Juli 2012

Apple Getting Skinned

The web is buzzing with unflattering commentary about Apple's latest TV campaign. I'll be writing about it soon.

As a byproduct of Apple's ad problems, a post I wrote last year is getting a lot of attention and traffic.

If you're interested, the piece is called Advertising And The Future Of Apple and you can find it here.

Today I'm blogging about historical fiction on The Writer's ABC Checklist

Invasion Of The Paramarketers

We have a new breed in the advertising and marketing world. They are paramarketers -- almost marketers. They know the language. They know the look. They know the moves. But they don't have the chops.

In medicine and the law, people who are almost doctors and almost lawyers are clearly labeled. They are paramedics and paralegals. But in marketing, there are no such labels. They are called

Friends Family and Other Strangers From Downunder

Fancy relaxing in the shade this weekend with the cocktail of your choice and an entertaining mixture of Australian short stories? My e-book collection is free from all amazon sites for the next 5 days. I'd love some feedback too, please!

Ad Contrarian Bails Out Facebook

As you probably know, Facebook announced their earnings yesterday and the men in the grey suits on Wall Street were not happy. Shares in Facebook dropped 10% in after-hours trading after falling 8.5% earlier in the day. Facebook shares were already selling for less than a toasted raisin bagel with light cream cheese, so this was not a good thing.

One thing we don't want is for the men in grey

Social Media And The Olympic Games

The great Dave Trott turned me on to a truly wonderful social media video about the London Olympics. First take a look at it, then we'll talk.

You watch this and you say to yourself, is she serious? Then a question creeps into your mind. Is she really a social media person or is it a spoof?

One of the characteristics of great satire is that it straddles the line between reality and comedy.

Fellow Aussie and historical fiction author, John Ivor from Booktaste

Following John Ivor’s historical novel, No Kiss For A Killer, his second title in the Dreams Quartet – Run Maggie Run – is an adults-only paperback.

Sentenced to hang, 9-year old factory waif, Maggie flees 1830s Scotland and endures a violent odyssey to womanhood. On the run, her adventures take her to the far end of the world. She outsmarts Arab pirates, endures kidnapping, survives sex predators and is sold as a slave. Thrills, humour and compassion blend to give this novel its original label as ‘best serial since Dickens’.

For more details on Run Maggie Run, please refer to www.Booktaste.com

Dead Air More Effective Than Facebook Ads

The broadcast industry has a term called "dead air." It occurs when there's a mistake or a technical glitch that results in no audio on radio, or no picture on a TV screen. A blank TV screen is "dead air."

In an absolutely astounding experiment, the banner advertising equivalent of dead air -- a blank display ad -- performed better than the average Facebook ad; twice as good as the average "

A Facebook Story

NPR has a podcast called Planet Money.

Recently they did a show about Facebook. If you have 20 minutes I suggest you listen to it here. The show aired a few days after the Facebook IPO.

They did an interesting experiment. They took a small, popular pizza place in New Orleans called Pizza Delicious that was looking to expand, and paired them with a social media marketing expert in San Francisco

Why Interactivity Makes Advertising Less Effective

The advertising and marketing industries had a dream. The dream was that interactive media would revolutionize advertising and make it far more relevant and effective.

There's only one problem. Consumers have shown no interest whatsoever in interacting with advertising. None.

Click through rates on display ads continue to drop and are now below one in a thousand. Every attempt at interactive TV

Thanks to the fab magazine, Words with Jam, for this podcast of Spirit of Lost Angels

http://quinnpublications.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/podcast-spirit-of-lost-angels.html?spref=fb

Many thanks to Janet Skeslien Charles for interviewing me on going from a midwife in Australia to an author in France

http://www.jskesliencharles.com/2012/07/interview-with-liza-perrat/

Display's Dismal Dysfunction

For years here at Ad Contrarian global headquarters, we have been questioning the marketing industry's delusional enthusiasm for online display advertising. Despite consumers' ongoing indifference, and the pitiful performance of this form of advertising, marketers continue to pour billions of dollars into this black hole.*

There are naive clients who insist on throwing their money away on

How The Higgs Boson Can Help You Build Customer Engagement

Executive Summary: Start by creating a Boson-link (Blink). Then co-create by sharing Blinks about your brand with a million billion trillion zillion other Blinks and, like, then those Blinks will, like, totally connect and grow exponentially and before you know it you're delivering brand messages and branded content and branded branding to everyone online without having to give a penny

The Real Poop On Marketing

The Ad Contrarian is on sabbatical. For the sake of blogaholics I am reprinting some old stuff that is either still relevant or still silly. Here's a silly one from 2008.

Something I read recently got me thinking that we may be flushing millions of dollars right down the old crapper.

It turns out that in marketing today, poop is some valuable shit.
- A big-time Manhattan spa is offering a

How To Be Happy In Advertising

The Ad Contrarian is on sabbatical. For the sake of blogoholics and other harmless sociopaths we will be posting stuff from years back that is either still relevant or still silly. Here's one from 2007.

Dr. Adcontrarian is on duty today to help you be a happier ad person. Please have a seat.

It's not easy being happy in advertising. It's a frustrating business. Modern life is filled with

How Many Cognitive Anthropologists Does It Take To Make A TV Spot?

I know, I know... I'm supposed to be on blog sabbatical. But I came across this and it's just too good to pass up.

CP+B just broke 2 new TV spots for Applebee's. This post is not about the spots. It's about the credits for the spots. Apparently it took more people to create this thing than Gone With The Wind. Below are the credits for the two spots. (If you think I'm making this up, here's the

Why I Love Living in a Rural French Village

Perhaps because I grew up in Australia, a country with a past so young, I have always been awed by history. Twenty years ago, I moved to a rural French village and found myself steeped in antiquity, age-old culture and monuments. Writing about all this became, unconsciously at first, the next logical step.

Read the rest of this post on the Historical Tapestry blog.

Interview with Karen Maitland

In this month's Triskele bookclub discussion, I have reviewed Company of Liars and had a lovely interview with the charming Karen Maitland.http://www.triskelebooks.moonfruit.com/#/book-club/4561070548

Fifteen Shades For Grey

One of my short stories - Crocodile Tears - appears in this worthy collection put together to try and raise money for rescued animals.

The 5th Anniversary Edition

Today marks the 5th anniversary of The Ad Contrarian.

Against all odds, the blog is still alive, readership is still growing, and it hasn't cost me any accounts. All this is very gratifying.

I am rewarding myself with a sabbatical. I'm going to take the month of July off and I'll be back in August.

For all the blogoholics out there, I'll be posting stuff from years past that I think is either

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