A huge sign on a hill shouting out Wellington’s high-standing in the movie industry seems a good idea but the slang word chosen — ‘Wellywood’ — has long been a slightly juvenile, throw-away and ironic term that has somehow crept into the mainstream.
And as a PR opportunity for the capital’s undoubted world-class skills and success in international move-making, the Miramar hill is a great site for incoming tourist flights, but Wellywood is an opportunity wasted. It may be familiar and humorous to some ‘in the know’ but I’m siding with the growing number of voices calling it tacky.
But at Facttactic we’re not in the business of criticising things without offering positive solutions so it was great to see the guys at online-design outfit Skull and Bones with their interactive Wellywood Sign Generator. Type in your own word or phrase and see what it looks like on the side of the hill!
Do you like to ‘think outside the box’? Well, keep it to yourself! The phrase has just been voted the most annoying office buzz phrase, followed by ‘Let’s touch base’ and ‘Blue sky thinking’. Here’s the top 10 most annoying phrases.
It’s great to see that list — for a couple of reasons:
Firstly, because that empty phrase has long annoyed me and I was astounded to see that the pinnacle of Wellington’s international cultural scene — the Arts Festival — seems to have used it as the main metaphor in their marketing for this year. Have they no idea?! Or do they mean ‘one out of the box’? Another corporate and empty cliche. Bring back the zing!
The other, more positive reason I like it is because it is a great example of how to get global media attention. The survey comes from a London firm, Opinium; and, if you Google it, it has appeared in more than 70 media outlets around the world.
A snappy idea, a well-crafted media release, the reach of the internet and you have an idea that can quickly go global. The actual content of the release may not have a direct spin-off for the firm, but the wit and relevance behind the whole thing means its name is highlighted globally and positively.
By the way, the annoying jargon came 4th on a list of things that annoy workers the most. Grumpy or moody colleagues, slow computers and office gossip made up the top three.
A good read here about the marketing efforts of the Big Day Out organisers and whether their ‘controlled kaos’ is really giving the finger to mainstream society as inferred, or is just another slick commercial money-making machine in poor disguise; and in today’s marketplace, where ‘authenticity’ is the name of the game, the article is a good dissection of where the BDO’s marketing authenticity really lies.
Have you ever noticed that a large number of Hollywood movie posters have blue and orange as their two main colours? Blue for tranquility and orange for action and energy.
It’s the best combination of colours to lure people into the cinema, they reckon. Think that sounds far fetched, check this page out!
I’ll never be able to look at another movie poster again … but it does shows the power of colour in communication.
Having worked with Weta Digital over the past year on its Avatar (the latest movie from James Cameron, the Titanic and Terminator director) project, it’s great to see all the movie’s amazing digital art work from Weta’s seriously talented and dedicated crew finally being seen in public before the release mid next month. There are clips all over the internet.
Digital marketing is becoming the most influential and representative manner in which to engage an audience, and this is down to social networking, according to a report in the NBR this afternoon.
The NBR website reported ‘Google innovationist’ Justin Baird, at the Digital Now New Zealand 2009 conference in Auckland, saying that marketing was “no longer about broadcasting your messages and then moving onto the next thing – it’s now an ongoing dialogue, which in turn is an amazing opportunity to learn from your customers via very direct feedback”.
Not a new message, but good to see it reinforced in New Zealand — and applicable, of course, for PR plays, too. Read more from the NBR here.
* Nine out of 10 internet users participate in social networks * More than a quarter have made a major purchase based solely on online reviews * Ninety-seven percent research online before making a significant purchase * Twenty-eight percent buy goods as a result of reviews they read on the web
The ability of organisations to get their message across in social media forums is now an essential and significant part of any business communication strategy.
Back in the day, it used to pretty much be the only music festival in the country. These days, outdoor summer music festivals are cropping up everywhere: from the highly lauded low-key, lo-fi Camp A Low Hum in the hills behind Wainuiomata to the increasingly mainstream sounds coming from Gisborne’s popular Rhythm and Vines and a myriad of other events of all musical flavours. Choosing your dates and saving your dollars for your favourite events must be no small decision for festival fans.
And it’s the same in the UK where the behemoth that is Glastonbury is now rivaled by a summer calendar packed full of outdoor events. Attracting the punters in such a crowded market place means concert promoters must be as adept at marketing as they are at finding the right sounds.
Which is way I like the concept of this festival - Indietracks: a mix of indie bands and steam trains, and quite possibly the mostly the most eccentric festival theme ever. I wouldn’t want to go to it but as an example of a niche product and a fund raising event (for steam train restoration) finding and connecting with an audience, I like it.
What price publicity?! A small UK design firm that has seen about half its staff made redundant recently has encouraged the rest of its staff to go naked in the office, with the managing director reported saying he thought it would be good for business.
Staff say they weren’t forced into it, but — while we can’t deny the publicity success of the stunt — it seems that people who had just seen half their colleagues lose their jobs would be unlikely to say no to the boss!
And group nudity … it gets everyone looking I guess; but 12 years after The Full Monty (and 22 years after NZ’s own Ladies’ Night), it’s about time for a new idea.
