Design, digital and marketing agency working with a wide range of multi-nationals
and SME's across the UK from our base in the Midlands.
At the start of the month, Diversity held a Country & Western themed Summer BBQ for staff and their partners/families - packed full of themed food, drink and Olympic-style events. OK perhaps Hook-a-duck and the 3 legged race won’t be featuring at London 2012, but some were hard work! Congratulations to Team Moonshine who came out eventual winners
Thanks to Di and Alan for being hosts, Sandra for the food and everybody who helped to organise a great day!
Courtesy of Tech Crunch and Leon Håland, here is a brilliant graphic which shows how quickly it has taken Google+ to reach 10million users, in comparison with Facebook and Twitter. It shows how quickly word spreads over the internet nowadays. 10 million users in just 16 days is huge.
Obviously this isn’t an accurate reflection of popularity alone. Facebook launched in 2004 and Twitter 2006, when the online world was still getting to grips with social networking. In addition to Google’s already huge user base, the FaceTwit / Twitbook channels were probably huge determinates in Google+’s rise to fame, in terms of creating online conversations about the new platform.
But the question arises, will Google+ create a loyal user base? Or is the quick spike in sign ups more about the novelty of a new social network, as opposed to people wanting to ‘real-life share’? Facebook and Twitter have famously loyal user bases, so it will be interesting to see a graph in a year’s time which shows how many of Google+’s 10 million new users actually go on to use the site consistently, in comparison.
On the 75th anniversary of the Speaking Clock, the BBC reported that a massive 30million calls were made to the service last year - that’s 8219 calls each day or 342 calls every single hour. Who are all these people still using the Speaking Clock?
Why is demand still so high? The speaking clock doesn’t run high profile multi-media advertising campaigns!
Sitting at my desk right now I can glance at my wrist, look at the bottom right of the computer, tilt my head to the office clock, press a button on my phone, ask one of my colleagues, and god forbid go to the painstaking extent of Googling ‘what the f@*# is the time right now’, all of which are easier options than picking up the phone and dialing 0, er, urm, the Speaking Clock number. It is not always clear what motivates consumer behaviour - research is invaluable but sometimes you still have to rely on instincts.
How about the fact that our digital age means we’re more accustomed to having continually accurate information at our finger tips, something which was not always so easily accessible. Feeble answer yes, but I’m still struggling to work it out.
A quick survey of the office didn’t help…
Are women in bars pretending to be on the phone to avoid interested glances of unsuitable gentlemen one reason for the high number? Or is it the call centre staff dialling in just before they’re about to leave work (‘faking it’ to prevent the dreaded 4:59pm caller)? Are blind people a reason for some of the calls? Even if all were true, surely these don’t explain 8219 calls a day.
I guess traditional habits die hard. Perhaps like the shipping forecast, a large chunk of the population have grown up calling the speaking clock and gain comfort from the soothing tones at the other end.
The process of dialling and setting your watch/clock to the precise second could be habitual, but is the practice being passed down from generation to generation? Will the speaking clock still be going strong in years to come? Will BT launch a huge above and below the line campaign to ‘win back’ customers who prefer to check their iPhone? We’ll have to bide our time and see. I may not use the service but I am pleased it is still there.
Author: Joe
With more than 750 million active users, and more than 700 billion minutes spent per month on the platform, Facebook can provide one of the best indicators of user trends around. It holds an unrivaled amount of information about what’s being read, what’s being watched, and what’s being said.
Many people I speak to don’t even realise there are ad’s on Facebook – illustrating the zombie-like state we morph into when logging on - but users must be clicking through.
Along with reflecting user trends, Facebook is also the epitome of the current health of the social media advertising landscape. Recent research from TBG Digital has highlighted that ‘Facebook has increased the cost of advertising by up to 74%’, a huge hike in cost for advertisers. While this may not be much of a surprise, especially when during Q1 of 2011 internet advertising is up by 23%, the fact that Facebook can increase costs by such an amount underlines the importance brands place on social networks. After all, Facebook tracks demand and sets prices as a result – so the advertisers must be making money.
Then again, TBG are an ad agency who build Facebook campaigns for their clients, so highlighting Facebook’s price increase for their clients to see is much like my local fishmonger telling me in detail about the declining ecosystem in the North Sea. OK, I get it – you’re going to charge me more for my fish and chips today.
Author: Joe
Sigh for Cy – Graffiti’s Grandad
I guess for many people the scribbles, splots and splashes of Cy Twombly provoked the clichéd “looks like a child did it ….etc etc…” and, for me, that was the amazing point. Vitality and exuberance with the occasional written expletive and a bit of sexual imagery scrawl in some of the works – what juvenile wouldn’t be excited to create such stuff?
With his death recently it made me look again at his use of imagery and the written word, which started as far back as the ‘50’s. It made me think of the way the written or texted word, in blog and tweet, has become, for the time being, the overwhelming common currency of communication (the complexity of creating imagery on portable technology left to whizz “kids” like David Hockney), with image creation by the masses reduced to phone camera flashes of boozy nights out.
Mark making, however, is on the streets. Graffiti, now acceptably famous with Banksy and other can-wielding cohorts echoing cave painting communication, where ideas are shared by simple outline and visual shorthand. These on street communications are now often also considered “art”. Does this somehow make them less accessible by most of the people who walk amongst them?
Another thought, is there a parallel with Cy’s use of words and pictures with advertising, the copywriting and art director combination…?
At DiVersity we are massive fans of outdoor media, but seldom have the chance to produce creative along these lines! Unfortunately it isn’t real, but a great marketing stunt by Ogilvy in Mexico, where HotWheels have been creating spectacular outdoor media on a huge scale.
Inspired by this campaign run by Hot Wheels I now have a great Birthday present for my Nephew! The guys in the office have been harassing me to set it up, but so far I have resisted
Check out their other outdoor stunts at Paper Plane, t he gigantic children by the road are my favourite.
If you are good at marketing and need a job. why not market yourself…?
10/10 for the bravery shown by this young Irish marketing graduate, investing your savings on a billboard campaign is certainly a bold route to take in Ireland’s current job market.
A great demonstration of how an eye catching outdoor campaign can still create a stir. The amount of free PR coverage he has received as a result would certainly make most clients very happy.
To be in with a chance getting a ticket for the Olympics, many will have to apply for a Visa card first, leaving a bad taste in the mouth of millions.
According to the Olympic committee, there are nearly 400 events during an Olympic games - where competitors aim to be the fastest, strongest, the best. But London 2012 have added another event to the list - the ticket lottery. The first hurdle is owning the right plastic, only then can you enter the race to win tickets.
According to the BBC, ‘Visa is the dominant debit card supplier in the country with 53 million customers compared with 17.5 million for Mastercard’ while Mastercard wins the credit card race by 14 million users.
Now on the one hand you could argue that the London 2012 committee and Visa are doing their bit to try and help reverse the UK’s ailing credit debt - by not accepting the majority of the population’s credit cards. But you could also argue that the organisers are forcing a massive segment of the population to take out a Visa card, to attend an event that has been proclaimed ‘for everyone’. Does this fit the Olympic ideal? Not a good attitude for ‘the greatest sporting event in the world’.
Yes I know Visa are the Olympic sponsor and this is common practice with large sporting events, but to only accept one type of payment card and to be so overtly commercial just doesn’t fit within the spirit of the games, a spirit where togetherness and unity should prevail, not commercialism. 
I suppose you can’t really blame Visa. What brand wouldn’t turn down an opportunity like this - but thinking from a consumer perspective, by being ‘the only option’ I’m not sure if Visa are being positivity reflected.
What level of engagement do Visa gain from a customer who is forced to use their product, just to have a chance of attending the Olympics?
What if you were told that to pass through the turnstile you had to be wearing one brand of clothing? Or wear one brand of deodorant? Would it be OK for the security guards to sniff your armpits to check? Forcing people to pay with a Visa card is authoritarian and not within the spirit of the games. The Olympics should be inclusive and be an event everybody can participate in.
Author: Joe
We’re all walking billboards, wearing brands on t-shirts, caps and trainers - but how about on skin? Unsuspecting people may now be sporting advertisements a little closer to home, courtesy of DDB New Zealand who have built an innovative bench with raised lettering on the seating area. So when a person sits down wearing a pair of shorts or a short skirt, a pressure imprint will be left on their legs, displaying a message or advertising a business.
Now for those not accustomed to having their legs on show, this new found form of advertising will have little effect - apart from an uncomfortable seat. However for those fortunate enough to be wearing such skimpy outfits, don’t assume it’s the new gym regime that’s attracting all of the looks – you’re branded.
This has obviously raised a few moral questions, but no need for DDB UK to worry - there is little chance the practice would take off here. For one, Imprint-vertising requires scantily clad clothing – which in turn required hot weather – and I doubt you would want an advertising campaign lasting around 4 days a year.
Also, companies spend a huge amount of money working with model agencies to pick the perfect model to represent their brand, but this new route does not allow such control and leaves the ‘model’ to chance – which could easily end up with some bad representation!
Either way it’s still innovative creative and you can’t knock them for trying something new.
Author: Joe
The British Isles may be widely considered as Europe’s soggy western outpost; but with two people under 35 diagnosed with cancer every day we have seen a threefold increase in skin cancer among 15-34 year olds since the 70’s. (Cancer Research UK)
Public awareness campaigns for the dangers of skin cancer have produce some brilliant creative like this website which is one of my personal favourites… http://www.computertan.com/. It went viral and received over a million hits in the first month which undoubtedly raised awareness, but with skin cancer rates steadily increasing does it make a difference? Do people care enough about themselves for there to be an impact?
Some agencies grew fat by spending government money creating public service campaigns. Juicy contracts from the likes of COI may not be as readily available as they once were, but as the changes to government spending priorities take effect - will the country suffer?
Nanny state or advertising for the good of the nation? I don’t know and right now don’t really care, but as the sun is coming out again and the country starts to rejoice it would be great to see some brilliant outdoor campaigns even if advertising is merely a superficial way to approach societal issues…
Author: Eddie
