Origami Underground is a site is dedicated to the venerable and delicate art of taking coloured paper and gently teasing it into miniature representations of copulating couples.
Erotic origami virgins can hone their skills on The Missionary before progressing to the more demanding Dog Eat Dog, and finally tackling the ultimate challenge: Bill And Monica.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
How to write an email subject line
Online copywriting guru Nick Usborne chats with iMedia Connection’s Exec Editor Brad Berens about the dos and don'ts for writing effective email marketing subject lines.
According to Mr Usborne, many companies pay very little attention to the subject lines in their emails and newsletters. Evidence of this lack of attention can be found in the very basic mistakes so many companies and organizations make. Why?
1. Lack of understanding.
Many companies pay plenty of attention to the body of the message, and far too little to the quality of the message in the subject line. To illustrate this point, no offline direct mail agency would rush or hurry the writing of the text on the envelope of a direct mail promotion. Direct marketers understand that the envelope copy is crucial to the success of the whole mailing. Companies online are yet to understand that subject line copy is just as important to the success of an email or newsletter.
2. Creative pride.
Writing subject lines is all too often seen as boring, uninteresting work. Such a short snippet of text may be seen as "beneath" the talents of the writers involved. Misplaced pride.
3. Lack of process.
Creative and production groups are often under incredible pressure to deliver the next email or newsletter. Because writing and testing the subject line is not carved in stone as a required step in the process, it simply falls between the cracks. A line is written quickly, without enough thought as to its potential impact on open rates and conversion rates.
4. Laziness.
Some writers know how important the subject line is. They also know that others in their organization may not. So they can get away with rushing the job. Pure laziness.
5. Lack of testing.
The first day you test different subject lines and see the results, you'll never be complacent again. When you do the math and see how much money you are leaving on the table with the second best subject line, compared to the best...that's when you start taking subject lines seriously.
There are many more useful insights and it’s worth a read.
According to Mr Usborne, many companies pay very little attention to the subject lines in their emails and newsletters. Evidence of this lack of attention can be found in the very basic mistakes so many companies and organizations make. Why?
1. Lack of understanding.
Many companies pay plenty of attention to the body of the message, and far too little to the quality of the message in the subject line. To illustrate this point, no offline direct mail agency would rush or hurry the writing of the text on the envelope of a direct mail promotion. Direct marketers understand that the envelope copy is crucial to the success of the whole mailing. Companies online are yet to understand that subject line copy is just as important to the success of an email or newsletter.
2. Creative pride.
Writing subject lines is all too often seen as boring, uninteresting work. Such a short snippet of text may be seen as "beneath" the talents of the writers involved. Misplaced pride.
3. Lack of process.
Creative and production groups are often under incredible pressure to deliver the next email or newsletter. Because writing and testing the subject line is not carved in stone as a required step in the process, it simply falls between the cracks. A line is written quickly, without enough thought as to its potential impact on open rates and conversion rates.
4. Laziness.
Some writers know how important the subject line is. They also know that others in their organization may not. So they can get away with rushing the job. Pure laziness.
5. Lack of testing.
The first day you test different subject lines and see the results, you'll never be complacent again. When you do the math and see how much money you are leaving on the table with the second best subject line, compared to the best...that's when you start taking subject lines seriously.
There are many more useful insights and it’s worth a read.
Monday, December 26, 2005
Tsunami Disaster Remembrance Week
My dear friend Peter Griffin from the TsunamiHelp team (and from the teams that formed around the other disasters over this year) have coelesced into the WorldWideHelp Group. And they're observing the week ahead as Disaster Remembrance Week, to get the world's attention back to the victims and survivors of those disasters. Perhaps , you'd care to take a look and if you think it's worthwhile, pass the word?
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Top 10 online video commercials
Yes here is another year-end list. This time from Adage. During the last year, AdAge has published more than 650 video commercials in its online news stories and weekly 'TV Spots of the Week' column. Here are the Top 10 ads that AdAge's readers around the world watched the most.
Site of the day: Flipbook!
Flipbook! is an interactive Flash/PHP application that allows you to draw simple animations, save them to a gallery, export them to PDF and share them with your family and friends.
A really cool site.
A really cool site.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
10 ads America won’t see
AdAge takes a look across the world at some of the advertising work deemed, for one reason or another, to be of "Not for the US" status. These are a collection of 10 advertisements that American audiences are not intended to see. From Napster's Striptease (UK) to Telefonica’s Saddam Hussein Phone Card (Brazil).
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Shortwave wants your short films
All styles, topics and genres are welcome (including music videos, animations and video art), the principle being that the idea is more important than the medium through which it is conveyed.
Priority is always given to emerging, low budget and digital film/video artists.
The deadline for submissions for these events is Friday 13th January. Please send a DVD/VHS, contact details and a SAE to the address on the Shortwave website.
Priority is always given to emerging, low budget and digital film/video artists.
The deadline for submissions for these events is Friday 13th January. Please send a DVD/VHS, contact details and a SAE to the address on the Shortwave website.
Advertising is alive and well
New figures from ZenithOptimedia (via eMarketer) show that traditional ad expenditures continue to track or exceed the world economy — reaching over $400 billion this year.
ZenithOptimedia recommends keeping an eye on the countries it calls "The ad-growth hotspots" — the "BRIIC" economies of Brazil, Russia, India, Indonesia and China. Currently, they account for only 6%-10% of ad spending, but are all among the top eight growers, and ZenithOptimedia predicts they will account for 26% of global ad growth 2004-2008.
While the report paints a rosy picture for emerging economies, small and midsize advertising agencies in India are facing a crisis, and the majority of global accounts are aligned with the big network agencies.
If these beleaguered local agencies have to survive and flourish, they need to move fast and make the most of the growing online advertising market.
As ZenithOptimedia put it: "Internet advertising will be $18 billion this year. If it were a country it would rank top five in size and growth — like a Western Europe giant growing at an emerging Asia rate."
The big network agencies continue to ignore the online market and their business model relies heavily on the traditional 30-second television spot.
ZenithOptimedia recommends keeping an eye on the countries it calls "The ad-growth hotspots" — the "BRIIC" economies of Brazil, Russia, India, Indonesia and China. Currently, they account for only 6%-10% of ad spending, but are all among the top eight growers, and ZenithOptimedia predicts they will account for 26% of global ad growth 2004-2008.
While the report paints a rosy picture for emerging economies, small and midsize advertising agencies in India are facing a crisis, and the majority of global accounts are aligned with the big network agencies.
If these beleaguered local agencies have to survive and flourish, they need to move fast and make the most of the growing online advertising market.
As ZenithOptimedia put it: "Internet advertising will be $18 billion this year. If it were a country it would rank top five in size and growth — like a Western Europe giant growing at an emerging Asia rate."
The big network agencies continue to ignore the online market and their business model relies heavily on the traditional 30-second television spot.
Call for Entries: Communication Arts Interactive Design Competition
Enter the most prestigious design competition for interactive media, the 12th annual Communication Arts Interactive Design Competition. Any interactive project created for digital distribution on the World Wide Web, CD-ROM, interactive kiosk or handheld device is eligible.
Selected by a nationally representative panel of distinguished programmers, interface designers and creative directors, the winning entries will be published in the September/October Interactive Annual of Communication Arts and on their web site.
The deadline is January 20th, 2006.
To download an entry form, click here.
Selected by a nationally representative panel of distinguished programmers, interface designers and creative directors, the winning entries will be published in the September/October Interactive Annual of Communication Arts and on their web site.
The deadline is January 20th, 2006.
To download an entry form, click here.
Friday, December 09, 2005
Here's your 15 minutes of fame
Time magazine is now offering you a chance to see your photo on the 22-story-high digital Times Square billboard in New York.
Attention-seekers from all over the world can submit their headshots via a special website, created by advertising agency Fallon, which will transmit photos to the jumbo screen within minutes, making this the first live-to-web interaction of its kind
The Times Square screen is currently displaying pictures of official Person of the Year nominees, like J.K. Rowling, Bill Gates and Lance Armstrong, and rotating them with pictures of thousands of what are politely known in the real world as ordinary people.
The event lasts till the issue hits the stands on Dec. 19, at which time the monster board will display the official 2005 Person of the Year.
Andy Warhol had once said, “In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes.
Truer words were never spoken.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
NPR's debate over conditions in Indian call centers
There is a huge backlash against Indian IT firms and call centers. NPR is broadcasting a debate that has begun in India over whether the country's educated and talented young people working in call centers are victims of exploitation.
A report from a government-funded think tank compared some centers with "Roman slave galley ships" and says some employees suffer chronic fatigue and depression. Defenders of the call centers, including some employees, say they pay much better than any other options.
Indian software firms and call centers should counter the growing resentment against the loss of jobs in USA and other countries.
Sadly, these firms have developed an ostrich-like attitude. They have restricted themselves to B2B marketing initiatives and I have yet to come across a major B2C advertising campaign targeted to the American consumer.
A report from a government-funded think tank compared some centers with "Roman slave galley ships" and says some employees suffer chronic fatigue and depression. Defenders of the call centers, including some employees, say they pay much better than any other options.
Indian software firms and call centers should counter the growing resentment against the loss of jobs in USA and other countries.
Sadly, these firms have developed an ostrich-like attitude. They have restricted themselves to B2B marketing initiatives and I have yet to come across a major B2C advertising campaign targeted to the American consumer.
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Today's quote: F. Scott Fitzgerald
“Advertising is a racket, like the movies and the brokerage business. You cannot be honest without admitting that its constructive contribution to humanity is exactly minus zero.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald
Monday, December 05, 2005
How to get an idea
Are you working in the creative department of an Indian advertising agency? Here's how to come up with an idea:
1. Ask the Account Executive to re-write the brief about a dozen times.
2. When he or she is done, toss the creative brief into the dustbin
3. Now comes the tricky part: Will you pick Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Rani Mukherjee or Sania Mirza to endorse your client’s brand?
4. Once you have frozen on the Bollywood star/cricketer/tennis player, simply present the idea to the client. Don’t bother crafting the headlines or layouts. They are irrelevant.
5. The client will more often than not approve your campaign, with a humble request that his family and friends be allowed to rub shoulders with his brand ambassador.
6. Spend a few millions on producing the TV commercial.
7. Make sure that the media spend is always less than the endorsement fee.
8. If your client cannot afford the gazillions for the big gun celebrities, go for TV actors, chess grandmasters or, Olympic medal winners.
9. Last but not the least, give interviews to the trade press on how you struggled for weeks on end to crack the brief, and get a breakthrough celebrity endorsement idea.
1. Ask the Account Executive to re-write the brief about a dozen times.
2. When he or she is done, toss the creative brief into the dustbin
3. Now comes the tricky part: Will you pick Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Rani Mukherjee or Sania Mirza to endorse your client’s brand?
4. Once you have frozen on the Bollywood star/cricketer/tennis player, simply present the idea to the client. Don’t bother crafting the headlines or layouts. They are irrelevant.
5. The client will more often than not approve your campaign, with a humble request that his family and friends be allowed to rub shoulders with his brand ambassador.
6. Spend a few millions on producing the TV commercial.
7. Make sure that the media spend is always less than the endorsement fee.
8. If your client cannot afford the gazillions for the big gun celebrities, go for TV actors, chess grandmasters or, Olympic medal winners.
9. Last but not the least, give interviews to the trade press on how you struggled for weeks on end to crack the brief, and get a breakthrough celebrity endorsement idea.
Friday, December 02, 2005
Frank Lowe launches agency
In an age where large number of advertising professionals are considering quitting the business, Lowe Worldwide founder, the 65-year-old Frank Lowe emerged from retirement today with the surprise announcement that he is setting up a new advertising agency with Paul Weinberger, who resigned as chairman of Lowe London, reports AdAge.
Mr Weinberger is expected to take with him Lowe London’s biggest account, the $75 million Tesco supermarket business he has overseen for years.
"If Keith Richards can still play rock and roll then Frank might be able to do the same," said a Lowe parent Interpublic Group executive.
Rock on, Frank!
Mr Weinberger is expected to take with him Lowe London’s biggest account, the $75 million Tesco supermarket business he has overseen for years.
"If Keith Richards can still play rock and roll then Frank might be able to do the same," said a Lowe parent Interpublic Group executive.
Rock on, Frank!
Thursday, December 01, 2005
How to spread HIV
This message downloaded into your computer uninvited.
Just like the HIV virus has into the lives of 5.1 million Indians.
So practice safe sex. Use a condom.
AIDS. Spread the word. Not the disease.
December 1st is World AIDS Day.
For HIV FAQ, click here.
Concept by: Sunil Shibad
Just like the HIV virus has into the lives of 5.1 million Indians.
So practice safe sex. Use a condom.
AIDS. Spread the word. Not the disease.
December 1st is World AIDS Day.
For HIV FAQ, click here.
Concept by: Sunil Shibad
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