http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc9_4e6Nzw8

Also: I’d like to shake hands with the copywriter who named the Lone Jogger. I hope they reveal in the final season of Mad Men that it was Don Draper’s last hurrah.

Which makes this one all the better. I was expecting a cringeworthy “oh, here’s another nostalgic look at how schmaltzy Philly can be at times” when suddenly Shmitty plants one in the face of all those lawyer fat cats—AND delivers a friggin product benefit.

If you want people to buy your celebrity endorsement ad, make it believable, and give the celeb a reason to be there in the first place.

I’ve written before about the NFL’s ability to expand what is essentially a four month season into a year long engagement. This past Tuesday they again managed to turn coal into diamonds and they didn’t have to squeeze that hard. In the midst of the NBA and NHL playoffs the NFL managed to get two hours of prime time coverage on ESPN. For what? Not a game. Not a Tiger Woods interview. But the release of the 2010 schedule.

Think about that for a second. The NBA and NHL both have long, grueling seasons that culminate with the best teams fighting to be crowned champions. The NFL season is four months away but the release of the schedule and the surrounding hoopla around match-ups, projections and rankings is enough to draw an audience away from athletes actually playing sports at an extremely high level. While I haven’t been able to find out how the two hour schedule release special did in the ratings I have to imagine it performed well.

The schedule release though is a mere appetizer for the NFL ‘s Thursday, Friday and Saturday extravaganza. This year the league has taken the draft to new heights. Instead of it starting on a Saturday and getting through the mildly entertaining first three rounds in an afternoon the NFL has taken the draft to prime time. Now tonight at 7:30 you can find out (hold your breath) who the Buccaneers will take with the 67th pick.

While it may seem like NFL overload the league is merely giving its hardcore fans what they demand. More and more NFL related content. NPR did a piece this morning on fans that attend the draft. Some travel thousands of miles to see what the future make up of their team could look like. When asked about his attendance one fan equated the draft to Christmas. If this is truly the case then for some the NFL is the gift that keeps on giving.

But when the Travel Channel’s Anthony Bourdain does the same thing for a credit card, oh man is it awkward—as witnessed here on the recent Istanbul episode (the clip in question comes at around the 3:15 mark):

For anyone who watches Bourdain’s show regularly, it just seems like something the guy would never sign off on—unless it’s an inside joke to his viewers, sort of a knowing wink of “you wouldn’t believe these guys dropped a six-figure check in my lap.”

It’s the last week of December, and if you’re reading this, you’re probably at work. Looking for something to get you thru? If that’s a hell yeah, I’d like to introduce you to Frank & Erik. They’re Internet Famous, and you can too!

Meet Frank and Erik: two twenty-something man-children working and living in New York City. What starts as a pot of coffee and a case of over-priced beer turns into 30-80 minutes of ex-girlfriend stories, complaints of NYC tourism, observations in social awkwardness, and advice on the correct timing of how to hide in your girlfriend’s bathroom when you’re drunk/tired and her and her friends want to keep going out. This is their podcast. It’s authentic. It’s comedic. It’s sensitive. It’s the squat-thrust of podcast exercising.

Frank & Erik: Internet Famous

Their stories are brutally honest and as in-your-face as that dude’s crotch on your train ride to work. Erik used to live in Chinese prison and is pretty proportionate for a tall dude. Frank thinks pissing in public was much easier in his earlier years. They have special guests, they play stories from their listeners, and occasionally stream the show live live. They also both have huge biceps.

You can download or stream a show from their web site, or you can find them on iTunes. Try ‘em out… Your quality of life will probably improve.

 
/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Frank & Erik: Internet Famous
On air since: Dec 20008
duration: 30-80 min
show frequency: almost bi-weekly
iTunes Link

Some episode favorites:
Episode 5 — Embarassing Moments
Episode 8 — More embarassing moments, this one with a listeners particularly wonderful rendition of Holy Night [jump to 36:45]
Episode 11 — Lili’s 1st guest appearance, and a great story of catching someone cheating
Episode 40 — Good times

With the buzz of the campaign waning and shifting marketing objectives, it was time to re-concept a whole new ad campaign that could be used this fall and beyond. With the message of personal attention still at its core, the new campaign uses real stories of mentorship and hands-on learning to educate audiences on what it’s like to “Be Colonel” – a phrase that embodies the spirit of the university.

In lieu of bowling alleys, pizza boxes, fortune cookies, and other niche mediums used in the past, the new media strategy relied heavily on a combination of broad-based tactics like TV and targeted ones such as Facebook. All pushing people to a new micro site developed for the campaign, which houses the TV commercial and several longer videos detailing stories of personal attention, including a surprise stunt conducted by Wilkes’ mascot the Colonel.

TV Spot

To see all the videos, visit BeColonel.com or check them out on our YouTube channel.

Credits:
Executive Creative Director: Jim Walls
Creative Director: Tammo Walter
Designer: Adam Flanagan
Copywriter: Cory McCall
Interactive: Brian Tennyson, Mike McAllister, Mike Medoro
Account Management: Dan Giroux, Jon Fruman
Photographer: Tom Ammon
Production Manager: Rosemary Fahmie
Motion Graphics & Illustration: Volume One

Perhaps it was NBC that told the story best during their live interview with us this week:

Well our 15 minutes days (or so) of fame are nearing an end, as tomorrow (Friday, 10/30/09) is the last day of the who-wore-it-best competition. However, we will be posting photos on the site next week from the punishment that’s in store for the loser, so be sure to check back.

www.TieOrDie.com

Additional context and some fun interviews after the break.

The name “Tie or Die” proved to be the most worthy of the few options we considered when launching this site that was originally intended to be for our coworkers amusement. I suppose it’s an intriguing title, albeit a little bit creepy. We assure you there is nothing creepy about the site,  unless you are completely and utterly creeped out by young men wearing ties. I wish that everyone was creeped out by young men wearing ties, because then I would at least have a Halloween costume picked out.

But despite the quick-launch of this unplanned escapade, our quirky rivalry has garnered its fair share of attention. Check out the sites below that were kind and interested enough to feature our contest. The interviews were a real gas.

Man Over Board: “A collaboration of original content from a select few authors from around the world, delving in the male species.”

http://man-over-board.com/2009/10/17/mob-interview-the-cofounders-of-tieordie-com/

Shmitten Kitten: “We talk about dudes and dating in Philadelphia although our observations seem to be relevant to people in all time zones.”

http://www.shmittenkitten.com/2009/10/flippin-our-shades-boys-from.html

Philadelphia Weekly Style Blog:

http://www.160over90.com/blogs.philadelphiaweekly.com/style/2009/10/28/tie-or-die-who-wore-it-best/

She Knows Best: “Fashion and Style Tips for Men from a Female”

http://www.splendicity.com/sheknowsbest/vote-in-the-tie-or-die-contest/

So on the eve of my beloved Phillies kicking off their second straight NLCS against Larry King’s Dodgers tomorrow night, I thought I’d share a little viewing tip for fans who—like me—find the TBS announcers to be a little, well, limp: run the hometown audio feed from your iPhone’s MLB app through some speakers while watching TV with the sound muted. The trick to making it work lies in syncing up the audio to the TV coverage, which is always a few seconds off. For that, pause your DVR three seconds after a pitch is thrown, then wait until you hear that pitch hit the catcher’s glove (or Ryan Howard’s Wonderboy) on the radio. Wait three seconds, unpause your TV, and you should be good for the rest of the game. Of course, you could just fire up the old AM radio, but my TV interferes with the signal, so if you have similar issues or if you want crystal-clear sound, the iPhone’s the way to go.

The downside of listening to a ballgame on the radio, though, are the terrible local commercials. You know, the ones for car insurance companies, healthcare plans, or local sausage kings. Apparently, there’s no better way for these advertisers to endear themselves to sports fans than by writing a radio spot laden with ready-to-go metaphors that relate the product to classic baseball terms. Air that spot for 162 games a season, every half inning, ad infinitum, and you’ll drive some fans to go all DeNiro on poor John Kruk.

The real shame is that some agency took a client’s money to write these things, when they practically write themselves. So, in the interest of helping out said clients, I offer the following pro bono template for the creation of your very own baseball-themed radio spot. Hope to hear yours next season, 30 times each game. I realize this doesn’t time out at exactly a :60, so just fill the rest of the time with crowd noise and an organist playing “Charge.”

—-

Announcer.: Hey [home team] fans, if you’re looking to HIT A HOME RUN, look no further than [ State Home Insurance / Your Tri-State Mitsubishi Dealer / Johnson’s Quality Meats ] this summer.

They’ll KNOCK ONE OUT OF THE PARK with their [ great rates / zero percent financing / Hot Smoked Grillers ] that’ll definitely TURN A BANG BANG PLAY with your SWEET SPOT.

Your friends will think you’re ON THE JUICE when you LOAD THE BASES with [our low premiums / a certified pre-owned Gallant / our sizzling Hot Smoked Grillers ]. And you’ll be the CREW CHIEF of your family when you BREAK FOR HOME with [up to $200 monthly savings / a factory-standard moonroof / our famous all-beef cheddarwurst].

Great [deals / deals / taste] like this haven’t POPPED UP since the UNFORTUNATE-BUT-HISTORIC DAYS OF THE BLACKSOX SCANDAL, so don’t wait until you FULLY RECOVER FROM TOMMY JOHN SURGERY, this is more exciting than a DELAYED DOUBLE STEAL or a GROUND RULE DOUBLE DUE TO FAN INTERFERENCE.

When the competition BALKS, you go with your CLOSER: [ State Home Insurance / Your Tri-State Mitsubishi Dealer / Johnson’s Quality Meats ]

[Crowd cheers.]

—

Go Phils.

Raise your hand if you know what “Marianst” means.

The rest of you can watch our new spot, which attempts—with the help of Martin Sheen—to illustrate one of the qualities of a Marianist education. Specifically, the willingness to ask questions and help your fellow man. First in a series.

Team included Lindsay Hendler as the account manager, Buzz Miller on creative direction, and Adam Garcia on the design ones and twos. Thanks also to the fine folks at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the always gracious Martin Sheen.