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Pepsi uses IntoNow App to Reward Ad Viewers

April 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Pepsi MAX promoIntoNow, the iPhone app featuring cutting edge audio fingerprinting technology, is being used by Pepsi to distribute 50,000 free bottles of Pepsi MAX to viewers of the ‘Clubhouse in the Corn’ ad creative (featured below). In this example the IntoNow app recognizes the audio in the ad and instantly provides the user with a barcode on their mobile device which can then be redeemed at a checkout at any CVS or Target location.

IntoNow works very much like Shazam or SoundHound, apps used to identify music tracks – except IntoNow identifies TV programs and movies using its patented Soundprint technology. In fact, Shazam itself was used recently in an Old Navy campaign that recognized a song used in their commercial to give away 1000 free pairs of jeans.

Soundprint analyzes the audio coming from your televsion (or any device that is broadcasting audio) in 3-second increments creating an audio fingerprint. The fingerprint is then compared to their reference database made up of 130 channels of live broadcasting going back 5 years. I wrote about IntoNow and their MTV/Jersey Shore promotion back in February.

Adam Cahan CEO and Founder of IntoNow stated:

“At IntoNow we’re focused on using the companion devices we have in our lives as a way to connect with your friends, content and now brands. This is the first time where consumers can close the funnel between a brand experience on a TV commercial right down to a real world drink you can consume. That’s a really exciting first that opens the doors for advertising partners. We’re thrilled to be creating a new consumer experience with a brand like Pepsi MAX.”

The great thing about this technology is that advertisers do not have to make any changes to their broadcast creative. The IntoNow app simply requires 15 seconds of audio to compare against its database, then a user can experience any number of triggered events.

One limitation against these types of audio triggers in TV ads is of course their length – in this case the ad was a minute long, enough time to turn on your mobile device, activate the app and record the audio. A brand could simply sponsor the entire show allowing users to ‘check-in’ via the app to obtain the deal or interact with additional content. ABC is doing this with their Grey’s Anatomy iPad experience.

One thing I am looking into is how viewers of the ad are prompted to use the app. I discovered this via a story in AdAge this morning. Certainly this campaign is not driven only by word of mouth and mentions on the Pepsi MAX Facebook wall.

Filed Under: Advertising & Marketing, Technology Tagged With: , , ,

Stop Child Sex Slavery – Real Men Don’t Buy Girls

April 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Real Men Don't Buy GirlsAccording to stats on the DNA Foundation website more than twelve million people worldwide are enslaved including two million children that are bought and sold in the commercial sex trade. In the US alone, its estimated that more than 100,000 children are sold for sex.

These are just a few of the shocking numbers that many of us are unaware of. The need for awareness is what drove Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore to take action and launch the Demi & Ashton Foundation to battle child sex slavery worldwide.

This week the DNA Foundation launched the ‘Real Men Don’t Buy Girls‘ campaign on their Facebook page featuring ‘real men celebrities’ such as Drake, Sean Penn, Justin Timberlake, Isaiah Mustafa (Old Spice Guy), Ashton Kutcher himself and more.

The Facebook application features several 30 second videos to choose from including Real Men Know How to Start a Fire, Real Men Walk it Off or Real Men Have a Sense of Direction. I chose Real Men are Distrustful of Robots featuring fellow Canuck real man Drake.

At the end of the video we see several framed pictures of more real men like Tom Selleck, Harrison Ford, Bruce Willis and hey, there’s my picture! The camera pans back to reveal Eva Longoria who tells the world that Randy is a real man. You can see the results here at this permalink.

What’s awesome

Awareness of this campaign is extremely important. I love the Facebook application functionality here. Personalizing the video not just with my Facebook profile picture but with Eva Longoria saying my name is genius.

What’s not so awesome

It’s tough to be too critical of a campaign to raise awareness of such as shocking issue. However, I’m am concerned over the lack of any real action on the user’s part in this campaign.

It’s very easy to complete the task, be entertained and move on. Maybe a little too easy. Yes, the user can pass the link to the video on to their friends, but even that seems a little clunky in this campaign.

I find the videos themselves are a little silly and soften the hard-hitting statement of ‘Real Men Don’t Buy Girls’.

What do you think of this campaign? Are they asking too little or is just enough?

Filed Under: Advertising & Marketing, Non Profit Tagged With: , ,

Watch Hockey and Support Kid’s Sports Without Leaving the Couch

April 11, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Canadian Tire JumpStartThe 2011 NHL Playoffs are set to begin on Wednesday, and despite a late-season surge our hometown Leafs are again – for the sixth straight year – getting an early start on their golfing season. By now Toronto hockey fans are used to following teams other than their own on the quest for Lord Stanley’s trophy, but just because the boys in blue didn’t make it, that’s no excuse to watch less hockey.

This year hockey fans can help raise money for Canadian Tire’s Jumpstart program by simply watching more hockey in the Playoff Payoff campaign. So, don’t worry about backing away from those pub nachos or risking a pulling a hamstring pull getting off the couch.

Hockey fans can get started by signing up on the JumpStart Facebook page. Next set your fundraising target and the number of playoff games you plan to watch, then invite your friends and family to support you on your noble playoff quest.

I’ve already set up my personal page, and I’ve set a modest target of watching 36 games. However, if this year is like any other I may watch that many before the end of the first round.

The person who raised the most money for JumpStart by May 13 will receive tickets and a travel voucher for a Stanley Cup final game of their choice.

My early prediction for the Stanley Cup finals is Philadelphia vs Vancouver, with the Canucks taking their first cup in 6 games.

Filed Under: Advertising & Marketing, Sports Tagged With: , ,

Luck is me! I’m #736,034 on the Waiting List for a Petite Lap Giraffe

April 8, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Petite Lap GiraffeEver since the DirectTV ads featuring Gregor, the Russian Billionaire began airing last year, the thing I couldn’t take my eye off was not the beautiful women, it was the tiny giraffe that sits next to Gregor (turns out that giraffe is named Ivanka).

Well, now I’m thrilled to discover I can have my own Petite Miniatire Giraffe from Sokoblovsky Farms. I am only 736,034 on a waiting list, and based on the fact they only have two breeding females and a gestation period of 420 days I may have a few years to wait.

You can get a petite lap giraffe too, just head over to the Sokoblovksy Farms website and get your name on the list. But, be advised these tiny giraffes require special care, lots of love and regular bubble baths as seen on the site’s photo page. You can even view the male giraffe Vladimir on a ‘live cam’ as he eats, sleeps or plays around the farm – although so far I’ve only seen him curled up sleeping.

This is a great little promotional site that plays off the popularity of the TV ads ‘Opulence, I has it‘ (embedded below) and ‘I Am Epic Win‘ produced by Grey New York. The only obvious connection to the ads being a small triangle in the upper right corner of the browser that reads ‘As Seen on American Commercial – Be Clicking to View’. (and yes, I can’t help saying that with Gregor’s accent)

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It’s a Jungle Out There Today

April 6, 2011 by Leave a Comment

IgorJungle Bus ShelterWalked by this overgrown bus shelter takeover at King & Peter today promoting IgorJungle snacks and desserts.

It does make me wonder why a transit ad in downtown Toronto that features English copy contains a URL “http:igorjungle.ca” that goes to the French version of their site by default. Why wouldn’t they have added the /en to the poster?

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TD Bank – QR Code Links to Sunday Branch Finder

April 3, 2011 by 1 Comment

TD Bank - Open Sunday Transit ShelterOn Saturday the weather was finally nice enough for a casual walk around Port Credit. During that walk I spotted the bus shelter poster pictured to the right advertising TD Bank’s Sunday banking hours. I had almost walked right by, before I spotted the QR Code on the poster.

The ad copy reads, “Now Open Sunday at over 300 of our branches. Scan this QR Code or visit www.td.com/find from your smartphone to locate a branch.”

I crouched down to scan the code (note to advertisers: puh-lease stop making me crouch down to scan these codes). My QR Code reader recognized the code and opened a mobile-friendly of TD Bank’s  branch locater in my mobile browser.

It’s a simple experience that provides exactly what it promises – the locations of the nearest TD Bank featuring Sunday hours. You can scan the code in the blowup to view the mobile site now.

What’s your feeling about QR Codes? I am seeing them used everywhere but I am still not convinced that people are actually using them in any significant numbers.

Filed Under: Advertising & Marketing, Technology Tagged With: ,

Mountain Equipment Co-op Link to History Via QR Code

March 31, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Mountain Equipment Co-op - QR code muralDespite seeing QR codes popping up on virtually every corner around Toronto these days, it’s always interesting to see and make note of the various ways that retailers are using them. I spotted this QR code today outside the Mountain Equipment Co-op store at King West and Peter Street.

The mural celebrates the 40th Anniversary of the BC-based recreation outfitting company, and the QR code links passerby to a mobile page and great video detailing that history from the original group of six climbers pooling their $65 to create the company in 1971.

Awesome

  • The QR code is a good size, it’s easily scanned if you can get close enough.
  • The destination page is mobile friendly (seems obvious but still some executions fail on this)
  • the content is a natural extension of the campaign and mural

Not so awesome

  • No instructions on what the QR code is, what to do with, or how to get download a QR code scanner app.
  • No alternative short code or url for users without scanner apps.
  • The position behind the bike racks is awkward to get to.

I think expecting every single person walking by with a mobile phone to stop and scan the QR code is unrealistic. Alternative ways to access content should be made available to the user as in the Macy’s and First Bank examples that I wrote about last week.

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KLM Hosts Dance Party at 35,000 Feet

March 30, 2011 by Leave a Comment

In February Dutch airline KLM tweeted that they would be re-opening their route between Amsterdam and Miami on March 27, 2011, Dutch DJ Sied van Riel (@SiedVanRiel) and filmmaker Wilco Jung (@WilcoJung) responded with a tweet expressing their disappointment that this was a week too late to make it to the Ultra Music Festival.

They tweeted “I bet we could fill a plane with house music dutchies who go to WMC miami”.

KLM responded to the challenge with a tweet the said “You fill the plane, we’ll try to fly!”

KLM challenged Sied and Wilco to gather 150 pre-registrations within seven days and they would fly. They gathered the 150 in just 5 hours. Within a few days they launched a website, twitter account. When the dust had settled they had gathered an amazing 426 registrations for the flight.

On March 21, the flight took off from Amsterdam. When the plane had reached 35,000 feet, the DJ started spinning, drinks were served and the transatlantic party was on.

This is a great example of a company listening and responding to its customers. They could have easily ignored the tweet from Sied and Wilco, or responded with a polite ‘we’re looking into it’. Instead the people behind the KLM social media program acted in the spirit of creativity and openness. I’d love to know what took place behind the scenes at KLM as the challenge was made and then met. Great work KLM.

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Randy MathesonI am a Nova Scotia raised Creative Guy, currently Director of Emerging Media at Delvinia, a Digital Strategy & Customer Experience Design Firm in Toronto. I’m a huge fan of the creative use of digital technologies in social media, marketing, sports and entertainment. I use this blog to share the more interesting examples that I find. If you’re in need of a break, join me over at Madtini.com for a cocktail.

Filed Under: Advertising & Marketing, Social Media Tagged With: , ,

Bank Provides Free Gifts to Travelers Via QR Card Signage

March 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

First Bank QR CodesTwo things that we always emphasize to our clients when we are planning digital experiences; (1) make sure you are providing value to the user, and (2) don’t out roadblocks in your user’s path. The campaign – which was launched in October – created by TDA Advertising in Boulder for Denver-based First Bank features a series of three back-lit billboards. Using QR codes, travelers passing by are invited to download one of 12 classic novels, crossword or soduku puzzles all for the very special low price of ‘Free’.

The signs provide straightforward instructions on how to use the QR codes, including how to download a reader, and a URL for users who cannot use a code reader. The bank estimated that 7,000 classic novels and puzzles will be downloaded during this five-month effort as part of the bank’s ongoing ‘helpfulness’ campaign.

Scanning the code even from the photo works really well. The mobile site looks great and its easy to download and navigate between the free offers. It’s unfortunate that when an interested user clicks on the small ‘Open an Account’ at the bottom of the mobile page they are dropped at the home page of the First Bank website. I’m a bit lost as to why this button did not link to a mobile friendly landing page for new accounts.

It’s great to see a bank using QR codes so prominently in a campaign, their use is definitely becoming mainstream. It’ll be interesting to see the numbers at the end of the campaign, including most popular downloads, total number of downloads, percentage of QR code uses, clickthroughs to the bank site and of course an increase in new accounts.

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Air New Zealand gets ‘Fit to Fly’ with Richard Simmons

March 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment


While I’m not sure whether this video will have people dancing in the aisles or dashing to the emergency exist of Air New Zealand flights, it certainly has captured the imagination of viewers on the web with 40,000 views in its first day. Fitness guru Richard Simmons leads a planeload of spandex-clad dancers through an energetic disco performance of passenger instructions. I’m sure folks flying on flights down under will sit up and notice.

This is not the first time that Air New Zealand has created unique passenger instruction videos. Back in 2009 they used real crew members wearing nothing but bodypaint in the ‘cheeky’ Nothing to Hide campaign.

As well, Air New Zealand currently has another YouTube hit video, this one featuring their mascot Rico hooking up with Snoop Dogg to lay down the track ‘Hello Sunshine’ in his LA studio.

It’s awesome to see an Airline loosen up and not take themselves too seriously.

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