Digital Two-Footed Tackles

Chevy's Contextual Targeting Blunder

2008-12-24T01:15:00.000-08:00

HAHA. This gave me a good laugh. I was cruising Renny Gleeson's blog and saw this post he put together about a Chevy Traverse ad showing up on a "Auto Bailout Collapses in Senate" page. This makes me laugh histerically. You can't make this stuff up. Check it out for yourself here.

Burn In Hell Bernard Madoff

2008-12-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

No one deserves to be tortured in a public place, everyday for 6 months, more than Bernard Madoff. If you are not familiar with this dickhead piece of shit, he masterminded the greatest Ponzi scheme in Wall Street history. $50 billion worth. Read here to find out why he should die a horrible death and then be tortured for all of eternity.

Who's Got Wii Fit Fever?

2008-12-23T22:49:00.000-08:00

Wii Fit is all the rage these days. Especially around the Holidays. Even my mom has it and is actively using it by the way. She's becoming a yoga master overnight. Actually, all the Baby Boomers are buying Wii Fit.

Nintendo has revolutionised gaming once again. Taking gaming away from the ridiculously hard games and making gaming fun again. Simple A & B. No longer do you have to spend 14 hours a day playing Halo 3 in order to be good at it. It's made gaming social which is quite fun. I mean, I come home and play Wii Bowling with my parents or Mario Kart with my lady friend. You couldn't do that with an XBOX or a Playstation 3. Even senior citizens are doing it:

Point of note: I haven't touched my XBOX 360 in over a year and a half except to watch DVD's. This coming from a guy who played hours of Halo a day. I HAVE BEEN SAVED BY NINTENDO. WIIIIIIIIIIIIIII.

My personal favorite on Wii Fit is the balance game wear soccer balls and cleats get kicked launched in your direction. The sound it makes when a cleat hits you in the face makes my dad crack up laughing. This in turn makes me crack up laughing. Meanwhile my mom continues to take cleats to the face the more we laugh. She gets frustrated and we laugh more. God I love the Holidays.

Super Bowl A No-Go For FedEx

2008-12-23T19:58:00.000-08:00

For the first time in 12 years, FedEx will not be running an ad during the Super Bowl. The average Super Bowl ad this year is around $3 million so it's obvious why they wouldn't. I mean, do they really need to at this point? You can't walk through downtown San Francisco with out tripping over a FedEx or a FedEx Kinkos. They've become like Starbucks.

I say job well done on pulling out of the big game. I know they are using the economy as an excuse but no one remembers a FedEx ad during the Super Bowl anyway. At least I never had. More info here.

Dreaming of A White Christmas

2008-12-22T17:41:00.000-08:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Being from Southern California I dream of having a white Christmas a my parents house. As it will never happen we have to head the mountains like Big Bear, Mammoth Mountain or any of Lake Tahoe's resorts to enjoy the fluffy splender of snow.

Hearing news like this, of snow blanketing the mountains on or around Christmas is music to my ears. I feel sorta bad for those who have to deal with snow on a daily basis but it's great for us So. Cal folks, as the ski/snowboard season official kicks into gear.

Now fo the poor saps below, I feel no sorrow for you being at the airport for three days. Get a hotel. Why don't you try and leave a day or two earlier. Every year it's the same story with people being lodged at the airport for days on end. All while us Cali folk sit back and laugh. At least I did with this clip.

Why would anyone stay at he airport for three days. Seems absurd. Then again, that's the midwest for you. If you don't like the snow, move to Arizona. Where all that will accumulate on your front lawn is roadrunner shit.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

National Geographic's: Journey to the Edge of the Universe

2008-12-12T11:23:00.000-08:00

Last night premiered the National Geographic Special: Journey to the Edge of the Universe. In case you mised it, it will be next airing Sunday December 14th at 11 am. Be sure to record or watch it because it is worth your while.

What you are looking (above) at is a picture of a black hole swallowing a star. I must say it was a fascinating show with mindblowing visuals and head scratching content. It's very hard to imagine such things are out there. Our galaxy is massive and to think there are billions of galaxies out there sort of makes your head hurt.

My favorite line from the show was, "Scientists in the 70's sent a message to a cluster of stars called the 'Seven Sisters' with a road-map of how to find our solar system. The message also contained explanations for out human DNA hear on Earth. But the 'Seven Sisters' are so far from Earth, it will take 25,000 years for the message to reach them." Well done NASA.

This is the best job ever. Sending messages to planets that will be received 25,000 years from now. Can never fail really. No measurement of success or failure.

Here are some fun facts about our solar system you can use to impress your friends:

Venus, the goddess of love, is the solar system's brightest planet.
Although similar in size and gravity as Earth, Venus' atmosphere is full of deadly sulphuric acid.
Covered with a thin veneer of rock, Mercury is a huge ball or iron and has a powerful gravitational pull for its size.
The strongest magnet known in the universe is a magnetar, a rare type of neutron star. To date, there have only been about ten discoveries of a magnetar.
The sun is so far away that if it burned out we wouldn't know about it for eight minutes.
The red planet, Mars, has no ozone layer and has nothing to protect against the sun's ultra-violet rays. This makes it unlivable for humans.
By dating the meteorites found on Earth, we can tell the planets were born 4.6 billion years ago.
Jupiter is spinning at an incredible rate, whipping up winds to hundreds of miles an hour.
Saturn is a giant ball of gas; so light it would float on water.

Be sure to check out the show. You will thank me.

Two-Footed: I'm Back

2008-12-11T14:04:00.000-08:00

After some life changes there will be some changes to the blog. Look for those updates in the coming days as well as new posts to follow. Stay tuned. Oh and by the way, Jon Branch @ Culture Catalyst wears women's undies while at work!

When Players Strike Back: Bastia Style

2008-12-02T09:55:00.000-08:00

There is a new bruiser in town. No it's not Vinnie Jones. No it's not Robbie Savage. It's Adrian Bastia a.k.a. Polaco. Never heard of him? Don't worry neither had I. But I know the name now because this guy is someone special.

A brilliant moment of comedy arrived at the end of Panathinaikos’ 1-1 home draw with Asteras Tripolis on Saturday.

With the game drifting to its natural conclusion, the visitors made a late substitution to presumably look to waste a few valuable seconds as they sought to claim a point on the road. As the substitution was unfolding, a youth managed to run onto the pitch, but quickly found himself being chased by two security officials.

Running for his freedom, the youth headed towards a group of players, where Asteras’ forward Adrian Bastia was standing. And rather than let the officials catch the kid, Bastia decided to take matters into his own hands, kicking the little punk around the knee, sending the kid tumbling to the floor. Once grounded, the ground staff pounced. But that was not the end of the matter.

Having seen the incident, the man in black immediately sent off the ponytailed striker, in a truly bizarre moment. Cue the instant kerfuffle on the pitch between the players.

Let this be a lesson to all you little Greek punks and all pitch invaders out there, if you step on the pitch with big boys, you're going to get hurt. Maybe even humiliated.

This is just good TV. I mean giving the guy a red card for knocking him down when this kid is interrupting the game is pretty ridiculous. How is he supposed to know what this little brat is going to do. I say well done Polaco. He did those fat security guards a favor. Although they probably could have used the run. If you are going send the guy off, do it for that nasty haircut he is sporting. "You're going bald mate. Let it go ehh!"

Nike Thinks Pink Is Cool Too

2008-12-01T14:19:00.000-08:00

Seems shoe manufacturers are thinking players want to wear pink cleats these days. As I posted a couple days ago, Puma has a new cleat they are pushing which in "en rose".

Today, I stumbled upon this video from Nike showing their new Mecurial Vapor Rosa cleat. The video stars Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery as the "Pink Panther". They did this for 2 obvious reasons: Franck Ribery is French as was the Pink Panther. With that connection, Ribery wears the cleat so making him the Pink Panther in the video makes perfect sense to promote a new pink color of boot. Pink Panther = French and Pink. Franck Ribery = French and wears Pink cleats. Genius.

Annnnnyway, apparently Ribery was the first to wear the Rosa boot when the French international turned out for Bayern Munich in his finest pink regalia at home to Energie Cottbus in the Bundesliga. People will say that he is in touch with his feminine side by wearing a cleat of such color. I say the man is in touch with his financial side.

They say it takes a real man to wear pink. Well here's why Franck Ribery can wear pink:

Adidas Boston Brotherhood

2008-11-26T21:42:00.000-08:00

I am a die hard Lakers fan but I must admit, I do think Kevin Garnett is a class act both on and off the court. The sting of losing the Celtics in the finals last year was lessened knowing Garnett finally had a title. Having been said, Paul Pierce is still a little bitch and has that Chris Webber whiners face all the time. 12-1 this season so far Paul. 12-1.

Anyway, this video by adidas starring Garnett is a quality piece in my opinion. It's good to see stand up guys in the NBA helping out the youth by passing on knowledge and advise. I commend adidas for really bringing together the aspect of team and community and being able to show it in an original format.

Keep it up adidas. You might just inch a little closer to Nike with stuff like this.

NASA's Floating Bag of Tools

2008-11-26T18:43:00.000-08:00

A NASA astronaut made a boo-boo and accidentally fumbled a bag of tools into space on the last space walk. Now the tools are floating through Earth's orbit.

According to Brian William's, you can see the tools floating by (I find this hard to believe) if you are in a clear location. So somewhere over someone's head is a $1,000,000 bag of space age wrenches. Heads up!

Adidas Originals Knows How To Party

2008-11-26T18:01:00.000-08:00

Check out this new adidas Originals video they are currently showing on adidas.tv. Not to brag, but this is what my aunt's house will be like tomorrow on Thanksgiving. Celebrities and all. If you get a chance cruise by. She lives in Fullerton.

Visual Depiction of Financial Crisis

2008-11-26T16:11:00.000-08:00

In case you are like me and want to know what exactly happened to cause the stock market to tank, check out this excellent graphical depiction of why things went wrong, biiiigtime. This image was made possible by Mint's blog.

Click HERE.

Nicolas Anelka Has Been Kidnapped!

2008-11-26T14:07:00.000-08:00

Chelsea and France striker Nicolas Anelka has been kidnapped by some beautiful French woman in her bra and stockings. No joke. And she's holding him in some room at shoe point. Don't believe me? See for yourself.

I don't speak French but from what I can gather this Puma spot is to promote their new soccer boot in front of the UEFA Champion's League clash between Chelsea FC and FC Girondins de Bordeaux.

Played only a couple of hours ago. The game finished 1-1 with goals from the featured man, Nicolas Anelka, and Bordeaux's Alou Diarra. The draw leaves both clubs still in the competition going into the last group match.

Not to focus just on Anelka, the beautiful French woman (love the outfit by the way) proceeded to make things fair as she also kidnapped one of the Bordeaux players as well, Tremoulinas.

Here you can watch a clip of the making of the Puma "Rose" video's:

Mama Lucchetti Ads

2008-11-24T15:58:00.000-08:00

At this point I do not have a clue what Lucchetti is, but these commercials gave me a laugh. Maybe it's because I don't speak Spanish very well. Maybe it's because the little characters are shaped like beans with hair. I think it's because this song is so damn catchy. "Lu Lu Lucchetti".

They ads were done by PepperMelon. You should go to their reel and see the other cool things they've done.

It has come to my attention that Lucchetti is a soup company of sorts. Would never have guessed from the commercials. Anyhoo, rumor has it this campaign has generated over 50,000 Facebook fans. Not a bad number for a soup company. It's amazing what few jelly bean characters with wigs on can do for a product like soup.

Maybe someone can help out Lucchetti with their search engine management so they show up on a damn search. I can't find the website to save my life.

Torres & Messi: The Early Years

2008-11-24T09:53:00.000-08:00

Unless you live under a rock, we all know who Fernando Torres and Lionel Messi are and what they are capable of. Goal after goal these these two light up stadiums around the world with their fantastic goals and performances for Liverpool/Spain & Barcelona/Argentina.

But have you seen them play before they were global stars? Well if you haven't, here are 2 videos of the Torres and Messi when only their families knew who they were:

Here is Fernando Torres at the age of 12 playing for Atletico Madrid against AC Milan. As you can see even then he had a knack for goal as he bangs in 2 against the young Rossenairi. Love the bowl cut.

It didn't take long for Torres to become a household name as his amazing Barclays English Premier League inaugural campaign saw him net 25 times for the Reds. If you missed it, see below and then buy Fox Soccer Channel & Setanta subscriptions as you need to up your game.

Here we have 5 yr old Lionel Messi running circles around his opponents in some genuine footage from 1993.

It doesn't really matter what age he is because he will pretty much dribble around anyone that gets in his way. The clip below displays his class and ability to do whatever he likes with the ball. The video closes with the "Messidona" goal he scored against Getafe 2 seasons ago where he emulated the classic goal scored by Diego Maradona against England in the '86 World Cup in Mexico. The goal is arguably one of the greatest individual efforts to scoring that anyone has ever seen.

Sugar Daddy's Are Like Cement

2008-11-19T13:02:00.000-08:00

Random I know but I just ate a Sugar Daddy for the first time in a decade and it almost pulled out all my teeth. After the first bite I had it stuck in my teeth for about 15 min. You could probably melt a Sugar Daddy down and use it to patch holes in dams or lay brick.

Now that we're on the subject, check out the history of the Sugar Daddy:

"Sugar Daddy is a caramel lollipop manufactured by Tootsie Roll Industries. A bite-sized candy, based on the Sugar Daddy is marketed under the name Sugar Babies.

The Sugar Daddy was originally called the Papa and was invented in 1925 by the James O. Welch Company, and was the biggest lollipop of its time. The name was changed to Sugar Daddy in 1932. Sugar Babies were introduced three years later, in 1935.

Today, Sugar Daddies are produced in two sizes, the Junior Pop, with 53 calories, and the Large Pop, with 200 calories."

Fascinating right? If you are ever in the mood to impersonate Mr. Ed just get the large Sugar Daddy and sink the entire right or left side of you mouth into. That should have you trying to get it out of your chompers for at least 10 min.

Well...I'm Going To Namibia

2008-11-19T11:41:00.000-08:00

Through the use of my new favorite thing to play with, StumbleUpon (blog post about StumbleUpon to follow) I cam across a blog showing pictures of Etosha National Park, Namibia. The South-West African park covers an area of more than 22 thousand square kilometers in the north. Etosha is famous for its flora and fauna and hosts 114 species of mammals, 50 species of snakes and 340 varieties of birds.

I was truly blown away by the beauty of Namibia and will tell you now that I will visit this country before I pass. If you would like to see the other photos of the beautiful landscape and the animals that make it special, click here. Some breath taking shots.

For other stunning photos of Namibia, check these out as well:

http://www.shareordie.in/etosha-national-park-in-namibia/

http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Africa/Namibia/

http://www.phototravels.net/namibia/index.html

Sidenote: StumbleUpon was brought to my attention by this batch here.

Climb Aboard With Captain Morgan

2008-11-18T17:28:00.000-08:00

In a struggle for blogging material I'm turning to the random things I come across in this beautiful world wide web of ours. Today, in the internet brought me to the beautiful pirate world of Captain Morgan.

It has often been my dream to be a pirate and sail the seven seas in search of nothing really. Going from port to port. Parrots. Exotic locations. Singing "Yo ho yo ho the pirates life for me." Not bad I say. I know my friend Birch would join the pirate life for the rum alone. All he needs is a boat at this point.

But back to Captain Morgan. They are doing a below average job with their site. Ya they show the different products and display a few pics of skantily clad women but other than that there isn't much reason to stay beyond 1 minute. They are always pushing the tv spots showing people doing the famous "leg lift" on a barrel of rum. I think to provide an experience on the site they need to create something where people can upload pictures of themselves doing the leg lift. Create a community atmosphere. Something to get people more involved with the site and product. Otherwise this site was a pretty big waste of time.

The Captain Morgan people should have a look at Bacardi, as their site is a little better and offers more for the user.

Bolivia's Aurora Get Stuck In

2008-11-14T10:23:00.000-08:00

Bolivian league champions Aurora decided to have a go at the police during their game the other night. South American's are the best soccer fighters by far. Their kicks and flailing are right out of a Van Damme flick. And look how resoureful they can be, goalkeeper Silvio Dulcich using the corner flag to wail away on the cops like he is William Wallace. 10 points Silvio.

Somehow, Aurora was able to win the game 1-0. Don't ask me how. I saw at least a few bookable offenses. But I understand why the police got involved in the first place to escort a player of the pitch. Anyone who receives a red card isn't in the best mood and probably doesn't want to be touched.

At 2:15 it looks like they decided to line-up for a rugby scrum.

Maple Story Virtual Murder Drama

2008-11-10T14:26:00.000-08:00

HAHA...I had never heard of Maple Story before this story, but I must say, I'm interested now:

"JAPANESE piano teacher has been arrested on suspicion of killing her “virtual husband” after becoming enraged that he suddenly divorced her in an online game.

The 43-year-old woman allegedly hacked into a man’s computer and killed off his avatar in the popular interactive game Maple Story, the Associated Press reported.

The woman, who is in custody on suspicion of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating electronic data, allegedly used the man’s ID and password to log on and carry out the virtual murder in May, said a police official in the northern city of Sapporo, according to the AP.

“I was suddenly divorced, without a word of warning. That made me so angry,” the police official quoted the woman as telling investigators.

The man behind the woman’s online husband, a 33-year-old office worker, complained to police when he discovered that his online avatar was dead.

The woman was arrested on Wednesday, police said. She had not yet been charged but if convicted could face up to five years in prison or a fine of up to $5000 ($7400).

Maple Story players create and manipulate avatars that represent themselves in relationships, social activities and fighting monsters and other obstacles."

This is when you know you have no life. Killing avatar's of online husbands. When I first read this I thought it was a bit harsh to give her jail time. Then I thought about it a little more and maybe the best thing for the world and the city of Sapporo is that this woman is locked up. Imagine what she'd do if her real life mate were to dump her. Be like the return of Godzilla.

I have an idea for this woman. At 43, maybe stop toying with little online fake people and put on a nice outfit, heals, and go find yourself a man in the flesh. Not pixels. Just an idea. Last time I checked avatar's weren't capable of mating. C'mon Japan, lock it up.

James Bond's New Gadget: Ericsson C902

2008-11-05T13:55:00.001-08:00

Brands are always chomping at the bit to get involved in the next Bond flick. BMW made a big push in the Pierce Brosnan Bond films by having Bond's high tech, fully equipped car be the stage for their latest release. Thanks to "Q", the car was cooler than than even BMW could imagine.

Walking to work this morning saw a giant Omega watch ad featuring James Bond (Daniel Craig). Looks like they were able to cut a deal and have Bond use their watch to freeze dry chicken, harpoon marlins and blend a margarita (See Below). Publicity publicity publicity.

Now to the feature of this post: Sony Ericsson were able to make their new C902 Titanium Silver Cyber-shot phone James Bond's choice for mobile in Quantum of Solace, in U.S. theaters November 14th.

Rather than rest on their laurels, Sony Ericsson has decided to not let the movies popularity be the sole purpose of this engagement. Instead they have created a content-rich microsite offering users “Directive C902”, an interactive movie that puts the player’s secret agent skills to test in four separate missions.

"Designed to show off the phone’s features and functions, the movies have been filmed in the style of a spy thriller, and every time a player completes a level they unlock an exclusive phone application as well as gaining access to the next level of the game.

The applications up for grabs – which are all fake but made to look real to the unsuspected onlooker - include a fingerprint scanner, an x-ray viewer and a universal detector.

A wireless spy cam, which allows users to set their phone up to take photos at regular intervals for a set period of time, is also unlocked when different levels of the game are completed.

The campaign is running in 42 countries and anyone can play the games online, regardless of whether they have a Sony Ericsson phone, but when each level is completed and the option is offered to download the spy-themed application, only Sony Ericsson handset-owners will be able to take advantage.

When all levels are completed, users can enter to win a VIP trip to Monte Carlo. The website also hosts the Quantum of Solace trailer and information on Sony Ericsson phones."

To check out what Sony Ericsson has put together, click here and test your spy skills.

Global Reactions to Obama's Election Victory

2008-11-05T13:36:00.000-08:00

Thanks to The Caucus, the New York Times' politics blog, you can read people's reactions from around the world reagrding Barack Obama's historic presidential election victory last night. Have a look here at what the people from countries beyond are saying.

Guinness Goes Mobile in Hong Kong

2008-11-05T12:51:00.000-08:00

Hong Kong must be a mobile hotbed because it seems brands and agencies alike are really trying to reach this market. I did a post a couple of months ago called "Nike Uses Emerging Media in Hong Kong". Now we have a new brand stepping up to the mobile Hong Kong plate, Guinness.

Brands increasingly want to offer consumers a service and this mobile application does exactly that by helping rugby fans have a good time in Hong Kong:

"When 20,000 overseas rugby fans descended on Honk Kong for the 2008 Sevens tournament, official sponsor Guinness did more than rely on pitch-side branding and stadium beer tents for its PR.

The drinks giant instead developed software for mobile phones that was designed to assist foreigners as they travelled round the city, watching matches and enjoying the attractions on offer.

The Guinness Passport to Greatness was an application that could be downloaded from websites, WAP-sites and by texting an SMS shortcode, and in return offered all manner of information on the tournament, from team pools and fixtures to stadium directions and the nearest Guinness outlet.

But the selling point of the application was the Cantonese-speaking feature that allowed users to enter questions or the names of tourist hotspots and then get the phone to “speak” to locals in their native language. Passers-by could be stopped and asked, for example, where the nearest ATM was, and taxi-drivers could be played a recording of the name and address of a bar or restaurant and so deliver their passenger efficiently.

More than 100 popular phrases were pre-programmed into the phone, allowing users to do everything from order beer to chat up pretty ladies.

Users were driven to download the application via a competition to win Sevens tickets, which was spread virally online through the Hong Kong RFU and this was supported with a targeted email blast and international PR activity.

The Passport to Greatness application was downloaded thousands of times and resulted in a 30% increase in Guinness sales for the month, compared to the previous year. It also won the brand extensive free publicity."

This was all put together via brand owners Diagio along with Ogilvy.

The Sad Broker Blog

2008-10-28T08:58:00.000-07:00

Check out this blog deemed The Brokers With Hands On Their Faces to see the reactions of those on the front lines of our national economic meltdown. Looks like they could use a hug.

Nike Soccer: "Blood, Sweat & Tears: Planting the Seed" Video

2008-10-20T16:54:00.000-07:00

Check out Nike's latest video call "Blood, Sweat and Tears: Planting the Seed". The video shows interviews and footage of Giovani Dos Santos, Sergio Aguero, Park Ji Sung, Lucas Neill, Ryan Babel and Clint Dempsey speaking about what soccer was like for them as children.

In this, the first episode of Blood, Sweat and Tears, describe the moments that inspired them to devote their lives to the game. Check it out as it can be inspiring to any young player out there.

Terry Tate Is Back & Palin Feels It

2008-10-20T12:32:00.000-07:00

The "Office Linebacker" is back and he's throwing the hard hits to politicians now. Palin gets "jacked up" in mid conversation with Katie Couric. Pretty funny.

You may remember Terry Tate for his hard hitting office antics a couple years ago. Now he's trying to show people where they can vote. But he still brings the paaaaaaaaain babaaaaaay. Whoooooooooo!

Oldest Living Has Palin on SNL

2008-10-20T10:36:00.001-07:00

In case you missed Saturday Night Live this weekend, Sarah Palin was on it with some hilarity. Not from her of course but from the cast and various guests. Mark Wahlberg even made an appearance to go toe-to-toe with Andy Samberg following Samberg's skit about Wahlberg talking to animals.

You can find all these SNL goodies at Jim Nichols blog right here.

Catalyst:SF Presents: "Man On the Street"

2008-10-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

Palin As President Landing Page Fun

2008-10-15T15:08:00.000-07:00

If you like Sarah Palin or even if you don't, you will get a laugh out of this site I stumbled upon called PalinAsPresident. I have to think that this site is for the Palin bashers out there who feel she is a modern day political Teddy Ruxpin, regurgitating what she is told to say. I'm going to take the high road on this one but she sure is creating a lot of buzz. I mean Larry Flynt is already making a porn with a Palin look-a-like in it called "Nalin' Paylin". Oh what a country we live in.

But thats neither here nor there. At PalinAsPresident you can click around on most of the objects in the room and get a some cheeky Palin audio. (Try and click on everything you see as most objects are clickable). So turn your speakers up and play around. You just might learn how to speak Alaskan. (Wink)

P.S. Play with the door. Open and close it a few times until the deer shows up. Then click on the deer for some good ole Alaskan fun.

Firebox Sells the "WineRack"

2008-10-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

This one is for the ladies. Online retailer Firebox has started selling a magical devise for women, the "WineRack". This little gem is the answer to female concert go-ers everywhere who struggle with the problem of sneaking in booze. Gotta love the tag line, "My cups runeth over!" Well i have a new one, "Very approachable". Get it. Wine is approachable. Ladies become more...Whatever.

For only $29.95, you too can own this music festival money saver. Check out this video to see live demo's :http://www.firebox.com/video/1365

Levi's, "Unbutton Your Beast"

2008-10-15T14:30:00.000-07:00

Levi's has come out with a cheeky little website deemed "Unbutton Your Beast" to go along with their "Live Unbuttoned" slogan they are unning with. (Your beast being your phallic appendage). It's kinda funny. Go check out the site and select from a number of different trouser "beasts". I personally want "Saucy Sal" digging around in my pants. From here you can record a message to send out to people. It's good 6th grader humor.

Levi's branding play is kind of refreshing with the DR economy we now live in. Hopefully we can see more stuff like this from other brands in the near future. Maybe Victoria's Secret having "Bra Bandits" which are all different kinds of fruit. Eh, stretching things now aren't I. Wrist slap.

Steve Nash Is The Best

2008-10-14T12:01:00.000-07:00

Obviously that statement in the title is up to debate. But besides Kobe, Steve Nash in my opinion is the best player in the NBA. I'm sure I'm exercising some favoritism to Nash because he loves playing soccer, but 2 MVP titles sort of gives me the backing for such statements. Maybe it's no coincidence that the 2 best players in the world play and are avid soccer fans. Hmmmmm.

Above is a Nike ad from the past that I just recently stumbled upon again. The spot is a first person narrative from Nash explaining how soccer influences his game on the basketball court and shows you just how talented he is on the pitch.

I've had the pleasure to play against his brother, Martin Nash, who is with the Vancouver Whitecaps. So it's easy to see how he could be such a talent. Bloody runs in the family. Once he was asked in an interview who he models his game (basketball) after and he responded, "Zinedine Zidane". I love it.

Anyway. Another day, another great Nike ad.

New Nike "Fate" Leave Nothing Ad

2008-10-13T10:34:00.000-07:00

I know this is the wrong kind of football for this place but a good ad is a good ad. This is the latest Nike Football commercial which is directed by David Fincher.

The video shows life-long journey of pro football players LaDainian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers and Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers as their destinies collide in an NFL football game.

As you would expect, such quality could only come from the wizardry of Weiden + Kennedy. They just understand how to put together an excellent spot. I don't even play football or even watch it any more for that matter, and I still got chills watching it. I like baby Polamalu trying to surf his coffee table. I'm sure his mom was none to proud of him destroying furniture. Although, now she probably has marble coffee tables from the mines of Tenochtitlan. Not a bad trade off I say.

Cruzcampo Wants Spain To Be Happy

2008-10-10T11:04:00.000-07:00

It's international weekend and if Spain have a bad performance, I think Cruzcampo could be to blame. The Spanish beer giants are the official sponsor of the Spanish National team and are in a generous mood.

For winning the 2008 European Championships Cruzcampo have decided to give each member of that championship side, their weight in beer. As you can see, Liverpool goalie Pepe Reina is trilled after weighing in at 211 pounds.

Europeans are more fun. I might just call up Cruzcampo and see what they are doing in online. Maybe they could benefit from some exchange buying. I hear there is a company called Catalyst:SF who does such a thing. So if you are listening, Cruzcampo, call me.

New Sim City Creator Ad

2008-10-09T13:59:00.000-07:00

Create. Enjoy. Destroy. One of my childhood favorite video games, SimCity is back with it's latest installment SimCity Creator .

The best part about this game is that it is available for Nintendo Wii. So at the ripe age of 25, if I want to enjoy a little Sim action, I don't have to be glued to my computer. Somehow Wii just makes things less dorky and mainstream. You just might see me standing in line at Best Buy with SimCity Creator in my hand.

On a side note, the video you have watched, or will watch after reading, was done by Weiden + Kennedy up in Portland. If you think their work is good, wait util you see their site. The W+K timeline they have is quality. Shout-out to Renny Gleeson.

New Fall Extreme Sport: Golden Parachuting

2008-10-08T11:44:00.000-07:00

Exactly Ronnie. What is that up there? That's right, it's another golden parachute for another hapless financial executive in this country. Makes me sick reading the following from the SFGate:

"Lawmakers also condemned Sullivan for urging AIG's board on March 11 to ignore the mounting loss in the unit that sold credit default swaps when issuing bonuses to 70 executives. Sullivan said he was trying to retain the company's top talent.

"Trust me, I was focusing more on them than me," he said. At the same meeting, the board approved a $15 million golden parachute for Sullivan.

"AIG officials on Tuesday said the $440,000 trip to the resort in Southern California was a reward for the firm's top insurance salespeople and was scheduled a year ago. But even the firm's former executives questioned employees for proceeding with the trip in light of the federal bailout."

Call me crazy, but when you do your job so poorly that you are losing billions of dollars, how does that equate to a $15 million departure. AAAAAAAHHHHHHH. Pisses me off so much I cannot write any more without going into a cursing tirade. You can read the full article of the bullshit practices that took place here.

FIFA '09 Is Out

2008-10-06T16:47:00.000-07:00

FIFA '09 has been released on all formats in the U.K. and by the looks of things is a vast improvement on previous failures.

In my opinion the FIFA series has slumped dramatically as video game systems have improved. During that time, FIFA games always looked great, but the game play was utter dog excrement from a purist perspective. All you had to do was give the ball to Rooney or Ronaldo and press turbo and no one could stop you. Not so much fun. The last really good one was FIFA '99 for Nintendo 64. But that's just me.

Check out the site EA Sports has put together for the games U.K. release.

Glam Launches African-American Women's Network

2008-10-06T16:20:00.000-07:00

Glam Media has announced that they have launched Glam Black Life, a collection of long-tail sites focused on beauty and fashion targeted to black women.

Among the 50 sites included in the new network-which Glam claims in aggregate reachs 4 million unique users-are Shake Your Beauty, Afrobella and The Fashion Bomb. To lead Glam Black Life, the company has tapped current Glam Beauty Editor India-Jewel Jackson to oversee all original editorial content, while Tamera Reynolds, formerly of Sahara Media’s Honey Magazine, will serve as director of the network. In addition, former BET director of national sales Asten Morgan Jr. will head up national sales efforts for new venture.

Glam, which was recently named to AdweekMedia’s Digital Hot List, has landed Lexus as Glam Black Life’s initial sponsor. The auto company will roll out its Luxuryawaits.com campaign this October.

35 Minutes of Mayhem

2008-10-06T12:14:00.000-07:00

The ULTIMATE COMPILATION!!!
by phillyblacklite

Thanks to YourDailyMedia and WithLeather I bring to you a 35 min video of the incredibly bored, incredibly stupid and just incredibly un-lucky (like the little baby @ 24:05 who gets snippered by the cat) individuals of the world. It's thanks to about 90% of the people in this video that us normal people watch and say, "Well I'll be sure to never do that."

There's even a couple of office tirades @ 9:30 in. Classy mental blow-ups. But the Steven Gerrard snub by the little Chelsea fan @ 15:53 takes the cake for me. Well played by the diminutive Blues supporter. I bet John Terry put him up to it.

The rest of the people in this video are idiots. But sometimes it's just fun to watch idiots do dumb things. I mean, a horse takes a dump on a woman's head @ 22:45. Hey lady, maybe you shouldn't crawl around down there. Lessoned learned I say.

ESPN Broadens Reach In Mexico, Europe

2008-10-04T10:40:00.000-07:00

ESPN has announced its plans to increase its brand visibility in Mexico and Europe starting February 1, 2009. ESPN plans on executing this strategy through its North American Sports Network, or NASN.

NASN, which ESPN bought last year, is currently in 14 million European homes and 3 million in the Middle East. NASN currently carries the Super Bowl in several countries, including Germany and France. The plan is for NASN to take on the ESPN America moniker which will expand ESPN’s brand to a variety of different countries.

ESPN is also expanding brand awareness through credit cards in other countries. Currently they are part of a joint venture to launch a credit card in Mexico, with the Santander ESPN credit card. The card will offer customers the opportunity to earn points to be used for tickets to the X Games Mexico and the ESPY Awards.

While I'm At It, Another Cool Radiohead Video

2008-10-02T16:37:00.000-07:00

Here is the "Thumbs Down Version" for Radiohead's "Jigsaw Falling Into Place". I'm not sure how they did it but I have to assume it has something to do with those snazzie cameras attached to those bike helmets. Check it out.

Radiohead - Jigsaw Falling Into Place (thumbs down version)

Radiohead Aniboom Video Contest

2008-10-02T15:30:00.000-07:00

For those of you who missed it, Radiohead put on a competition for people to make animated videos from any one of their songs on their latest album "In Rainbows". In order to put on the contest Radiohead teamed up with animators Aniboom and Myspace. Although it's over, it is still a great example of getting consumers to interact with a brand via a contest. Check out the video below for the competition info.

RADIOHEAD + ANIBOOM + MYSPACE VIDEO COMPETITION

Here is an example of one of the videos put together during the competition. This video was done by Clement Picon to "Reckoner" and is a visual masterpiece. Enjoy.

Radiohead - Reckoner - by Clement Picon

UPDATE: Radiohead have actually asked if they can use this video as the official video for "Reckoner" because they love the way it flows with the song.

XBOX's New Great Britain Site

2008-10-01T16:17:00.000-07:00

For those of you living the Great British Isles, this may be nothing new to you. But for the rest of us, the new XBOX Great Britain website is different class (as they say). It makes the US version look like a beta release.

Upon arrival at the British XBOX destination, you will see the aesthetically pleasing video they have in the background. This is really cool stuff. The video changes based on which category of games you select: Movie, Party, Family, Heroic, Sports or Music. This is a great way for Microsoft to display it's latest XBOX games for a, can't believe I am going to say this, great user experience. Well, I enjoy it. Maybe you will too.

If you didn't click above, check out the videos displayed in a their high definition form here.

P.S. Great work to whichever agency does XBOX Great Britain!

David Letterman's John McCain Rant

2008-10-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

Recently John McCain canceled on "Late Show" host David Letterman and it really rubbed him the wrong way. McCain exlained to Letterman via phone call that he had to cancel on the host because he was postponing his presidential campaign and flying back to Washington D.C. because of the financial crisis the country was undertaking. This didn't sit well Letterman as he went on a 9 min rant about McCain's actions.

The icing on the cake for Letterman was when a feed of McCain on Katie Couric's show is patched over to him. This puts him over as he completely begins to ignore guest Keith Olbermann. Funny stuff. Have a look.

Johnnie Walker Goes Mobile In Singapore

2008-09-30T16:15:00.000-07:00

In an effort to piggy-back the buzz surrounding the first ever night race in Formula 1 history, which took place in Singapore this past weekend, Johnnie Walker unveiled a mobile initiative to help race visitors find they way to all the Singapore hot-spots during race weekend. The mobile personal assistant, otherwise known as Jennie, also helped race fans stay up to date with the latest Formula 1 gossip surrounding the event. According to CMDGlobal:

The venerable whiskey brand announced plans for the
digital personal assistant late last year and has launched
it as a bespoke mobile guide to what for one weekend will
be the fastest city on earth.

The mobile DPA also known as Jennie will keep subscribers
updated on the race, the trendiest bars, hotels and restaurants
as well as providing responsible drinking messages and
numbers to call a cab home.

The platform is being promoted via SMS, email, promotional
material in bars and via brand ambassadors at key venues.
Bluetooth booths at important locations around Singapore will
also make sure the mobile PDA is a must-have for race fans.

Jennie was developed by OgilvyOne’s Digital Innovation Lab and is being planned to be rolled out in other markets like Singapore’s. Johnnie Walker is among other established brands that are finding new and inventive ways to interact with customers. Stay tuned in a Formula 1 event location near you, as Jennie may be showing you around town.

Nintendo Wii Destroys YouTube Via Wario

2008-09-26T16:41:00.000-07:00

Nintendo has made an awesome play in promoting its release of Wario Land: Shake it by destroying YouTube.

Now that I have your attention, click here to watch Wario's gameplay break apart the standard YouTube layout. This is a great example of creating a good viral campaign to promote a product. Hats off to Nintendo for thinking outside the box.

Californication Is Back

2008-09-26T14:43:00.000-07:00

The hit Showtime show (and personal favorite of mine) Californication is back with its Season 2 premiere this weekend. I'm looking forward to another season of Handy Moody and his various escapades with scantilly clad women. I can't help but wonder if David Duchovny's character had a direct affect on his admitance of being addicted to porn a month ago.

Anyway, above is a preview of the upcoming season which looks like a doozie. If you would like to see more about the upcoming season click here. Showtime is even offering people who visit the site the ability to view the premiere online before this Sunday's opening. Quite the play if you ask me.

If you are a fan of the other Showtime shows like Dexter or Weeds, you should check out the Showtime site as they had done a great job of leveraging the power of the web. Enjoy the premiere.

Oldest Living's Walker Is Getting Use

2008-09-16T14:04:00.000-07:00

2008 blogging phenom Jim Nichols is on the move as he has changed his highly touted blogs URL to www.oldestliving.com/.

To commemorate his move, Oldest Living has come screaming out of the gates with a post containing a list of 202 links to viral marketing videos, minisites, etc. You read it correctly, 202. You can see the post with all the videos here.

If you are new to his blog, you are going to one day thank me for introducing it to you becuase it is contains a wealth of knowledge. You will go from a zero to a hero just by reading. And if you are already a hero, you can tack a "super" in front of that now. Enjoy.

Yearbook Yourself!

2008-09-12T15:01:00.001-07:00

Ever looked through your parents old high school yearbooks and made fun of them for their wacky hairdo's? Well I did and still do. Now us youngsters can see what we would have looked like during the 70's (or any decade for that matter) with a new site called Yearbook Yourself.

Clearly running off of the back of the success of Office Max's "Elf Yourself", Yearbook Yourself allows you to see what you would have looked like in the 50's, 60's, 70's etc. based on trendy hairstyles of those times.

Give it a look during your break or if you just need to kill some time and put a mop-top on that pretty face of yours. I'm sure the ladies out there will use it to create new Facebook profile pics or something to that effect. Women.

Do You Hate Setanta?

2008-09-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

England's The Spoiler is asking readers if they hate Setanta or not becuase of the unavailability of watching England World Cup Qualifiers. As a Setanta subscriber here in the U.S. I too was amazed at the games being shown this weekend on Setanta. Armenia vs Turkey was a real barn burner. Followed by another highly touted game in Denmark and Hungary's thrilling 0-0 draw.

If you wanted to watch England vs. Andorra, it was on a pay-per-view for around $20. Not a chance I was going to pay further to watch England play such a minnow of an opponent. Pretty much as an American and footie fan, Setanta is only good for Barclays Premiership matches and nothing further. I can't cram into pubs at 6am anymore any pay $20 at the door to stand shoulder to shoulder with Chelsea fans. The couch is much more pleasing.

Anyway, if you'd like to chime in on The Spoiler's poll, you can go here and give your two cents.

Seinfeld & Bill Gates Team Up In New Microsoft Ad

2008-09-08T08:52:00.001-07:00

Here is the new Microsoft ad which features Bill Gates (naturally) and Jerry Seinfeld. I don't really have much to ad to this post on such a fine San Francisco Monday other than Seinfeld adds his usual class to a seemingly dull product. The contrast between Seinfeld's comedic genius and Gates' dry demeanor makes for a compelling combo. Hopefully there will be more to come from Microsoft featuring the two as anything Seinfeld does I am up for.

My brain isn't working today so there will be nothing further to add other than the drivel you just read above. Watch the video. Laugh. Enjoy your day. Churro.

Major Mistake @ Carat

2008-09-03T13:04:00.000-07:00

A major error was made @ the Carat NY office from the head of HR. An e-mail that was supposed to go to executives regarding plans for future lay-offs, was accidentally sent to everyone in the agency. The e-mail, which was supposedly only sent to the Carat NY office, was then leaked to Advertising Age which you can read here.

The Ad Age article outlines that there were two memos leaked to them from a unknown Carat source:

This is a major issue for Carat. With the problems of losing business already at the forefront the last thing they needed was to have to deal with a blunder of this magnitude. It will be interesting to see how CEO Sarah Fay deals with the situation. The axe may swing higher than originally expected.

Romanian Soccer Player Breaks Transfer Record

2008-08-28T13:23:00.000-07:00

(Que the circus music) Not really. But he did get sold for 15 kilos worth of meat. This kind of circus act could only happen in Adam Bergman's favorite league, the Romanian 2nd Division.

The blockbuster deal was brokered by UT Arad of the 2nd division (who apparently have a barbecue this weekend that they needed food for) and Regal Horia of the Romanian 4th division. The poor sap who was traded for the meat, defender Marius Cioara.

Regal Horia will feel hard done by though because after the trade was made Cioara decided to call it quits on his playing days. I don't blame him either. It's kind of a sign that your form has dipped a little when the team that traded you doesn't even want a player but table scraps in return. Either that or they are just Romanian idiots. I say a combo of both.

A Regal official was quoted, following the news that Cioara has made the decision to retire, as saying, "We are upset because we lost twice -- firstly because we lost a good player and secondly because we lost our team's food for a whole week."

Not to worry though. I heard there was a inexpensive heifer in the next village that is a great ball winner. Also if she has a nightmare of a game, they can just, ya know, eat her.

....

UPDATE: Apparently this is common practice in Romania as you can read here from my friend at Wayodd.

Radiohead At Outside Lands Festival

2008-08-27T16:46:00.000-07:00

For those of you who weren't as fortunate as me to see Radiohead live in San Francisco the other night, here is a clip of the one of the best songs they performed:

Although I admit the sound outages were a pain in the ass, the overall performance, music and visuals were amazing. As you can see in the song above "Talk Show Host", during some songs there were camera's focused on each band member making for an amazing experience.

During the beginning of the song "Videotape" there was a camera placed right in front of Thom Yorke's face on his piano. This made for some interesting projections that even Thom couldn't help but break out laughing, almost falling out of his seat.

The typical foggy, summer San Francisco weather made the first night performance in Golden Gate Park's history a perfect match an complimented Radiohead's melodic sound. I am counting the days until they return to play when there isn't a curfew to abide by.

Here was the set list:

1. 15 Step

2. Reckoner

3. Airbag

4. There There

5. All I Need

6. Nude

7. Talk Show Host

8. National Anthem

9. The Gloaming

10. Videotape

11. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

12. Idioteque 13. Karma Police

14. Jigsaw Falling Into Place

15. Just

16. Exit Music (for a film)

17. Bodysnatchers

Encore:

18. Pyramid Song

19. You And Whose Army?

20. Paranoid Android 2

1. Fake Plastic Trees

22. Everything In Its Right Place

Lucozade Ups Your Game

2008-08-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

With the Barclays English Premier League about to start this weekend, I really hope the players on my fantasy team are drinking more Lucozade in hopes that it helps them performance at their best. (I need a good opening week for bragging rights.)

I mean look what it did for this team here, in Lucozade's new online effort.

Unoriginality Strikes Again...And Again

2008-07-31T14:04:00.000-07:00

We have another entry in the bowel churning fad of "i" names. Two entries to be exact.

The first comes from the ever so yuppie area in San Francisco called the Marina. I was there trying to get some food this past weekend, when I pulled into a parking structure and saw this:

I am actually not surprised by this. I would almost expect some marina tool to try and spruce up his parking garage by adding this. You can park in the iSpot, go to the iRestaurant, tip the iWaitress and then kiss your iGirlfriend. Ughhhhhhhh.

The second comes via Adam Bergman and the SkyMall on United Airlines. A magazine where useless products and “i”names go hand in hand. I reveal to you the iSqueez:

Why is it called iSqueez? Because it clearly squeezes your feet and calves. And when their product team couldn’t think of a name, some genius throughout the obvious. I mean at this point you might as well start branding your terds with an “i” in the front. Thanks Brookstone.

That’s it for the latest edition of the “i” fiasco. I can’t talk about this anymore today because it just bothers me that much.

Isobar In A Nutshell

2008-07-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

In case you were like me and didn't really know what Isobar did in the advertising game, take 8 minutes out of your life and educate yourself here.

"Dark Knight" Delivers the Goods

2008-07-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

Why so Serious? Well it's because I got 4 hours of sleep last night thats why. But it was for a good reason. After work my girlfriend, friends and I decided to wait in line for 6 hours to see the 12:01 showing of The Dark Knight at the AMC Van Ness 14. Dedication my friends. Let me tell you, I would have waited 12 hours to see this film. Notice I say "film" there. That's because this wasn't your run of the mill action/super hero movie. This had every bit the panache of a cinematic masterpiece. Director Christopher Nolan and his cast and crew can rest easy knowing they have made history with their work.

There was a lot of hype around the movie because of Heath Ledger and his tragic passing. Much deserved hype. His performance, whether dead or alive is nothing short of amazing and should take it's lion share of awards next winter. He will have forever embedded himself in Hollywood folklore having passed on such a theatrical high.

Another hot topic was that Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker far supersedes that of Jack Nicholson's. Let me clear the air here. Heath Ledger gives a flawless performance as a darker more vindictive Joker in a darker more malevolent installment of the Batman franchise. No one can question that. He was incredible. As was Nicholson in an entirely different version of the story. People forget that although they both played the Joker, it is a different character entirely.

Jack Nicholson's character has a name beyond the Joker in Jack Napier and is transformed into that criminal. As far as we are concerned with Ledger's Joker in Dark Night, he's just a nut looking to inflict chaos in Gotham's citizens and expose Batman for who he is. Not much background is given. Each actor does the most with the feel of each movie. Picture Nicholson's Joker as P. Diddy in Mo' Money Mo' Problems with the flash and glam. Ledger's Joker is more of the underground figure head who doesn't care about recognition, just chaos. Both 10's in my book. People should go back and watch the original Batman and remember that is was done almost 20 YEARS AGO and Nicholson’s performance was top class.

With all the hype around Heath, it's easy to overlook the performances of the others. But only a fool would do so. Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman and Aaron Eckhart all give top-notch performances. Maggie Gyllenhaal is less than desirable. I don't know, maybe it's because she looks like Deputy Dog or Harry Redknapp.

The movie as a whole is a 9.9 in my book. It’s more than an action movie in that it applies a philosophical element to it to go along with gadgets, explosions and thrills. I am not going to give anything away here because I want everyone to experience the film the same way I did. Please, when you are done reading, buy your ticket online at http://www.moviefone.com/, http://www.movietickets.com/ or http://www.fandango.com/ and go see it. If you are a Batman fan like myself, you will not be disappointed. Hopefully you won’t have to wait as long as I did. In the end though, I earned it and it tasted f-ing sweet.

Radiohead's "House of Cards" Video

2008-07-17T15:11:00.000-07:00

Radiohead continues to go where no other band has gone before with their latest video for "House of Cards"off of their latest album In Rainbows. Believe it or not, it has been filmed without the use of a camera or light.

This is just the latest Radiohead move as they continue to revolutionize the music industry. When they released In Rainbows, they made it available solely online and allowed consumers to pay whatever they wanted for it. I personally paid 8 pounds ($16) becuase I have stolen enough music in my life. It made me feel good. Figured I needed the Karma points.

Apparently this video was filmed using 3D plotting technologies. I have no idea what that means but it sounds really f-ing cool. Don't believe me, see the video for yourself:

Anheuser-Busch Decides to Dance With InBev

2008-07-15T09:21:00.000-07:00

What does it take to sell away your family empire? Apparently, $52 Billion. It was reported yesterday that the board of directors of Anheuser-Busch have agreed to terms with Belgium's InBev to combine the two companies forming "Anheuser-Busch InBev".

With these two brewing titans joining forces like Rocky and Apollo Creed, Anheuser-Busch InBev now controls over a quarter of the world's beer market.

For those of you who aren't familiar with InBev, they are the makers of one of my favorite beers, Belgium's Stella Artois as well as Brazil's Brahma, Argentina's Quilmes, China's Sedrin, South Korea's Cass and Germany's Beck's to name a few.

According to Tom Pirko, president of California consulting firm Bevmark, "This is truly one of those win-win situations where everyone should be pleased as punch". InBev CEO Carlos Brito "got what he wanted — took down the big prize. And (Anheuser-Busch) shareholders got a major premium that would have been in doubt for a long time to come."

Call me crazy, but selling off a family owned company that has been around since the Civil War to please some greedy shareholders seems a bit, um, sad. You always thought of a Budweiser as an American beer brewed by an Ameican family. The "American Dream" in action. German's coming to the US an creating an empire to be run for generations.

It seems today that people are lazy. What happened to competition. Every major company teams up with the next so that 4 compaines in the world own everything. Microsoft might be merging with Yahoo!. I don't know. It just bothers me. Pretty soon Ford will merge with Toyota and the Yankees will join forces with the Red Sox. Well, let's not get carried away.

But, after only 2 years at the helm, August A. Busch IV has sold his family's empire. His great grandfather spun so hard in his grave that he popped up in China. Hey, at least he can have Sedrin while he's down there and feel half as good about it.

Nike Understands the Soccer Fan

2008-07-09T14:27:00.000-07:00

I don't want to favor Nike over others but when it comes to digital, they are hands down doing the best work in the football/soccer industry. They truly embrace digital as a place where they can strengthen their brand by providing quality content for an amazing user experience.

Nike refers to these as "Brand Utilities". Their latest extension of this for soccer lovers is Boot Camp, where they have a number of videos from the pros showing you how they trained to get where they are today. It is described as a "World-class training program designed to turn you into a high-performance soccer player." It even offers:

Weekly Video Drills

Inspiration From Top Players

Personal Stats

Worldwide Player Rankings

And boasts a "30 % improvement in your power, speed and stamina"

It's basically a digital soccer class you can take for either 4 or 6 weeks. Genius.

This latest installment is of brand utility is of no surprise to me. I remember the early stages of nikefootball.com where they allowed kids from all over the world to upload their tricks and moves for all to rate, judge and mimic. Every practice and summer day for me was spent with friends trying to emulate what we saw on "NikeFootball". No other soccer brand I can think of had this sort of power over their community. If you loved soccer, it was the only site to visit.

The same holds true today. Fact is, Nike truly understands what soccer/football lovers want to see and experience. They provide users with something to take away with them every time they visit. Something new. Something to talk about. Something they've never seen. Whatever they experience they are sure to tell others about.

Let's see what Adidas has in response....

Tips From An Expert

2008-07-08T16:00:00.000-07:00

My colleague and idol Jim Nichols had an article published on iMedia Connection today that I think everyone should read. It's a great piece where Jim outlines 13 steps for proper selling techniques that can be applied to everyone, not just "sales people". I'll give you a teaser of what you have to look forward to:

"8.) Show excitement for your idea. For others to believe in something you are selling, they need reassurance that YOU believe in it. I once heard an art director say, "Well, here's an idea we threw together that seems to do the job." Translation: No thought went into this, and we have no idea if it will deliver. You should be going to clients with ideas you believe in -- that you are excited about. And you should show them that excitement in the way you present."

You can find the article here. Enjoy.

Release The Technorati Spiders

2008-07-07T17:24:00.000-07:00

Technorati Profile

Nike Uses Emerging Media In Hong Kong

2008-07-07T16:31:00.000-07:00

Nike has begun executing a mobile marketing campaign in Hong Kong to promote its latest T90 soccer cleat.

The campaign is a collaboration between The Hyperfactory, the self-proclaimed "most innovative mobile company on the planet" and ad agency McCann Erickson, who were responsible for the outdoor creative that Hong Kong residents are seeing.

Nike is hoping to target footwear crazy teens by placing hidden codes in Nike stores and subway stations throughout the city. The goal is for people to see these codes and take a picture of them with their mobile device. After doing so, a 3D image of the T90 cleat and a soccer ball appear on their phone. It will also disclose a special code that is for the specific location where the photo was taken and will send them to another location.

According to Giselle Ibromovich of Mobile Marketer, “Once consumers get the next location, they then can text in these special codes to find out the next secret destination. Texts will also count as a sweepstakes entry to win Nike merchandise.

The codes invite users to download a mobile application that allows them to view the T90 shoe from every angle in 3D on their mobile screens.The more codes that consumers collect, the more chances they have to win Nike gear.”

Nike felt the timing was right as EURO 2008 was recently in full swing and as well as the Olympics arriving in Beijing in a month. The Hyperfactory plans to roll-out the campaign in other cities as well but has yet to make anything official.

New 3G iPhone...I Don't Care

2008-07-02T12:12:00.001-07:00

I just received an email from Apple regarding the July 11th release of the new 3G iPhone. Let me tell ya, I don't give a rats a-hole. "Wow, it now has a headphone jack for all headphones." This is an amazing technological advancement. I can see why it took so long to release it.

I'm a BlackBerry guy and am very satisfied with my purchase. I've played around with friends' iPhones and would much rather use my phone and its WAP sites, which I find much easier to use than having to pinch the screen and all that other nonsense. ESPN looks just the same if not better WAP-ified.

In fact, I have many friends who have iPhones that expressed to me their desire to go back to a BlackBerry because of their dissatisfaction with the Apple product.

Well, to each his own and I prefer BlackBerry. Ya it doesn't have a camera (pending on which one you have) but not everything needs to be documented. I don't get all hot & bothered when Apple releases their latest gadget to get people to spend even more money on their products, for no reason, like the MacBook Air. It's skinny. So is Amy Winehouse. Big Deal.

iCarly? WTF!

2008-07-02T09:41:00.000-07:00

So this morning I was on iTunes buying a song. An amazing song at that. I discovered it while reading my esteemed colleagues blog Oldest Living Digital Marketer* Tells All. The song is called "Praan" by Gary Schyman. I strongly recommend purchasing it.

Anyway, while on iTunes a looked to the left to find in the "Top TV Episodes"category a show called "iCarly". The show is put on Nickelodeon and follows Carly and her friends try to mange their oh so difficult lives in the 8th grade. Makes me wonder if the shows I watched on Nickelodeon growing up were this crappy. Eh, they probably were. But "Wild & Crazy Kids" was quality. I don't care what you say.

I did a post a while back about my strong dislike for these kinds of names and finding this show only further fuels the fire of disdain. EVERY EPISODE BEGINS WITH "i". For example: "iWanna Stay With Spencer". Unbelievable. Because of this latest finding I am going to start posting weekly findings of stupid iNames I come across. So stay tuned for that as my personal quest to rid the world of these atrocities of unoriginality strolls onward.

Naughty or Nice. Which Are You?

2008-07-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

The people at Rapleaf have come up with a fascinating technology that allows you to see what kind of persona you have on the net. Their tool allows you to "keep track of the searchable information about yourself that's on the net, and manage that information accordingly."

For instance, I'm a 5 which means I'm neither an A-Hole or a nice guy. On the scale a 10 means you are an angel that fell from heaven and would not utter a single word of negativity. A 1 means you were spawned in the depths of hell and should probably seek counseling of some sort.

Intrigued to find out what kind of rep you are dragging with you around the web, click here, enter your email address and click "look up". After this click on "reputation" and VIOLA!, there is your rep. Check it out.

I'm Maraka. Soy Maraka.

2008-06-17T15:25:00.000-07:00

Don't ask. I just think the video is funny. It's an SNL spoof of Dora the Explorer. And if you are familiar with what Dora the Explorer is then this will definitley give you a chuckle. You might even learn something.

Footbo Is For Footie Lovers

2008-06-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

With the EURO Championships in full bloom over in Austria and Swizterland, it only seemed fittng that I introduce you to a social networking site

Footbo.com, a new social community network for football fans from all around the world has launched, providing users with access to team and player profiles, blogs of other users as well as football personalities, predictions and much more…

Created for and by supporters of the game, Footbo.com is the online international network entirely dedicated to football. This niche platform has been designed to enable world-wide interaction between those sharing an interest in the beautiful game, and has initially been launched in English, German and Spanish.

Upon joining the site, users can personalise their profile page by identifying their favourite teams and players, and can choose their top 11 players. From that point on, the world of Footbo will be at their fingertips. The latest news and content, updates on fixtures and results, game predictions and player gradings, and groups and fan clubs are all part of the Footbo set-up.

Each team and player has a Wikipedia style profile, which can be edited and added to by users of Footbo, where the option exists to integrate pictures and videos into the body of the text profile. Why only read about a great winning goal, when the possibility exists to watch it as well?!

Also, Footbo enables its users keep updated on the thoughts and views of football analysts such as Rafi Honigstein, Guillem Balague and Gabriele Marcotti in such a way as to enable every fan the opportunity to interact with those professionally involved in the world of football.

Providing data on most of the leagues around the world, this site has something for every football fan and more. The only thing that’s left to make the community flourish is for football fans to visit www.footbo.com and to sign up!

Africa or Bust

2008-06-12T15:26:00.000-07:00

With the world focusing on South Africa in two summers for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, lets be mindful not to forget about neighboring Botswana. Often overlooked, Botswana is stepping up it's game by hosting one of the FP7 Training Workshops.

The FP7 Workshops are organized by IST-Africa Initiative, which is supported by the European Commission under the IST Programme of Framework Programme 6.

IST-Africa 2008 is the third in an Annual Conference Series which will bring together delegates from commercial, government & research organisations across Africa and from Europe, to bridge the Digital Divide by sharing knowledge, experience, lessons learnt and good practice.

Why is this important, because it's good to know that Botswana is bettering itself and getting involved in the digital space. That, and it's so random that you might just learn something about a country you didn't think existed.

iCantStandTheseNames

2008-06-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

Apple's genius made it famous. Every one's copying it. It's the "i" phenomenon and it's taking over company/product naming.

iStockphoto. A stereo PC headset I'm currently staring at from from a company called iBloks. There are even companies such as LinkSafe which specialize as i-name brokers because "The power of an i-name is that it stands for you". The list is infinite. But the coup de grâce for me is Specialty's iFood, which is nothing more than an adult Lunchable (Which were amazing as a child by the way. I was always able to trade for quality items at lunch with a Lunchable in hand.)

I would love to sit in that meeting room with their product team and listen to the conversation just to hear what goes on before such a decision is made. Are they starving for fresh thought? Any thought for that matter? If they are they can pay me and I'll come up with a better name than iFood. "Would you like an iDrink with that sir?"

If you look at the photo, they've even stole Apple's dancing silhouette concept from their commercials. Mind boggling.

Where does it stop. Ford releases the new "iTruck"? Ralph Lauren unveils their new "iSuit"? No, because these companies are innovative and smart. They come up with their own ideas and blaze their own trials rather than jumping in line with the rest of the heard. Credit Apple with coming up with such a simple and amazing concept but other companies need to establish their own identities and not just steal anther's.

The way things are going I'm waiting for the first child to be named "iKid" or "iSon". The would be the end of creative thinking as we know it.

Has the world become lovers of thyself? I hope not. Just remember, when your fresh out of ideas and names like Specialty's, just add an "i" and you're off and running somewhere. In what direction is to be determined.

I Mean...

2008-06-10T09:16:00.000-07:00

I'm just saying, check out the change in tone. I personally prefer tone #2. I think the news would be refreshing without the standard Ron Burgundy voices every night. We need bugs, in news rooms, STAT!

Minions We're Not

2008-06-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

There are some questions I would like to ask the advertising industry elders: (Let's just do this numerically in no particular order)

1. "Did you really think an English major, with no prior advertising/marketing experience, was really going to get it right away?"

2. "Can you please point me in the direction of the e-commerce site where I can purchase 10-15 years of experience?"

3. "Ever heard of the expression, 'Attitude reflects leadership’?”

The reason I bring this up is because this last week at the iMedia Agency Summit, it became clear to me that the ad industry hates young people. I listened in on a panel where even Beethoven could hear the theme of gender bashing. It went along the lines of, "My/the 25 yr old media planner ___________! (Insert complaint here) This wasn't the first time I have heard this sort of talk. It's pretty commonplace to pass the buck in this industry and who better to take the brunt than the youth.

The panel had one participant that really rubbed me the wrong way. Let's call her "Ms. S". After listening to Ms. S ramble on about her problems with her young team it got me thinking: If her employees are so bad at what they do, why on earth did she hire them in the first place? That followed with the premonition that maybe she is just a shite educator and judge of talent. I mean it's just as viable a theory as saying all 25 and under employees are idiots.

Now she may right in that her employees are not all they're cracked up to be and can't handle their workloads. But that doesn't mean all young professionals in the ad industry are as such. The problem with people like this is that their drivel has a trickledown effect. Because of my age, I am then perceived as though I have no idea what’s going on and my thoughts revolve around tequila shots and porn, not strategic deliberation.

A typical conversation I have with people at industry events starts with me introducing myself and telling them where I work. This usually follows with, "Oh, so you’re a Durham-ite eh!" or "Ahh, so you're one of Durham's minions!" My inner monologue instant replies with, "Go f*@# yourself buddy!" I'm not going to name names here, but to one person in particular, "Chris Cornell called me and he wants his look back mate. This is iMedia. Not Lollapalooza."

This whole age bias needs to stop in my opinion. Yes, I am younger. No, I don't possess the experience you have. How can I when you are 10-15 years my senior. Yes, I do enjoy a drink or two during the week or on weekends. You're a bleeping hypocrite if you say you did otherwise at that age. No, I do not know everything about this industry and how to properly execute certain things, but I am willing to learn as much as I can under your tutelage. If you are unhappy with your employees, maybe you should look at yourself and your inability to hire those capable of doing the job you require. Maybe you are not a good educator. Maybe you should consider one's pedigree before having them sign on the line that is dotted.

All in all, it's about the individual, not the masses. Stop generalizing and have a chat with me before you feel the need to do the grandma move, of pulling my cheeks, by calling me “minion or “–ite”.

I'm not an intern. I have a degree. Check it at the door.

Everywhere But Catalyst

2008-05-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

This video comes to me in a timely manner as I am a day away from flying to Austin for the iMedia Agency Summit.

I've never actually worked in a "traditional" ad agency but from what I've heard it's much like the video shown below. Luckily at my place of business is based upon being the alternative to such Tom Foolery. The cure for b.s. like this, Cory Treffiletti. Have a look at his blog for further insight in how to interact in the wild world of digital advertising.

Are You Having a Jesus Day?

2008-05-03T18:08:00.000-07:00

Gary Busey was on a show recently called "Prayer Hour". The only problem is, Ole Gary doesn't realize the show is a spoof from a production company. I have to question their choice of guest though. I mean I get it, he'll probably wig out. I'm just saying, if I were going to spoof someone, Gary Busey would be the last person I would want to mess with because he may just have a machete with him for some random reason. And Busey just may feel like giving you a military issue haircut for toying with his emotions. But if you're watching from the comfort of your own home, it's classic.

Is this thing on?

2008-03-24T13:39:00.000-07:00

Checking to make sure I'm up and jogging.