When promoting a magic show, the advertising cries out for something magical.
Art Machine, a Hollywood agency that creates print campaigns for the entertainment industry, drew on an optical illusion to execute a campaign for the new season of “Mindfreak,” the TV series hosted by magician Criss Angel on the A & E; cable network.
The campaign consists of bus shelter ads that change their imagery depending on whether they’re viewed before or after dark. During daylight, the poster depicts only text and the shoes of Criss Angel floating on water. But at nighttime, when the poster is backlit, the same image shows Angel floating upside down in the water.
“This was a unique reflective effect that has never been done before in this format,” said Jeremy Kaplan, creative director at Art Machine.
But the trick only works with backlighting technology, which isn’t always feasible. So when Art Machine put up a billboard for “Mindfreak” on Sunset Boulevard, the wet shoes are all there is.
Gorilla Gets Carded
Gorilla Nation Media LLC, the online ad rep firm based in Hollywood, has landed the account to sell ad space on Hallmark.com, the popular site owned by Kansas City, Mo.-based Hallmark Cards Inc.
The site’s numbers 3.4 million unique visitors and 53 million page views per month could make it attractive for advertisers seeking to reach women who shop online, Hallmark’s prime demographic. But the site’s main purpose is to foster sales of Hallmark greeting cards at 43,000 stores across the country or directly online, not other products. So Gorilla Nation has decided to target advertisers who want their brand associated with the values of Hallmark.
Beer Intelligence
To learn which liquors have the strongest brand value, Tim Anderson went straight to the source his favorite bar.
Anderson, recently appointed director of strategic planning at L.A. agency David & Goliath;, developed a simple methodology. He asked bar patrons which brand’s logo they would like emblazoned on their T-shirt.
“Beyond taste, spirit and beer choices are often based on imagery consumers associate with the brand, and in turn, want to be associated with,” said David Angelo, chairman of David & Goliath.; “We simplified how to assess value by asking people if they would proudly wear a brand’s T-shirt or not.”
The results? After visiting seven bars around Southern California, Anderson discovered the best hard liquor brand was Jack Daniel’s. Among beers, Corona got the most respect.
Ads for Ads
Listeners to KFWB-AM (980) hear a different kind of commercial when Todd Murray comes on the air.
Murray is a senior account executive who sells ad time on KFWB. He paid his employer for air time to tell listeners about the benefits of advertising on the news station.
“I’ve been here 12 years and one day I thought, ‘What can I do differently?'” Murray said. “There are only so many phone calls I can make, so many e-mails, so many personal visits. Why not do what I tell clients, and use radio to reach more people?”
He acknowledged the response “hasn’t been overwhelming,” but he has received some calls.
Agencies & Accounts
MWW Group has added Mercury Insurance Group to the client roster of its Los Angeles office. The PR agency will help with corporate and employee communications. Sweet Spot Productions in Hollywood has produced TV ads promoting Sega’s video game “Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games.” The spots ran during coverage of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Adlhoch Creative Inc., a Los Angeles-based branding firm, has signed SullivanCurtisMonroe Insurance Services LLC for a corporate rebranding. SullivanCurtisMonroe is one of the state’s largest private insurance agencies, with annual premiums of $350 million. Farr Marketing Group in West L.A. has started a promotional products division, Farr Promotional Products. Passenger, an L.A.-based software company that builds online private communities of customers for large corporations, has hired Bateman Group as its PR agency of record. Bateman will manage the account in its San Francisco and New York offices. Marketing agency Davie Brown Entertainment has hired Farrah Louviere as director of film. She will work with filmmakers on storyline integrations, product placement and festival sponsorships. Louviere has worked for Warner Bros., Fox and Walt Disney Co.
Staff reporter Joel Russell can be reached at [email protected] or at (323) 549-5225, ext. 237.
