Heineken is keeping it real

Perhaps a little like Dave Chappell's sketch "When keeping it real goes wrong", this holiday season Heineken is taking a different approach to draw attention to it's brand.

Heineken is highlighting the social dangers of drinking too much; however instead of going for a tear inducing, heart-aching story/warning, Heineken is keeping it light and humourous and (in my opinion) doing a pretty good job.



They've created a TV ad that drives drinkers online to a micro-site knowthesigns.com where they can play a game of spotting the people who drank too much. The object of the game is to spot the typical characteristics that all of us have had to deal with when we've gone out with friends including: the crier, the flirt, the fighter and the groper. All the kinds of people that we really don't want to deal with and will/have ruined our nights.

Beyond the game Heineken is leveraging this other media as well. They have an iPhone breathalyzer app and a "tag of shame" app that users can download to their social media site and actually tag pictures of their friends being TG (That guy or That girl)

Launching during the prime holiday season, at a time when office parties, friends are celebrating and family is getting together Heineken is offering an interesting spin on marketing of one of the worlds favourite beers. They are keeping the fun, lighthearted and interest while maintaining a drink responsibly message.


Warning: No heartstrings were pull in this campaign.

Even the billionaires of the world are being hit by this global economic crisis, so it's a very good thing that there exists a website where they can auction off their one of a kind luxury items to raise some cash AND ensure their precious items are given a good home.

Welcome to Billionairexchange, the luxury online auction site. Here the billionaires of the world can bid on and sell items ranging from castles, to diamond encrusted iPhones, to armored luxury vehicles, even a mexican resort is up for sale.


All one has to do is sign up for a membership; however, the price isn't shown because (I assume) "if you have to ask, you can't afford it".



What is interesting about the site is ease and ability a user has to buy advertising space. The prices are all laid out and based on impressions. Users can purchase leaderboards, features or sponsored links. Pretty interesting way of selling the media space as it seems they are cutting out the media companies and have made it really simple for their users.

I currently have my eye on a sweet diamond iPhone 3G, so if you're looking for my xmas gift, that's a good place to start: check it

Really got me with the Goats.....

The first time I saw the jumping goat ad from Telus, I wanted a baby goat of my own. Of course I'd only want it for about half an hour when I could kindly return it to the farmer from which is came.

Telus is about to offer something much more than goats, announced this week, Telus and Bell are FINALLY going to be offering the wildly popular Apple iPhone. http://www.telusmobility.com/en/ON/home/

So far in Canada, there has been a monopoly on the iPhone through Rogers, which might be the "most reliable network" but dodgiest customer service (through informal poll of users).




http://www.rogers.com/web/content/iphone3gs?cm_sp=Consumer-_-Wireless_iPhone3G_0809_Eng-_-iPhone3G_WIR_PRE_slot4

The world of wireless telephones is growing exponentially. "Smart" phones have erupted in the past couple of years - remember the original Blackberry that as floating around the office with only the very senior personnel? It seems ancient now. Even the non-smart phones offer increased access to the web, advances messaging systems and applications. So are computers becoming phones or phones becoming computers!?

Now consumers have to choose from phones offered by Blackberry, Apple, Palm, Google and Microsoft.




That's right! Microsoft has announced it's own smart phone called the Windows Phone (don't over stretch your marketing genius there guys....) it will be able to access the internet, email, an application store and it can open word and excel files.. So let's all give it up for Microsoft with a big warm welcome to last year!

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/meet/default.mspx

Can touch this?

As an adaptation of MC Hammer's smash hit Can't touch this runs through my head... I'm still wowed by this incredible advancement of technology.... touch.

Since I am not very good at computers - in fact on any given day you may hear me mutter "computers hate me!" in utter frustration - I am easily impressed by new technology - and this one really had me going.

My first intro to touch programs was actually in high school. My calculus teacher had something called a SMART Board. It was basically a touch sensitive blackboard hooked up to his computer. He used it much like a blackboard to draw functions, derive equations and pull up last class's notes. It was incredibly useful for learning, we could easily get electronic copies of notes we did in class, pull up old problems and look things up on the web.

Here is a youtube video about how to use it (warning, it's a smidgen blah...)



So flash forward a couple of years and Apple introduces the iPod touch and iPhone. Again... I'm impressed and when given the chance to hold one, proceed to play with all the "buttons" - even to this day.

However, when I saw a video about a touch table, my mind exploded.

Check out this news clip:



The table is completely touch sensitive and that's just the start. You could order pizzas on it, take pictures and without cables download the pictures directly to the table! WHAT?! Just as I had collected myself (and my jaw from the floor) I looked at the date of posting.... 2007. Two years ago?! How is it that two years later I haven't seen any of these tables commercially? Technology is adapting and being refined so quickly and prices normally drop within the first couple of years, I would've have assumed that I would've seen this somewhere already.

Here's another clip of the table that explores more of the nuts and bolts:




Has anyone seen them? Does anyone have one?

Also if we have devises that we can hear, see and touch... what's next? An iPod we can taste? Maybe an online menu we can smell?