It’s become a $2 billion dollar industry. And the marketing of dead celebrities not only attracts lots of big brands, but lots of controversy. We’ll trace the use of dead celebrities in advertising, we’ll analyze “Dead Q Scores,” we’ll list the top-grossing dead celebrities, and we’ll tell some amazing stories about ads that featured Audrey Hepburn, Michael Jackson, Fred Astaire and Marilyn Monroe – and how their families felt about those commercials. Host...
May 25, 2013•27 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast This episode explores the arrival of real-time advertising. Over the past 100 years, advertisers could never respond to an event or opportunity in minutes. But now with the Internet and social media, advertisers can. This clip talks about two of the most talked-about instances of Real-Time Advertising with Oreo Cookies and AMC Theatres. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
May 18, 2013•28 min•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast Most pilots, lawyers and doctors roll their eyes at the way Hollywood depicts them, and ad people are no exception. From the 1947 movie The Hucksters , to the Rock Hudson/Doris Day film Love Come Back , to Darrin Stephens in Bewitched, to Dudley Moore in Crazy People , to the Tom Hanks movie Nothing In Common, all the way to Mad Men. We'll rate them all, and see where they got it right, and where they got it very, very wrong. Hosted on Acast...
May 11, 2013•28 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast This is my annual look at the brands I envy. They may not be the hippest, or the latest, or even the coolest brands. They could be a product, a service or even a person - but I envy them for a reason. Like a famous toy that was discovered when its inventor was installing a light fixture, a television network that leads the Emmy race every year, a knife that can be identified from 30 feet away, and a person who has built an empire by breaking all the rules. All extraordinary brands, all I envy as...
Apr 27, 2013•28 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast This is the very interesting selling strategy where one product is given away for free, or at a high discount, in order to attract people to buy another more profitable product. We’ll track the earliest loss leaders of shaving blades and Jell-O recipes, all the way up to today’s printers, video games and even Kindles – all of which are loss leaders. You might be surprised to know how many loss leaders swirl all around you every day. Advertisers know what to give away in order to prof...
Apr 20, 2013•27 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast They’ve been around for almost 80 years, and entertain millions. But game shows are also powerful marketing vehicles. We’ll trace their history from early radio to their debut on network television, and explore their interesting evolution from quiz shows (and the quiz show scandals) to the modern game show format. We’ll also analyze how Let’s Make A Deal and The Price is Right work with advertisers to sell thousands of products, and we’ll tell a fascinating tale of how on...
Apr 13, 2013•28 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast Along with the most famous marketing blunder of all time - the Edsel - we’ll look at what caused Coke to make the mistake of changing their fabled formula, how a company went actually out of business by promising a product improvement, how a fashion house tweeted inappropriately and had an immediate PR disaster, and how a fast food company made a big mistake betting on the U.S. Olympic team. They are all great stories. Just be glad they didn’t happen to you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...
Apr 06, 2013•28 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast In the history of the advertising industry, the full force of persuasion has been put behind many products turned out to be incredibly unsafe. Even when those products were used exactly as advertised – they created enormous hazards, physical risk, and in some cases, even death. We’ll explore how we invited Asbestos and DDT into our homes as miracle products, how certain games for children ended up posing incredible risks, and how a much-heralded drug ended up being one of the most devastat...
Mar 23, 2013•28 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast We’re on the hunt for great companies that went out of their way to treat their customers well. From an amusement park that delivered such superior customer service that other corporations asked for lessons, to a shoe company you can order a pizza from, to a store that actually accepted a returned product they didn’t even sell just to keep their customer happy – join us as we search for companies that go the extra inch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Mar 16, 2013•27 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast There are millions of successful brands in the world, but very few of them are in the exclusive billion dollar club. We'll test your ability to guess which brands in your life are the billion-dollar ones, and we'll tell you which of P&G's brands reached $10 billion first, which cookie is worth a cool billion, which Hollywood movie star is has sold the most tickets, and which NHL franchise is the only billion-dollar team in the league. Join us as we look at the mega brands that outsell all th...
Mar 10, 2013•28 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast This week we look at Marketing Stunts. Many brands try to get into the Guinness Book Of World Records as a marketing strategy. With that in mind, we’ll talk about how an energy drink staged a record-breaking jump from space, why a giant popsicle stunt melted before it even started, why unsuspecting travelers ended up running through a train station like James Bond, and how Richard Branson pulled off a stunt that drove British Airways crazy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informa...
Mar 03, 2013•27 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast This week, just in time for the Oscars - we take our annual look at creative movie trailers. We’ll see how Walt Disney convinced the public to watch the first-ever full-length animated movie, how some trailers don’t show a frame of the actual film they’re advertising, how some trailers contain footage not found in the movie itself, and we’ll tell you the story of why thousands of people bought tickets to a movie, watched a trailer that ran before the movie started, then got up and went home. &nb...
Feb 24, 2013•28 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast This week on Under The Influence, we look at the companies that actually profit by asking you to BUY LESS . We’ll explore a burger company that asks its customers to eat less beef, a printing company helps you print less, why Gillette has suddenly started encouraging men to change blades less often, and why a clothing company insists that you buy less of their apparel. It’s a completely counter-intuitive marketing strategy, but each of these companies is doing more busines...
Feb 03, 2013•26 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast This week on Under The Influence, we look at the incredible creativity happening in radio advertising today. Many advertisers think radio is yesterday's medium, but judging by the incredible work being done around the world, radio isn't dead, it's hotter than ever. We'll look at the top radio advertising ideas that have won in recent international award shows, including one remarkable idea that used code to reach kidnapped soldiers in Columbia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more inf...
Jan 27, 2013•26 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we look at the critical importance of timing in marketing. It’s one thing to put the right message in front of the right person, but it’s a fine art to put it in front of them at the perfect moment. We’ll look at how the United States Navy used perfect timing to double their applications by taking advantage of a certain movie playing in theatres. We’ll explain why Dr. Scholl’s chose to pitch inner soles in the washrooms of nightclubs and how Hellman’s Mayonnaise used perfect timing to...
Jan 20, 2013•27 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Remember when you were growing up, and you’d find a prize inside your cereal box? Prizes, premiums and box-top offers have been a staple of modern marketing since the 1800s. We’ll tell the story of how the first ever box-top offer was the result of a critical marketing mistake – but it set the stage for a century of product giveaways. We’ll also explore the psychology of free prizes, like how the public is instantly attracted to a mail-in offer, but so few go to the trouble of redeeming their pr...
Jan 13, 2013•27 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast To kick off the 2013 season, we explore one of the most effective marketing strategies ever devised: The use of “Shame” as a marketing tool. First emerging in the late 1800s, toothpaste ads suggested a fresh mouth could help you attract a mate. But advertisers had a major obstacle to overcome – bad breath and body odour were not socially unacceptable then. So advertisers focused their sizable resources to linking odours to shame, and then shame to product solution. From bad bre...
Jan 06, 2013•28 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast In this final episode of the season, Terry answers listener questions about the advertising industry. Some of the very insightful questions include: When was the very first ad every done? Do celebrities have to actually use a product before they endorse them? Why do advertisers still use Imperial measurements in ads? Does product placement work better than traditional advertising? And "what effect will the loss of the penny have on traditional 99 cent sale prices?" Hope you'll join us for some v...
Jun 23, 2012•28 min•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast There was a time when the humble matchbook was the top advertising medium in North America. They were handy, colourful, cheap and even a moderate smoker would be exposed to the advertising over 20 times a day. Matchbook advertising pre-dated radio, and was embraced by almost every industry. From big beer and tobacco companies, to the war effort, to Hollywood, to the smallest Mom & Pop businesses, matchbook advertising was effective and affordable for everyone. And believe it or not, even the...
Jun 16, 2012•27 min•Ep 24•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we look at companies that go above and beyond the call. Companies that add smart, little touches that make all the difference. Like hotels that help you fall asleep at night with sleep aids, grocery stores that help you read the small type on vitamin bottles, hardware stores that give you maps of their aisles, airports that know you need to charge up between flights, and business cards that are so unique you never forget them. Grab a coffee and join us for companies that go the extra ...
Jun 09, 2012•26 min•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast The gay community will spend over $800 billion dollars this year. A large percentage are affluent, hip and trendsetting, yet the advertising industry took decades to market to them. This week, we look at L.G.B.T. - or Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual and Transgender - advertising. From the first gay characters on mainstream television in the 70s, to the first big brand that dared to openly advertise to the Gay community in 1981, to the 10-year drought of gay advertising brought by the onset of AIDS, to i...
Jun 02, 2012•28 min•Ep 22•Transcript available on Metacast This is my annual look at some of my favourite books. We'll look at a new book, titled, "Mad Women," written by an original Mad Woman from the 60s era Madison Avenue. Next, we flip through the pages of another new book by one of the most outspoken and notorious Mad Men of all time - George Lois - whose no-holds barred book of advice will certainly ruffle some feathers. Simon Sinek's book, titled, "Start With Why" argues that most companies don't know WHY their in business, and will not succeed a...
May 26, 2012•27 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast Over the lifetime of a company, mistakes happen. When those mistakes cause damage, it's appropriate for a brand to apologize. Yet, it rarely happens. This week, we look at the companies that chose to apologize. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 19, 2012•26 min•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast This is my annual celebration of the brands I envy. They aren't necessarily the most hip or most current, or even the number one brand in their category. As a matter of fact, a "brand" by my definition doesn't even have to be a product or service, it could be a location, a person or an animal. But they must be unique, they must be revolutionary or counter-intuitive, and they must have survived. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
May 12, 2012•27 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast In the world of marketing, the use of colour is a studied science. As a result, colours play a bigger role in your purchasing decisions than you may think. A colour can make you feel a certain way about a company, or it can trigger you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 05, 2012•26 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast "Hypertargeting" is the next frontier in 21st century marketing. Marketers are gleaning and buying more and more personal information about consumers online. People are also being tracked online, as marketers watch their buying habits. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 28, 2012•27 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast The advertising industry has a long history of using sex to sell products. Woodbury's used sex to sell soap as far back the 1920's - and the campaign was written by a woman. But the use of sex has always been a polarizing technique. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 21, 2012•28 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast Back in 2007, a cute video of two kids was uploaded by their father. In it, one kid bites the finger of the other. That video, called "Charlie Bit My Finger" went on to attract 420 million views. To say it over-performed would be an understatement. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 14, 2012•27 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast This episode is about how major brands in our lives simply vanish. One of magician Harry Houdini's most famous tricks was to make a 5-ton elephant disappear in front of large audiences. Marketing has its own version of that trick. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 07, 2012•28 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast This episode is about how major brands in our lives simply vanish. One of magician Harry Houdini's most famous tricks was to make a 5-ton elephant disappear in front of large audiences. Marketing has its own version of that trick. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 31, 2012•28 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast 
