Adliterate had posted this picture of a note his father was carrying for the past 30 years. Seems like a pretty simple, yet evocative way of laying down expectations of an employer-employee relationship. Which is a timely reminder during ‘that time of the year’ – evaluations & increment time. The practice of getting employees to fill in their Appraisal Forms prior to evaluation and increment is common. In many cases, the process is followed in…
No, I am not talking about unsolicited phone calls to your mobile. The New York Times reports of a new campaign in the US from ING, who claim to ‘know your number’ – referring to the amount of money you will need to retire comfortably. The ad is straightforward enough – a bunch of numbers being carried around by everyday blokes. The microsite is interesting – it has an interactive menu where you can figure out your number based on…
What a mess The age old mantra of a good website design is: fast loading, easy navigation and reader friendly. But when ‘specialist’s in the field flout every norm and make the web page more of an irritation than a pleasure, what does one say? Take a look at the landing page of exhange4media.com. What can you read? And the irony is that this brand is a big time promoter of media conclaves and closely…
When robust brainstorming happens among teams, very often a stray comment or a phrase uttered, sparks an idea in someone else’s mind. Even everyday phrases like ‘smooth as silk’, ‘smells like fish’ can trigger visual ideas in someone’s head. And when the proposition itself is strong and lends direction, magic happens. A seemingly unseen idea comes alive. One such idea is this, for Clinic. The proposition of ‘Get the city out of your hair’ is…
Of late, webmail brands in India have been slugging it out on TV in India. Money is being pumped into driving saliency and hopefully, traffic to these brands. Indiatimes mail, AOL mail and Rediffmail have all beefed up their TV activity. Frankly, none of these have moved me personally to look beyond my current brand – Gmail. The basic functions on the web – search, mail – have their estasblished leaders. In India, Yahoo, Gmail,…
If you’v been anywhere near a computer last year you would have seen the Carlton ‘It’s a big ad’ TVC. it’s one of those ads which never fail to evoke a jaw dropping ‘Wow, what an ad’ and brings a smile to your face. Apart from the spectacular animation, it worked because of its self-deprecating tone. The humour was inward directed and the ad was seen as pure entertainment. They have followed up with another…
ContentSutra reports of a new job portal in India called Shine, from HT Media. The site is still in beta stage. Given that they are a late entrant they are offering a carrot to attract job seekers. The prize: a daily prize of a months salary, and a bumper prize of a years salary (though for the daily prize, you’re only eligible for the day you register). They are also offering a salary survey to…
Two new examples of how the lines between copy and art are merging. Gone are the days when the copywriter would think of a headline and the Art guy would find a suitable visual. The first one is for Listerine, from Australia. Brands that offer a solution to problems like body odour, bad breath, dandruff etc., have relied on exaggerating the problem or embarrassing the hell out of you. In India, Itchguard and RingGuard have…