Good Ad: Regular Coke

Okay, so I may have been a little hard on Coke last week. They probably spent like a million bucks on that commercial.


And you know how I said that every once in a while they produce gold? 
Well, ladies and gents, here is like a zillion bricks of it:
(Try and watch it without crying, I DARE you!)

If you're not crying there's something very wrong..

Bad Ad: Diet Coke

I've never been a fan of Coke ads, really. Most of them are pretty forgettable, focused around a family or friend tableau. Every once in a while, however, they'll throw some really awesome, genuine commercials; but I find that inspiration strikes at random intervals.

In contrast to the M by Molson commercial I featured last post, Diet Coke put one out in a similar vein, but I think the execution was poor and lazy.

The ad, like the Molson commercial, features artists doing what they do. The idea behind Coke's version is: if you're an artist and you hit an inspirational wall, have a sip of Diet Coke and it will shine down upon you like an epiphany. Also, it will help you if you're a maternity nurse? And be social if you're famous?


Not sure exactly who they were pandering to here, it seems pretty all over the place. This ad just infuriates me every time it comes on because it's on every station at every commercial break. How much money did Coke piss away this time?


Without further adieu, I present to you, the mess:

Good Ad: M by Molson

So, last night I had a dream that my blog was a collection of advertisements that I either liked or disliked. Since this guy has been floundering around as of late, I've decided to do just that.


Thanks again, subconscious!

I really want to pursue a career in advertising, and so I figure that I can use my weekly (sometimes daily) posts as a source of inspiration, should I happen to attain such a job.


I saw this commercial on T.V. the other day, and it really caught my attention.

It's a bit of a stretch - the ad is for beer after all - but I felt that it went in a completely different direction than the generic cookie-cutter booze ads you see all the time. It's also interesting in the sense that restrictions for alcohol ads are so tight, most ad companies have to be really creative. You wouldn't know that this commercial is for alcohol at all until the very end.


The visuals are stunning, and the message is inspiring. It's almost like a short film.


Now, I'm off to go drink beer. 

Marketing: 5 Year Old Style

While doing some pretty bleak research for an article I'm working on, I stumbled upon this:

And I just have to say "yayyyyyyy!!" (like Kermit the Frog does)

Also, this:

The future is bright guys, it's hella bright.

Thanks again, YouTube.

A Lotta Pilates

Do you like working out and feeling strong?

Do you wanna get ready for bikini (or.. trunk?) season?

Are you a broke student who can't afford/is too lazy to go to the gym?!

If you've answered yes to any of these, have I got a deal for you! What if I told you there is a place where you can get an ass-kicking workout absolutely FREE!?

It is literally, the second-best thing I've found on the Internet.

http://blogilates.com/ is a wonderful website run by an annoyingly cheery pilates instructor. If you click under the tab "Workout Video Index" you'll find tons of different free workouts available on-line and divided up by the body part of your liking.

I must warn you though, that these workouts are challenging. I've done almost every different form of exercise out there and I've found pilates to be the toughest. It works on your "core" strength, which I believed to be just a myth used to sell more protein powder for the longest time. 

Pilates is also great because you don't need any fancy gym equipment in order to do the workouts. You rely solely on your own body weight to do the exercises, so all you need to buy is a mat, which usually cost $8-$15 (if you're paying more you're getting gypped).

I suggest starting with one of the beginner workouts like this one:

Or, starting with one of the localized workouts as they're usually shorter.

For the more advanced, I can't get enough of this one:

And for the first time today I managed to get through this one without stopping:

Killer!!! Try some of these vids when you're feeling stressed, I guarantee it'll help.
And did I mention it's FREE????

Shit _______ Say

The new viral craze that is sweeping the inter-nation (copywriting that!), which I'm sure most people with eyes have seen by now is Shit ______ Say.

It started out with Shit Girls Say:

So true right!? It was followed up swiftly with Shit Girls say pt 2:

And from there has spun off in all kinds of crazy racist directions, for example...

(apparently girls are really bad with computers)

Shit Spanish Girls Say:

There are even some with subtle corporate sponsorships:

Did you see the LuluLemon logo sneaking in there? That particular viral video has been seen by over 1 million people already, and it was posted only 13 days ago. There are a few instances of businesses that have lucked into a viral vid, but this one was customized to sneakily jump onto the bandwagon. Smart, or scary!?

I personally think viral vids are still a pure form of communication by the masses. There's just something that makes me feel human when I watch a cat video or something to do with a flash mob. Maybe commercials will just end up being competing viral vids in a few years. The term "viral" comes from the word virus, which "is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms". In essence, humans!

Some corporations are using viral vids to do good instead of evil. Like this one:

Or this one, made out of a real video compilation:

That shit really makes you think, doesn't it...

Cho: My Hero

If you hang out with me for a semi-extended period of time, it's likely that I've made you watch some of Margaret Cho's stand up. The best DVD, in my opinion, is undoubtedly

Notorious C.H.O.

via moviepostershop.com

She speaks the truth and the truth is hella funny. 

I also read up on her biography a while back, and most of what she jokes about actually comes from experiences she's had in her life. Basically I worship everything she's ever done and aspire to be like her in every way (including by turning myself Asian somehow). 

She often jokes about her struggles with weight and body image, and after many years of self-depreciation, she has turned her message into one of self-acceptance. 

I happen to follow her on Twitter, and the other day she posted a strange message:

Weird, right? So I replied to her with a Tweet expressing my love and admiration. Alas, she has yet to Tweet back, but I'm sure she was mighty busy.

Turns out the reasoning behind this stemmed from a photo that she has posted on her Twitter of a new tattoo which happened to be placed on her butt cheek.

What a gorgeous piece of work! And I'm not just talking about the ink. *wink*

Turns out some a-hole guys left some negative comments about her body and she lost it. She wrote a beautiful piece of writing that was posted to Jezebel earlier today in response. 

You can check it out Here, it's worth the read.

Sites like Twitter and Facebook have removed about 1000 steps that separate us "normals" from our celebrity heroes. Unfortunately, it has also removed the separation between "normals" and the people who hate for the sake of hating. 

Back in the Sack Attack

As it appears, Christmas break has invariably come to an end, and with it comes a refreshed outlook on the prospect of another semester of college. OR DOES IT!?!

... yes, it does.

While the year 2012 is shaping up to bring on the ultimate demise of our civilization as we know it, I'd like to look at the impending apocalypse as a motivational tool to accomplish things I've yet to accomplish.

Some things I'd like to do before the Mayan Calender blah blah blah:

• Learn how to airbrush/spray paint
• Score a sweet summer job at a place that does not involve taxes for once
• Learn how to knit something other than a scarf
• Try and be more self-sustaining
• Email/harass famous people that I admire to see if they're e-mail/harass back
•  Partake in some local theater
• Make my own wine to save on my wine budget
• Learn other mediums and develop my own visual style
• Eat More Bikes

What are your New Year's resolutions internet?!?