Monday, February 2, 2015

My take on Super Bowl XLIX Commercials


Super Bowl Commercials 
This review is my personal opinion and does not reflect opinions of my agency, SMZ. The spots listed are in order viewed. Nature call may have required missing just a few.

Overall, good game generally negatively correlates with good commercials. This year’s line up had the usual mix of serious, funny, trying to be funny, borrowed interest from celebrities, music and animals and just plain “huh?”

I’m using basic letter grades.

Reebok – “More human” felt more like a spot for CrossFit. B-
Chevrolet – TV signal goes out, want a truck? I knew it was a commercial. And I knew that NBC wouldn’t go dark on the biggest night of the year. Those folks on Twitter who “nearly had a heart attack” should see a real doctor. B
Esurance – Lindsay Lohan driving. Let me get this straight the selling proposition is more personalized auto insurance ratings. So we promote it on the most watched, least personalized program in our nation. Am I the only one seeing the irony in that. Lindsay was fine in her use. C
Toyota – Redesigned Camry with a Paralympian in action and the champ, Muhammad Ali as v/o. Inspiring, yes! Just not sure what it had to do with the new Camry. B
Turbo Tax – the modern take on the tea party (the other tea party) and free filing. This spot had as long a way to go to get to the point as the British did to sail over and be part of the action. Grade of E for E-file.
Tomorrowland – I didn't rate all of the movie trailers as it felt like a long movie trailer with a football game tossed in for fun.  This one for a Disney property on one of the few non Disney-owned channels looked cool. A-
BMW i3 – Katie and Bryant from then and now. Stiff. Guess I have to ask celebrities to do spots as they seem to ok any script as long as it’s a Super Bowl spot. C
Minions – I didn’t see Despicable Me 1, 2 or 9 so can’t comment.
Snickers – Despite all brand’s obsession with the Millenials nice to see the Brady Bunch, a Gen X staple, used to further their smart campaign. Didn’t even need Mr. Buschemi and Marsha, Marsha, Marsha ... A
Carnival – we cruised into the second quarter scoreless and this surprising spot (brand video) for the Carnival conglomerate had a real idea. Not sure JFK ever did a voice over before? This one cruised to an A
Skittles – arm wrestle spot was bleh. Best for the brand was Marshawn Lynch downing a handful of Skittles right before kickoff.
Lexus – SFX spot was slick. Didn’t anyone find it reminiscent of Honda – Choir from 1997? (Honda - Choir) Grand B
T-Mobile – "Hi, I’m Kim" was funny. Liked that she made fun of herself and I didn’t even know the references. A
Budweiser – Lost Puppy was lost to me. Sure he’s cute, but not enough to save the spot. C
Nationwide – Invisible Amy and Matt Damon. If you’re going to use Matt Damon, see Jimmy Kimmel. D
Terminator – this trailer for Terminator: Genisys felt like a parody but was real. Let me know when it’s streaming for free. D
Coca-Cola – a little spill (remember SNL’s 70s Pepsi Syndrome?) makes the world a little happier. Fun to watch. B+
Mexico Avocados – Draft in the desert. D words. D grade.
Furious 7 – Haven’t seen the first six. This one doesn’t look much different. Cool Dubai effects. B-
Dove – Love real women of beauty. And I’m a caring father. But this spot could have been signed off by any number of brands that support strong dads. Why Dove. Another D word. D
Doritos – Guy saving the middle seat. Nice misdirect. B+
Nissan – Another spot with a “geezer rock” soundtrack, Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle". Very long way to go to say this Dad has been a no-show but all is ok because he showed up in a Maxima. F
Nationwide – another that I just didn’t connect with. D
Weight Watchers – Jessie from Breaking Bad is talking to me about the world’s greatest buffet as I’m eating Super Bowl food. Beautifully edited. I have enough guilt in my life. Others in their campaign on “help with the hard stuff” are better spots. C
Weather Tech – I know this brand from their multi-page ads in every car magazine. They make a great product. I just didn’t learn anything new in this attempt on an epic spot. C
McDonald’s – seemingly everybody is haitin’ on the lovin’ it brand. Yet we always say the agency’s job is not to present ideas that give away the client’s product. Couldn’t imagine doing so for the Super Bowl. Forced emotion. D
Esurance – spot #2 in the series. See above.
Fiat – First off, I drove this new vehicle as a rental in Dallas. It had more wind noise at 40 mph than anything I’ve ever driven. Yet, this Viagra trip to “enlarge” the vehicle was worse. That concept made it out of the agency, out of the client conference room and into production. Really? An “F” word. Grade F.
Go Daddy – they went straight instead of mysogonist. Pretty dull. C
Blacklist – first of thirty promos for the show, this one to Sinatra’s “I’ve gotta’ be me.” Fun. A
Microsoft – driving technology for prosthetics taught me something in a glorious, uplifting way. Really nice design into their logo. A
Squarespace – I love Jeff Bridges but didn’t get it at all. F
-        Halftime and the Katy Perry show –
Clash of Clans – I haven’t seen Taken 3 yet but wasn’t “taken” by this use of Mr. Neeson in the coffee shop. C
Sprint – confident enough to use one of their pointed bill-cutting spots. Straightforward and powerful. A
Lexus – nice product demonstration for a new vehicle. B+
Microsoft – a second commercial that shows Microsoft as “good people doing good things. Haven’t always thought of them that way before. They were a top performer to me in this advertising showcase. A
Kia – Pierce Brosnan in an ok spot. Another where Twitter users abused the word “great.” C
T-Mobile – Sarah Silverman and Chelsea Handler having a conversation. G-rated dialogue, too. Let’s think about this: they could use AT&T or Verizon but they play Annie Oakley’s “anything you can do ...” with T-Mobile data. I believe it. Too complicated. D
Ted – preview for the sequel with Tom Brady. It was funny and movie looks funny. A
Mophie – using God to sell your product. No. D
Loctite – everyone at worked loved it. I didn’t get it. Didn’t “stick” with me in any way. F
Bud Lite – Real life Pac Man. Now I know why craft beers are hot. B-
Mercedes – Three days on ESPN of Tortoise & Hare and that’s what it was all about. I saw that new car at the NAIAS and it’s awesome looking. This mess cheapened it for me. C
50 Shades preview – I’ve read the book. In no hurry to see the movie. 50, doesn't that score earn a D?
Doritos – Making pigs fly. Saw this one coming for way too long. Cute kid, though. B
Wix.com – best use of retired, NFL hall-of-famers. I thought it was fun and explained what they do. A-
Victoria’s Secret – I am in the mood for love. Except when the game’s on the line in the final two minutes. Bad timing ladies. B
NASCAR on NBC – last spot in my notes. Simply energetic and fun. A

Monday, September 29, 2014

Going ... going ... gone to our new SMZ offices at 1200 Kirts in Troy, MI

A BRIEF HISTORY 


In 1929 two young Detroiters, Leonard Simons and Larry Michelson struck out on their own and started an advertising agency. Simons-Michelson Co. as the agency was known made their home in downtown Detroit, primarily the Lafayette Building in Mad Men-esque offices for nearly 50 years.

Second generation owners Mort Zieve and Jim Michelson pioneered the move out to the shiny mirrored glass buildings of Troy, Michigan in the fall of 1977. For 10 years the agency was in space at Sheffield Plaza on West Big Beaver next to what was then Kmart’s active world headquarters.

900 Wilshire Building exterior
In 1988, bursting at the seams, the agency relocated down the road in Troy to a then-new building at 900 Wilshire Drive.   

After 27 years at 900 Wilshire, we took a hard look at the way we do business. Naturally that extends to how our office space looks, feels and operates. We decided to move for a number of strategic reasons. 

Following a thorough process we found new space that is welcoming and fosters collaboration with multiple group work spaces, a great deal of windows and natural light and neat gathering places.

Blueprints for our innovative new space
We believe our new offices are functional today and - in an ever-changing industry - will remain flexible and functional into the future

For those who visit, our offices will fairly reflect an energetic, creative company. We are doing our best to make this a positive change for agency personnel and clients alike.   

PLEASE ENJOY THE PHOTOS OF THE NEW OFFICES. Click each to see in full size.



Dramatic exterior shot of the new SMZ offices at 1200 Kirts (we have a sign)
Our reception area and a look into the main conference room (those doors are "riveting")

 
Here's a wide view of our very colorful open space (awaiting colorful characters)



Our break area - the new SMZ Cafe is quite welcoming
Another view of the colorful open space

We have a garage door to open on nice days!

We will make the (short) wait in the lobby comfortable
The view if you drop your pen and look up

Our new main conference room is round-on-round
 Key partners in this project were CBRE Real Estate Brokers, Davis & Davis Interior Design, Ari-El Enterprises Real Estate, Airea Furniture and Ashmark Construction. Thanks to all of them for what is truly a "home run."

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

What's the difference between an insight and an observation?

For the past week I was working on a post about insights vs. observations. Before publishing my draft I did a quick search on the topic only to discover this post from More About Advertising. In all honesty Mr. Simons (no relation to our agency founder) nailed it.


I was sitting in a meeting the other day with an advertising agency in London and one of the agency team said they had a really good ‘insight’. After further discussion it seemed to me it was more of an observation than a flash of inspiration.


It got me thinking a bit more about that particular word because I have seen it used in job descriptions more frequently recently, both on the client and agency side so I thought it was worth a bit of investigation.


My conclusion to date is that the word ‘insight’ is a fad and an over-claim. [READ MORE, CLICK HERE ...]


And one more from Farrah Bostic's Blog PLH (prettylittlehead.)  http://bit.ly/jYjnaw

Monday, April 9, 2012

Get the door please

Joe Louis Arena is preparing for the Detroit Red Wings 21st straight playoff appearance. Here's how we've helped our client dress up the place for the show. The idea was to decorate the Joe doors. All 69 of them. I'll leave the Franzen captions to my readers. Go Wings!

Monday, March 19, 2012

We all learn from "The Boss"


"Rumble, young musicians, rumble. Open your ears, open your hearts. Don’t take yourselves too seriously and take yourself as seriously as death itself. Don’t worry. Worry your ass off. Have iron clad confidence. But doubt! It keeps you awake and alert. Believe you are the baddest ass in town and ... you suck. It keeps you honest. Be able to keep two completely contradictory ideas alive and well in your heart and head at all times. If it does not drive you crazy it will make you strong. Stay hard, stay hungry and stay alive."
— Bruce Springsteen at SXSW in his keynote address. As a leader of a creative company I certainly took this to heart.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

NHL Announces 2013 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic is Coming to Michigan!

If you're a hockey fan. If you ever skated on a frozen pond or a backyard ice rink, you know why the NHL was able to call the Winter Classic a "classic" on day one. Should 2012 not be the end of the world then on January 1, 2013 two Original Six rivals are going to play hockey in front of a crowd equal to five straight sell outs at Joe Louis Arena. 


As a member of the Detroit Red Wings family I couldn't be more excited. Move over Rose Bowl, the Big House is in the spotlight on New Year's Day 2013! 

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Continuing a TED discussion on "Starting with Why."



 Every agency wrestles with self-positioning. In our case it has revolved around what we do, how we do it, and even for whom (escape brands). Until we got energized about WHY we do what we do. It doesn't start with the almighty dollar! (Or somewhat mightier than the Euro dollar.) 


No, it centers on the fact that for 83 years now clients have TRUSTED us to develop ideas for their business. Ideas we believed would positively impact their brand and business. Sounds simple. But that's what excites us every day. Not awards. Not page views. Not short-lasting false buzz. 


We earn that trust through a straightforward and proven approach we call Listen. Think. Do. 


Thank you to Mr. Sinek and his TED talk for inspiring us and for boosting our confidence in how we present SMZ. As the video says, "the believers will find us." Let's hope!