PRactical Ramblings

Godiva and The Bryant Park Hotel in New York are teaming up to create a chocolate hotel room, available to one couple for an Ultimate Chocolate Fantasy weekend in May. Highlights of the Chocolate Fantasy weekend include a private chocolate tasting, fine dining, and a chocolate spa treatment.

Anyone is eligible to win the chocolate room if they purchase the winning box of Godiva chocolates. Sound familiar? If not, think Wonka Bars and a golden ticket.

A demo chocolate room, which will be re-created in May, was set up in an East Village building on January 29. The room’s furniture, artwork, fixtures, and walls were made of or covered entirely in chocolate. Hanging in the “living room” was a painting built entirely of multicolored chocolate pieces inspired by Gustav Klimt’s painting “The Kiss.” Ali Larter, star of TV’s “Heroes,” is the celebrity face hired by the Belgian chocolate company for its annual contest.

Whether you are a chocolate lover or not, you have to appreciate the artistry involved in Godiva’s Valentine’s Day promotion. It’s creative, fun and fresh. It’s Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory meets New York City, minus the Oompa-Loompas and Violet Beauregarde, of course. I fear that if I won the package, I’d end the weekend with a stomachache and half of a wall. Regardless, a hat tip goes out to Godiva for a creative holiday marketing campaign.

Photo courtesy of Richard Drew

Les Potter recently commented on my blog post about the “sleaze factor” in Super Bowl advertisements. He made a point that my generation’s role in PR may just be to help bring about enlightened change in marketing. It’s hard for me to think of a more gratifying way to use my degree. But are Millennials, the generation born between 1982 and 2000, up to the challenge of bringing about positive change in the world?

Based on daily interactions with my peers, I think Millennials are ready and willing to have a profound impact on society. According to Robert DeBard, “Millennials show a more positive attitude toward the coming challenges in the world, and their ideas of rewards will focus on meaningful work.” Millennials are active in their communities, involved in extracurricular activities that promote leadership, and think in terms of the greater good.

Students are optimistic about the future and are eager to pave the way to a better society. Just look at the current presidential race. Has a presidential election ever captivated young voters the way this one has? Young people are flocking to the polls in record numbers to voice their opinions and move the country in a new direction. We’re practically shouting for change.

I sense change is in the air with the arrival of the Millennials into the workforce. Our confidence, goal-oriented approach to life, and desire for fulfilling work will lead us to success. We have the tools to leave footprints deeper than any generation before us. But will we be the generation that brings about progressive change, not only in marketing and advertising, but in other facets of society? Well, I think we’re up for the challenge. I know I am.

Photo courtesy of usta.edu

USA Today’s Ad Meter tracks the immediate responses of a panel of viewers to advertisements during the Super Bowl and ranks them best to worst. This year Budweiser’s “Dog Trains a Clydesdale,” FedEx’s “Pigeon Carriers Can’t Compete With Fed Ex,” and Bridgestone’s “Critters Scream Before a Near Miss” were the top three fan favorites.

What is surprising about these three Super Bowl ads? Well, none of them featured stereotypical bikini-clad women enticing men to buy beer or used sex to sell their products. Instead, Budweiser, FedEx and Bridgestone’s advertisements featured animals as their stars to tug at the heart strings and tickle the funny bone of viewers. In the Budweiser ad, a Dalmatian becomes a personal trainer to a dejected draft horse eager to make the team pulling the famous Budweiser beer wagon. The Dalmatian trains Hank the Clydesdale to the tune of the Rocky theme.

While many companies, such as Victoria Secret, still chose the “sex sells” route, Super Bowl fans responded more positively to the ones that did not. Therefore, can companies turn down the “sleaze factor” and still have successful advertising campaigns? Maybe society is tired of pushing the sex appeal envelope.

With just a few days to go before the anticipated Super Tuesday primaries, director Jesse Dylan, son of legendary musician Bob Dylan, and Black Eyed Peas’ star will.i.am  have released a new music video supporting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

“Yes We Can” includes footage of a speech the Illinois senator gave after the New Hampshire primary last month, as well as celebrity appearances from John Legend, Scarlett Johansson, Herbie Hancock, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Kate Walsh, and many others.

The video, released late Friday, is spreading around the Internet like wildfire. According to Viral Video Chart, “Yes We Can” is the top viral video of the day and has received over 365,347 views in 24 hours. In addition, more than 659 blog posts have been written about the video. Talk about rapid exposure!

The video could not have hit the Web at a better time for Obama. It’s crunch time in the presidential race, as voters from 22 states will head to the polls Tuesday to cast their ballots. “Yes We Can” is a positive, inspirational message amidst the plethora of negative political advertisements out there and allows viewers to have an emotional connection with Obama. Thousands of Americans have heard his message of hope and are now passing it onto their friends and coworkers. So many pairs of eyes viewing the video this late in the game could have a significant impact on the tight Democratic race. “Yes We Can” is an example of just how powerful viral marketing can be.

I love Target. I walk through the store door and an immediate sense of happiness sweeps over me, as I scan the aisles for bargains and useless items I don’t need and can’t afford. However, after reading this New York Times article, I’m beginning to question my loyalty to the company.

Amy Jussel, the founder of ShapingYouth.org, called Target earlier this month to complain about the advertising campaign shown above. ShapingYouth.org is a blog about the impact of marketing on children, and Amy believes “targeting crotches with a bull’s-eye is not the message we should be putting out there.” She received this email response back from Target: “Unfortunately we are unable to respond to your inquiry because Target does not participate with nontraditional media outlets,” a public relations person wrote. “This practice is in place to allow us to focus on publications that reach our core guest.”

I can feel the social media community cringe and PR professionals raise some eyebrows by this response. How can Target ignore nontraditional media outlets when bloggers are often consumers publishing their opinions? To think that blogs don’t reach the “core guests” of Target is absurd. Nontraditional media outlets often target the younger demographic upon which Target focuses its advertising dollar far more effectively than traditional outlets.

In my opinion, Target should have its own set of bloggers and a stronger PR presence online to encourage consumer communication and interaction. The company should embrace social media and take inquiries and criticism from bloggers, so they can be more responsive to their consumers’ concerns.

Image from Lee Oden

I have a confession to make: I’m hooked on Twitter. For those of you who don’t know, Twitter is a free social networking service that allows users to share their thoughts with people interested in following their happenings. Updates are displayed on the user’s profile page and instantly delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them.

For my Advanced Public Relations Writing course, I was asked to create an account on Twitter and follow my classmates on our group network. We could post about anything we wanted and had to update our profile five times within 48 hours. While I was skeptical about the assignment at first, because I didn’t understand why other people would care about what I ate for breakfast or how many times I fell ice skating, I gradually became addicted to the application. I found myself engrossed in my classmate’s comings and goings, and it was interesting to see how much we have in common. It’s amazing how a person can make you laugh with only 140 characters.

Twitter is an excellent way to stay connected with colleagues and friends, share and receive useful links, receive feedback on ideas, practice casual writing, and gauge what other people are talking about. It’s social networking at its finest.

The best way to understand an application is to use it. I encourage you to set up a Twitter account and chirp away! You may surprise yourself by how much you enjoy it. I did.

As the countdown to graduation looms on the horizon, the realization that I will soon pack up my suitcase and enter the professional world is bittersweet. Sweet, because I get to write a new chapter to my book and explore new terrain and bitter because taking a giant leap forward into the land of the unknown is somewhat terrifying. Where will I live? What type of work will I do? Will my career be challenging and rewarding? I don’t think I’ve been this anxious since high school dances. While a plethora of questions and feelings linger in my mind, I’m confident that the skills and knowledge I’ve gained in the classroom and elsewhere will allow me to transition into the workplace relatively free of any major bumps and bruises. But with that being said, it is normal to have mini panic attacks, right?

This blog is designed to have a public relations angle on hot potato current events, as well as be a place where I can reveal my experiences and learnings. I’m excited to dive into the blogosphere and share my practical ramblings with those interested in listening.