Google+?

Google has recently created a social network called the Google+ Project. Google does not think that current online networks truly provide everything that a social network should provide. The idea of creating this project is to top Facebook and to make every existing Google product socially compatible including Picasa, Gmail, Google Maps, and more. You won’t have to sign into different services to share photos and let your friends know what you’re up to. Facebook’s newsfeed is going to be compared to Google+ stream. The stream is where all of your info and updates from your friends will be constantly updated. Some never before elements to this social network include circles, hangouts, huddles, and sparks. Circles will make the project like real life by being able to share certain things with certain people like a circle of friends. Hangouts are like Facebook events except they include face-to-face video chats. Huddles will be like a multi-way text message conversation. These will be helpful when friends are trying to hang out. Everyone can talk together. Sparks are a way to sort things that you like including videos and readings. It is a way to stay connected to the things that you like.

            There are a lot more great qualities to Google+. It is very similar to Facebook but bigger and better. I am not sure what to think about it. Do I really want to be connected on another social network? Why do we need more than one? I think the funniest thing about this new project is that I first heard about it on Facebook. Also, my friends are asking me to join and friend them on Google+ through Facebook. I like the concepts of social networks because they really help you to stay connected with family and friends on a deeper level than just a phone call. I think it is getting a little out of hand but I definitely appreciate the effort to get people to stay connected.

Harry Potter - Good Advertisement

Even if you are not a Harry Potter fan, you know that the most recent Harry Potter is coming out this Friday. The reason that you know this is because the movie is getting great advertisement on TV, radio, and print ads. I think that their best way of advertisement right now is showing all of the movies on cable TV. All of the movies have been playing on ABC Family on repeat for the last few days. I for one am not a huge fan, but my roommates are so I have been watching these movies every night. Every day I am becoming more and more of a fan because I am being emerged in the world of Harry Potter.

            I think it is really exciting  how much of an influence a product can have on a person if it is shown and advertised enough and in the right way. I think it is smart to have the movies playing on repeat. This advertises the new one without actually showing an advertisement. Also during the movies on ABC Family, they have been showing sneak peeks to the new movie. This really helps because it makes people want to see more.  Another thing is that these movies are already so famous that they do not need a whole lot of advertising. They have so many  loyal and committed fans that their biggest advertisement is probably from word of mouth. Although I am not a huge Harry Potter fan, I will probably go see the new movie just because I want to see what comes next and how well it will be executed.

Santa Represents Pepsi in the Summer

             Both Coke and Pepsi are well known products that have been in a friendly competition for a good number of years since they were both created. Pepsi’s most well known spokespeople are famous women celebrities like Brittany Spears and Maria Carey. Coke’s spokes-icons on the other hand have always been Santa Claus or the Coke Polar Bear. No matter who the spokesperson is, the world is divided on which product is the best.

            Recently, Pepsi reviled a commercial about drinking Pepsi in the summer. Their spokesperson for this commercial is Santa. The commercial is trying to show that Santa really likes Pepsi more but he was paid to say he likes Coke. It is summer and he is on a beach. He goes to the bar to get a beverage and the bartender gives him a Coke. Santa replies by saying that he is on vacation and that he wants to have a little fun. That is also saying that Coke is part of the business when he is working in the winter.

            This commercial caught my eye because I just recently read about how Santa was a big selling strategy for Coke when he first started being shown on Coke bottles and cans. I find it interesting that Pepsi is allowed to steal Santa from Coke. I am not sure if that is legal. I would have thought that Coke would be able to buy the rights to Santa and his image. I think Pepsi’s advertisers were very clever in thinking of this commercial to sell their product. They figured if it worked so well for Coke why not try it themselves.

Impulse Buying - With the Click of a Button

           

             Infomercials are reaching an even faster way for impulse buyers to be able to order products from on the tv. The “As Seen On TV” products are now able to be purchased by using the remote control or a cell phone directly from the television set. When an infomercial comes on tv, a message comes across the advertisement that says “buy now,” and with the click of a button on the remote, a purchase could be made. This new way of buying is taking out the step of calling and waiting on hold for a representative in order to buy the product. This new way is direct and effective.

            What will they come up with next? Technology is becoming so advanced that pretty soon there will be no need for all of these different steps and equipment to get where you want to be. Everything is going to be in one device like: television, computer, internet, phone, music, etc. This is already possible with some technologies but it is going to get bigger and better.

            I think that this new way of ordering from infomercials is genius. It helps the lazy people in the world be even lazier, but it also helps the busy people get there shopping done faster. This technology will help buying for Christmas so much faster. Shopping could be finished in a day with just the click of a few buttons.

            Anything is possible!

Steer Bar & Grill - Sexy Ad

I well known Steakhouse in Melbourne called Steer Bar & Grill has a new ad out that is demeaning to women. The ad is a pair of female legs wearing a short skirt and it says “Find a great bit of skirt at Steer.”

            There was a lot of controversy about this ad because some think that the ad is comparing women and different grades of meat where others think it is perfectly ok. The Advertising Standards Board explains that if there is a comparison of women to meat, no matter what, it is vilifying and discriminatory. The ad has now been withdrawn by the advertisers.

            Steer Bar & Grill try to defend their ad by saying they did not mean to be disrespectful or offensive to women in any way. The ad was supposed to be humorous and innocent. Women should not be seen or treated that way according to the company.

            I think this whole controversy is very bizarre. There are ads all over the place that are demeaning and disrespectful to women. This is really not out of the ordinary. Although I think that this ad, and all ads that disrespect women, are not right, I don’t think that this is any worse than others. Sex sells and that is how it has always been. People put sex into their ads to sell their product because if their product seems sexy, then the people buying it will be having sex often and the world would be good. Sex is big in the advertising industry along with the world.

           Here are some other examples of ads that disrepect women:

Hardee's - "If machines can't eat it, machines shouldn't make it."

            The popular restaurant, Hardee's, has a new commercial out that revolves around humanizing robots and how robots are not humans. They are not humans therefore they do not have stomachs and cannot eat anything. The commercial has a good point to it. Hardee's is trying to say that their food is not processed and made by machines and then packaged and sent to the restaurants. They are all made by humans for humans. The advertisers for this company were very smart when creating this ad because people want to know where their food is coming from and how real or artificial it really is. This commercial steps out of the norms of a restaurant ad that is usually trying to sell a new product and turns it into making people aware or their products. The robot symbolizes evil in a way. It symbolizes alien machines that bread chicken patties for other companies they freeze them then serve them to customers.

            I like this ad because it is real and that is what people want these days.

The Alamo Draft House Cinema: Chaos

The Alamo Draft House Cinema is a movie theatre chain who takes their phone policy very seriously. Their phone policy is that if you talk or text during a movie, you are to be kicked out of the theatre. Every movie theatre has this rule, but the employees at The Alamo make sure to follow this policy very carefully.

Recently, a movie-goer experienced the seriousness of this policy while viewing a movie at The Alamo. The patron was mad because this is America and we should be free to text in a movie theater if we want to. She was so mad that she called The Alamo and left a message to complain about her experience. The audio of this message was then turned into an advertisement. After all of that blew up, the CEO of Alamo Draft House made a follow up video responding to the patron’s voicemail, the advertisement, and to everyone out there who were posting rude and mean comments about all of it. His response had something to do with how it is rude and distracting to others to text and talk on the phone in a movie theater. He was trying to make a point.

I decided to post about this because I find it very interesting that The Alamo decided to make a commercial of the costumer’s complaint. That is probably illegal and inconsiderate. I also thought it was fascinating how far all of this went through the media. It shows how powerful the media and advertising really is. All of the hype from this situation ended up on The View, CNN, Anderson Cooper, and all over the television and World Wide Web.

Technology is a crazy source to have in the world. It is growing and expanding and becoming so reliable for everything. This whole problem started with a cell phone which goes to show that technology, along with social media, might possibly be taking over the world.