Category: News
In-N-Out Takes a Stab at Saving Print Media
With recent reports telling us that the newspaper market is consistently declining, with a 30% decrease in circulation from 2007 to 2009, no one can really argue with facts like that. But that doesn’t mean it can’t change, especially if companies like In-N-Out keep offering incentives to new subscribers. Right now In-N-Out is offering a $20 gift card if you order home delivery of the Los Angeles Times. Time will tell if readers will be convinced to switch back to good-‘ol ink to get their news.
Benjamin Gets a Makeover
The Treasury Department just introduced its new $100 bill, which has been revamped in an attempt to deter potential counterfeiters. We’ve all seen the redesigns in the past, and it seems this one has developed even more buzz then the last one - negative buzz that is. Designers, artists, bloggers, you name them, they are all dissing and dismissing the new design.
Here’s a very detailed comparison for your viewing pleasure. Feel free to criticise, everyone else is.
Not to worry, if you’re not a fan of the design, you’ll be seeing a new one in the next 7 - 10 years to keep potential counterfeiters out of the money market. True story.
iPhone 4G = Hot Mess
Are you caught up on the Apple iPhone leak/marketing ploy/crime/just turned 1st Amendment issue?
It’s all a hot mess if you ask me.
Here’s a timeline:
March 18th - Apple engineer Gray Powell visits a bar in Redwood City, California, just 20 miles from the company’s Infinite Loop headquarters. After a few drinks, Powell left his iPhone 4G prototype (which was camouflaged inside an iPhone 3G case) at the bar, which was later picked up by a random stranger. After trying to find the owner, this anonymous stranger takes the new iPhone (unbeknownst to him) home.
March 19th - Mysterious stranger realizes what kind of treasure he has found, and after numerous attempts of calling Apple to get ahold of Powell (which lead to numerous failures of course, because no one actually believed his story), he decides to sell the phone online.
April 12th - Gizmodo (a gadget blog) pays $5000 to the lucky stranger for the iPhone.
April 17th/18th - Scuffles occur between competing gadget blogs having published photos of what seems to be the new iPhone, or is it? Engadget claims they are.
April 19th - Even after the iPhone has been remote killed, Gizmodo publishes in-depth details on the new iPhone - everything from the new features, differences, its operating system, micro-sim card, design, hardware, complete with video and pictures.
April 19th - Bruce Sewell, Apple’s Senior VP & General Counsel, sends Gizmodo a letter requesting that they return the lost iPhone.
April 23rd - California’s Rapid Enforcement Allied Computer Team raided Gizmodo’s editor Jason Chen’s home while the blogger was out, and seized four computers and two servers. There are questions as to whether the search warrant was valid under the CA penal code given that Chen found the officers in his garage (after having been there for hours) when returning home from dinner.
April 26th - The discussion begins as to whether or not Chen is protected under the federal Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits the government from seizing materials from journalists and others who possess material for the purpose of communicating to the public.
Here is where we are today, asking questions like:
Did Apple leak the prototype for some buzz to help keep consumers drooling over the next generation iPhone until it’s debut this summer?
Given that Apple affirms that the device was lost, not stolen, why is it that they have contacted the local police about the incident?
How is it a crime that Jason Chen blogged this very expensive find?
Isn’t it a pretty big coincidence that the phone found its way into the hands of such a large, reputable gadget blog?
Will Chen be considered a journalist, and be protected under the federal law?
Where is long lost Powell after all of this, and what does he have to say?
Laguna Beach Embraces Tommy Bahama
Tommy Bahama Island Grille is on its way to opening a new location in Laguna Beach, California. The new store will be located at 400 Coast Highway, and is scheduled to open November 1st. This restaurant-retail combination will be the chain’s smallest store at only 6,000 square feet, seating a Laguna size audience of 100 people - including the bar.
Being that Laguna Beach is often associated with having an anti-chain attitude towards commerce growth, the new opening is an exciting venture for both parties. The truth is, Laguna Beach welcomes chain businesses, they’re simply not satisfied with the cookie-cutter building designs that are often constructed. Tommy Bahama’s will absolutely not share any cookie-cutter design, in fact it is being designed to blend perfectly with the historic Laguna Beach architecture.
We will be sure to keep you updated on the progress. It’s been a long way coming, and we couldn’t be happier for Tommy Bahama on this big win!
Wolfgang Puck Lands Appearance on Good Day L.A.
We here at Johnson Gray Advertising have been hired by Wolfgang Puck to promote their Bistro and Express restaurants. This five-star foodie journey will begin with overseeing their public relations efforts, web development and social marketing presence. JGA has already served up this appearance on Good Day L.A., the top-rated morning show on FOX as a kick off to celebrating the start of Oscar weekend:
To watch the full segment you can check out the CitySearch: Oscar Round Up video with CitySearch’s very own Mar Yvette. We would like to extend a special thanks to her and Chef Karl for doing a fantastic job sharing Wolfgang Puck Bistro with Good Day L.A..
Kudos to our promotional experts Randy Lopez and Marcie Perez for doing a fabulous job, as always!
Visit our Flickr page and YouTube channel to check out the rest of the behind the scenes photos and videos.
Toyota is Everywhere
With all the negativity surrounding Toyota and their recalls, their advertising efforts have not slowed down their pace in the slightest. Combining their Restore ads with their The Sienna Family campaign, they seem to be reaching in all directions to help restore faith in the Toyota name. While its been said that their advertising agency has strongly recommend against the advertising push, others aren’t surprised in the slightest by their decision. Reacting to the recalls, Toyota released their restoration campaign that not only reflects their sincerest apologies for their mistakes, but touches on what they’re doing to change them, and of course Moving Forward. Then in recent months, they seem to be trying to pull some comedy and laughter out of the ashes with their The Sienna Family campaign featuring hip quirky parents with two kids and their swagger wagon.
Is the campaign doing any good? Quite a few are saying, absolutely not. What do you think? Is the comedy relief really bringing Toyota any relief to their recalls with the Sienna or any other vehicle? Are these commercials, or any of the other YouTube videos changing your perspective of Toyota and helping you forget?
Jay Leno Knocks out Conan O’Brien
After both Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien recently took shots at each other and NBC during their open monologues, the battle is over. And the winner is - drum roll please - Jay Leno! Jay has taken back his thrown for The Tonight Show from 11:35 PM to 12:35 PM, kicking Conan to the curb. His 10:00 PM show will go on hiatus as of February 1st, and once the Olympics are over, Jay will take back his original time slot.
Where will Conan end up? He is reportedly being wooed by Fox to join their late night. Hopefully we see him somewhere soon.
Who’s in the Super Bowl?
USA TODAY tells us which advertisers are officially in (so far) the 2010 Super Bowl broadcast:
- Anheuser-Busch (InBev)
- Audi of America
- Bridgestone
- Cars.com
- CareerBuilder
- Coca-Cola
- Denny’s
- Diamond Foods (Pop Secret)
- Dockers
- Doritos
- E-Trade
- Electronic Arts
- GoDaddy.com
- HomeAway
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Kia
- Mars
- Monster
- Motorola
- TeleFlora
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Universal Pictures
- Viacom (Paramount Pictures)
- Walt Disney Pictures
Anyone notice we’re missing some regulars this year? Yes it’s true. Pepsi-Cola & General Motors are 2 big players that are always in the Super Bowl broadcasts. Hopefully all of the new faces can make up for the missing veterans.
Super Bowl Crash Party
Today Doritos revealed the 6 finalists that they have selected from more than 4,000 :30 self-made video entries in the 4th Annual Doritos “Crash the Super Bowl” challenge. This year, both the stakes and prizes are bigger and better then ever before. Already, each of the six finalists have won $25,000 and a trip to South Florida to attend Super Bowl XLIV where they will tune in to learn which ads were chosen to air worldwide. As for the winning contestants, not only will their self-made Doritos commercials air during the Super Bowl XLIV broadcast, they will also have the chance to compete amongst the pros for the top 3 spots in USA TODAY‘s annual Ad Meter. And if it can’t get any better - Doritos will give the winners a shared $5 million cash bonus prize if the homemade ads claim the top three spots.
Having one of last year’s videos make the #1 spot of USA TODAY‘s Ad Meter, the bar has been raised for creativity and quality submissions - and according to Vice Presdent of Frito-Lay, Rudy Wilson, those expectations have been met. “Every year, we continue to be impressed with the talent our fans bring to the table. This year, however, Crash the Super Bowl achieved a new level of success with more than 4,000 entries coming from an incredibly wide range of ages, backgrounds and geographies, including entries with actual celebrities in them. This kind of mainstream involvement and excitement is something we never predicted, and we couldn’t be more excited about it.”
Now its up to you Doritos fans nationwide to select the 3 homemade ads you want to see aired during the Super Bowl XLIV broadcast. Voting is open online at www.crashthesuperbowl.com today through January 31, 2010. Good luck to all 6 contestants.
Pricing Dispute Between Costco and Coca-Cola
A recent decision has the retail world in shock. Monday Costco confirmed it will no longer be carrying Coca-Cola products due to a dispute over pricing. These two companies are the largest in their industries, and somehow they could not reach an agreement on price for the global renowned beverage, as well as the rest of the brands by Coca-Cola. As a result, Costco posted a notice on their website informing their customers about the issue, “Costco is committed to carrying name-brand merchandise at the best possible prices. At this time, Coca-Cola has not provided Costco with competitive pricing so that we may pass along the value our members deserve.”
While Coca-Cola products will not be removed from Costco’s shelves at the moment, the company has stated that the products will not be restocked until the situation is resolved. Given that Coca-cola has a world of brand loyal customers, I would bet that Coscto will be the first to budge.
The Greater 3G Experience
AT&T’s response Side-by-Side ad ran conveniently at the sound of their lawsuit failure. Their request to have Verizon pull their 3G comparison ads was denied and at the turn of their heels the below ad with trustworthy actor Luke Wilson ran. Now, the new ad may have some truth in the sense that, AT&T may have the “fastest” 3G network, the network may be more efficient at allowing users to “talk and surf at the same time”, they clearly have the most popular smartphones (no brainer, the iPhone), and access to over 100,000 apps (again, the iPhone). But honestly, does any of that matter if you’re someone who lives outside of those 3G available areas? I think not. So while yes, AT&T has the iPhone and therefore the most apps and Apple technology, it still does not have the best 3G coverage.
Apple Black Friday Sales Leaked?
According to Boy Genius, this year’s Apple Black Friday deals have been “leaked” to the public. The image above is an email that has said to circulate shortly, however it seems to have made news much sooner than intended. This years big sale is to include up to 30% off on all iPods - excluding the iPhone and the iPod shuffle, of course, up to 25% off Macs, and up to 15% off all accessories, Apple software and hardware. So when the turkey has vanished to the thankful tummies, and your family has come and gone - be sure to rest up! Because if these rumors come to be true, this crazy deal will only be good for the day after Thanksgiving. The race is on.
The Truth Hurts
AT&T and Verizon Wireless have been feuding for as long as anyone can remember. But of course, given they are each other’s top top competition, it’s more than expected. Well, it seems that Verizon has drawn fresh blood with their newest campaign “There’s a map for that,” which is of course a spoof off of AT&T’s own iPhone campaign, “There’s an app for that.” You think that would be enough to ring them up, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. AT&T has filed a lawsuit against Verizon, but not for their spoof tagline, but for their 3G map comparison. AT&T is claiming it is misleading consumers about their 3G coverage - key here is they’re not sueing for misrepresentation or disputing their accuracy, just that it is misleading their consumers. Hmmm, interesting. So the bottom line here, is that AT&T feels it’s customers won’t understand that all those white spots may in fact have 2G coverage (it’s not like they’re completely “out of touch”) and is therefore suing for a change. Specifically, AT&T wants Verizon to update their ads so that they also display their 2G coverage. 2G coverage on an ad talking about 3G coverage? Hmmm, interesting. I think the only thing AT&T is going to get out of this lawsuit, is more publicity about how spotty their 3G coverage really is.
Branding Battle for Michael Jordan’s Son
The battle of the brands is on for Marcus Jordan, freshman guard at UCF, who is faced with the possibility of having to switch away from his lifetime Nikes to his team’s contracted footwear with Adidas. Although it’s been said that the University is working with Adidas to form an agreement to benefit both parties (benefits beyond the amount of free publicity both parties have gained since the beginning of this so-called controversy), it seems an exception like this may not be in the foreseeable future. Adidas currently holds a $3 million contract with the university athletic department, making them the exclusive sports wear for all athletes playing… and despite this new set of circumstances, Adidas spokesperson let’s everyone know that “there is no compromise, and the contract is currently under review.’‘
We will have to wait and see which brand loyalty will win out over the other…
Coke Fights Soda Tax
In an effort to fight lawmaker’s proposed “soda tax” on sugary sodas in the U.S., Coca-cola is changing the packaging of nearly all of its products to more prominently display it’s nutritional facts, as well as launch a new campaign that will run in both print and digital media throughout a number of US cities, including Washington, New York and our very own Los Angeles. The marketing campaign will provide both nutritional and lifestyle advice, emphasizing the importance of consumers adopting a healthy lifestyle.
All of this change is a result from the recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine that has made a strong link between consumption of sugary beverages and increasing risk of chronic diseases. To offset the healthcare costs, it’s been suggested that taxation be put in action against these sugary brands. John Brock, chairman of CCE, made sure to add that such a tax against sugary sodas would be “discriminatory,” not to mention not all of their products even contain sugar.