Be Stupid. .... really?

I struggle with the new diesel campaign: Be Stupid.

Check it out:


It strikes me as trying too hard and not really that original an idea. I understand that they are attempting to push consumers into thinking differently and with a different perspective of what is stupid but I just couldn't agreed with them, though the music is catchy. Perhaps because I'm not the diesel target? Or did they just miss the mark?

Diesel claims that Stupid is brilliant, has the stories, the balls and creates. I struggle mostly with the idea that Stupid is how this gets done and "Don't be stupid is the crusher of possibility". I think being stupid is the crusher of potential and opportunity...

I decided to trot on over to Dictionary.com to look up the meaning of "Stupid" to see if my internal definition was skewed... it wasn't:

stu⋅pid

–adjective

1.	lacking ordinary quickness and keenness of mind; dull.

2.	characterized by or proceeding from mental dullness; foolish; senseless: a stupid question.

3.	tediously dull, esp. due to lack of meaning or sense; inane; pointless: a stupid party.

4.	annoying or irritating; troublesome: Turn off that stupid radio.

I've thought about this campaign for about a week and I still don't like it but perhaps I'm just near sighted or closed minded or..... STUPID? (though I guess in their eyes that would make me brilliant?)

Here is their online landing for Be Stupid: http://www.diesel.com/be-stupid/

To each their own?

My inital thought when i read the article in the globe and mail about the guy who got Ray-Ban glasses tattooed to his face was "what an idiot..." but soon after shrugged and thought "to each their own, it's not my face, doesn't bother me"

The article mentions about how far companies should go to promote their brand - it's unknown if Ray-Ban has any involvement (if you know, fill us in!) but they are for sure reaping some viral attention. In my opinion, if someone is dumb enough to get a tattoo on their face for some fast cash - then go for it. They weren't forced into it, they made the decision.

Here is the viral Ray-Ban video



For us Canadian, did it not make you think of the recent Excel Gum commercial for the 2010 Olympics?

I'll have a Diet Coke and a Men's size small....

Vending machines for clothes?! Sounds bizarre but it's real.

Mark's Work Warehouse has set up a clothing vending machine in Toronto's Union GO station in Toronto. We've all heard of the insane vending machines you can find in Japan that literally sell anything, but you'd be hard pressed to find vending machines in Canada like that. Check out this blog to see some really fun, interesting and weird Japanese vending machines.

Mark Work Warehouse's goal is to be in more places and be more visible. They've paired up with IBM to develop these vending machines and hope to roll out more if they are successful. As the first retailer to really offer this kind of shopping experience in Canada, they have some big hurdles to overcome. Canadians aren't used to this kind of shopping, think about how many people still refuse to shop online. This is a major shift in how people shop, though given a situation where a big stain threatens to become a the only thing people notice about you (see the funny Tide ad below) then maybe having a shirt at the ready is a pretty convenient thing to have!

I'm interested to see what the future of this will be. The vending machines have been out since December and so far this is the first I have heard of them. I haven't seen any advertising or viral buzz floating around, except for this article in The Star.

Would you buy a shirt from here?

Print is not a dead medium

Using the printed page to some advertisers is considered to be archaic. Brand managers are pushing their ad guys to push for more interactive online channels, flashy banners and new social networking site features. However, there is a growing trend for brands to go back to the printed page to draw consumers back online - through their phones.

A little while ago, ecommbyablonde brought you a couple posts about interactive magazine pages: one from Nike and another from an article in the globe and mail.

Now the New York Times is running an article about the progression of using smartphones and magazine pages to drive sales. It is incredibly interesting to read about the technology, how it is being used and even where it started from. Check it out here.

Have you purchased anything online or used your smartphone to access more information from a magazine?