the ads can generate for their sites.

Ads Reflect the Season of Giving

It's the most wonderful time of year, especially for the advertising industry. While we are constantly reminded of great holiday deals and potential savings on gifts, we must also consider the aspect of "giving back" that is a vital message in a lot of ads. One ad in particular that reminds us that Christmas is more than just a plethora of gift giving is by the Childhope Phillipines.

This print ad depicts a stone wall etched in the shape of a crude fireplace with the outlines of stockings and hearth in white chalk. The copy reads: "Over 200,000 children are spending Christmas on the streets." Followed by this is contact information for the organization, which emphasizes helping someone in need this season.

I think the idea of the ad works because people are more inclined to give during this time of year. Not only that but the image is gripping enough to catch your attention and make a statement, without having to say much in the form of text.

For more information concerning this ad and others like it check out this site.