Articles about Advertising

Publicis Dallas Brings CiCi’s Pizza Account to Its Cool Plano Office Space

Congratulations to Publicis Dallas, not just for having one of the coolest offices in Dallas-Fort Worth, but for now landing the CiCi’s Pizza account.

The Coppell-based pizza chain should generate plenty of work for Publicis, given that CiCi’s CEO Mike Shumsky told me last year that his company has identified 73 markets nationwide in which its low-cost buffet restaurants would work, and that they hope to add 500 new units during the next eight to 10 years.

Dallas-based Richards Group was also reportedly in the running for the account. CiCi’s was looking for a new agency after bringing in a new chief marketing officer last year. As Stan Richards, principal of the Richards Group, recently told me (when we were discussing other matters): “Anytime the CMO changes, the agency is in jeopardy.”

A new CMO likes to signal a new direction right away, which usually means a new ad agency. Richards said he wasn’t surprised when his own firm lost Red Lobster as a client last year, after that restaurant chain hired a new CMO. ”It’s one of the hazards of the industry. The average life of a CMO is under two years, so it’s a constant issue,” Richards says.

I’m sure then that Publicis hopes CiCi’s remains happy with its CMO. And that they can keep the company’s penny-pinching target customer happier than this guy.

Neiman Marcus Revamps The Book

I’d heard a rumor that Neiman Marcus was working on a new editorial print product. Turns out to be sorta true (but not really). Neiman’s spokesperson Ginger Reeder says they have decided to cease publication of Entree, the magazine that went to InCircle members. Reeder says the same sort of editorial that ran in that magazine will be rolled into The Book, along with outside advertising. New editorial product? Let’s call it revamped. (Bonus: here’s some cool behind-the-scenes footage of a photo shoot in Bandon, Oregon, for the fall 2011 Book.)

Jennifer Aniston Will Destroy Us All

The view from D Magazine's 21st-floor kitchen

The view from D Magazine's 21st-floor kitchen

This ad on the side of a West End parking garage gives me visions of a giant, topless Jennifer Aniston, rampaging through our fair city like Godzilla through Tokyo. … This will not be a productive day.

Baylor vs. UT Southwestern: Great Medical Minds Advertise Alike

The two ads below were passed along by a FrontBurnervian. On the left is a Baylor hospital ad that’s running in the Byron Nelson program this weekend. On the right is a UT Southwestern Medical Center ad that’s part of a campaign that’s been running for, I’m told, many weeks. Coincidence?

Baylor and UTSW ads

University Park Residents Know How to Party

 And this isn’t a street way off the beaten path, it’s an exit along 75. 

happy hour2

If You Like Movies, Spend the Next Ten Days On FrontRow

Last night the Dallas International Film Festival kicked-off at the Winspear Opera House. To find out how that soiree went down, visit FrontRow. In fact, for all your movie-loving needs over the next ten days, FrontRow is here to help. Check out our lengthy Dallas IFF preview. Also, look for daily updates from the festival. Oh, and if you go to any of the movies, you’ll likely see our new FrontRow commercial, featuring the likes of the big man (Dirk), the big hands (Mayor Tom), and the big mouth (Gordon Keith), as well as all sorts of other local cameos. You can preview that little diddy over here, along with the extended cut. Feel free to play name that guy or gal – and name that movie line. (Oh, and did you know one of the most significant musicians of our time is currently holed-up at the Meyerson?)

Belo Changes Stance on Boobs, Now Digs Them

For as long as I can remember, Belo has refused advertising from strip clubs. You know, because they are so strippery. But a highly placed source tells me that Al Dia has now been given the green light by corporate brass to run those ads. English-language readers? They will still have to turn to the internet or the Phoenix-based Dallas Observer to find out which strip club has the best surf-and-turf lunch deal. But if you read Spanish, you’re good to go.

How To Sell A City

Take tips, Dallas boosters. This is how it is done. (And not like this.) How do you adjust it thematically for Dallas? Contact Dorrough.

Frito-Lay Goes Gay for Super Bowl Spots

A salty-snack-loving FrontBurnervian passes along a link to a Gawker post wherein you’ll find two gay-themed commercials for Doritos that are planned for the Super Bowl. Gawker asks if the spots are offensive. Being offended is now an American pastime. So, yes, I’m sure someone will be offended. As for me? I just think the sauna commercial is dumb. With all the humidity, there’s no way the chips would still be crunchy.

Update: The fine folks at Frito-Lay send along a clarification. “Just saw your post about the Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest and it seems like there is a little confusion regarding what our plans are as far which ads will air during the game. Attached is the press release we put out at the beginning of the month regarding our finalist selection and call for votes. Also, here is a link to see which ads American consumers can vote for: www.crashthesuperbowl.com. The ads you profiled are not among our finalists and will not air during the Super Bowl. Hope this helps.”

NSFW Pic of Erin Wasson

The famous Pirelli Calendar is out, and our own Erin Wasson makes an appearance. An alert FBvian points us to her nipples.

CitySquare Vandals Take Their Marketing Message to Downtown Sidewalks

CitySquareWalking to the parking garage yesterday I saw this message drawn in chalk on the sidewalk in front of the DMA. I thought, “Huh. Why would the cucumbers in Texas have lower self-esteem than cucumbers in any other state?” So I did some journalism-style web browsing and checked out that site. Turns out the former Central Dallas Ministries has, with some help from the folks at the Richards Group, rebranded itself. CEO Larry James explains here why the nonprofit poverty-busting outfit changed its name to CitySquare. And apparently the chalk marketing is all over downtown. I’m not the only one who has stumbled across such a message.

IdealGolfer.Com Launches on November 1

Essentially — and yes, I’m quoting from the press release, but they’ve sort of backed me into a corner by coming up with something it’s hard to describe in another way, so blame them not me — it’s “Groupon for golfers.” Intrigued? I hope so, because I’ve cut-and-pasted the full release after the jump. Aren’t you excited! I’m sure Tim will use this and have something to say about it. Right now he’s off getting a new hip.

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Reliant Energy Stumbles With New Outdoor Ad Campaign

ReliantI don’t know who does Reliant’s advertising. I talked to the internet, and it wouldn’t tell me. Whoever it is, the agency needs to rethink Reliant’s outdoor campaign for the new “cap and save” program. I’ve heard the radio spots. They’re good. Straightforward and simple: you lock in your price at a cap. If the price of energy goes down, so does your price; if it goes up, your price remains unchanged. So far, so good.

But now take a look at the huge billboard that went up recently on a building two blocks down Ross from D HQ. I saw it for the first time today and remarked to one of our art directors that I thought it was bad. “Can you explain it?” asked the art director. “I don’t get it.” Which is precisely my point. Unless you’re already familiar with the “cap and save” concept, this billboard is confusing. Why would you be all “Oh yeah” if prices went up? Beyond the confusing words, the double image of the woman is dull. I give it a “D-,” and it scores that high only because all the words on the billboard are spelled correctly.

(Note: for a brief time, I worked in an ad agency and created outdoor ads. The people at Nestle, no doubt, still talk about the sweet stuff I did on their behalf while employed by Publicis. What I’m getting at is, I’m an expert in this field.)

A Sincere Apology to the Fine Folks at the Kitchen Source

Last night, we threw a party in the Fairmont’s Venetian Room for the 2010 Best Real Estate Agents and Best Mortgage Brokers. It fell to me to congratulate the couple hundred people gathered and thank the sponsors who helped us throw the shindig. This is always a dodgy situation, because I have a tendency to ad lib in a way that sometimes produces bad results (I still feel bad about referring one time to a pregnant woman in the audience who, I later learned, was not pregnant). Our marketing department, which produces these affairs, is always on edge until I put down the mic. Last night I kept it straightforward and simple, and I thought I got off the stage without any goofs — until I shook hands with one of our sponsors, Bob Johns, president of the Kitchen Source, and he informed me that I’d not once but twice referred to his outfit as the Kitchen Store. I think Bob asked me, “So how did you like having worked at D Magazine?” Then he reached into his coat pocket, I thought perhaps to retrieve a well-made Grohe faucet with which to bludgeon me. Turns out he was just searching for a business card.

Today, I still have my job and access to this blog. While I do, I’d like to state for the record that when you go to the Kitchen Source, every remodel or new construction project becomes an exceptional experience. That’s what their website says, and I have no reason to disbelieve it.

First Sign of Summer

Your wife is hot IMG_0087

Greenville Ave. at Dyer.