Las Vegas Ad Rides The Prince Harry Wave

Advertising for the city of Las Vegas is riding the Prince Harry scandal in a politically correct, tongue-in-cheek way. Gotta love Sin City's marketing team for hitting hard and hitting fast, the same day the story was spread all over the news. In case you missed it, here's the scoop on Harry in Vegas. And here's the ad as it ran in today's USA Today news section ...

Nice vintage/retro layout and type treatment, reminescent of the old west ... after all, Vegas IS in Nevada. Giddy-up.

Main Line Health Menopause Ad

Main Line Health hits the vein with this menopause ad. The headline reads, "You're so hot." Underneath, we see a Plain Jane woman in her bathrobe brushing her teeth. "And then cold. And then hot. Welcome to menopause," the subhead deadpans. Reading this ad and knowing help is available is the pause that refreshes. Wait, I feel a hot flash coming on ...

Subaru vs. Ford - And Texting While Driving

This week, Subaru ran four - count 'em - four FULL PAGE ads in the News Section of USA Today. Here's the series of ads the car maker ran and what Ford is doing in contrast.

 

Ad #1: Through snow ...

 Ad #2: Through the woods ...

Ad #3: On the open road and into the sunset ...

 Ad #4: Through the mud ...

It's all terrain for Subaru but ... where's the car? It's cool. They're selling what the car can DO. They're leaving their competitors in their tracks and making them eat dust. (For the media buying inclined, ads were all on the left page of four consecutive spreads.)

In contrast, let's look at Ford's double truck magazine ad in this month's Travel+Leisure magazine ...

"Daddy, why are you texting while driving? Oprah says that's a no-no!"

Ford explains, via body copy to Daddy (aka Jordan) ...

 

So if you're wondering how to combine Social Media with your print ad, here's a solution from Ford. Or if you are thinking of updating your Facebook status about your All New Ford Explorer while driving, please wait until you're in the driveway.


Advertise responsibly.

The Power of J.D. Power and Associates Awards

Every year, J. D. Power and Associates recognizes select companies - all across the nation and in virtually every major industry, from car manufacturing to health insurance - for great service and high customer satisfaction ratings, all with the goal of making it easier for Americans to be smart consumers. You've no doubt seen the ads that recipient companies run, touting their J.D. Power and Associates rankings, often with a headline that brags about how many years in a row they've received the award. Here's an example that Hilton's extended stay hotel chain, Homewood Suites, ran recently to promote it's J.D. Power rating. The celebratory print ad appeared in USA Today, with the clever headline "HOW SUITE OF YOU."

J.D. Power and Associates awards CAN be extremely powerful in an ad. This Homewood Suites ad features the award front and center, and it has a great start with it's clever headline. The ad's copy is well-written and concise (albeit hard to read), explaining that the award is for "Highest in Guest Satisfaction Among Extended Stay Hotel Chains."