Posts by Andy Larsen
Heineken’s “Moderate Drinkers Wanted” Spot: Freud Would Approve
Like all major brewers, Heineken regularly launches responsible drinking campaigns, and with good reason. It helps them to stave off undue regulation, keep advocacy groups in check and generally look responsible and civic-minded—while still raising brand awareness. Unfortunately, many of these campaigns are so creatively lackluster that they seem like an afterthought, leaving no lingering…
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AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE: Augmented Reality and B2B
Last week’s blog looked at the meteoric rise in the use of virtual reality (VR) apps by consumer marketers, particularly in highly discretionary, visually driven segments like tourism. This week, we’ll look at the use of a similar technology, augmented reality (AR), in a very different universe – business-to-business (B2B) marketing. We’ve already defined virtual…
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New thoughts on Snapchat (an open letter)
Dear skeptical, grizzled, Boomer marketing professional, Does the mere mention of “Snapchat” make the hair on the back of your neck stand up? Yeah, well…me too. I’m afraid we’re both going to have to get over it. I know what you are thinking…how can you trust a company that is synonymous with sexting and…
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Oculto: Great Idea or Gimmick?
You’ve gotta love the irony. On Friday, March 13th, brewing giant Anheuser-Busch (whose Super Bowl ad skewered esoteric craft beers) introduced its newest product, Oculto – which, IMHO, seems pretty darned esoteric. A tequila-flavored brew, Oculto is infused with blue agave and aged in tequila barrels. It promises drinkers “a multi-sensory experience” and certainly the…
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SUPER BOWL ADS: “King of Beers” Accidentally Shoots Sibling
In case you missed it, the most controversial ad of the 2015 Super Bowl wasn’t the sleazy, cheesy Carl’s Jr. “Au Naturel” offering, or T-Mobile’s Kim Kardashian pseudo-spoof, or even that depressing dead kid spot from Nationwide. While all drew their fair share of criticism, the one that generated the most unexpected firestorm comes from…
Read MoreThe Most Pretentious Man in the World
The Dos Equis campaign also lends itself to endless memes and promos on social media, whereas Fortune’s does not. It just lends itself to fire sales.
Read MoreTRAVEL RESEARCH: The Role of Social Media in the “Purchase Funnel”
“It can get the customer hooked, but it can’t close the deal.”
Read More“Co-opetition” May be a Key to Increased Business
In racing, drafting doesn’t just help the trailing car; it allows both to go as much as 5 miles per hour faster. Co-opetition in business works much the same way.
Read MoreWhoa, Nellie! Northwestern Football/NLRB Ruling a Game-Changer
In my opinion, D-I athletes in major revenue-producing sports are school employees – they work in the MARKETING DEPARTMENT!
Read MoreOffice Pool: Do Your Picks in 34 Ticks
Your cube-mate is wrong! It’s neither hard nor time-consuming to fill out your office pool’s bracket. In fact, you can complete this in less than the 35 seconds on a college hoops shot clock. Non-hoops fan Danielle shows us how.
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