Almaza goes back to silly shenanigans

I said it since 2023 (here and here) and I stand by every word. Almaza is working without any strategy. They are going through what I call the "spaghetti theory" - throw things on the wall and see what sticks. And here is another proof. Their new summer Rosé (the fruity beer) ad. Now they picked French, because yes, why not? "Pince-moi, je reve" (pinch me I am dreaming) - or more like pinch me I am having a nightmare. So yes, they picked a crab, trying to open the bottle, this time with a background of a setting sun. And so here we are, another boneless trial. All of this could be great had it had a strategy behind it. I assure you, it does not.

Advertising: Just because the image is for free, should we use it?

Yesterday was one of those bizarre days in the advertising scene in Lebanon.

Suddenly three brands (that I know of, maybe there was more) decided to capitalize on the James Webb telescope images by NASA to make their point (or rather not). Just to be clear, the images are copyright free because they were produced by an "American government agency", and since work by such agencies cannot be copyrighted, NASA material is free for use.

But hey, the British Library among thousands upon thousands of institutions is putting things free online in high resolution. So the internet contains of wealth of such materials already. So where's my issue? Just because it is for free, should we use it?

The photos above are one of the original James Webb telescope images, and three local interpretations of it. At best the ads are weird, at worst downright idiotic. Someone told me they were "funny", I fail to catch their humor.

You want strange humor? Watch Scandinavian advertising. Either you get it or you don't. I do and I find it hilarious. Most ads just don't make sense but they're strange, and as I said - incredibly fun. The ads above tick no such boxes.

I can see the "logic" in the brands' thinking - it's new, it's hot, it's for free, it's everyone-else-is-doing-it-so-why-can't-we, so let's strike while the iron is hot. Lately it's getting on my nerves how little strategy there is in advertising these days. Everything is short-sighted and tactical. Nothing for the long run, just focus on the here and now.

Pity, even if legally covered by using non-copyrighted images, brands should take a breather and think about it before they plunge. But that's asking too much out of rookie marketing managers, uneducated designers, and juvenile company owners.

Those Unica ads must mean something, right?

Well, in a shining example of what advertising is in 2020 in Lebanon, please meet Unica. The two ads are not a campaign mind you despite sharing a common visual style (one went online in July, one yesterday). OK I could, with difficulty swallow the one about friendship. The newer one about the passage of time is totally unpalatable.

But again, in Lebanon, in 2020, this is what advertising is. Throw it and see if it sticks. Concepts, strategy, and anything else than a visual element (even that is not always there!) are disposed of. Of course the ads could be brilliant and am the one not seeing it. Who knows, even as a juror in two international festivals, perhaps advertising has grown too smart for me (Insert man shrugging emoji here).

This has been the winter of our advertising discontent.

Artwork by Tarek Chemaly from the series Abou Fouad 3 bi 1.

How do you know advertising is not going well? When there is an occasion and not everyone jumps on the bandwagon of stupidity. As soon as advertising started to meagerly get back on track (in the shyest most vulnerable way) bam! On comes Coronavirus and its lockdown. Lebanon celebrates mother's day today and it has been eerily quiet on the advertising land. Usually such celebrations illicit a tonne of corny ads, but today "all is calm on the western front" as they say. Normally, I should be throwing a fit as this is the bread and butter of my blog. Paradoxically, am cheering. I truly think we are looking at this from the wrong end, much like Venice (the city in Italy). Well, Venice wanted to curb down tourism for a long time, and now that the city is suffering the lack of tourists they are up in arms (I will go down in history as the only human who went to Venice by mistake! A long story for another time). Same with advertising, too many people in Lebanon were complaining about the ad scene (too many useless ads, people hanging ads like the city was a jungle) - then came the lack ads.
Here's a word for you: Strategy.
In the hassle of producing social media friendly ads for every occasion, brands forgot to look within themselves for what truly makes them what they are and how they should stick to a central message which is their ultimate soul and how they should communicate it to the public. Now is the time to go back there people. Let ad agencies talk to their clients while practicing social distancing a d really think: Aside the corny ads for every occasion, who am I as a brand, and how can I as as an ad agency help you portray that?
This has been the winter of our advertising discontent. But today spring has sprung, it is Mother's Day (in Lebanon and several other countries) and I extend my wishes to all mothers, advertising will survive this for sure. In what shape and if "older and wiser" remains to be seen.

Bonjus does the #DollyPartonChallenge

So Bonjus did the #dollypartonchallenge (which is about which photo to put on which social media - linkedin, Facebook, instagram, and Tinder). How could this tie to the core brand message is beyond me. But it's a fad so brands will be on it. Still, I find it odd how much brands are relying on hypes and events as opposed to having a clear message to stick to.