Category Archives: Advertising

Posted on

A Missed Opportunity

Over the holiday break, this ad ran in the Oregonian at least twice. My guess is that it ran all over the country, and the people who designed it didn’t feel like customizing the ad for specific markets.   Which means they blew it.    Brooks Brothers wants their prospects to respond in one of […]

Posted on

The Anti-Cliche Movement Strikes

Each year, the folks at Lake Superior State University ask the public to submit expressions that have become cliches. And on New Year’s Day, they issue a list of those expressions that are heretofore banned. More than 2000 cliches were nominated, and they’ve been whittled down to 23 used-up words and phrases. Smart move on […]

Posted on

Cute Elevator Speeches

One of the mainstays of sales training is the “Elevator Pitch” — a 30-second summation of what we do that we’d give a prospect if we had the prospect trapped in an elevator. The idea is that when someone at a cocktail party asks what you do, you can respond with a succinct value proposition […]

Posted on

When People Complain About Your Advertising

“Most ads aren’t written to persuade, they’re written not to offend.” — Roy Williams Not long ago an ad agency pulled a home improvement commercial off the air in Portland and Seattle because several listeners had called the client to complain about it. The client was concerned that he was offending potential customers, and the […]

Posted on

Precisely-Targeted Advertising — Exhibit A

In the Men’s Room on the 300 level of the Rose Garden Arena in Portland — over a urinal — is a sign with this headline: “You’re Back Again.” The ad is for Flowmax, a pharmaceutical product for men with prostate-related urinary symptoms. Dan Kennedy calls this “message-to-market match.” If you’re Flowmax, the people you’ll […]