To fight back at McDonald’s jumping in on its smoothie game, Jamba Juice has launched a new line of “Cheeseburger Chill Smoothies.” [More]
marketing
Want A Coupon For Neutrogena Men? You'd Better Be A Woman
By 7.19.10
Reader Mark notice that he was only offered a coupon for “Neutrogena Men” if he said he was a lady on their website. [More]
What's Creepier, New Chevy Volt Ads, Or John Carpenter's Christine?
By 7.14.10
At first I thought it was a horror movie trailer coming out of the dashboard radio. There is a wall of droning sound, then an intense voice overlays with, “Listen. Hear that? That’s the sound of the status quo crumbling.” I wondered what new machete-wielding maniac would be gracing the theaters this summer, until I realized that his name was Chevy Volt. What? That’s your electric car ad? Why does it sound so much like the trailer for the 1983 cult classic Christine in which an otherworldly-possessed car goes on a murderous rampage? [More]
Introducing The Snuggie D-Lux
By 7.14.10
The Snuggie D-Lux solve a big problem for male Snuggie fans: if the fleece robe has completely covered your front, what happens when you need to access your man parts? Removing the robe could leave you feeling cold, isolated, and remind you that we’re in a recession. But now there’s the Snuggie D-Lux, the robe with three sleeves! NSFW, the D in D-Lux stands for something naughty. [More]
Old Spice's Brilliant Marketing Your Product Could Market Like
By 7.14.10
We at Consumerist mostly focus on when companies screw up, with some exceptions. We must give credit for brilliant marketing strategies when it is due, though, and yesterday’s personalized YouTube video blitz by Old Spice’s towel-wrapped spokesman, Isaiah “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” Mustafa, qualifies as brilliant. [More]
Artisanal Is The New Organic
By 7.13.10
There’s a burgeoning artisanal market in the U.S., where goods made by hand or in small batches–and marketed with lots of footnotes and descriptions of quality–are growing increasingly more popular. But why, and is it just a hipster lifestyle ingredient or an actual shift in the larger population? [More]
TD Ratchets Up Overdraft Opt-In Push With Pop-Up Scare Tactics
By 7.12.10
TD Bank is really stepping up its efforts to try to get customers to sign back up for “overdraft protection,” which really just protects their right to charge you $35 if you want to buy a $2.00 candy bar and only have a $1 in your account. Now they’re greeting customers accessing their accounts online with pop-up ads trying to scare them into agreeing to signing up for the service. [More]
Extended Warranty Junk Mail Designed To Look Like DMV Letter
By 6.29.10
The letter was from “Motor Vehicle Services.” It warned Serra that his car’s manufacturers warranty is expiring. It accurately listed the monthly payment he was making on his car, and the number of payments he had made. It was even written in that typewriter font beloved by mechanics and bureaucracies. But it wasn’t from the Department of Motor Vehicles, it was a piece of extended warranty junk mail gussied up to look official. Here’s the letter: [More]
Brand Fail: Not Just Bagels
By 6.28.10
They may want to think about a new name. (Thanks to Andrew!) [More]
Spirit Airlines Launches "Check Out The Oil On Our Beaches" Promo
By 6.22.10
Spirit Airlines is known for pushing its bottom-scraping fees with crass emailed promos, but usually they just stick with dorky sex puns. Now they’re branching out into sociopolitical commentary with their latest “Check Out The Oil On Our Beaches” promotion that leverages the BP oil spill in comedy and marketing gold. [More]
How To Opt Out Of Apple's iAds Service, Eventually
By 6.22.10
If you don’t want Apple collecting data on you and using it to target you with ads starting July 1st, you can opt out from “any device running iOS 4,” says AppleInsider. The opt-out is automatic when you hit up http://oo.apple.com from an iOS 4 device, and as far as I can tell you can’t undo it, so don’t click the link unless you really want to opt out. Also, it’s not working at the moment. [More]
Hello Kitty Engine Oil
By 6.22.10
Sometimes you can take branding too far. Apparently this Hello Kitty engine oil is a real product designed for compact cars, and it sells for $2980 Yen, 33 American dollars. Perfect for outrunning bad penguins. [Newlaunches via BoingBoing] [More]
Coming Soon, A Way To Find Out How That Online Ad Knows What You Like
By 6.22.10
Last year the FTC asked online marketers to regulate targeted advertising, so in an attempt to avoid new regulatory policies the major ad industry groups have gotten together to launch a new service. Starting late summer, when a targeted ad from a participating marketer appears on your screen, you’ll be able to click a small icon somewhere on the ad and see your profile on that marketer’s site. You’ll also be able to then opt out of future ads from that ad network, reports Wired. [More]
Manufacturers To Market To You Via Messages Hidden In UPCs
By 6.22.10
Stickybits is a social network that combines your phone’s camera, a web connection, and UPCs to leave virtual notes and images scattered all around you like invisible sticky notes. The important question, as always, is can it be used to sell stuff? Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Campbell’s, Frito-Lay, and Ben & Jerry are all planning to find out in social media campaigns this summer, reports Brandweek. [More]
Your Kids Think Food Tastes Better When It Has A Cartoon On The Box
By 6.21.10
Researchers from Yale University announced today that kids think food tastes better when its marketed with a cartoon. They asked 40 kids to try some gummy fruit snacks, graham crackers and baby carrots. [More]
Buy Solar Power System, Get Free Gun
By 6.18.10
“Buy solar. Get a gun.” Perfect for off-the-grid survivalists, Bland Solar and Air Inc has a new deal offering every customer who buys a 3kW+ solar system a free firearm. Best. Cross-promotion. Ever. [More]
ABC Doubling The Commercials On iPad App, Online Streams
By 6.16.10
If you watch ABC’s shows online or with an iPad, your limited commercial interruptions are about to get a little less limited. So far, most of ABC’s streaming shows contain 5 to 6 ads of 30 seconds each, but mocoNews says one of ABC’s executives just confirmed that the network is going to double that ad load, perhaps leading the way for other networks to do the same. [More]
Design BP's New Logo
By 6.2.10
In light of recent events, it seems BP’s “blossoming natural gas flower” logo needs an update. A friendly citizen passing by their station at Crosby and Houston in New York has offered this as their suggestion. If this sets off a brainstorm for you, LogoMyWay is hosting an parodic BP logo redesign contest with a $200 prize. (Thanks to GitEmSteveDave!) [More]
