Displaying 109 - 144 of 177 results
Haven't you heard? Online advertising doesn't work. All those banners, buttons and MPUs? Waste of time. Those pre-play spots on YouTube, and those Facebook campaigns? Completely useless. Google Adwords and sponsored tweets? Utterly worthless. Sorry,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
WPP CEO, Sir Martin Sorrell has survived yet another revolt against his gigantic salary and bonus package, after over a quarter of the advertising giant's shareholders failed to back it at the company's annual general meeting yesterday, which took...
Posted by: Benjamin Hiorns
Soft drinks and shower gel. Heavy machinery and hats. A film franchise and manly cologne. At bluemarlin, we believe that all brands have the innate potential to stretch their identity into certain foreign categories. The right positioning and a...
Posted by: bluemarlin
I'm busy. Very busy. And that's a good thing in the world of any freelancer. If there's one part of the “job” I find arduous, it's the touting for work. I don't mind the networking, as long as there's a nice finger buffet and a reasonable...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Last week, Jeremy Clarkson was forced to apologise for having said a bad thing. A very bad thing. It is the only word in the whole English language that I can think of that is 100%, totally and utterly off limits. The word is “n****r”....
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Here’s an odd thing about rock music: the more frightening it tries to be, the more hilariously ludicrous it becomes. Ozzy can bark at the moon till the end of time, but he’ll still be more golden retriever than werewolf. Ronnie James Dio...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
So ridiculous, it would have been rejected as a plotline in 'The Thick Of It'. That's not (or not necessarily) my opinion, it comes from the creators of 'The Thick Of It' and it refers to the 'advertisement' placed on Twitter by Grant Shapps,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I remember when all this were fields. And young people had respect for their elders. And dash it all, people spoke English PROPERLY in my day! Yes, I’m sure we’ve all heard the same old rant - if not from grandparents then from the old...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Unless you’ve been asleep for the past week, you’ll be all too aware of Olympian Tom Daley’s announcement about his sexuality via a ‘selfie’ YouTube video. The reaction has been incredible - from the media and the public...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Not that I have anything against festive cheer, but for some reason, this sometimes means that good taste seems to vanish completely, and this could not be more true when it comes to Christmas songs. With videos featuring a load of scouse wigs and...
Posted by: Creativepool
Until recently, I can't say I was overly familiar with the nu-metal band Lostprophets. Now I don't think I'll ever forget them. The crimes to which their former singer has admitted are so monstrous, they leave even the most jaded person reeling and...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I'm sorry for implanting a most unwelcome picture in your head, but I was taking a bath the other evening. The radio was on, I was leafing idly through a magazine and that's when I saw it - the least effective print ad of all time. In fact, it was so...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Whether you consider it a good idea or not, thanks to the coalition government, it seems the increased involvement of private companies in the NHS is a racing certainty. And what could possibly go wrong? Just look how affordable and reliable the...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Our friends at the ASA have announced they are investigating the Government-backed campaign which saw vans driving through London, calling on 'illegal immigrants' to leave the country or face arrest. This follows 60 complaints and, despite some...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Yesterday, the front cover of The Sun featured a montage of UK landmarks. Resembling a rather corny tourist poster, it was accompanied by the headline 'This Is Our Britain'. Now, I'm quite aware The Sun is rarely shy when it comes to jingoistic,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Today a court took just 70 seconds to grant Nigella and Charles a Decree Nisi which takes them one step closer to becoming divorced. This follows a month after pictures showing him with his hand around her neck during a row outside Scott's restaurant...
Posted by: Jessica Hazel
by Ashley Morrison It's a wet Sunday afternoon (no, not in summer 2013, obviously; that would be a sweltering Sunday afternoon), and there isn't much to keep the family occupied. Well, apart from the 200-odd TV channels now available. Or a DVD. Or...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Here's a story so bizarre, so post-modern, that it's hard to believe Chris Morris and Armando Iannucci are not involved. They're not though, because this is something that has actually happened; it involves two major television stations attempting to...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
The most surprising aspect of the Edward Snowden case and the revelations about GCHQ is that anyone is surprised. Did we really imagine our 'lords and masters' had such respect for our privacy and dignity that they would resist the temptation to...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Just do it. Yes, that’s one of my top tips for today - or for any day when the creative juices aren’t running maybe quite as freely as you would like them to. Because no matter how creative we are, no matter what gems of genius...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Owning a domestic animal is a trade-off. They bring you companionship, fun and a messy carpet - in return, you give them food. Lots of food. Indeed, it can feel as though the only reason they give you all the affection and comfort is because of the...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Ever get the feeling this whole digital hoopla is just being made up as we go along? Starting to suspect 'boffins' are just slinging out new widgets for a hungry world to scoop up and guzzle down, like mongrel hounds being thrown scotch eggs? Welcome...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
That’s right - the most life changing, communication changing, perhaps economy changing, and even world changing thing since email. I’ll be blunt. I’m going to say nothing online can come close to email in any of these stakes. Not...
Posted by: Creativepool
I was introduced to a big-shot client the other day as being a ‘creative type’. It’s not the worst thing I’ve been called over the years. But it was the look the client gave me that stopped me in my tracks. It had me wondering...
Posted by: Creativepool
I'll be the first to admit it: from time to time, my blog posts can border on the vitriolic. But I flatter myself that, when I do let loose and turn the air puce, I'm only saying what quite a lot of people are already thinking. Such was the case a...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Ashley Morrison Last week, I was watching some film or other on TV with a few friends. Naturally, we engaged in some pseudo hoity-toity rah-rah intellectual badinage about such-and-such a character’s motivation during the ad breaks. That...
Posted by: Creativepool
By Magnus Shaw Well, this should be fun. A column about poo (rather than one made up of it, which isn't unusual). You see, you're already wondering whether you really want to read on - and I don't blame you, who wants to read about that? Exactly....
Posted by: Creativepool
Christmas Eve is finally here and I'm feeling festive. Well, actually, I was feeling festive a while ago because I've been doing an awful lot of carol singing throughout December. Not that I'm bragging but, for the most part, these carol concerts...
Posted by: Creativepool
Graham Higgins is a motion graphics designer who works mostly in After Effects and Maya, but says he still feels like a bit of a novice in the motion graphics industry. CP profile: creativepool.co.uk/GrahamHiggins Website: sircharlesgraham.com How...
Posted by: Creativepool
"We are a small interactive company that cares about making things good for our clients. Our motto is keeping it clean/fun because both are equally important." What do you actually do? Everyday is different and my role is currently in flux as we...
Posted by: Creativepool
Tell us what you do for a living and who you work for? ECD of McCann London What does that involve? Shepherding, motivating, inspiring, selling. How did you get started in the industry? Saatchi and Saatchi. It was a brutal but an invaluable...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. In the distant past, I trained to be a croupier. A roulette dealer, to be accurate. Roulette is fairly complicated and the dealer must be aware of every aspect of the game in progress - monitoring when the bets go down, who has won,...
Posted by: Creativepool
By Nick Bennett more from him on twitter @NickoBennett Disclaimer: No real Clients or Agencies where harmed in the making of this speech. Creative direction: The following speech is to be performed by a single individual with a split personality...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Ashley Morrison. ..the new Chanel No.5 advert. It is the most pretentious, pointless, self-indulgent load of nonsensical advertising I've seen in years. In case you're yet to join me in the rapidly growing involuntary projectile vomiting clan,...
Posted by: Creativepool
Alex Donne-Johnson is a multidisciplinary creative living and working in London. His work has been featured in numerous magazines and books. Computer Arts magazine named him a 'Leading creative' and he's been hired directly by clients such as adidas,...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Ashley Morrison. As a copywriter, a major part of the job revolves around using the right words to convey the right message in the most effective and persuasive way possible. If you're selling a product, you want the customer to read the copy and...
Posted by: Creativepool