brandflakesforbreakfast

remix culture: how it all comes together

2010-02-08T07:53:00.000-05:00

Think that internet memes and viral culture is completely random and without intellect?

Check out this outstanding analysis of remix culture and social play. A must view for anyone working in the socialsphere.

how mullen and radian 6 turned the superbowl into a marketing victory

2010-02-08T07:38:00.001-05:00

As an agency, Mullen wants to get attention from marketers. And social media monitoring service Radian 6 wants to speak to agencies and brand people. They both know that Superbowl is the one television event that brings everyone together for the night.

Together, they created BrandBowl 2010 , a site that monitored the Twittersphere for chatter about the Superbowl ads, and measured the sentiment. The best ads were ranked on a live leaderboard with live chat streamed in too.

The genius behind this creation was that it spoke to their audience perfectly. Agency people and marketers alike now experienced a live demonstration of the Radian 6 product. And they did so with an excellent presentation by Mullen. Classic "create for your audience" marketing that made many agencies (including us) thinking "wish I thought of that."

backstories on the hot spots from last night

2010-02-08T07:25:00.001-05:00

One of the more talked about ads from last night was the David Lettermen/Jay Leno ad, with Oprah. Want all of the background on how the Superbowl miracle came together? The NY Times has all the juice.

Meanwhile, AdFreak shows the difference between the beauteous Google spot and an actual search of the same questions.

(I still want to know what vitamins Betty White is taking.)

print publishing: the new non-profit?

2010-02-08T07:23:00.001-05:00

Giant Robot is the most awesome resource for Asian meets American pop culture. The trouble is, like most pubs on paper, not enough people are subscribing or paying for ads.

They've put together a pretty heart-touching video and fundraising site that explains their predicament and how they need your help.

Kind of makes you wonder if NPR-style fund-drives are the future of print publishing, doesn't it?

how to make a fiat cute

2010-02-05T07:52:00.001-05:00

Did you ever wonder what your car might look like, if you painted it with your sister's nail polish? Or how long it might take? Yeah, me too.

Watch a new Fiat get painted pink with a little tiny brush and a kabillion bottles of nail polish. It's all part of Pink My Ride, a new campaign for Fiat and lovers of cute pink cars.

need a new name? there's an app for that.

2010-02-05T07:39:00.000-05:00

We all know that every possible cool url is pretty much taken, so if you want to create a new brand or company, often the best tactic is to invent your own word.

The Brand Generator is a tool that makes up new words for you based on some basic direction that you supply. And it's an iPhone app, so you can generate names on the move. Because that's how you roll.

Not as fun as the pirate name generator, but maybe more useful.

welcome to your augmented reality future

2010-02-05T07:29:00.001-05:00

In the future, everything will be augmented reality and plastered with banner ads. And making tea will never be easier. Thanks, Casey!

type and sing tool for the singing of type

2010-02-05T07:14:00.002-05:00

Type your message into the Let them sing it for you tool, and it automatically pulls singing audio samples to compose your message.

Almost unintelligible for many messages, but I'm sure that when you use this to sing your love to that special valentine, she won't mind. From @codegent.

your tweetage, illustrated

2010-02-05T07:11:00.002-05:00

Xefer is a new tool that lets you graph your tweets by time and day of the week.

So now you can put together a PowerPoint presentation and impress your friends with the volume of your tweetage. (Definitely a big hit at parties.) From @darmano

artful therapy for over spending

2010-02-04T08:01:00.001-05:00

Do you need to remind yourself that living beyond your means on your credit card is a bad habit?

Check out what artist Kate Bingaman-Burt is doing. She's vowed to hand draw each of her credit card statements, until they're paid off. She started in 2004. (She's still going.) Wow. From @miconian.

what your name means on the street

2010-02-04T07:51:00.000-05:00

If you work in a place where you'll get in trouble for seeing nasty swear words on your computer, then ignore this post. And definitely don't click this link.

But if you're not offended by crass language, or have a potty mouth workplace, then you'll totally love this campaign by UrbanDictionary to promote their tool.

Enter your name, and learn what it might mean in street slang. (I am so happy to be named after a turd.) Cute. From pottymouth @benkunz.

everyone loves tasty bagels

2010-02-04T07:43:00.000-05:00

Here's another fantastic case study about how a brand has leveraged Facebook to bring customers to their door. It turns out that coupons delivered through Facebook have a much stronger response rate than those old school FSI things.

Tell your boss to allocate 34 kabillion dollars to social media this year.

don't ask.

2010-02-04T07:36:00.000-05:00

The latest internet meme that has everyone going gaga? Selleck Waterfall Sandwich. You don't have to understand it, you only have to respect it.

Someday, aliens will look down on our civilization and be confused.

the stick dude from the nyc subway system

2010-02-04T07:15:00.001-05:00

One of the things you've really been missing in your life is a comprehensive collection of stick figure man graphics from the NYC subway system.

Rest easy, PrttyShtty Design has assembled a wonderful post featuring all of them, for your enjoyment. From Coudal.

coke creates snowball association

2010-02-03T06:57:00.001-05:00

You've probably seen the new Coke spot that features an Olympic inspired snowball fight. In order to take the concept a little further than the tv spot, they created a fictional association called the IFST (International Federation of Snowball Throwing).

Check out SnowballThrowing.com, the official site for IFST, and enjoy comments on the Coke spot, snowball making tips and more. Great extension of the campaign online.

spirit airlines targeting...who?

2010-02-03T06:50:00.002-05:00

Spirit Airlines has a new campaign that's captured the spirit of...a frat boy? Their ads feature MUFF Diving Sales and MILF Sales.

This is sure to offend many, which makes you wonder if a targeted campaign to frat boys for spring break will have negative impact for their larger audience in the long haul. Here's an interesting lesson in the mechanics of micro and macro targeting. And, I just said MILF.

empty house turns into ice house

2010-02-03T06:44:00.001-05:00

Detroit has more empty and abandoned real estate than most parts of our country. A photographer and architect are collaborating to bring some additional attention to the issue by turning an empty house into an ice house.

You can watch the video, and then help to support the cause. Another beautiful example of the creative community coming together with their actual communities, and making a difference.

tired of the talking babies?

2010-02-02T07:50:00.002-05:00

Tough. They're not going away. In fact, you can count on them making an appearance in the Superbowl. Because people love talking babies.

Make your own talking baby video message on the eTrade BabyMail site. (No babies were actually mailed in the making of this stunt.)

fly oceanic, tonight

2010-02-02T07:30:00.002-05:00

There are ads running on Kayak for a flight on Oceanic 815, the fictional airline featured in Lost. They've worked the creative direction so that the banners actually look like real search results, and the flight details are the same as the one that crashed on the island.

Great work that fans will appreciate (and be reminded of the season premiere, tonight.)

what happened to that star wars type?

2010-02-02T07:19:00.001-05:00

Ever wonder what happened to all of those titles that flew off into space at the beginning of the first Star Wars movie? Wonder no more.

This is also proof that typography is dangerous work. Use a professional.

could you take a vacation from email?

2010-02-01T07:53:00.000-05:00

Here's a cool auto-reply email that harks back to the old days when people took vacations. Without laptops. Or mobile devices. Or wifi.

From @lauranewm

pepsi as pixels

2010-02-01T07:45:00.001-05:00

Pepsi may not be spending millions on SuperBowl spots, but that doesn't mean they're not in the game.

Check out this awesome store display, built entirely from Pepsi 12 packs. From Neal Stewart

hot bands discovered in your lobby

2010-02-01T07:36:00.002-05:00

The lines between real estate development and boutique hotel design continue to blur. The latest example of this trend is Ohm, a new stylish rental building in Chelsea that features a lobby with...a stage.

They've partnered with the Knitting Factory to offer regular in-lobby performances for their tenants.

how to diffuse a protest

2010-02-01T07:35:00.002-05:00

Westboro Baptist Church showed up the other day in front of Twitter (???) to protest the existence of gay people. (Because, you know...Twitter is responsible for gayness??)

Anyway, some more friendly protesters with even more hilarious signs (pictured above) showed up to join them, and diffuse their message. Screamingly funny.

what seatbelts are for

2010-02-01T07:29:00.000-05:00

Adrants points to to this beautious spot promoting seatbelts. Here's a fantastic example of concept and message coming together in perfect harmony. Without any shock, blood or gore. Nice.