Heineken: The Valentines Day Serenade App

Description digitalbuzz

Backing up from the last amazing brand film called “The Date”, Heineken have launched “The Serenade”. A cool Facebook app designed to help you ask people out on a date this Valentines Day, via a personalised “Serenade” video. It’s available in something like 20 languages, so just about anyone in the world can participate, a huge effort from Wieden + Kennedy.

Just select your special someone, why you fancy them, what the plan is for valentines day and why you are so special… Then Heineken will turn that into a musical serenade and post it to your potential dates wall, where they can watch the video and say yes or no to your proposition!

The campaign then ties into a much bigger, 8 hour live streaming YouTube event. With Heineken asking fans to go on a legendary date, and surprise their loved one in an unexpected fashion by having their serenade written and performed in real-time on the live streaming YouTube event!

 Kleeenex helps you over the sneeze

Are you living in the Northern Hemisphere? Then chances are, you are fighting a cold and sniffle and sneeze your way towards 2012. Kleenex in Israel came to the rescue of 50 cold-stricken Facebook users and send them special care packages.

It’s another example of a brand treating a few of their fans in a special way. OK, you would have to have your Facebook updates set to public to be picked up in this way. But maybe this meant that the chosen few were especially keen to spread the word socially.

Pirelli Let’s Dance Attack

An amazing display of power and control that Pirelli organized in Milan to celebrate a great Formula One™ season with Pzero tires.
Music: “Fantasy” by Breakbot.

On the eve of the F1 Grand Prix at Monza, 30 professional dancers from Paris, Rome and Milan descended upon the famous Arco dell Pace in Milan to launch Pirelli’s new P-Zero Silver tire. They performed a graceful, yet powerful dance attack, set to the music of Breakbot’s “Fantasy”. This event and film highlights Pirelli’s partnership with F1 and the “Let’s Dance” campaign. The dance attack was choreographed by acclaimed French choreographer Paola Ka and filmed by Nathalie Canguilhem with HSI London.

Virgin Mobile FreeFest: The Echo Temple

Description digitalbuzz

An Echo Temple? Yep, Kyocera teamed up with Virgin to create this amazing installation at the Virgin Mobile FreeFest, allowing users to play virtual instruments and create music by moving their body in front of motion-tracking cameras.

But it wasn’t just about body movement, you could use fans that had special (rather weird) symbols printed on them to help control the volume, pitch and unique audio effects as the cameras tracked them. The Echo Temple included six monolithic speaker towers for the party goers to play with, all circling around a huge subwoofer station. Very very cool. And with over 50,000 people at the event, the Echo Temple eventually became its own parry!

Bloggers Mean Business

They’re not the future of fashion magazines—they’re the future of fashion branding

Description adweek

here was a moment after New York’s 2009 Fall Fashion Week when fashion bloggers had officially, as the press likes to call it, “arrived.” They had blogged their way to the front row of Bryant Park’s most exclusive runway shows; they were the new army of digital Anna Wintours. They wrote in Internet slang and posted photos of themselves mixing vintage with Valentino. They were so quirky! And also, influential! Or so news outlets gushed. Stiff, walled-off fashion editors, once secure in their self-preserved ivory towers, were trembling in fear of a coup.

Fast forward two years and fashion’s digerati have shown they actually have no interest in Wintour’s job. They’d rather sit across the table from her, as the faces of the companies whose ads keep publications like Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and W in the black. Bloggers don’t want to be editors, because they’ve built something much more valuable: brands.

For the past four years, Midwesterner Jessica Quirk’s blog, What I Wore, has featured photos of her wearing outfits she’s styled. She details the origin of each item, lending an implicit endorsement to the brands she’s sporting. It’s not journalism; it’s talking about oneself. Which is to say, it’s branding oneself.

The explosion of this type of blog and the influence of the women behind them are due, in part, to readers of magazine glossies wanting to see relatable ladies in “real world” clothes. Independent Fashion Bloggers, an online community, has more than 30,000 members; Technorati lists 8,117 fashion blogs in its directory. Sites like What I Wore garner 20,000 unique visitors per month, according to Web traffic measurement site Compete; around half of those readers return daily.

Now fashion bloggers are leveraging their followers to become marketing machines for brands other than their own (in other words, to earn money), augmenting those companies’ advertising and PR strategies. They’re taking on numerous roles including guest bloggers, models, designers, and endorsers. They’re maintaining credibility with fans—they hope—by choosing partnerships discerningly, while discussing deliverables, audience composition, ROI, and conversions with their sponsors. The opportunity to convert their readership into customers for brands is huge—apparel and accessories was the second-largest category for e-commerce spending in 2010, beating out even consumer electronics with $20.5 billion in sales, according to comScore. “People are doing their best to find an audience like mine, a 25- to 34-year-old woman who spends X dollars shopping online,” says Quirk, who blogs as a brand ambassador for Timex on its website and on What I Wore, and has blogged for Ann Taylor LOFT on its site while posting photos of herself in LOFT clothes on her own. A former designer, she also designed a bracelet for charity that will sell in LOFT stores this fall.

These brands could hire a celebrity spokesperson. Instead they’ve hired a celebrity spokesperson who has her own distribution channel.

Coach probably started it. In 2009, its marketing execs noticed that bloggers, not magazine editors, were driving social conversations online. To put it in corporate terms, “they adeptly used the aspirational and visual nature of blogging to share a unique and authentic perspective,” David Duplantis, evp of global Web, digital media, and customer engagement at Coach, told Adweek. Last year, the company recruited four bloggers to custom design, for pay, limited-edition Coach bags. Karla Deras, Kelly Framel, Emily Schuman, and Krystal Simpson worked with Coach to create purses named after their blogs, which they promoted on those blogs, and on their Twitter and Facebook accounts. (They quickly sold out.) Coach is expanding its design collaboration concept to a larger group of global bloggers, Duplantis says. It also features bloggers as models in digital and in-store ad campaigns and has a monthly Guest Blogger. For last week’s Fashion’s Night Out, blogger partners, including Framel (The Glamourai), hosted an in-store party featuring clothing displays they styled around Coach bags.

The blogger-brand marriage reaches the highest of high fashion: Susie Lau of Style Bubble has worked with Valentino and Furla for events and editorial features. Rebecca Minkoff even hired Daniel Saynt, founder of blog network Fashion Indie, as its CMO earlier this year.

It cuts across the spectrum to mass market brands, too. Blogger/designer Keiko Lynn Groves hosts Facebook chats for CVS Beauty Club. Framel and Schuman modeled in ads for Forever 21. Gabrielle Gregg of Gabifresh collaborates with The Limited on designs and promotions for a plus-size brand, eloquii, launching in October.

Juicy Couture even turned to bloggers to reverse an unsavory image when it found itself boxed into a tracksuit ghetto of sorts. Through blogger outreach like events featuring after-hours shopping with DJing by India Jewel-Jackson of Glam.com, it massaged its image. “Many of my peers have a new respect for them . . . and they did it without forcing themselves on anyone,” Framel says.

Gap takes a similarly low-pressure approach, seeking to generate feedback with impressions as a secondary (and yet often successful) consideration. “It’s a constant two-way dialogue,” says Gap’s Olivia Doyne, director of partnerships, brand engagement and PR. In August, the company offered to outfit speakers at a conference run by blog network BlogHer; nearly all opted to don a Gap-provided outfit on stage. The brand received almost 2 million online impressions related to the conference without a single piece of paid media or advertising.

Several previously cold-faced fashion houses have even developed their own down-to-earth blogger voices, including Oscar de la Renta’s OscarPRGirl and Donna Karan New York’s Twitter account (@DKNY), an insider-y peek at the brand and its author’s “life as a PR girl.” Personal? Check. Relatable? Check. Aspirational? Check. Branded? You bet.

But elaborate deals involving giveaway contests, blog content, design collaborations, photo shoots, and appearances are difficult for fashion brands to pull off. PR reps are still learning to treat bloggers as more than an easy PR hit, says Jennine Jacob, founder of IFB, who blogs at The Coveted. Too often, a brand hosts parties and distributes free samples, expecting a fawning blog post, she says. It’s a turnoff. “My student loans don’t accept free products from a brand and neither does my landlord,” Jacobs says. And the quid pro quo agreements are not just tacky, they’re illegal.

Ann Inc. learned that when a January invite for a schmoozy party to preview LOFT’s spring collection promised gift cards to attendees, but only after they blogged about the event. The result: an FTC investigation, since it happened shortly after the agency had adopted rules requiring bloggers to disclose when they’ve received payment or goods related to coverage. (The investigation concluded with no fines to Ann Inc.) Standard practice now is to note an item is “c/o” or care of the brand.  

Other complications: As blogging talents grow in influence, so do their fees—some bloggers command $5,000 for a one-day appearance. And as fees for design collaborations can range from $5,000 to $30,000, according to Macala Wright, former account manager of GCI Group and publisher of FashionablyMarketing.Me., convincing brands to shell out has been an uphill battle.

Compensation is also muddled by the fact that fashion bloggers occupy an in-between area in endorsement contracts. They are technically the talent, like any celebrity. But unlike a celebrity, bloggers offer a package—Facebook fans, blog visitors, Twitter followers—and need to engage free of wording restrictions and exclusivity clauses. Brands, accustomed to working with advertorial teams, struggle to give up control. “[Brands] have to know that nobody is jeopardizing anyone’s image,” says Karen Robinovitz, co-founder of fashion blogger agency Digital Brand Architects. “A blogger knows what will resonate with her audience, even if it means never capitalizing her ‘i’s.”

Robinovitz started DBA with former Fleishman-Hillard vp Kendra Bracken-Ferguson after watching bloggers undervalue themselves in deal negotiations. She represents more than 50 fashion bloggers. “We don’t believe every moment has to be paid for,” Robinovitz says, “but once the brands realize what they’re paying for is above and beyond basic editorial coverage, they start to understand.” Driving the point home: Bryanboy, one of fashion’s most famous bloggers who earns six figures a year from appearances and ads on his blog, recently signed with CAA.

(Not everyone agrees that bloggers need agents. Wright has written that bloggers need lawyers, not agents. Others say agencies prey on bloggers.)

But perhaps the most important question for a marketer is: How do brands measure the success of blogger collaborations? The ROI metrics aren’t easy to articulate and there are no best practices. Juicy Couture looks at everything, such as share of voice, sentiment, awareness, referrals, resonations, support response, clicks, fans, retweets, views, etc., says Michelle Ryan, its vp of digital and social media. DBA is developing an algorithm for a brand perception metric that links traffic from its bloggers to purchasing data.

The issue found its way into the news last week when reps from Ann Taylor, Kate Spade, and PR firm Starworks publicly trashed Tumblr’s attempt to sell them expensive blogger-driven marketing partnerships related to Fashion Week, when the platform doesn’t provide basic analytics to its dedicated brand users. But blog-brand partnerships are still relatively low risk, which is why more brands are trying the campaigns on for size. “The beauty of doing something online is that it’s much more forgivable than spending $1 million producing a TV commercial,” Wright says. And with fashion bloggers’ uniquely deep engagement and influence, “the return on that money is much higher than giving Kim Kardashian 10 grand for one tweet.”

thitime:

Red Bull & Prince of Persia Style Parkour

Description adverblog

Branded content is not always good. But sometimes it’s amazing. And this video shot by Red Bull in Turkey is absolutely fantastic. Photography is exceptional and it takes parkour to a completely different level, where athleticism & bravery meet art, ultimately delivering a subtle yet superb brand experience.

Branded food trucks and tweets

Description adverblog

Sneakers & Denim. Ice-cream & Tacos. Looks like branded Food Trucks are becoming trendy. Mobile marketing 3.0 I would dare to say, and not just because these carts have obviously wheels.

As from late June the Nike Sportswear Ice Cream Truck has been traveling various locations around New York offering sneakers, t-shirts and, of course ice-cream.

SNEAK AND DESTROY VIDEO

Frijj: You LOL You Lose Advergame

Description digitalbuzz

This new advergame from Frijj utilises an interesting mashup of funny, weird and seriously bad YouTube videos with webcams and facial recognition to create the “You LOL You Lose” app.

The advergame pits you against friends from your social networks, in a challenge of who can keep a straight face for the longest period of time while they play you some seriously weird YouTube videos. The whole idea aims to help players build up their tolerance to the unexpected, so these brand new flavours don’t just knock them flat…

The moment the advergame auto detects you laugh, you lose. Created by the guys at Iris.

CHALLENGE THE FASTLANE Sony Ericsson ; Challenge XPERIA NEO

Description adverblog

If you thought Daft Punk’s gear looked cool, wait till you see these skaters don some funky cardboard helmets. Their only chance of seeing ahead is a visor in the shape of a Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo phone. Don’t try this at home, kids!

The video is part of the Challenge Xperia series. Other unusual product demonstrations: a peeping Tom-style balloon camera, driving a MadMax Buick with its windows welded shut (below) and lastly the screen’s superior brightness letting flowers bloom.

VIDEO 2

Mini: Going topless this summer

Description creativecriminals

To promote the new Mini convertible these cool inflatables were created. They can be used for all kinds of purposes as you can see after the jump. This is a perfect link between the brand and the summer, people will enjoy and remember it.

Converse Rubber tracks

Description adverblog
On July 13, Converse Inc. officially announced the opening of its Brooklyn recording studio, Converse Rubber Tracks, which offers artists an opportunity to sign up and record music for free.
Rubber Tracks can also give bands the means to expose their music to a much larger audience through content captured while recording, including songs and behind-the-scenes video.
Head to www.converse.com/rubbertracks to register and for more information.

KLM: Little Acts Of Kindness

KLM committing little acts of kindness. Also see: http://surprise.klm.com/

Get Your Kicks With PUMA, Deadmau5 and Foot Locker  

Original description
Foot Locker will be playing host to an exclusive line of product developed between PUMA and Canadian electro DJ/producer deadmau5. Consisting of both apparel and footwear, the line looks to release exclusively through select Foot Locker locations on August 1, 2011. Stay tuned for a closer look.