Muddle up the senses

Thinking on the lines of the professor’s example, I remember that some time back, a word used to bring a taste in my mouth. The word was “mud,” and the taste was of course, “muddy.” I don’t know why only mud and not others, but I believe it was due to a condition called pica in which a person feels an urge to eat mud due to the iron deficiency in his body. And I was pretty low on iron.

Or, maybe because the ‘word’ and ‘taste’ areas are lying next to each other in the brain, as per the professor, and people just muddle up their senses.

background music

I cant really say that ive experience "Synaesthesia" for sure.

After watching the TED video, it seemed to me that the concept refers specifically to the crossing of two senses, and not at experiencing one sensory feedback normally associated with another one. However, since that is as close as ive ever gotten to anything close to Synaesthesia, that is what i will have to talk about, it seems.

You know how sometimes you hear a random song somewhere, (you dont mean to pay attention to it) but somehow your unconscious picks it up and suddenly its "stuck" in your head and unconsciously you keep singing it/whistling it over and over? Well, that happens to me all the time.

The curious thing is that i started noticing that curiously songs were usually "stuck in my head" always at the same time of the day: when i have just woken up.

I started noticing that i often started whistling or humming as soon as i woke up, like first thing in the morning, as i brushed my teeth and such. I thought it was weird, since its not like there is a radio playing in the background while i am sleeping for my unconscious to pick up the songs... or is there?

I started realizing that everytime i tried to re-call a dream, there usually was a tune or part of a song connected to that memory. Turns out that whenever i am having a dream (at least the ones i can remember having next morning) there is ALWAYS a song playing, sort of like background music or something. That is why when i wake up in the morning, i usually surprise myself humming a song, because i was just "listening to it" in whatever it was i was dreaming about.

Weird hu?

My experience of synesthesia

In my undergrad period, my major is English literature and translation, so that I often paid attention to metaphorical expression which occurred in different writers' works. My graduation thesis focused on Bob Dylan's metaphor usage in his songs. Interestingly, I found different kinds of synesthesia in his numerous lyrics. I put several of them in the table below. The phenomenon demonstrates that Bob Dylan is a creative song writer and is apt at linking visual sensation with auditory and tactile sensation. Coincidently, he is also a painter. This matter of fact sort of testifies my assumption that his career as a painter and that as a musician mutually expedite each other.

As to me, I learned painting for several years and I really love music. Thus I sometimes link colors with musical tones. High pitch is vivid azure or yellow; low pitch is grey, brown or black. Sometimes I also felt my gustatory sensation activated when I'm listening to music. Heavy percussion music was bitter and violin solo was sour. I once did a photoshop work based on my own interest. I tried to define different musical instrument as different food which has different colors and tastes. I used lemon to represent violin, orange for guitar, pawpaw for piano and grapes for saxophone. My roommate, however, used completely different fruits for the four instruments. Both of our explanation makes some sense but neither of us agree with each other.

Table of Dylan's Synesthesia Usage:

Tenor:	Vehicle:	Type of Sensory Transformation:	Example:	Album:	Year:
Pain	Object that gives of sound	Tactile Perception to Auditory Perception	I lay awake and listen to the sound of pain	Together Through Life	2009
Light	Soft Object	Visual Sensation to Tactile Perception	In the soft light of morning I'll follow you with my eyes	Modern Times	2006
Pain	Spark	Tactile Perception to Visual Sensation	She looked at him and he felt a spark tingle to his bones	At Budokan	1979
Kiss	Object with color	Tactile Perception to Visual Sensation	The kings of Tyrus with their convict list, Are waiting in line for their geranium kiss	Blonde on Blonde	1966
Thunder	Bell	Auditory Perception to Tactile Perception	As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds	Another Side of Bob Dylan	1964
Chime	Light	Auditory Perception to Visual Sensation	Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing	Another Side of Bob Dylan	1964
Shadow	Part of the Sound	Visual Sensation to Auditory Perception	As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds	Another Side of Bob Dylan	1964

Synaesthesia?!

In short, no, I have never really experienced this from what I can recall, but I wonder if chose to think about associations of sight and sound, "mingling of the senses", if I might find that I actually do make these associations but just am not acutely aware of them. I am interested to hear whether others experience this.

Synaesthesia

While I have never experienced acute synaesthesia in any form (it sounds really cool!), the closest I have come is with sound-color synaesthesia. With sound-color synaesthesia, you see a certain color or image correlating with a specific sound, music key, or loud noises. I will often (ONLY if my eyes are closed) see a flash of bright light (somewhat similar to a firework) if I hear a loud noise or crash- the more metallic the sound, the more intense the image that flashes before my eyes. A number of my friends associate specific colors with specific music keys, or with specific composers; for example, D minor is purple while A major is red and C major is sky blue.

Ritual: Christmas & Coke

As many of you know Coke (specifically Diet Coke) is one of my favorite brands. The first ritual that comes to mind for me is always Christmas and going along those lines, the Coke Christmas bears are an advertisement that encompasses that warm and family nature that surrounds Christmas for me.

While it does not get at the specific religious aspects of Christmas, this series of advertisements does embody the feelings/emotions associated with Christmas for me.

Diwali...The festival of lights!!!

This is a print advertisment for a jewellery brand in India and it features an Indian woman adorned in a beautiful sari holding a plate (known as "Aarti") with clay lamps (also known as "Diyas")filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil.

Diwali is one of the largest festivals celebrated all over India. These little lamps signify the light that empowers us to commit ourselves to good deeds, that which brings us closer to divinity. During Diwali, lights illuminate every corner of India and the scent of incense sticks hangs in the air, mingled with the sounds of fire-crackers, joy, togetherness and hope. Diwali celebrations are spread over five days and one of the day is actually considered to be an auspicious day to buy gold jewellery, utensils etc.

This advertisement elicited nostalgic memories of the rituals so deeply associated with Diwali. Preparations of Diwali would start a month in advance with every corner of the corner cleaned and it included the attics as well! Shopping for new clothes, preparation of sweets and most importantly, shopping for fire crackers, clay lamps (featured in the ad). This advertisment reminds me of all those beautiful things that come with this wonderful festival iike getting up in the morning, taking part in the festivities like lighting clay lamps, sitting through the (long) Diwali puja (prayers) and finally, bursting crackers! What fun!!!:)

Halloween Candies, Costumes and Cavities (Oh! My!)

Hello All,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duqZ3E0zdmw

While trying to find a fun, nostalgic ad for rituals this week, this one stood out in my mind and literally fell into my lap as I was watching TV last night. So, as much as dressing up in costume and trick-or-treating is a ritualistic activity for All-Hallows-Eve--a celebration originally celebrated only as a late-Autumn Harvest Festival--the holiday would just not be complete without the candy! And furthermore, it would not be complete without the marketing exploits that come with it like decorating the various packaging and adding new seasonal flavours to the mix.

This ad for Kit Kat candy bars--still currently running in our market--helps to extrapolate on this ritual by depicting nearly everything that sums up a prototypical Halloween, even down to the overzealous, middle-aged woman dressed in a (cop-out) Witch's get-up.

Notice how they spend a great deal of time emphasizing the children's costumes and the repeating sound of the door-bell ringing and the door opening each time. Even the "spooky" noises help construct what Halloween means in our society.

In any case, all of this effort reveals its true motives in the last part of the ad; when the woman in the witch costume takes that all fulfilling bite of her beloved Kit Kat bar, reiterating the true (commercial) meaning of the holiday--Treats! (Brought to you by Kit-Kat)

Enjoy and I expect to see some real effort in those costumes this year, (NO WITCHES)

Rick

Coca-cola who made red Santa Claus popular

When I think about Christmas, the first image comes into my mind is the affable looking about Santa Claus as I regard it as a symbol of Christmas, which is used everywhere especially the shopping malls during Christmas seasons. And this happens in big cities in China, where people don't really celebrate Christmas, as a way to do promotion. For years, I thought his image came from religion. So I was astonished when I knew that the original version of Santa Claus was in green and purple and it was Coca-cola that made the red one also the standard one popular with the mass audience. So I can see part of the Christmas ritual was modified just by years of advertising.

Heienken advertising for Halloween

As Halloween season is coming, the ritual advertising that pop up in my mind is one that covers the spooky, exciting atmosphere belonging to this season.

I always find Heineken's advertising fascinating. In this picture, the head is drinking a bottle of Heineken with a subtle smiling. It conveys a message to audience that maybe it's a good idea to buy a dozen of Heineken for Halloween parties. This image would make a strong impression on consumer's mind and influence his buying decision. Or it could act as a reminder for loyal Heineken costumers.

Ritual ad

Hi all,

This summer, I was back home in Saudi Arabia. Since Saudi Arabia is a Muslim country, Ramadan (the month of fasting) is observed with full fervor and enthusiasm. It is interesting to note that almost all advertising near and during this month revolves around Ramadan since it is so important for the Muslims. I chose this ad because I love to see the cultural differences and the way we can see them in the ads of different countries, also I don't think I will ever see an ad like this in U.S., Here is an example of ad for Pepsi saying "Revive your Ramadan with Pepsi"

Even the design for Pepsi can is changed just for this month. Take a look at these two pictures, I took these pictures while I was back home. (My blog is not letting me place them nicely, sorry for the weird gap between images)

As required to find an ad about ritual, I tried to find some ads for traditional chinese festivals or events but I finally gave up because the copywrite on those ads are all mandarin. I would like to find some English one, so I chose Christmas.

I saw this ad a long time ago, however, at my first glance, it actually did not remind me Christmas. But it make me feel warm. I searched online and find out this is a outdoor billboard ad released in Dec 2008. It is designed by DDB in Helsinki, Finland.

Compare to most Xmas ads which only have a santa claus with a certain brand of product, this Mcdonald piece is, as explained in the right of the pic, more locolized and creative.

Ritual- Brushing Your Teeth

An advertisement that reminds me of a daily ritual is this Colgate advertisement. Colgate claims that their toothpaste is clinically proven to fight germs for 12 hours, which plays into the whole brushing your teeth twice a day ritual. This advertisement serves more as a reminder of the reasons why we perform this ritual, which is to have healthier, cleaner teeth. By including the 12 hour statistic, it reinforces the common ritual of brushing your teeth in the morning and at night.

Bedtime stories

What struck me most about this ad, was not the weird (and a bit creepy) looking costumes of the characters. It was the way AT&T tried to integrate the concept of family ritual with their "staying connected" concept.

The first time i watched this ad, i remember thinking: "That's not how it goes, its nice of the dad and all, but thats kind of cheating...Its not really the same over the phone." Why is that? I mean, he can tell a story over the phone just as well as in person right? Why does it feel different?

It feels different because its a ritual.

It is never really about the kids hearing the story, its more about the moment of bonding between parents and kids.

Further, it is a social convention: parents tell kids stories to help them fall asleep. It is even used as a social cue and narrative element in movies/TV: when they are trying to depict a character that is focusing too much in work at the cost of his/her family life, they usually use one of two things: the first is commonly not going to/forgetting recitals (or baseball games). The second one is getting home so late from work that the kids are already asleep, having missed "story time". In a way, the concept of story-time has evolved in its meaning to signify something more and used as a measure of "good parental care" of sorts.

The same way, the character in the At&T ad tries to strike an emotional chord with the working parent; because even though he is busy and traveling/working, he is a "good dad" and stays "connected" to his family back home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiAvVOOZayM

Funeral Service Company Advertising_Chan ju LEE

Not until around 2000, did most Korean funeral service companies positively advertise their products and services because they were afraid lest people would get offended, watching their advertising reminding them of death, probably the most dreadful moment for mankind. In the mean time, Boram funeral service company ventured to be a pioneer in this advertising. I specially want you to note that they placed stress on professionalism so as to make their prospective customers trust them. For example, as you can see in the above picture, they dressed their staff in uniforms in the advertising, intending to show how professionally and solemnly as well they treat their customers. By the same token, they first coined a singular title, "FD" which stands for "Funeral Director" and possess the exclusive right to use it in the field to date. Through this strategy, as a result, they have long been the top brand.

WangWang

Spring Festival is no doubt the most important festival in China. And it's a golden time for the companies to take advantage of the ritual to promote their products or services. Among all those ritual related ads, the one impresses me the most is "WangWang", which mainly produces snack such as cookies and candies. Spring Festival is the beginning of a new year, thus auspicious patterns and propitious sentences are among the tradition that people must do every year to bring themselves good luck. The brand name "WangWang", which means "prosperity", fits in the festival atmosphere quite well. Besides, the company assembles many of its products (like cookies, jellies and candies, etc) into a gift bag with festival look package and takes advantage of its auspicious name creating the slogan "Having WangWang in Spring Festival, the luck in the new year would be plentiful". This ad for the gift bag has been televised for more than ten years every year around the Spring Festival. With the auspicious meaning, snacks loved by kids and high frequency of TV ads, it already become the must gift for every family which has child. I remembered when I was a kid, I received more than ten bags of that during the festival. And now when I visit a family with child during Spring Festival, this gift bag is the first thing I would buy. It kind of becomes a new ritual gift for Spring Festival.

Ritual: Birthday Candles

No birthday is complete without a birthday cake.  And no birthday cake is complete without birthday candles.  Not only do birthday candles represent the age of the person, but they they are also an opportunity for that person to make a wish for their upcoming year.  Blowing out birthday candles has become a ritual that adults and children alike take part in.  While most adult cakes may not have the corresponding number of candles with their age, they still have an opportunity to make a wish and blow out the candles.  Having a birthday cake with candles lit has become has become an important part of celebrating one's birthday.

7 Up's -- A Promotion Ad for Chinese valentine's day

This is a 7 Up’s ad that specifically tailors to Chinese valentine's day. It reminds and reinforces the audience memory of Chinese valentine’s day by integrating the traditional ritual image (the couple is holding each other’s hands, wearing Chinese costume) with promotional messages.

I chose this ad because of its ritual representation. This ad puts the message into the traditional cultural context. People who see the ad could immediately know that the ad is to target couples who value this traditional festival. The main idea of the text is about to upload multiple things, such as the couples’ pictures, their stories, in order to win the prize: free trip to Maldives. Maldives has been perceived as a romantic place by the younger generation. Having this attractive prize within the ritual context of Chinese valentine's day makes the ad even more appeal to its target audience than simply let the prize stand out alone.

Ritual- Morning Coffee

When I think of rituals, I think of one that I (and I'm sure many of you) do first thing in the morning. I roll out of bed, go to the kitchen, and turn on my coffee machine. I stand there, waiting impatiently while my actually very fast Keurig pumps out my single cup of Gloria Jean's Butter Toffee coffee. I don't function in the morning until I've had my coffee- verbal interaction is few and far between, and I can't accomplish anything until I get that jolt of caffeine. There's a lot of us that can't get through the day without that (minimum) 1 cup of coffee. This Starbucks advertisement demonstrates that ritual (slightly altered- Glen grabs a Starbucks Double Shot) of getting your coffee to get through the morning and make your day just a little bit better. It reinforces the concept that you NEED that coffee, specifically Starbucks, to make it through the day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14qeu7JRwt0

Bibimbap

As Effie said, I think making food/eating food is a very important ritual. When we think about a certain food, we naturally think about the steps of making it/eating it. Not only special rituals such as wedding, birthdays, or funeral, but also these food rituals comprise most of our life practices.

The 'Bibimbap Advertisement' that I'm introducing here is the ad that was made in order to spread Korean traditional dish to foreigners. This ad actually was aired on display in Time Square, NYC, in last December, with the aim of exposing the ad 49 times a day. Bibimbap (which literally means 'rice mixed with other ingredients') is very healthy food made of rice, vegetables, egg, and meat together. I chose this advertisement because this ad describes the ritual of making bibimbap amazingly well with the performance, 'Nanta', a modern version of Korean traditional rituals for important ceremonies. The idea of combining food ritual and traditional ceremony rituals is terrific in this ad.

Another fact about this ad that attracts me, which might be a bit irrelevant from this ritual topic, is that this ad was not created only by ad professionals. It was made as a program of a Korean TV show, 'Endless Challenges'. In this TV show, 7 Korean stars always get mission. Their mission this time was to create an ad that can give wider publicity of this Bibimbap to oversears. The 7 cookers who are chopping the food in the ad are those 7 stars.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=bT236z363NM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nP7heWCDFwM

Football and Tailgating...an American Ritual!

Well it's Saturday afternoon and that means college football. One of the most common rituals associated with American football is tailgating. Millions of people each year pull up their vehicles, open up the back "tailgate" to reveal a buffet of food and beverages to enjoy prior to the game. Some set up tents, have chairs, even set up the flat screen tv. Tailgating has in some cases replaced actually getting into the stadium to watch the game. People are content enjoying the company of friends and family without having to purchase the (in some cases) expensive tickets to watch the game first hand.

Grills, hotdogs, burgers, steaks, chips, beer, soda, and all around fun is what comes to my mind. This can be a lucrative industry for those companies who have products associated with tailgating. Everything from dip to charcoal to the vehicles you tailgate from have taken advantage of this unique American ritual. The two pictures show Omaha Steaks, as well as Hershey's, Kraft marshmellows, and Honey Maid graham crackers capitalizing on this opportunity.

Another example is seen at the below link: It shows sportscaster Mike Golic as a spokesman for the ritual of tailgating, with Kingsford charcoal as an obvious sponsor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tf24GOLqIJ0

A good example of advertisements demonstrating and reinforcing rituals I can think of is the ad launched by China Mobile during the Chinese Spring Festival period.

Spring Festival is the most important ritual in China which represents the start of a brand new year. It is also the time for family reunions to share new year resolutions and new year blessings. So at that day, no matter how far you are away from home, you need to get back home before midnight or call back home to celebrate the coming year with all the family members.

This ritual of Spring Festival is neatly referred by China Mobile's ad. The ad is themed of full bars of signal as well as blessings. Choosing China Mobile (mobile phone service provider) enables you to send the first blessings to your family. This key message captures the common emotion needs of most people. It especially resonates with those people who are working or studying far away from home, like me. Because of the long distance, cell phone signal makes a big difference. And due to the heavy traffic of signals during Spring Festival, it is even harder to make phone calls home. So this ad successfully made the feature of strong signal attention-catching and memorable by demonstrating the great value audiences attach to the Spring Festival. In return, the ad also reinforce the importance of this special ritual among audiences.

Ritual

“I declare you man & wife. You may now kiss the bride.” These are the words which came to my mind as I saw at this ad for the first time.

The holy tradition. The ritual of marriage. The man in black & the lady in white.

But something is contradictory here.

A priest and a nun.

Benetton has ever & again produced ads depicting something together, which otherwise is considered taboo. Its campaigns show various colors from across the world. They show black & brown alongside white, light alongside dark- people from all ethnicities intermingling, oblivious of their cultural differences. Apart from carrying this theme in its clothing ads, it also chooses to take into its hands the matters of social concern, and advertises to raise awareness for the social causes & human rights like AIDS, domestic violence etc.

I chose this ad as I consider this advertising technique a very powerful one. They are clearly disputable, but clever at the same time. They bear negative tones but carry an appeal. Specifically, they serve a very critical purpose. They constantly add to the positioning statement of the brand. They reinstate unity in diversity and reinforce that Benetton is a brand which stands for the united colors of the world.

De Beers' commercial and marriage

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fH9bHq9Cvsc

“They say no marriage is made in heaven,

But ours is made somewhere very nearby.

So for this, our tenth anniversary,

I will give you something really special,

I will mark this anniversary with diamonds,

And show you I’ve married you all over again.”

After reading the “Something Old, Something New: Exploring the Interaction Between Ritual and Advertising”, I watched several De Beers’ commercials and had a taste of their elegance and romance.

Some key elements always exist in almost all De Beers’ commercials. A handsome man and a beautiful woman should be the protagonists. The inspiring and romantic Palladio composed by Karl Jenkins always implies that love and marriage is a mauve battle with loyalty, freedom and glory. Metaphorical shadows of man and woman, of their arms, their hands, their profiles of faces and kisses are unique ways for De Beers to express the secrecy and simplicity of love. Finally of course, diamond, always shining glamorously, is always a thread linking all plots.

Marriage is the ritual that De Beers’ in the commercial above want to show. The aside above demonstrates the influence of the product, diamond on the ritual, marriage. Firstly, diamond sublimates the marriage (They say no marriage is made in heaven, but ours is made somewhere very nearby.) Secondly, diamond makes the marriage special (I will give you something really special, I will mark this anniversary with diamonds). Thirdly, diamond initiates a new start for the marriage (And show you I’ve married you all over again), which implies the eternity of love. The above three intended influences respectively reflect three properties of diamond. First, the everlasting purity and luster of diamond is used as a metaphor for sublimation. Second, the rarity of diamond and its easily-personalized nature is used as a representative for specialness. Third, the durable quality of diamond represents the eternity of love; the comparison between and union of perpetuity and beauty of the diamond implies the comparison between and union of the everlasting love and passionate love.

The ritual here in the ad is reinforced and redefined by the product. The image of diamond reinforces the linkage between itself and the marriage through the above three processes. Diamond also modifies marriage through stressing its tie with the 10^th anniversary. It actively created sub-rituals in order to change the whole format of the original ritual.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sluHJGcxek

Palladio by Karl Jenkins

Ritual example. Effie

We are engaged in all kinds of rituals and successful advertising can penetrate into people's daily life as the products are meant to be there as an integrated part of consumers' themselves. Oreo is the example that reminds me of such strategy.

I first noticed oreo when it put its advertisement showing a new way to eat cookies-putting oreos into milk. As different ads from oreo continue to enhance this idea, it's creating a culture and setting a ritual routine. for its customers, making oreo outstanding from all the other cookies that haven't got a "meaning" in them.

Following the huge success, Oreo begin to launch ads showing that oreos can be put in cupcakes, pizzas, icecreams and coffee, and oreo becomes no longer a cookie brand but actually a representation of celebration, happiness, family and friendship. You can see oreo in every western style cuisines and eating oreo has been applied a meaning.

That's not easy for a FMCG brand.

the Montana Meth Project: Shockingly real

Hi All,

http://www.montanameth.org/View_Ads/index.php

While spending some time in Montana last winter, I stumbled upon this great campaign which has received some pretty vibrant coverage since then, both for its graphic imagery and honest shock-appeal. As you may or may not know, methamphetamine has become a growing problem in many of the country's rural areas, and in particular in the desolate, mountainous west (i.e. Colorado, Montana, Idaho, New Mexico).

I really like this campaign because it is one of the rare instances where I find a fear-appeal and shock tactic to be valid and constructive. The ads themselves come in a full spectrum of placement ranging from traditional ad channels to online and interactive, but the themes always stay consistent throughout. They pair the harsh truths and gritty images that ostensibly mirror real life meth addiction. The shocking images and the blatant copy are disturbing; and they are shocking. But, they are certainly memorable.

If you have more time or interest, I invite you to check out the Web-site link above and peruse the various other ads. They are a great example of shock and fear done in the appropriate context.

Thanks and don't do meth,

Rick

Heath Campaign: American Cancer Society - Megan

I think that the American Cancer Society (ACS) is an example of a great health campaign.  Their most memorable ads are the "More Birthdays" commercials, where they have a famous singer singing "happy birthday" and at the end, shows the ACS slogan, "the official sponsor of birthdays."  I found this to be an innovative campaign, as any other society or association could easily claim the same thing; but the ACS came up with the idea first.  They also bring up a good thought:  the "happy birthday" song serves as a victory song for survivors -- who may not have had more birthdays.  On their website, one can even send a birthday wish via email or phone call for free.

American Cancer Society website

 "happy birthday" commercial example

More Birthdays

Change 4 Life

This campaign Chang4Life is part of the UK government’s ‘Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives’ strategy. It aims to prevent people from obesity by encouraging them to eat better and move more. Like many other health campaigns, it has its own TV commercials which are colorful, kind of creative and generally attracting .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYhbBidlcMI&feature=related

But when looking at the comments on these ads, you could find the controversial attitudes there. Personally, I think the reason for the controversial attitudes is that the ads just keep on telling the audience the concept of abandoning the old lifestyle and being healthy and lack the real point to motivate people. However, I do like some of the concrete suggesting ways it makes on the website. For example, it has a fun generator on the website, in which you could get “customized” indoor and outdoor active games. There is also a cookbook for children which aims to make the children involved in the meal preparing and get to like the healthy meal. Also, a meal guide could be downloaded from the website.
http://www.nhs.uk/Change4Life/Pages/change-for-life-families.aspx

There are over half a million people in the UK joined this campaign, though I could not evaluate professionally whether it is effective, at least it’s working. The biggest problem I perceived here is how to really incite the people’s interest to indeed look at those specific activity and meal guide and follow them.

Time for timer: Brush Your Teeth

I found this cute and intersting PSA from 80s online. Timer seems to be a popular cartoon character, with his long hat and stick, who tells time to children. This ad series was aired on TV on saturday mornings when children watched TVs.

I think this advertising is effective in that it carefully considered target age. The use of this cartoon character must have made children follow what Timer was doing in the ad. Also, this ad delivers clear message, brush your teeth, in an easy and funny way that shows strong and white teeth would defend evil bacteria.

One thing I wonder in this ad is that Timer only brushes the bottom teeth. I guess he didn't have time to brush top teeth in a 30 sec ad?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=FKbQyvLnFWU

Disney's Magic of Healthy Living Campaign

Disney Launched their Magic of healthy living campaign last year in September. The main message of the campaign is to adopt a healthy lifestyle by eating healthy food staying active physically. The target audience is children who are the prime audience for Disney channel.

The ads for the campaign use the technique of association with famous Disney stars including Nick Jonas from Jonas brothers and Brenda Son. Also, First lady Michelle Obama appears in many of their ads promoting healthy eating either by showing whats a right portion size and similar issues regarding healthy eating. Also, they have two websites, one for children and one for parents, which have a lot of games and other fun stuff so that children can engage in activities promoting healthy living. Here are some of the videos for the campaign:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JHac4QFa54&feature=player_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEls4YAmStg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IeVC3obTNI&feature=related

I think the use of Disney stars in the ads is effective because the fans of these stars would associate healthy living with those celebrities and start thinking about eating healthy. Also, having Michelle Obama in the ads is good to show the importance of the issue at hand but I think that the people who watch Disney Channel do not really care if the first lady is promoting something but that is just my opinion. :)

Got Milk?

The Got milk? campaign has been running since October 1993 when Goodby Silverstein & Partners came up with the idea for the California Milk Processor Board. It was later licensed and is used to promote mil consumption nationwide.

Initial research showed GS&P that milk was regarded as a commodity; people didnt so much crave it, but rather really miss its absence in specific situations. Because of that, originally the ads for the campaign would feature situations in which people would be stuck without milk while having milk-related food such as cookies or Peanut butter.

Nowadays, the campaign has expanded to the use of famous or otherwise well known personalities with a mustache made of milk. The line was so successful that nowadays is part of popular culture, it has been spoofed unendlesly and has appeared in movies, videogames etc.

I love this campaign because it exemplifies the idea of an excellent tagline: Its short, its catchy and therefore easy to remember. Not to mention the original idea can possibly be imported to a great variety of situations. The "milk" portion of the line can be substituted for practically anything as an adaptation. I love the got milk campaign not only because; yes, its funny and catchy, but also because everytime i see a "got milk?" ad, I am reminded about what a great tagline sounds like.

Health Campaign Case_Chan ju LEE

What I feel like introducing to you concerning health campaign is a recently conducted one dealing with prevention against hepatitis B by the Korean Association for the Study of the Liver.

Although I found its video link on YouTube, I recommend that you just skip it if you have an aversion to seeing something unpleasant; I actually have deemed this case wrong in light of communication strategies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPq42jZNYMQ

This campaign primarily drew upon so-called "fear appeal." Of course, it is frequently favored as an effective means to maximize intended effects, namely, eliciting and promoting more adequate attention to certain health issues among the public. However, the critical problem in the above case is that it appeared to go too far from the advisable extent: it depicted a patient in the terminal stage with too much details such as rather exaggerated jaundice and swollen belly. After its airing, opposed to the expected responses, many protested that it could evoke an unnecessary fright about hepatitis B as well as a biased view toward the patients. The association planning the campaign, as a consequence, turned to changing the close-up shot of the horribly depicted patient to a full shot with a less provoking tag line.

This case well illustrates that utilizing fear appeal should be more careful particularly in the realm of health campaign in that people are disposed to be more sensitive to issues related to life and health. Accordingly, here, the importance of taking account of a campaign's impact, response, and context must be discretely kept in mind.