These are really creative print ads. Some incorporating a mixture of print, new technology and direct target participation. The last, "sticky" one is absolutely brilliant at making its point.
http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/10-great-magazine-ads-dont-just-sit-there-looking-pretty-132401
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This is an excerpt from a report published 13/6/2011 on the Al Jazeera English website. To read the entire article click the link below (there's also a video report by Alan Fisher):
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2011/06/2011613183232557390.html What are your thoughts on the referendum's outcome and what does this mean for the future of Italy and Italian politics? Silvio Berlusconi has suffered a humiliating defeat after Italians turned out in large numbers to vote in referendums which the Italian prime minister had encouraged them to boycott. The proposals to repeal Berlusconi-era legislation on nuclear power, water privatisation and trial immunity for government ministers were backed by opposition parties and opposed by the centre-right. Interior ministry figures put the turnout at 57 per cent, a huge change from the lacklustre participation in previous referendums, and 95 per cent of the votes counted backed the motions. Berlusconi had declared that he would not cast a vote, but the unusually high turnout dashed any hope he may have had that the necessary quorum of 50 per cent would not be reached. Everyone, it seems, are stressed out. It's particularly bad at this time of the year where we are just a month and a half away from summer holidays. We've all read about the causes, the cures, and much much more. But here's a very scientific look at stress. I found this documentary to be a real eye-opener. I highly recommend watching it. Here's latest piece sent in by Chris Fogg.
Most of us I believe, present ourselves with challenges at certain times in our lives. Why? I think it’s because we have an innate need to progress. We are never completely satisfied with our present, we always wish to strive for something better. Surely that’s why we are no longer apes but have become Human Beings? Even in monkeys, chimpanzees for example, they find that curiosity stimulates them to play and learn. Why are they still monkeys? Maybe because they have never been presented regularly enough with things to arouse their curiosity through contact with man – essentially they have always remained in the same environment. So they have not progressed, even if they may have the intelligence to do so. The difference is that we in our world are continually faced with something new in our experience and we can choose to face the challenge or not. Facing challenges is necessary if you want to progress. The problem for us Human Beings is that we don’t find it easy to face up to our inadequacies – monkeys are not gifted with a sense of shame as we are – failing with our expectations of ourselves or failing in the eyes of others and, what we may believe, are their expectations of us. Inadequacies that you fear you may have – may not actually exist. Children learn more quickly than adults – they are too young to know what shame is and have no expectations of themselves, and don’t know that others have expectations of them. So – smile – be like a child – learn from them – don’t worry about inadequacies and failure – face the challenge – enjoy it and so try to progress. And if you can - turn your progress into something that can help others to progress too. For all of the time, effort and investment put into developing a “great” advertisement, in general, its real effect is minimal. Ask any person to think of an outstanding commercial and most will have a hard time thinking of one. Worse, they may remember the ad but not the brand. When asked this question, some of my older friends start telling me about an ad they remember from when they were children many (many) moons ago. And it’s often with a nostalgic smile, of the youth-gone-by variety. The recent global economic crisis has had a dramatic impact on the industry. As most advertisers know, economic trouble hits advertising companies particularly hard. It is often one of the main items on the list for CEOs to axe. The recent great recession was particularly devastating with revenues declining significantly for agencies big and small. Some are starting to see investment in advertising coming back, but we are a long way from reaching the numbers from before 2008. With economic conditions in the U.S. and the Euro zone flat and little sign of improvement in the horizon there is still no proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Don't let advertisers tell you different, because they will certainly try. And so, is the advertising industry doomed like printed newspapers and books? I doubt it. Unlike people in those industries, advertisers are the best salespeople around. That’s their job. I mean, these are the folks that convince tens of millions of Italians to drink bottled water when it has been scientifically proven that much of the tap water in the country is just as pure, if not more. And yet many still continue to choose San Benedetto, Borio, Levissima, Lilia and many other well-known brands over just plain, free water. Furthermore, most will try very hard to convince you that there are real health benefits like less sodium or another chemical that I’ve never heard of. When I hear this the first thing that comes to mind is WTF! Here’s one recent ad that works quite well, I think, simply because of its protagonist. However, the script of the ad has obviously been written by an Italian and translated and so it sounds a little weird. Highly unlikely you’ll pass up the opportunity to read what this article is all about. =) Well, I can tell you right of the bat that I don’t have any easy solutions to making more of it nor keeping as much of it as you can. It is, nonetheless, one of the main issues in most people’s lives and everyone seems to have something say about it. Here are some very interesting videos and audio files on the subject. Whether you get a chance to watch/listen to all of it or not, feel free to share your thoughts about what some consider the root of all evil. These first 2 are audio files on money idioms. Money idioms (part 1) Money idioms (part 2) Now, here’s a fantastic documentary called “The Money Fix”. I believe it answers a lot of questions about why we are in the financial situation we are in today and offers some very interesting solutions. And another business English video lesson around the subject of money. Something extra. Price tag. 11.03.11 Day earthquake and tsunami strike Japan 9.0 Magnitude (the ferocity almost impossible to describe) 18,000 Expected death toll 410,000 People without homes ... mostly the elderly €2 Donation amount to Red Cross (or cost of 2 espressos, think about it) 45500 Red Cross phone number to send in donations 5 Seconds needed to send SMS Send an SMS (45500) to donate €2 to the Italian Red Cross’ “Emergency Japan” fund. Make the numbers count. Some additional information: Italian Red Cross website. If you’re an animal lover like me here are some local Japan-based groups helping to rescue dogs, cats and other pets: Below is a flyer made by a concerned Japanese expatriate living in Italy to solicit donations to the Red Cross' “Emergency Japan” fund.
Here's an opinion sent in by The Protestor.
Tomorrow is International Women’s Day (IWD) and I'd like to take a moment to reflect on this with you. If I’m not mistaken this commemoration began as a day to remember the sacrifices made by many women protesting against the terrible conditions they were forced to work in. Here in Italy, many women celebrate IWD by frequenting strip clubs or by going out with some female friends just to have fun. I’ve never understood why and how IWD became a day to simply have fun. Can someone help me understand this strange phenomenon? Who knows if it's the same in other countries across the globe? As a teenager I used to go out with my classmates to the center of Palermo during the morning and then eat out in a Chinese restaurant. Try to find any sense in that. And yet it was a tradition for us and I used to enjoy it a lot. I’ve never been attracted to striptease shows. And as I’m not a good dancer I won't go to night clubs either.… I think the only way you could get me dancing is if I was totally drunk.… I’m not a very shy person, sometimes I can be quite shameless, but one of the few things I'm ashamed of doing in public is dancing. As always, I don’t think I’ll be doing anything special this IWD. However, I'm very curious to know about all of you. Are you doing anything interesting to celebrate March 8? Have you ever been in strip joint to celebrate IWD? The Protestor A smile, one of the most basic elements of human interaction, says so much about how we feel inside. Wikipedia notes, "A smile is a facial expression formed by flexing the muscles near both ends of the mouth. The smile can also be found around the eyes. Among humans, it is customarily an expression denoting pleasure, happiness, or amusement...Cross-cultural studies have shown that smiling is a means of communicating emotions throughout the world. But there are large differences between different cultures. A smile can also be spontaneous or artificial (when people feel obliged to smile). Happiness is most often the motivating cause of a smile." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smile)
But can you spot the difference between a real smile and a fake one. Try this psychology test from the BBC website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/smiles/index.shtml. I'm happy to say I got 18 out of 20. Let's see if anyone can beat me. Dear Friends,
Sorry for taking so long to write a new post in the “Community”. I’ve been tied-up with work. I’m now trying to make posts simpler for everyone to follow. To do so I will be putting them into specific areas similar to those of a daily newspaper, i.e.
Thanks. Raj |
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