Category: Music

Really, Kanye??

That is all i could say when I recently heard of Kanye West‘s fragrance deal with Parlux Fragrances. Sure, Kanye’s music is ah-mazing, his style is iconic and his personality is… vibrant, but really, what self-respecting consumer wants to smell like this rapper?? Certainly not me, and I can’t see real Kayne fans going out to their closest department store to pick up a bottle.

Although I’m sure Mr. West will make a hefty profit from the sales of this fragrance, I sincerely find this example of co-branding unfitting, and does not do a very good job of promoting Kanye’s hard and intimidating image.

Please enjoy a few of my other favorite co-branding attempts fails.

Justin Bieber nail polish with Nicole by OPI

The collection is called One Less Lonely Girl, and each color features heart-shaped glitter. Normally I am not a hater of the Biebs, but really?? Once again, I’m sure Justin has made some major $ from this, but I am 96.2% sure that Justin does not wear nail polish, nor does the majority of 16 year old boys out there.

Kim Kardashian for QuickTrim

The socialite and reality tv star, Kim Kardashian, is known for her incredible curves and perfectly toned body. She tells young girls everywhere to embrace their curves, and does photo shoots without retouching or photoshopping. She also has other co-branding deals with Carl’s Jr. fast food and Famous Cupcakes. She professes that she works out hard, but still indulges just like any other real woman out there. Yet, besides her body image confidence she exudes, Kim is a spokesperson for QuickTrim, a non-FDA approved weight loss supplement, in which she faithfully promotes and uses frequently. This is completely contradictory, as she tells women to embrace their natural bodies and curves, yet she is pretty much lying to her fans.

Maybe in a perfect world, we will have women endorsing nail polish, overweight folks recommending diet pills and cosmetic companies promoting perfume, but I guess that just wouldn’t be what 2011 is all about.

Cars Celebrities Music

GLEEK 4 LYFE

Now that the Packers have claimed their title, the newspapers have been printed, and the celebration ends, the real Superbowl fun begins… re-watching the commercials!! Although I missed most of the game due to my work schedule, I was sure to check out perezhilton.com promptly for his picks of the best ads from Sunday’s game. One of his favorites which instantly caught my eye was the Glee Chevy commercial. Being the Gleek that I am, I watched that video multiple times, smiling, and eventually catching on to the words and singing along (just like I do in every Glee episode).

Here is the video so you can share my delight:

As much as I enjoyed this commercial, I made some notable marketing observations:

1) The heavily used affective component in this advertisement is almost ridiculous! The Glee crew sings and repeats over and over, “Drive your Chevrolet in the USA, America’s the greatest land of all”, which must be the most obvious promotion of national pride I have seen in a while. This commercial is also hilarious to Glee fans, as the short dialogue is closely related to plot of previous episodes. Laughter=memories.

2) This commercial reminds me of the “Got Milk?” ads that are commonly featured in magazines like the one below. These ads, as well as this Chevrolet ad, use celebrities to endorse their product, expanding to a different target segment. As Glee’s popularity is continuously growing, this was a smart move by Chevrolet to appeal to the thousands of fans that were only watching the Superbowl because the new episode of Glee that was premiering immediately after.

As Sarah Manifold (another COMM 296 student) recently said, “The Super Bowl is a prime time event for advertising”, and I think Chevy really captured the perfect timing to capitalize on Glee’s trendy and marketable nature.

Celebrities Music

JB Part 2

My blog was quoted in a CBC news article!

Chhhhheck it out!

Celebrities Music

Who Else Has The Fever?

This may cause some repercussions, but I have a confession… I love Justin Bieber! And have since his first Youtube video way back in 2007. And WOW, has he skyrocketed into the spotlight in these past 4 years. Clearly his management and PR teams are doing something right.

After recently reading a very interesting blog, Influential Marketing Blog by Rohit Bhargava, I discovered another internet sensation, Ana Free. Bhargava acknowledges that her Youtube success of over 20 million views can be directly credited to “marketing” and “engagement”, and his entry lists the top 5 ways that she has become a megahit. I noticed that not only has the Biebs dominated in ALL these fields, but has completely blown Free’s accomplishments out of the water.

Bhargava’s top 5 “lessons”:

1. Share your beginnings. Check.

Justin’s very first upload is of himself winning a local singing contest. Following that are countless videos of Justin in his smalltown Canadian home, at a very young age, just rocking out.

2. Be authentic. Check.

Justin frequently posts behind-the-scenes footage and videos of himself just goofing around.

3. Use a common language. Check.

All of his earliest videos are of hit songs that everyone can sing along to.

4. Find complimentary partners. Check.

One word. USHER.

5. Ask for help from your community. Check.

As of right now, Justin has been nominated for International Breakthrough Act for the 2011 Brit Awards. His most recent upload is of himself asking for the support of his fans, hoping for their votes. Needless to say, I have already done so.

So, in essence, Miss Free should be taking tips from the Biebs, the ultimate Youtube success story. Personally, I think that if Bhargava wanted to really demonstrate how to find immediate marketability, he should have exemplified the young millionaire, Justin Bieber.

VERSUS