#teamtoblerone

For the group assignment, we were assigned to create a campaign for Toblerone, that familiar triangular swiss chocolate with honey and almond nougat candy bar, using three different types of social media. We thought it would be best to push our campaign around the holiday season since that is where this chocolate bar is more popular.

Three media channels that we decided to use for our Toblerone campaign were Instagram, Vine, and Twitter.

With the three different social media channels we thought that consumers would be more involved in pushing the campaign. It would also be an initiative to compete in a social media contest to win a large 400g Toblerone. Who doesn’t love free chocolate?

The Instagram Challenge
Participants must create the most eye catching post with them and the Toblerone during a holiday moment. Also, they must include a description on how the chocolate bar has contributed to their celebrations (example: gift exchange, traditional gifts, favorite chocolate).

The Vine Challenge
In a six second video, the participant must make a creative video with the Toblerone during the holidays. How do you advertise in six seconds? That’s what makes this a challenge for consumers. Also, as another incentive, top 5 commercial will be combined into an aired Toblerone commercial for the holidays.

The Twitter Challenge
The most simple challenge will be for participants to tweet their holiday eperience with Toblerone. Chosen at random, these users must create their posts with the hashtags like #toblerone #tobleronemoments #tobleroneholidays #teamtoblerone

Nancy is a 28 year old single working woman ready to start her week off with a smile. Knowing that her clothes are fresh and clean from doing laundry over the weekend, she has gained confidence knowing that everything is going to be alright for the rest of the week. She starts her morning with a big breakfast of coffee, toast, and a side of eggs. By 7:30a.m. she drives in  her compact Honda Civic and is heading to the elementary school nearby where she teaches art. By noon, it is lunch time. She had prepared a chicken sandwich with a side of fruit that she made the night before.  She has a close connection to her students because she is still pretty young for being a teacher. After doing a painting project she accidentally gets paint on her clothing. Knowing that she has a bottle of Tide detergent waiting at home for her, this stain on her clothes isn't a problem.   

Android vs Iphone

After watching that short commercial in class of the Iphone and the Samsung Galaxy, I couldn't help but relate. Up until this year, I've been using a basic phone for the past 8 years. I've watched generations of smart phones being released and never owned one myself. Seeing the news of people waiting for days to get the latest new cellular device, I found it ridiculous that it has become apart of our culture. Finally 8 years later, I had a broken phone and was way overdue for an Upgrade. I've seen the Iphone being compared to the Blackberry, and now the Android. I was very excited to get my first smartphone and was doing my research on whether or not I wanted the new Iphone 5 or the new Samsung Galaxy III. I did my comparisons of technology and features and overall Samsung kicked the Iphone out of the ballpark. I've tested my parents phones when they went from Iphone to android, and talked with different people about what I should get. At the same time, I really don't need all the features that SG3 had. I chose the Iphone over it because I really don't need that big of a screen, it looks sleeker, and with texting.. what's the purpose of have a touch phone to share?

Gender Roles in Stereotyping

One of the most memorable yet disturbing commercials that I could remember from this year's Superbowl was from Go Daddy. Now to be honest, I've seen heard of the name of this company but I had no idea what it was for until I looked it up tonight. Go Daddy is a place where people can create websites and Domain names and found that this was an appropriate way to advertise themselves.

They portray two sides of Go Daddy:
The "Sexy Side" was represented by a blonde beauty, Bar Rafaeli.
The "Smart Side" was represented by a short stubby nerd named Walter.

This Perfect Match is meant to show that Go Daddy is both Smart and Sexy. Having a model kissing a nerd shows that this company has the best of both worlds, but to me I was so disturbed to have witnessed the PDA.

Stereotypes in Advertising

As I was searching the web, I found it pretty difficult to look for a stereotypical ad that was recent. I did however, come across this ad that showed actor, Ashton Kutcher, playing different types of men "looking for love" as they describe their different favorite flavor of Popchips. Originally this ad was intended for laughs as he role played as an Indian, Hippie, Biker, Diva, and himself. Unfortunately, people didn't catch the humor of this ad and found it as offensive. I would want to say that racism should be a thing of the past, but it's not. Why couldn't Popchips just hire different actors that we already know portray these characters that they wanted to create? We all know that advertising is used to get messages across and sell a product in a matter of time. Advertising should have ethical responsibilities, but they don't think about them and the big picture when they make commercials. If you're trying to sell different flavors, or "flavors around they world," you can't do that without being in that setting. So is it still racist or stereotypical to be in that setting? Back to the Popchip ad, they were just trying to sell different flavors desired by different people around the world. Is that a bad thing? 

Semiotics: Advertising to your senses

Semiotics are used in advertising to sell to an audience through signs and symbols. These signs are signifiers to something more than what the company actually wants to sell. What's the story behind the product and why should we as consumers buy these products? Advertisements are ridiculous, yet capture everyone's attention.


Outdoor Ad:
One of the popular shows to come back this sunday was The Walking Dead. This fairly large billboard found in Toronto's Union Station. Everyday from February 1st through the 10th, one finger of the gruesome looking hands were chopped off and left laying around near the billboard. Creepy right? I found this billboard was very interactive and eye catching. How often do you see large zombie hands in public?

TV Ad:

One of my favorite commercials that I've seen on TV was for Old Spice Body Wash. Titled "The Man your Man Could Smell Like" The semiotic of this advertisement is trying to sell to women who have men that use their body wash. In this 30 second fast paced commercial, the Old Spice Man tells you all the benefits of their product and how it will make your life better. 

  

Magazine Ad:

Orbit's main slogan is "dirty mouth, clean it up with orbit." With this gum advertisement it shows that no matter how dirty you are, your mouth with remain flawless and sparkling. Whether you're rolling in a pile mud, Orbit will do the trick to give you that clean feeling that you want.

The Name Game

A friend of mine once said "a shirt is like a walking billboard" and it's hard not to believe that. 

I've been working at Hennes & Muaritz also known as H&M for a little over a year and it doesn't surprise me that so many of our customers asked if we had a shirt with the "H&M" logo on our clothing. Well, first off, we aren't exactly the most expensive store in the mall, but I wouldn't compare the company to any hole in the wall store either. In fact, we carry names like David Beckham brand underwear and on occasion, feature a collab artist, the most recent being Maison Martin Margiela. Some of you may have heard him from Kanye's lyric "What's that Jacket Margiela?" H&M is an affordable clothing store and people are proud to wear our clothing. So much that they would want to wear a piece of clothing that shows that it is from, just as they would sport their Vans, Levi's, and Nike clothing. Unlike all those other top brands, we really don't show off that a piece of clothing belongs to us outside our door.

Brands have a huge relation to our generation today. Now, not talking about the big name brands since it's already a given, but many local artists have been using their talents and todays technology to get their names out their in the world. The most recent story that automatically popped into my head was how Orly Locquiao, owner of Humble Beginnings Tattoo and Cukui created a shirt dedicated to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Released just in time for the superbowl, Cukui's little store in San Jose's Japantown was flooded with customers wanting this shirt. With just a few photos of credibility from Kaep himself, Orly was given so much publicity and there were over 1000+ orders made after the release. I'm excited for Cukui and the rate that they're going up in popularity, but at the same time, I'm scared that they may raise the prices of their one of a kind shirts.
Photos borrowed by their instagram @cukui