God, I've not posted in ages

Er, Happy New Year.

Sorry for not being here, but I've been doing wanky creative stuff you probably wouldn't be interested in.

Seems quite a bit going on generally, but ad-wise everyone's still trying to get their heads around Morethan Freeman, right?

Sigh.

Obviously there's a lot of confusion about this (I genuinely heard someone say "And he's not even black!" yesterday) so I thought I'd write a brief Wikipedia entry to help clear things up a little. Don't know how long it'll last up there, but I figured if we all muck in on it we might finally come to some kind of consensus on what is bloody obviously the first great ad of 2011.

Or maybe just the first great ad of January?

UPDATE: Within about 9 seconds of posting the Wiki aritcle I got a moderator notice telling me the content of the post was obviously a hoax and would be deleted if I didn't explain myself. My instinctive response was "Come one, you couldn't make this shit up!" Erm, but VCCP *did* make it up. Which I guess proves how unlikely an idea it is. So even if you hate Morethan Freeman, you've got to take your hats (and clothes, I'd say) off to the suits who sold it.

UPDATE UPDATE: Here's the now deleted Wikipedia entry I wrote:

The “Red Army returning to Moscow” is a quote from a British advertising campaign for the insurance company, More Than.

The campaign first appeared on television around Christmas 2010. The advertising campaign takes the form of a series of monologues delivered by a character called Morethan Freeman, a pun on the American film actor Morgan Freeman.

In 1994, Morgan Freeman played Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding in The Shawshank Redemption, a character whose wistful narration is marked by a sort of cute, homespun wisdom. This performance subsequently became synonymous with the actor.

Morethan Freeman’s monologues pay homage to this, both in their style and their execution (they are delivered by a Morgan Freeman impersonator).

The line “Red Army returning to Moscow” is one of a number similes coined by Morethan Freeman during the campaign, but which has no actual meaning.

The purpose of this line (and others like it) is to simply appear more profound than it actually is for the benefit of entertainment, and to poke fun at Morgan Freeman’s original dialogue.

Reception to the campaign so far has been mixed. Partly because of its somewhat esoteric nature, and partly because of lines, such as these, being misunderstood even by those who work in the advertising industry.

However, the fact that this entry now exists may be an early indicator of the impact this campaign is having.

For Christ's Sake

How Research Works

Of all the weapons in the marketeers gun cabinet, research is amongst the most comforting, second only to the one we may one day, inevitably, turn on ourselves.

For many years advertisers relied on little more than the well-informed opinions of experts to gauge the reception of their marketing activities; a process which led to almost universally successful advertising. However, as thicker, less dynamic people took over the marketing departments of businesses they had had no part in building, and therefore had no long-term commercial interest in sustaining anyway, marketers struggled to accept or (in most cases) understand the advice the advertising experts were giving them.

And so, research was born: the process of fool-proofing a decision by consulting as many fools as possible.

Here's how it works.

RESEARCHER: What do you think of this product?

HAPLESS FOOL: What product?

RESEARCHER: This new product.

HAPLESS FOOL: Never heard of it.

RESEARCHER: I know. It's new.

HAPLESS FOOL: Oh. Can I try it then?

RESEARCHER: Ok... What do you think of it now?

HAPLESS FOOL: Meh.

RESEARCHER: That a yes or no then?

HAPLESS FOOL: No opinion.

RESEARCHER: I need to put yes or no though.

HAPLESS FOOL: Oh.

RESEARCHER: Would you say you were nearer a yes..?

HAPLESS FOOL: I have no opinion.

RESEARCHER: I'll put you down as a yes then, ok.

HAPLESS FOOL: Whatever.

Brand Spanking

You don't have to be an art director or a client to understand that tone of voice matters about as much to a brand as a jockey to a spooked racehorse. When you're trying to appeal to as many faceless, brainless plebs as possible, copywriters can't afford to play fast and loose with the emotions of their drooling audiences. As any brand manager will tell you, a successful campaign is a combination of brightly coloured celebrities and money off vouchers. The only time one should speak to the audience is either to mention the price, or to remind them not to choke on the product.

So. Imagine how horrified I was to discover this particularly witty, playful, and (God forbid) intelligent piece of copy on the back of a beer label this weekend.



(In case you can't read the pic:"Yet another bummed-out holiday? Lump of Coal Dark Holiday Stout is liquid consolation. It's a deep, rich, sweetly rewarding stout to take the edge of that grim family gathering, that cheerless annual festival of alienation. This brew is as dark as it gets, as black as the lump of coal you'll be getting for Christmas. Because, let's face it, you've been pretty bad this year.")

It reminded me of Simon Darwell-Taylor's idea for a brand that was shitty, and pissed off you with, rather than bland, obsequious, and mealy-mouthed. Which is, of course, how ALL copy should be in these days of austerity, panic and dickheads.

Friday Infographic

Fig.1 Levels of freelance job satisfaction throughout the week

Famous Last Briefs #1

CLIENT: Look, I've never heard of 'em either.

BACKGROUND: Just drop it.

BUDGET: Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

WHAT IS REQUIRED: Fuck about on iStock for a day scratching your head and muttering expletives. Client likes idea of owls but can't be more specific.

DELIVERY: End of play Friday to 20 different email recipients at their end.

The Friday Infographic

Fig 1. Manchester's Creative Scene