In 1984, as part of his re-election campaign, Ronald Reagan ran a now-famous commercial titled “It’s morning again in America,” which was written and narrated by legendary adman Hal Riney.  The spot, which in a very soothing and optimistic manner spoke to economic prosperity, was in short a hit, and while it did not single handedly re-elect… read more>>

People often ask me if I watch Mad Men.   Well, do you think Texas oil men in the early 80′s watched Dallas?  The funny thing about Mad Men is that the advertising business is just used as, what we call in the business, an executional device to tell a cultural story about the period from 1961-1966,… read more>>

Well now that the smoke has cleared and it’s just a mild haze (blue not purple) I suppose it’s time to weigh in on the events of last night.  If only the commercials lived up to the game – but wait one (or some) did.  As far as everything else, well it was pretty typical save for… read more>>

Well, last I left you chewing on Snickers, frogs, Darth Vadar, Cindy and a padlock.  So you must be asking what’s next?  A sock puppet, kick to the groin, monkeys in the workplace?  None of the above if you recall my simple guidelines, but rather more spots resonating with emotional connections to drive brand affinity.  Here we… read more>>

The Top Ten Super Bowl Commercials of All Time Yes, it’s a big game for the New York Football Giants and the New England Patriots but it’s just as big a game for advertisers and their brands.  The cost ($3.5mm for :30) the stage (50MM households watching)  and the post game effects (everyones a critic and with… read more>>

On Monday Dr. Pepper kicked off an integrated campaign to support the launch of a product line extension, Dr. Pepper 10. It has come with some controversy as the campaign’s tagline is “It’s Not For Women”. The product itself embodies all 23 flavors that the gender-neutral parent product does but with only 10 “manly” calories vs. 150.… read more>>