I started using Twitter in the summer so I could tell my friends how bored at work I was. I went on a trip to Vancouver and posted links to pictures and updated friends and family of all the things I did there. Now I must tweet about relevant topics and not just narcissistic blabber. We'll see how this goes.
I don't think Twitter is THAT useful for non-professionals. I mean, you can let people know what you think is cool by linking them to something or update them on your daily doings but most people won't care. Twitter is more effective for organizations that have importnat information they need to get out to people who deal with them directly or indirectly.
Basically what I'm saying is, I'm a non-professional, my tweets won't blow minds or give deep insight. I don't have any substantial information you will benefit from but if you wanna hear about some oddities I see throughout the day or hear about some new music I like, check my Twitter page out and...
He's probably the best and "hippest" dressed guy I know. He's very knowledgeable on things a la mode and knows how trends move. He also really likes lady Gaga. What I find fascinating about his blogs is that he'll get inspiration from an outfit from a magazine or whatever other source, and then actually create it in a DIY style:
I mean, inspiration from anywhere, even other centuries:
It's also cool to see what he can do with a bag of studs:
Her blog touches on a variety of subjects from fashion to music, to baby wigs and, of course, Lady Gaga. She is currently attending LaSalle College in Vancouver and doing something along the lines of fashion design (Sorry Steffy, correct me if I'm wrong!). She worked at Nygard in the summer and actually did some design work on the clothing there. This girl isn't behind the till, she's the one designing the clothes!
Some pieces from her illustration class:
She also partakes in the DIY projects as she took a pair of old shoes and re-vamped them with life:
I have no insight on the world of fashion but I find it very interesting to see the work of people who are immersed in it. By no means will I be making things to wear on my body in the near future, so please, check these out instead!
One of my favorite ad campaigns is the Kleenex 'Let It Out' campaign from a couple years back.
As you can see, they set up a couch, have a facilitator start a conversation with a random person on the street and hope they will open up and 'let it out'. If people do in fact 'let it out', then a box of Kleenex is conveniently and readily available for their use on the table in front of them.
This is a great strategy that Kleenex went for. In regards to facial tissue, most companies' ads punch the message that it's soft for your nose and kills 99.9% of bacteria. This campaign capitalizes on the other use of facial tissues: people use Kleenex to wipe tears.
Oh the sweet sweet taste of tears upon thine lips. And if beeth not on thine lips then letest the tears of yonder eyes soak into the soft pillowy comfort of Kleenex brand tissues.
It's a new and interesting way to go about marketing this product. They can tug on heart strings this way and not have to try and make blowing your nose alluring.
Now, I don't know if these encounters are real or not but I sure hope they are! The idea of people who don't know each other being able to meet, start talking and connect on such a deep level really makes me have optimism in humanity. The reactions and emotions we see throughout the commercial seem genuine and sincere. They provide the website at the end of the commercial for you to visit and see some of the stories people told. The website is no longer active and just redirects to another Kleenex site.
I visited this website and to my disappointment, it was not organized well nor executed effectively. I was expecting to click on a link and watch someone tell a story that might move me. What was waiting for me was a website that was hard to navigate around and stories that were told by paraphrased bullet points and short video clips. I wish the website would have been better! The ad interested me and made me go investigate their campaign only to be let down with dry eyes in the end.
All in all, this was an interesting and innovative idea from Kleenex. It's just too bad they didn't follow through with the website! (If you visited the website and found it to be easy and effective, let me know. Maybe I'm just dumb.) ____________________________________________________
On a related note, Greenpeace "infiltrated" Kleenex's campaign to send out a message. Basically they are protesting Kleenex's use of 'old growth forests' and 'virgin wood fibre from boreal forests in northern Canada'. I don't know if this is true, though I'm sure it is to a certain extent, nor do I know much about this subject but I always find activist-type groups who do these stunts very immature.
They have no other means of getting their message effectively out there so they have to sabotage other's work. What they did was plant people to tell a fake story but then suddenly start protesting on camera about the issue at hand. It's completely disrespectful and childish. If you have a message to say, say it. Display facts and statistics to back up your message. If someone rebuts, rebut back. Don't resort to little stunts like these. If you convey your message clearly, concisely and with supporting evidence, people will be on your side. I get it though. They're trying to protect the environment. But sometimes conceited actions outshine the good-hearted intentions you have.
This remind me about the recent publicity stunt that the Yes Men pulled a couple weeks ago at the Nation Press Club in Washington, posing as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. You can read more about that on Melanie Lee Lockhart's blog.
Anyways, here's their little video of their escapade:
