Public transport is a great way to assess the Zeitgeist. Watching commuters transition from iPhones to Samsungs, and from paper books to Kindles, really gives one a sense of how the world is changing. Advertising is also a great way to measure society; seeing lots of adverts for dodgy loan companies can give you an interesting idea about the direction of the economy. I've been tracking the…
Continue reading →
Media Discovery (New Web Ltd) is encouraging blogs to run paid for advertorials, without disclosing to their readership that the content is an advert. This appears to be in breach of the advertising industry's code of practice. Anyone who has ever run a blog is probably familiar with these sorts of email - I get one or two a week. Hi Terence, I recently sent you an email about hosting an…
Continue reading →
I've talked before about advertising hoardings with combined NFC & QR codes. It looks like Clear Channel - the advertising behemoth - is getting into the game. Spotted all over London are these bus stops with built in advertising poster. Look on the right hand side, and you'll see the interactive element. It's pretty well designed, although the disclaimer "standard network rates apply"…
Continue reading →
Analysts estimates are always interesting to read - especially if you know the real statistics which they are trying to prophetize. Even when someone releases "official" statistics, they're usually hard to verify independently, and even harder to analyse by region. Benedict Evans - who I've had the pleasure of meeting at Mobile Monday - published some very interesting official stats on…
Continue reading →
I've moaned before about the crap adverts on social networks. Facebook has suddenly been getting a lot worse. Today they decided that it would be great to show me adverts for a steak restaurant. Which, would be fine, if I hadn't been vegetarian for the last 13 years... Facebook have been spamming my wall with all sorts of rubbish - dodgy share trading deals, timeshare scams, PPI reclaim cons, …
Continue reading →
Facebook has been getting a lot of criticism for its lack of mobile revenue. A fact it tried to hide from its IPO. Much ink has been spilled, but is it really necessary for Facebook to worry? Here's a quick case study. Facebook has, in its infinite wisdom, decided that I would be interested in adverts for cancer. Or, perhaps, AXA have decided that 30 something males are a prime market. The …
Continue reading →
No, I'm not talking about Masabi's innovative technology, but of this rather odd bit of advertising found on the back of a train ticket. There's no specific call to action - but there's not much space to play with. Let's give it a scan... sigh A non-mobile site. With an Adobe Flash plugin in the top right which won't work on any iPhones. Why on Earth do marketing companies insist on pointing…
Continue reading →
I recently overheard two advertising executives discussing their latest QR campaign. I jotted down what they were saying... Dave! Dave! I've got a brilliant idea! What is it, Fred? Let's make a QR code... right... but make it really hard to scan! Brilliant idea, Fred! How? We can stick it on a Taxi, so that you have to wait until it stops at a traffic light before you can scan it! Ok,…
Continue reading →
An amusing mistake spotted by my wife on her way to work. SouthWest Trains are trying to promote their Twitter service - @SW_Trains - via their LED message boards. Looks like the displays don't understand the underscore character. I wonder if anyone tested this before it went live? You can watch the full video …
Continue reading →
You know what I love about the streets of London? The pavements are so clean. Many is the time I crawl around on my hands and knees - rubbing my trousers into the walkways of my beloved city. Hardly anyone kicks me up the arse, either. You feel the same way too, don't you? What? You don't? But... but.... What else could explain the advertising industry's love of putting QR codes as close to…
Continue reading →
To whoever is responsible for this QR code marketing monstrosity: go home. Seriously, pack up the tools of your trade, go home, pour yourself a stiff drink, and weep at what you have done. The Poster Here's a fun game for all the family! Play "spot the QR code" on this poster... Bzzzzzt! Time's up! Did ya see it? What? No! How could that be? Let's zoom in... There! Right beside the…
Continue reading →
Earlier this week, I blogged that some people were too stupid to use QR codes. I concluded, by saying You’re not too stupid to understand how to make effective use of QR codes. The “commandments” are mostly just common sense. Use QR codes wherever they seem appropriate – but make sure that they’re scannable, work for everyone who scans them, and lead somewhere useful. Y'see - I don't think peo…
Continue reading →