Mitch Drew with the ZOOM Media crew at ABCOM

What to do during tough times?

To advertise or not to advertise during these tough times!

Mitch Drew
Elton Media

KEEP ON GOING

One of my favorite quotes is from the great Winston Churchill. Most people remember his famous "Never, Ever, Ever, Ever Give Up" speach.

I like when he said "If your going through hell, keep going"! It's easy to recognize opportuntities at this time of low stock values, properties in foreclosure and bargains on every corner but if you don't have any available cash, the opportunity means nothing to you.

COMPANIES THAT ADVERTISE IN SLOW TIMES SUCCEED IN GOOD TIMES

If you are a business that is looking at cutting costs, the first thing you look at is your advertising and marketing budget. You might look at your sales efforts as well and reducing expenses like travel, trade shows and face-to-face time spent with customers and potential customers.

All businesses need to do what is needed to survive, but history shows us that a number of companies will take full advantage of this soft market and use it to their advantage.

THE STAGE IS EMPTY

If all of your competition is cutting their marketing budget and 'retreating' in this time of uncertainty, your company can 'come up the middle' and gain more mind share for less money. $1 of advertising will look like $5 in the current market. Audiences are still watching TV, listening to the radio and consuming other media while the cost of the advertising is LESS during tough times.

ADVERTISING IS ON SALE

During strong economic times, companies that sell advertising tell YOU the price that it costs. The stage is crowded and your message is grouped in with every other advertiser trying the squeeze their message through the crowded media mix. During soft times...like NOW, your message will stand out and you pay less money for more audience exposure!

General Motors and Proctor & Gamble are out right now. When they are IN, they drive the rates and demand for advertising up. Your brand has the opportunity to take a smaller, workable advertising budget and make it look like a large, major league budget.

SET YOUR RATES NOW

You may want to book longer term contracts with media suppliers and lock in lower rates. Just like your mortgage, it's great to lock in LOW and take advantage of a soft ad market at this time.

ADVERTISING WORKS

Advertising has worked in the past and it still works now. It costs less today and the opportunities are many. So if you plan on being in business in 2009...feel free to adjust your advertising budget but DO NOT eliminate it. A few dollars well spent now will fuel the fire while this economy comes around.

For more information on how YOUR business can take advantage of these tough times contact:

Jon Elton
Elton Media
604-913-1001 ext1
jon@eltonmedia.com

Mitch Drew
Elton Media
604-913-1001 ext2
mitch@eltonmedia.com
www.eltonmedia.com

Elton Media shoots new Budget Brake & Muffler TV

VANCOUVER - Vancouver Canucks play-by-play announcer John Shorthouse was on hand last week along with a number of Budget Brake & Muffler owners to shoot new TV creative for the 2008 - 2009 TV season.

Here are a couple of stills from the shoot. The new series of 15sec spots will debut in the 2008 Beijing Olympics on CBC starting August 8th.



For more information contact:
Jon Elton
Elton Media
jon@eltonmedia.com
604-913-1001 ext 1

Product Placements Acquire a Life of Their Own on Shows

By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD

In the season finale of “CSI: NY” in May, the show’s characters gathered around videoconferencing screens to share information about a shooting. “She wants everybody on a TelePresence call,” says an investigator, Lindsay Monroe. “O.K., we have a full house, network’s secure, you’re good to go, Stella.”

The unlikely supporting player in the episode was Cisco Systems, which wanted to show off its TelePresence videoconferencing system. Cisco’s on-air cameo may seem puzzling to viewers more familiar with product placements for soft drinks or cars (who would rush out to buy a complex computer system after seeing it on CSI?), but the placement resulted from careful deal-making by the company’s entertainment agency, Davie Brown Entertainment, with CBS and the show.

This is the kind of product placement woven into the plot of a popular show that is of growing concern to the Federal Communications Commission and consumer groups. Product placements are “a huge, out-of-control issue,” said Robert Weissman, the managing director of Commercial Alert, a nonprofit group that aims to limit commercial marketing. He said that the involvement of advertisers in the shaping of scripts and plots represented “fundamental encroachments on the independence of the programming.”

Last month, the F.C.C. opened an inquiry into whether there ought to be frank disclosure of such deals. Among the suggestions are that the networks be required to display on-screen crawls whenever a paid-for placement is seen on television.

“We’re not saying they can’t do it — we’re just saying they have to let the audience know what they’re doing,” said Jonathan S. Adelstein, an F.C.C. commissioner.

“CSI: NY” is only one of Cisco’s many TV and movie credits: the company keeps a long list on its Web site of where its products have appeared, from Fox’s “24” and NBC’s “Heroes” to films like “You, Me and Dupree” and “I Am Legend.” Usually the sponsor’s brand is hard to miss: on a “24” episode, for example, the words “Cisco TelePresence” appear in a close-up that fills the screen.

Mr. Adelstein argues that more disclosure is necessary. He suggested considering that the brand names appear in a minimum font size, and for a minimum length of time, at the beginning or end of a show. For now, it is not clear whether the F.C.C. will take action; it is soliciting comments for the next few months, and may or may not issue a ruling after that.

But in Hollywood and on Madison Avenue, the F.C.C.’s concerns appear archaic and intrusive. The type of pop-up warnings that the F.C.C. is considering would “completely disrupt the entertainment experience,” said Tom Meyer, the president of Davie Brown, a leading brand management agency in Los Angeles. “If their ultimate goal is, can they do something that kills integration, advertisers’ ability to integrate into a show, that would do it,” he said.

Some viewers, too, say the F.C.C.’s concerns are a little over the top. Realistically, does anyone wonder why Simon Cowell has a huge Coke cup in front of him on every “American Idol”? “I think that most people in the United States know that there’s some financial arrangement there,” said Ambar Rao, a professor of marketing at Washington University in St. Louis. He said that he did not oppose disclosure at the beginning or end of a show, but “people watch a show for entertainment, and if they’re constantly being reminded that somebody has paid for this product or that product, it just takes away from the experience.”

With agencies like Davie Brown becoming more sophisticated and demanding about how their clients’ products are depicted, the issue has grown murkier. These days consumer brands not only appear on shows, but are also elaborately woven into the plot, with advertisers calling a lot of the shots. Their agencies approve television scripts, suggest plots that hinge on the product, attend and critique the episode shoots, and review the rough cuts of episodes.

“We almost consider ourselves to be the junior writers on the show,” Mr. Meyer said.

Television writers are not happy about this development — the Writers Guild of America West sent a letter to the F.C.C. urging that an on-screen crawl disclose a placement at the moment it occurs — but the networks and producers are thrilled with the extra income they get from product placement.

A one-episode integration on a moderately popular show costs at least $100,000 but rarely goes over $500,000, Mr. Meyer said. Then there is the cost of buying commercials, which the network usually requires.

Mr. Meyer, a former Paramount Pictures executive, has been at Davie Brown for almost a decade and has seen product placement evolve well beyond its beginnings as a prize for a game-show contestant.

For instance, when Staples was introducing a new paper-shredding device called the MailMate in 2006, Davie Brown approached the producers of “The Office” on NBC. The agency wound up striking a two-episode deal: in the first episode, the character Kevin Malone was given the responsibility of shredding paper with the MailMate; in the second, the character Dwight Schrute took a job at Staples.

The Davie Brown team wanted to emphasize that the shredder was small, so the shredder sat on Kevin’s desk. It wanted to emphasize that it was sturdy, so Kevin shredded not only paper, but also his credit card. And it wanted to emphasize that the shredder was available only at Staples.

“This is where the writers come up with their own ideas, which we all loved,” Mr. Meyer said.

The episode closed with Kevin shredding lettuce and making it into a salad; when a colleague asked where he got the salad, he replied, “Staples.”

“Everyone has an opinion now on whether or not we’re deceiving the public,” Mr. Meyer said. But “these shows have always been funded by advertising, and if advertising is changing, it has to be understood that the mechanics of how we deliver advertising must change, or advertisers will walk away.”

Davie Brown goes so far as to ask for final script approval. Kevin McAuliffe, the vice president for branded entertainment for NBC Universal’s cable properties, which include Bravo and USA Network, said that creativity always comes first, but that product placement has a strong influence.

“Nine times out of 10, we have a client that goes with us to the shoot, so they see the place, they see the roughs, they see the placing,” Mr. McAuliffe said, adding, “we’ve actually made changes on set” because of advertiser feedback.

As the F.C.C. seeks comments on how to disclose products, Mr. Meyer of Davie Brown said he would not object to a more overt disclosure, but not during the show itself. Three of the largest advertising-industry associations are pushing for the F.C.C. to stall a decision on disclosure.

The ideal disclosure, Mr. Meyer said, is one that “doesn’t interrupt the entertainment experience, but achieves the brand’s objective, so they’re still willing to fund the television model.”

CITY TV promotion for Dinotown

DINOTOWN on CITY TV



CLICK HERE FOR DISCOUNT COUPONS TO DINOTOWN

Capital Direct launch new TV campaign

VANCOUVER - Capital Direct aired new TV commercials during this weeks Trevor Linden Canucks TV special on Rogers Sportnet.

Two versions of new 15sec commercials created by Elton Media featured the 'new' 1-800 number 1-800-NEW CAPITAL. As well, a new 'dot ca' vocal tag has been added to the jingle.




For more information contact:

Jon Elton
Elton Media
604-913-1001 ext 1
jon@eltonmedia.com

DINOTOWN is open and on-the-air with Channel 10

Channel 10 is running an exciting summer promotion to invite local tourists to take part in activities in their own backyard.

The new promos begin airing this week.

Click here to view a promo including DINOTOWN as a participating sponsor.



For more information and to get your DISCOUNT COUPONS visit:

www.DINOTOWN.com

Fox First To Use Two-Second Radio Spots

Fox Television will be the first advertiser to use “blinks,” the two-second radio spots developed by Clear Channel, to promote Prison Break, House and The Simpsons.

The spots will air over all 1100 Clear Channel radio stations every hour (except for “The Simpsons” which airs two an hour), along with a 60 second spot, on the day the shows premiere, which is Aug. 21 (”Prison Break”), Sept. 5 (”House”), and Sept. 9 (”The Simpsons”), RadioandRecords reports. In the markets ranked 50 or smaller, the “Blinks” will air without the accompanying 60 second spot.

Fox experimented with one-second spots, but decided they were too short. CC set the rate for the blinks at 10 percent of a 60, but in a soft ad market, that’s negotiable.

CLICK HERE to listen to some a BLINK demo and other options from Clear Channel Radio

Google Opens Doors to TV AdWords, Offers Monetary Incentive

Google Opens Doors to TV AdWords, Offers Monetary Incentive

Google’s program to put regular 30-second commercials on TV using its AdWords program has been opened up to all advertisers after nearly a year in beta.

Ads placed using the service will appear on the Dish satellite TV network - the only TV service that will allow Google to put its tracking software on its set-top boxes, TechCrunch points out.

A competitor, titled Project Canoe, is being created collectively by the cable companies who “don’t want Google touching their set-top boxes,” according to the post from Erick Schonfeld.

Dish Network reaches 13 million households, MediaPost writes. Data available from the program includes average seconds tuned per impression and the number of people who watched the commercial from beginning to end.

To make its service more palatable, Google is offering up to $2,000 in costs for advertisers to create their own TV ads through its Ad Creation Marketplace. To get the discount, an advertiser must spend at least $2,000 a week on ads, for at least four straight weeks.

Top 10 Boomer Myths - Separating Fact from Fiction

Top 10 Boomer Myths - Separating Fact from Fiction

Preconceived notions about the Baby Boomer generation abound, but many are merely myth, according to the third Quarterly Boomer Report from AARP Services and Focalyst, titled “How Well Do You Know Boomers? Counting Down the Top 10 Boomer Myths,” writes MarketingCharts.

“Contrary to many common assumptions, Boomers are making retirement obsolete, are very savvy about advertising, and are experimenting with new products,” said Howard Byck, vp of corporate development for AARP Services.

“Within this generation are diverse segments that must be recognized and addressed differently,” added Jack Lett, executive director of Focalyst.

Below, the top 10 Boomer myths - and corresponding facts - according to the report.

Myth #10 - Boomers are retiring early

Contrary to much of the attention given to the first Boomers’ turning 62 this year and being eligible to take Social Security benefits early, in reality very few Boomers are planning to stop working entirely when they reach retirement age - only 11 percent.

And of those Boomers who know what they are planning to do when they reach retirement age (some two-thirds), 72 percent plan to work either part (65 percent) or full-time (7 percent) after they reach retirement age.

Myth #9 - Boomers are downsizing their homes

Despite the image of older consumers “winding down” as the years progress and simplifying their lives and homes, just 6 percent of Boomers are planning to be living in a smaller residence five years from now.

Moreover, 76 percent plan to live in either a same-sized (their current home or a new home of the same size) or larger home.

Myth #8 - Most Boomers are married empty nesters

Most are actually not Empty Nesters. Only about one in four Boomers fit the profile of married with adult children who have left home. 37 percent of Boomers still have children under 18 in the home - and one-third of Boomers are single.

Myth #7 - You can capture Boomers with mainstream advertising

Boomers are paying attention to advertising, but they do not always like what they see (see chart: “Boomer attitudes toward advertising.” Some 66 percent say that ads have gotten more crude in recent years and another 67 percent say they are less likely to purchase a product if they find the advertising offensive. 23 percent say they consider ads that are geared toward their age group insulting.

Myth #6 - Boomers are brand loyal and will not switch

Commonly thought to be set in their ways, Boomers are just as likely as younger cohorts to experiment with new products. They are actually paying attention to advertising for new products, and 61 percent of Boomers agree that “in today’s marketplace, it doesn’t pay to be loyal to one brand,” compared with 62 percent of those age 18-41.

Myth #5 - Boomers are all wealthy

Collectively Boomers are the wealthiest generation in history, but only 9 percent are truly affluent (defined as having pre-tax incomes of $150,000 or more if working, or $100,000 or more if retired). In fact, one quarter of Boomers have no savings or investments at all.

Myth #4 - Boomers are winding down with age

Actually, they are quite active, as the typical Boomer regularly participates in an average of 10 activities and the participation extends beyond going to church or gardening. They are traveling (60 million took at least one trip last year), attending live sporting events (22 million) and bicycling (11 million), among other activities.

Myth #3 - Boomers are technologically challenged

Contrary to many assumptions, Boomers were in the workforce during the evolution of computers, email and the internet, and were the first to understand the value of technology. Some 82 percent of Boomers use the internet and 64 percent have been online. Their online activities include instant messaging, downloading music or movies, financial transactions and online gaming.

Myth #2 - Boomers are the “Me Generation”

Boomers have typically been portrayed with the self-centered label the “Me Generation,” but from their actions in later adulthood, the report says, a label of “We Generation” is more accurate. They are caring for others and caring for the world, with 70 percent saying they have a responsibility to make the world a better place, and 57 percent saying they try to buy from companies that give back to their communities.

Myth #1 - Boomers are all the same

Often portrayed as a monolith - 77 million people thinking, acting, behaving and buying all in the same way - Boomers more than other segments undergo more major life events, which occur in greater frequency between the ages of 50-65 than in any other time in a person’s life.

The typical Boomer experiences an average of two major life events around career, family, finance or health each year. These life events can have a major impact on attitudes, life goals and consumer behavior.