Cadbury’s and Fallon get it Right Again
June 10, 2010
Ok, so this is not technically a PR story but as we all know advertising and PR go hand in hand within the marketing mix and I couldn’t resist mentioning the great new advert that I saw last night for Cadbury’s Flake. Over the last few years Cadbury’s have redefined the generic rules of advertising, as TBWA\ would call it ‘Disruption’, with the drum-playing, Phil-Collins-imitating gorilla. Cadbury’s branded their advertising ‘A Glass And A Half Full Productions’ when they teamed up with advertising giants Fallon to create what has become an advert synonymous with the Cadbury’s brand. Then last night I saw the latest Cadbury advert for the Flake which has seen the previously iconic British brand (they are now owned by American confectionary giants Kraft) in a new £3.5 million advertising and PR push to educate the consumer on the ‘beauty and delicacy’ of the Flake. This advert is also by Fallon, presumably after the success that they created with the gorilla. I don’t think that this new advert breaks the same boundaries as the gorilla but it is a beautiful advert which makes you stop what you are doing and watch it.
Sex and the City PR Campaign
June 7, 2010
Over the last few months the PR campaign for the eagerly awaited second Sex and the City film has gone into over load. You have not been able to pick up a magazine or turn on the TV without being bombarded with images and interviews from the girls. As expected Sarah Jessica Parker has been on the front of all the women’s magazine talking about the film but of course not giving anything away about the plot – all the actors involved in the film have apparently signed an agreement that if anyone discloses any information to the press about the film they will be sued for millions of dollars. All the exposure in the press from the 4 leading ladies has built up the momentum for the film. All the girls I know have already seen the film (me included) and those who haven’t are planning on going this week, this is the tried and tested way to PR a film.
What is a PR stunt?
May 30, 2010
PR is Public Relations. This can also be called Marketing or Publicity. A PR stunt is often referred to as a publicity stunt or marketing stunt.
A PR stunt is usually organised by a company, product or celebrity, with the attention of grabbing media and public attention. This attention will then, in theory, to more purchases of said product or interest in said celebrity. Someone famous once said ‘there’s no such thing as bad publicity’ and this is a well-used phrase today.
The most recent real-news story of a PR stunt was the boy in the balloon. In October last year two parents contacted the police claiming that their six year old boy had floated away on board a helium balloon coloured and shaped to look like a UFO.
Local police and worldwide media followed as the police tracked the balloon until it landed more than 50 miles away. When the balloon landed, the boy was not inside. Authorities began a manhunt, presuming the boy to have fallen out. However, that same afternoon, the boy was reported to hgave been hiding in his house upstairs.
Suspicions only really arose about it being a publicity stunt when the boy was asked about why he was hiding. He turned to his father and said, “you guys said that, um… we did this for the show.”
Whoops. Although it all seems to have gone wrong, and the parents were arrested, they did receive publicity, which – usually – is the key reason behind a PR stunt.
Mixed reviews for Lloyd Webber’s Phantom sequel
March 15, 2010
Love Never Dies, the sequel to The Phantom of the Opera has received mixed reviews from critics this week. While some have given it a whopping five out of five stars, others have condemned it to only one or two.
It has been described as superb, “his finest show since the original Phantom” with good singing and actors’ performances. Many critics who gave the show poor reviews for plot, substance and believability said the set and special effects “cannot be faulted” and that Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score is wonderful.
The plot has been criticised as having “bizarre mechanics” and as being implausible, and the play has been called “Paint Never Dries” by one harsh critic.
One critic says:
“This Phantom is not the phantom we knew. The “poisoned gargoyle who burns in hell” has clearly taken an anger management course in New York… Where’s the menace, the horror, the psychological darkness?”
I think the moral is that we’re going to have to go and see it to make up our minds, as it looks like the jury’s out on this one.
Twitgigs Experiment to launch in London this Thursday
August 3, 2009
The Twitter platform is renowned for its social interaction between members who can update their friends and discuss any hot topics currently in the news. Now, Twitter has decided to take a step into the unknown and provide a live music event to cater for London’s music lovers.
The event is supported by the Smirnoff Night Vision initiative and will take place at the Vibe Bar, The Old Truman Brewery on Thursday 6th August and will be featuring a battle of the bands competition, on-screen live twitter feeds, and number of music-related giveaways on the night.
The line up includes Essay Like Nephew, Mike Dignam and The Seal Club Clubbing Club.
For more information visit Twitter at: http://twitter.com/Twitgigs and Vibe Bar: http://www.vibe-bar.co.uk/.
If anyone is going to this event in the East End, then let us know what you think of it.
Emma Watson On The Red Carpet Again
July 23, 2009
Harry Potter star Emma Watson is on the up.
She is made for life with the fortune she has made from playing Hermione Jean Granger in Harry Potter films. And now she is number 1 on the list for photographers at film premieres when she walks down the red carpet. She is fast becoming a fashion icon. Whether it’s her own style or that of her stylists (designers are apparently falling over each other to dress her) she made headlines nearly every day at the beginning of July 2009 by appearing in a range of different outfits.
After looking back at old pictures of herself, she was reported as saying this week:
“I always think ‘Is that really me?”
She has come a long way since those early Harry Potter films, appearing recently on David Letterman’s Late Show With Letterman. Now 19, Watson is one of the most photographed young women around. But she better be careful. Walking down the red carpet may be a regular occurrence, but she needs to keep her cool, sophisticated style and not follow the long line of Z listers who will get drunk, make fools of themselves, and fall out of their clothes. She doesn’t want to become a star famous for partying where her bar bill is as big as her carpet cleaning bill as she makes a mess on the well trodden red carpet which suits her so much right now. Otherwise carpet cleaning London will be a phrase she is identified with rather than style queen London.
Emma didn’t disappoint as she greeted over 3,000 screaming fans at the premier of the latest installment in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince.
Do you think Emma Watson is our new style queen?
Emma Watson is becoming a Red Carpet style queen
