tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955Thu, 23 May 2013 16:35:15 +0000facebookKidsNew mediaClick-through rateResearchRineyRitz-CarltonActorsinformation"StrategyAdvertisingWeb bannerBloggingPornographyPoliticsTaco BellDisplay advertisingTiVopepperidge farmnewspaperspontiacCollegeSouth ParkagenciesBaseballExistentialismEngagementCustomer Service`VolvoCreativeSuper BowlentertainmentinternetMarketingChurchillBrandingWritingRoger Clemens's AssSouthwest AirlinesgarfieldandDOTACInternet marketingMediaBooksCranky opinions and advice from the ceo of a pretty big ad agency.http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)Blogger1146125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5947405505773875690Thu, 23 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-23T00:01:01.654-07:00 There is a universe that a certain kind of digital marketing bonehead comes from that has a language of its own. It's a horrible language. It is hugely annoying, but it is unrelenting and it seems to be spreading. It gives us compound words and neologisms that must seem terribly clever to illiterate nitwits, but make anyone with a sense of propriety want to commit hideous acts of violence. Somehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/94d-lBJJO9M/please-dont-use-that-word.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)4<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=94d-lBJJO9M:igdklW4n298:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/94d-lBJJO9M" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/please-dont-use-that-word.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5649972343563459861Wed, 22 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-22T06:34:23.175-07:00 Since the stupidity of the I.R.S. is all over the news, I thought I'd weigh in with my own I.R.S. story. This probably means they'll come to my house in the middle of the night and drag me off. But, as I'm sure you know, my dedication to my readers is more important than my freedom. So it's about 4 or 5 years ago and the I.R.S. decides to audit my agency. They came into the agency and went http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/9xPesZu-uTw/the-taxman-cometh.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)6<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=9xPesZu-uTw:9XyGGpAlJ-A:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/9xPesZu-uTw" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-taxman-cometh.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-2923340389341068598Mon, 20 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-20T02:47:26.952-07:00 Last week, Mashable asked the question, "Is Native Advertising Just Another Term For Good Advertising?" The answer is no, not quite. From what I can tell, native advertising is a horrible and misleading term that is being used to describe something that may actually turn out to be a good idea -- the application of traditional advertising principles to online advertising. Let me explain. Onlinehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/5xQgkZarIHg/native-advertising-traditional.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)16<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=5xQgkZarIHg:jSE4zA_v0U0:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/5xQgkZarIHg" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/native-advertising-traditional.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-1754381706686376931Thu, 16 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-16T00:25:13.825-07:00 Despite its dismal track record, spending on display advertising keeps growing at an astonishing rate. Forrester Research is projecting a 17% compound annual growth over the next 5 years. As far as I'm concerned, it's a house of cards. And if the house goes down, it will take a lot of advertising-supported online businesses with it. Here are some reasons I believe display is a house of cards: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/5OHu8X1Hlxk/display-house-of-cards.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)32<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=5OHu8X1Hlxk:2oxY7rGn0-g:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/5OHu8X1Hlxk" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/display-house-of-cards.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-4403196124984152845Wed, 15 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-15T00:09:32.362-07:00 After a few years in the business world, something occurred to me. I realized that the majority of the people I met in business were astonishingly stupid. Years later I was sitting around a bar with a couple of my agency colleagues. We had won a very important piece of business from a world class client. We were working with the very top people at the client and we were  astounded by their http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/_CjkZtik21I/how-dumb-people-become-successful.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)19<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=_CjkZtik21I:Dj5BNcFcezU:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/_CjkZtik21I" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/how-dumb-people-become-successful.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-8235552954143418250Mon, 13 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-13T00:01:01.077-07:00 Millennials or Gen Y or whatever nitwit cliche you want to use to describe people born between 1980 and 2000 are the current obsession of the marketing industry. I have a daughter right smack in the middle of this group. She is a lovely, wonderful, intelligent, well-educated, hard-working person. But she is... I guess the polite term would be "economically challenged." A good deal of what she http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/Dler_5d0cXc/mein-erster-blog-auf-deutsch.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)24<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=Dler_5d0cXc:4qV5-QWA188:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/Dler_5d0cXc" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/mein-erster-blog-auf-deutsch.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-9007413403429488877Thu, 09 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-12T21:06:40.477-07:00 One of the enduring absurdities of the marketing and advertising industries is the old wives' tale that "people over 50 want to be like young people." Ask any brain-dead CMO of a car company why the people who inhabit his commercials are all young, when 18-24 year-olds buy 1% of all new cars, and you'll get some version of that idiocy. It's what passes for "strategic thinking" in the Golden http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/sHNJE2CAFf0/meryl-streep-wants-to-be-barista.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)17<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=sHNJE2CAFf0:EaVRpDCgtz4:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/sHNJE2CAFf0" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/meryl-streep-wants-to-be-barista.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-3910041826263310364Wed, 08 May 2013 07:00:00 +00002013-05-08T08:17:53.808-07:00 This is the first video from my new company, Type A Group. To share this video, go here. Explanation: Earlier today I posted a different version of this video. It was called "19 Mind-Blowing Facts...". Because the blogging industry has such a bad reputation for accuracy, I try to be very scrupulous about what I publish as "facts." I checked all my sources and I realized that I had lost thehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/1eu06bB2s3g/17-mind-blowing-facts-about-people-over.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)10<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=1eu06bB2s3g:NMx3MnVsOvM:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/1eu06bB2s3g" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/17-mind-blowing-facts-about-people-over.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-1870405161377501065Tue, 07 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-07T00:06:41.413-07:00 Yesterday, Business Insider published a piece a wrote. I am reproducing it here today (with the correct title.) I went to the supermarket the other day. I walked up and down the aisles slowly. I noticed something. They have a lot of stuff. They have fresh stuff and canned stuff. They have packaged stuff and bottled stuff. They have new stuff and old stuff and expensive stuff and cheap stuff. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/qQkZL-vnhdk/where-are-brands.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)15<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=qQkZL-vnhdk:Bx57LvY2aeE:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/qQkZL-vnhdk" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/where-are-brands.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-4767020494036894770Mon, 06 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-06T00:01:01.393-07:00 Today I'm launching a new venture. It's called Type A Group. Type A is going to be an interesting company. It's not going to be an agency. Fortunately, I am in a position where I can work only on stuff that interests me. So Type A is going to  specialize in only three areas that I have a particular interest in: 1. Consulting to independent agencies. I have had the good fortune to help build http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/i1S4MoA1_OY/my-new-gig.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)14<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=i1S4MoA1_OY:6dUQXgh8zjY:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/i1S4MoA1_OY" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/my-new-gig.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-8370188980030047644Thu, 02 May 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-05-03T05:34:06.647-07:00 Earlier this week I posted a piece called Online Advertisers Getting Hosed. In it, I discussed the alarming amount of fraud being perpetrated against naive and confused online advertisers. But there's more. Not only are online advertisers getting screwed by crooks, some of them are also getting screwed by their agencies. For those of you who are too busy having a life to follow the arcane http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/tvJJoqezT_E/time-to-clean-out-stables.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)12<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=tvJJoqezT_E:45-p8p5rtKM:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/tvJJoqezT_E" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/05/time-to-clean-out-stables.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5701103333371924515Mon, 29 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-29T00:01:01.052-07:00 Here at Ad Contrarian Worldwide Headquarters,  one of our axioms is that there is no bigger sucker than a gullible marketer convinced he's missing a trend. We're starting to think that the same can be said of the entire advertising industry. Our industry has been desperately trying to convince itself that the web is a fabulous advertising medium. We share each others' anecdotes about the http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/QjsZ3-Cgf2k/online-advertisers-getting-hosed.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)16<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=QjsZ3-Cgf2k:ZD0CBP0fefA:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/QjsZ3-Cgf2k" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/online-advertisers-getting-hosed.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-8307593204088468338Thu, 25 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-25T01:22:15.418-07:00 Over three years ago, on December 28, 2009, I published the following post: How About the "Terrorist Differentness Ecosystem Dashboard?"  Regular readers know I like to divide the people of the ad world into two species: simplifiers and complicators. This also applies to the non-advertising world.  I evaluate the potential efficacy of social and political activities by whether they are http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/RW-zg9i4-bg/being-right-and-hating-it.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)21<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=RW-zg9i4-bg:IQuBN_VIMho:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/RW-zg9i4-bg" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/being-right-and-hating-it.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-4627781921510004077Wed, 24 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-24T02:49:06.141-07:00 Apparently, the market for fake Twitter followers is exploding. According to The New York Times... "There are now more than two dozen services that sell fake Twitter accounts... there are now as many as 20 million fake follower accounts." Being the Luddite that I am, I am way behind the curve in attracting my fair share of fake followers. As far as I know, I don't have any. I mean, unless http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/6modMAtoVw0/fake-is-new-real.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)4<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=6modMAtoVw0:Mh6QRtF3wv0:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/6modMAtoVw0" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/fake-is-new-real.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5645516108125808744Mon, 22 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-22T00:01:00.184-07:00 A very typical -- and typically muddle-headed -- piece called John Hegarty's Missing the Big Picture By Saying TV Ads Stink appeared last week in Ad Age. It was written by the ceo of a “video content marketing agency.” The article lamely tries to take on John Hegarty, founder of BBH. Hegarty recently contrasted tv advertising with the resurgent excellence of some tv programming and found it http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/bRWQu0Ll3a0/whos-missing-big-picture.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)14<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=bRWQu0Ll3a0:8-ycQqtA_n4:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/bRWQu0Ll3a0" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/whos-missing-big-picture.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-164670901978066808Tue, 16 Apr 2013 23:45:00 +00002013-04-16T16:50:46.885-07:00 There is no describing the stupidity of some people. While there are imbeciles in every field and at every level, for some reason marketing and advertising seem to attract a disproportionate share of them. And of all the disciplines within advertising and marketing, social media seems to be the one these people gravitate to. In a completely inexplicable display of ineptitude and http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/mc1BCbHchOI/social-media-morons.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)24<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=mc1BCbHchOI:HZEOGNwOz0Y:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/mc1BCbHchOI" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/social-media-morons.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-7426280568492754154Mon, 15 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-17T22:46:17.693-07:00 There is nothing dumber than a magazine with a vision. And there's no kind of magazine with a vision dumber than a trade magazine with a vision. And there's no kind of trade magazine dumber than an advertising trade magazine. So today we are going to discuss an article that wins the triple crown of dumbness -- an article with a vision of the future, from a trade magazine, in the advertising http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/DnHQNAFcGn0/mobile-everything-everywhere.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)10<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=DnHQNAFcGn0:Nchj3mbasQ4:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/DnHQNAFcGn0" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/mobile-everything-everywhere.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-8061339050932111469Fri, 12 Apr 2013 03:19:00 +00002013-04-11T21:11:31.019-07:00 Every morning and every evening I check where 101 Contrarian Ideas... is on Amazon's advertising book chart. And every morning and every evening it's the same -- #2 behind David Ogilvy. This has been going on for months. Every now and then it will drop down to #3, but then it pops back up to #2. Obviously, with 19,352 books in their advertising category, there's nothing wrong with being #2. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/dsYDoXEpNYM/were-number-one.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)8<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=dsYDoXEpNYM:f9Oozk6StkI:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/dsYDoXEpNYM" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/were-number-one.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-4782138479446529730Thu, 11 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-11T08:53:32.207-07:00 How would you like to be the next Steve Jobs? The opportunity is sitting out there waiting to be taken. All you have to do is find an effective advertising use for the web. It's that simple. The web is an enormously powerful medium, but no one has figured out how to make it a great advertising medium. It's as if TV existed for 20 years and no one had invented the TV spot. We have all kinds ofhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/1xJR2ZC6h54/the-biggest-advertising-opportunity-ever.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)9<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=1xJR2ZC6h54:hFtbG5rTsHQ:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/1xJR2ZC6h54" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-biggest-advertising-opportunity-ever.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5595979618073387826Wed, 10 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-12T04:04:10.181-07:00 We like to think that history has an inevitability to it. We like to believe that there is an arc that goes from the bad old days to the good new days; that things move toward virtue; that freedom and prosperity will inevitably triumph and evil and depredation will ultimately be vanquished. There is absolutely no reason to believe this. And yet we do. It's the same type of silly belief we havehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/tPJzsTug4Bw/success-is-never-final.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)16<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=tPJzsTug4Bw:eYx05B3Y0YI:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/tPJzsTug4Bw" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/success-is-never-final.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-1907319996699551691Mon, 08 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-08T02:12:10.750-07:00 There is very little difference between your customer and your competitor’s customer. And get ready for a shock. To them there is very little difference between you and your competitor. Most consumers are oblivious to the positioning subtleties among major brands. The average consumer has no idea why Coke is different from Pepsi, or Crest is different from Colgate. They see no difference http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/YTOABSSphRE/the-hidden-danger-of-precision-targeting.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)10<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=YTOABSSphRE:iyOAwzPpUp0:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/YTOABSSphRE" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-hidden-danger-of-precision-targeting.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-2047316736285437389Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:33:00 +00002013-04-05T09:34:34.276-07:00 Today is Opening Day for the World Champion San Francisco Giants. Here is my traditional Opening Day post. The economy is still in the toilet. Somewhere, asteroids are heading toward Earth. Web pornography is warping the minds of our children. Grown men and women are relentlessly Tweeting each other. Yes, my friend, the end is near. But who gives a damn? It's Opening Day. I'm going to http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/RusYm1BFBK4/opening-day-2013.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)5<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=RusYm1BFBK4:6l-mzy6gNnw:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/RusYm1BFBK4" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/opening-day-2013.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-2297269312292024282Wed, 03 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-03T08:43:57.884-07:00 Systems in extremis often delude themselves into believing they are something they are not. Our educational system has convinced itself that it's not really in the education business. It's in the "self-discovery" business or the business of "celebrating diversity" or other such nonsense. The result is that it is very successful at not educating our kids. Pepsi decided a few years ago that it http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/xxluZ5-qBQU/the-data-delusion.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)8<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=xxluZ5-qBQU:cWuiV-PHl1A:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/xxluZ5-qBQU" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-data-delusion.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-5776871436465925623Mon, 01 Apr 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-04-01T00:01:01.055-07:00 Today, I begin a new life as an irresponsible drain on the treasury of the United States. It's a career I've always felt well-suited for. I'm afraid it's not going to last long because I'm already drawing up plans. But while it's here I'm going to enjoy it. I am kicking off my new situation on a positive note. I know, it's not really my brand, but what the hell. Having lived now for a couple http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/_-ADJw4GOso/10-rules-for-happy-living.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)6<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=_-ADJw4GOso:FA8_38I3y2M:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/_-ADJw4GOso" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/10-rules-for-happy-living.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5249997465016074955.post-7951504058147556937Fri, 29 Mar 2013 07:01:00 +00002013-03-29T00:01:00.971-07:00 Today is my last official day in the agency business. I'll sign some papers, de-commission my laptop (whatever the hell that means) and say goodbye to the agency I helped found over 20 years ago. It's supposed to be a bittersweet occasion. But it's not. It's easy. The art of advertising is still interesting, but the agency business has lost its appeal. While I do a lot of railing about brand http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~3/uyT75wrrsCI/graduation-day.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BOB HOFFMAN)8<div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?a=uyT75wrrsCI:Mer7ybyxIA0:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/aDYs?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/aDYs/~4/uyT75wrrsCI" height="1" width="1"/>http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2013/03/graduation-day.html