Brand Noise

Gen X Sensibility Has Arrived

Hmmm…evidence of Gen X satirical sensibility moving into the White House?

• The new presidential toy that takes the US by storm is Sasha’s Ugly Doll.
• The white gown Michelle wore for the Inaugural evening was designed by Jason Wu, known for his edgy fashion dolls.

Tell me, what girl who was raised in the ‘70s didn’t wish she could wear her Barbie’s outfits. There was a particular metallic blue maxi coat with blue maribou trimmed cuffs that I recall hoping for. American Girl just doesn’t hit that chord. (Maybe if Marc Jacobs got involved? Maybe if Marc Jacobs brought Stephen Sprouse to American Girl? And so I digress…)

(Photo: For sale on Etsy, Danner's Place.)

Innovation Must Go All the Way

Wiggle room is closing in tighter when it comes to innovation. Used to be we could throw concepts out there for consumers to idle with. Not so much anymore. If innovation is not flexible and intuitive enough, great ideas will fall flat as the country continues to tread water. Take Kraft’s 99 cent iFood app for the iPhone. One reviewer online lamented that the shopping lists weren't comprehensive enough. If a brand is going to take on an app in which the consumer scenario compels the consumer to involve brands other than the intended, that brand better be comfortable getting snuggly with the competition. Food shopping is the original consumer mix-and-match scenario. What ends up in the fridge is really a mess of identities. It's the app itself then that becomes synonomous with the brand. It takes a strong confident brand to open itself up.

(Photo by Lost Star.)

A Public Invitation to Label

Scores of gorgeous historic photos--from shots of early 20th century baseball players to 1940s-era images of horse-drawn carts and factory workers--showed up on Flickr this week, and the public is busy tagging them in an effort to bring new context to the collection.

The labeling is part of a pilot project by the U.S. Library of Congress, which is making 3,115 of its archival photos available for public tagging in an attempt to bring a sort of "wisdom of the crowds" intelligence to the photos' metadata.

Read more.

Parents say "Hold the Presents"

For all those marketing to kids and parents, this group email sent out to about two or three dozen parents of first graders puts it best: 

"I hope everyone noticed that we would really appreciate it if you would give to [name removed]'s charities of choice in lieu of presents. With such a large party, we would be grateful NOT to have so much stuff in our home, and would feel gratified knowing the money spent is going somewhere useful."

Interesting when you think about what drives marketing for charities too. It's not simple benevolence. It's the desperate desire for an uncluttered home.

Word from Dubai: Bling Abayas

QUICK, fetch me my abaya!” is a call that reverberates around many a Gulf household on the arrival of an unexpected male guest, as women scramble for the formless black gown that confers instant anonymity.

But the plain robe intended to shield the female form from prying eyes and comply with Islam’s requirement that women dress modestly, has become a fashion statement, with some bejeweled, gold-embroidered new designs out-blinging the flashiest rappers.

Read the whole article.

(Photo: Shopping!)

Word from Dubai Starts with a Toy

Nowhere like Dubai? It's where you can buy toys for the unborn. And so starts our new Brand Noise series: "Word from Dubai." Stay tuned, we'll be looking closely at luxury as it relates to the evolution of conspicuous consumption.

Predictions for 2009? Here are two.

Sometimes you read something that catches you off-guard. This is one of those times.

AdJoke.ca revisited AdAge's Crystal Ball 2.0 to see if we contributors were on target. Yours truly was the headliner: "Marie Lena Tupot was someone to listen to in 2008 and I look forward to hearing her predictions for 2009." Nothing like raising the bar for a girl. (Lots of sarcasm around my office here on that call to action. What you think I can't hit the target twice?)

Hmmm..let's see. What do I predict for 2009?

One, because no one's been keeping the kids informed, their steadfast optimism will sour as we move through 2009. Gen Y will begin to take their cues from Gen X, rather than their Baby Boomer parents who got them in this global crisis in the first place.

Two, someone will resurrect Tickle deodorant.

Radio Shack Up for Review

According to Brand Week, Radio Shack recently launched a creative review. Going forward, we envision Radio Shack taking it old school. A place powered by electronic modders. Sort of Apple's Genius Bar meets Best Buy Geek Squad meets Circuit Benders. Then best them all with the likes of the smart girls at TekServe--a new Radio Shack should be gender neutral. Wikipedia reports the company was started as Radio Shack in 1921 by two brothers who wanted to provide equipment for the cutting-edge field of amateur, or ham, radio. Curious to see who gets to be the chosen one after the review process ends in March. Will incumbent Arnold hold on?

Scion Says It Plainly

I like this new Scion campaign from Attik. It's simple, to the point. United by Individuality--yeah, it makes sense, no pretense. We had done some preliminary work for Scion some years back. And this falls right in line with what we suspected regarding a networked intelligentsia aspect of Gen Y lifestyle. Love that the ads mix actual owners' xBs, xDs and tCs with stock models...cool street cred.

Tried and Texted Approach Gets Consumers Talking

A new scenarioDNA piece published in Admap, January 2009...[Recession] means using an authentic organic approach to understanding the consumer in their world. Unfortunately, for some brands and agencies, it means taking shortcuts on research. Find the whole story.