Cherryflava

Dickie B's airline is still going strong 25 years on

Virgin Atlantic is still going like a boeing 25 years after they first flew from Gatwick to Newark in 1984. To celebrate, Dickie B ordered a new TV ad for the brand with a subliminal message.

The ad is pretty good, acceptable visuals, nice little story all packed into 60 seconds...but it's the soundtrack, courtesy of that classic Frankie Goes to Hollywood opening riff...that makes it.

It's one of those 80's tracks that order you to your feet and command you to engage in a little Risky Business moment.

This is not the Virgin Atlantic ad.

This is the Virgin Atlantic ad.

We wonder if these ladies are smuggling a few kilos of cocaine under their tunics too?

More:

Frankie Goes to Hollywood - Wikipedia
Virgin Atlantic: 25 years and still red hot - Dickie B's blog
See the ad - here
The other Risky Business-type number that gets played while getting ready for industry functions - YouTube

...but what exactly is the Virgin Atlantic ad suggesting by choosing a track with the following lyrics:

The bleak economy invokes creative marketing promo ideas

The crispness of this image may be questionable, but the evidence is undeniable. A crafty marketing innovation thinktank at a bottle store in Canal Walk have struck gold by pairing two of the world's greatest brands in this one easy-to-drag combo pack.

Not satified with Klippies and Coke being combined in one of those small little bottles that you can buy at selected northern suburbs outlets, the legendary duo have finally been shrink-wrapped together and offered at the bargain price of what looks like R79.99.

A 1.5 litre Coke seems like a bit of an overkill, but if you like favourite braai tipple slightly diluted - then this clearly offers value all round.

[thanks to Nikki for the undercover pic]

More animals go missing in the Cape

Some sick wino has kidnapped a local wine estate's mascot and is hold the poor beast as a ranson for some free wine and a bit of paparazzi love.
We got notified of the disaster via a hand delivered bottle of wine with a necktag indicating that possible culprits can be reported to www.themissingzebra.co.za
Naturally we've notified the SPCA and reloaded a few rounds of ammunition for the company Holland and Holland .300 just in case we see the critter roaming around Claremont with some life left in him.

First clues as to the location of the striped one will be out 12 January.

Knowing that it's a marketing campaign for Perdeberg does take a bit of the mystery and romance out of the hunt for us, but it'll interesting to see where this one goes all the same.

Previously: Cape Union Mart plays 'hide the reindeer' - Cherryflava

Love Jozi: The Coloured Range

Any shade you can think of...from Mlungu to Darkie in one colour swatch.

Love Jozi website

[thanks Gregor]

OMG look at GHD LOL

If you're male...a straight male who can braai meat without burning it and know the difference between rolling maul and a set scrum, then you shouldn't have a clue as to what ghd sells.

But if you can successfully identify the four characters in Sex and the City and hand cream is an important part of your daily beauty regime. you'll know that ghd have built up a world-beating hair straightening iron business....from frizz to fabulous in four easy strokes [that's our line - not ghd's]

The hair iron business must be pretty lucrative, cause check out their HQ in Leeds. The place looks a bit like the USS Enterprise in Star Trek.

The ghd brand seems to on a bit of a roll.

Locally ghd will be launching the ghd style lounge, a luxurious, temporary pop-up salon [also featuring the rather cool Newton Machine photo booth, which Topshop in the UK also recently used] held at a secret location in Cape Town on December 12th for those much needed pre-party makeovers [we're told].

Entrance is free, but you'll need to apply for star treatment online here. [thanks Dan]

Right - back to celebrating that Springbok win at the George 7's.

More:

GHD headquarters - thecoolhunter
Topshop presents the 2008 Helmut Newton photo machine - Topshop

Toilet rumour

The best way to promote a new restaurant, hotel or nightclub is not necessarily via an elaborate advertising campaign or with fancy PR in glossy society magazines. The real solution could be as painful and expensive as making sure that you have really kick ass toilets.

Not the cheapest strategy, but by far the most effective - funny how it often works that way.

Check out more of this collection of great public toilets over at the coolhunter.

Previously:
Cape Town's Extreme Hotel - Cherryflava Pics
Daddy Long Legs: Part 5 - Cherryflava Pics

The secret to a really good marketing campaign...

...seems to a delicate combination of honesty, communication of a clear product benefit and a good dose of the elusive 'WFT quotient'.

At least that's the case in a small collection of apparently successful campaigns posted on the Wall$treetfighter.

This VW ad was one of the targeted campaigns, which collects all the ticks - and yeah, we can see how it would work.

See: 6 Brilliant marketing campaigns - Wall$treetfighter

Nedbank runs with our idea

Yeeehhaaa. Finally, a huge South African brand have listened and acted. [See our Times column here]

Spotted in the Sunday Times this weekend, this Nedbank ad promoting a new service challenge called 'ask once'.
Basically - you phone the bank, ask them to do something once...and if they fail to action your request, they're obliged to donate R50 to charity.

It's bold and ballsy and even if the bank ends up donating half their profits to charity, we respect the fact that they're putting themselves out there and are going to give it a bash. Safe is indeed risky and they've done themselves a favour by taking this big step.

If you are a Nedbank client - give it a go...and please email us to let us know how it works out.

Our previous rants on this exact topic:
We're a bank - give us money to make ads - Cherryflava
Tele-marketing is the way forward - The Times

The secret formula for how Apple does marketing

Yesterday...Apple sold it's one millionth iPhone.

That's a million phones in just over 2 months. Just imagine if you had your hands on the secret marketing mojo which could sell a million of your products.

Well...ask and you shall receive. A former Apple Marketing Executive Steve Chazin has defected from the Apple cult and stolen their marketing secrets released an ebook called Marketing Apple.

Unfortunately the 5 secrets require you to pro-actively involve yourself with your companies marketing activities and there's very little to suggest that buying 30-seconds of a Survivor ad break will help you at all.

See: Marketing Apple website 

Download MarketingApple_eBook.pdf

[via][thanks Andrew]

At the top of the Sunday Times / Markinor Top Brands survey is the worst place to be

Egos were stroked, market departments fired and everyone waited with baited breath for the list of the 2007 Top Brands in South Africa to be published yesterday.

We were away - so didn't bother with the whole thing, but apparently the big news is that Carling Black Label is now the country's number one beer brand...just smoking Castle at the finishing post.

Ironic, 'cause for the life of us, we cannot remember the last time anyone we know, has raised the dull brown glass of a Black Label bottle to their lips.

What would however be interesting, is to map each one of the sales graphs on top of these research results. Is Carling the biggest selling beer brand as well?

But going forward, in a new world where small is the new big...where many seem to try avoid the mass produced...where the new cool is the niche, organic, farmers market kind of produce - is even being listed anywhere in the Top Brands survey a desirable thing?

Can these really be regarded as 'top' brands? Or just corporate products, with big marketing budgets, who's identity has been beaten into our heads for so many years.

See; Carling Black Label overtakes Castle in the Markinor/Sunday Times Top Brands Survey - Markinor