Applause or Appall | Do you do your own taxes?

It's tax time again, and while I've never done my own, because I simply do not trust myself with all that adding and subtracting, Turbo Taxes commercials this year are pretty impressive and EMPOWERING.

When I first saw the commercial I actually wasn't even watching TV, I was doing something else and just had it on for noise. But then I tuned in because it sounded funny, and catchy, and the voice was really familiar (John C. Reilly to be exact. He's the actor who starred opposite Will Ferrell in Step Brothers).

The commercial's main message is that since YOU know best what YOU did last year, YOU'RE the best person to answer questions about YOUR taxes. Simple and smart. SPOT ON.

Go ahead and watch, and tell me it's not awesome! 

The creative credit for this video gem goes to advertising masterminds Wieden + Kennedy.  I just wonder how they went about identifying Reilly for the voice over. That might be the most brilliant strategic move of the whole ad.

Well, I'm not really sure if it empowers enough to do my own this year or not, but I'm pretty certain there are those out there that needed just a little push, and I'm certain this commercial did it for them.

BRAVO!

Applause or Apall? Commercials that got it right

With football season in full swing I pay more attention to commercials as I wait patiently for the broadcast to return to the game. I've really been digging a few in particular.

This Pepsi commercial positioned with the NFL is brilliant. While I've always been a Coke girl myself, that is when I drink pop at all (Yes, in the Midwest we call it pop) I have really been impressed with Pepsi's brand positioning efforts over the last decade or so as they try to compete with Coke's always impressive and luring ads.

AND, Have you seen the Samsung watch commercial?! Can you say chills!!!! I want to run out and buy one of these immediately. Doesn't it take you back? 

And finally, for my all time favorite commercial right now... the Verizon Halloween commercial with the black pug dressed up like Darth Vader is just too precious for words and gives me an idea for what I'll dress Nola up as this year!

Applause or AppallWhat happens when you put PR first

I recently returned from a family vaca to Holiday Island, Arkansas, and on the way there I reluctantly  picked up (because I had nothing better to read since I had just finished my latest Charlaine Harris book) Delta's complimentary Sky magazine June issue. I typically don't like reading airlines' travel magazines because I find them incredibly ad-heavy, and that really turns me off.

But since my options were limited (no way in hell I'm reading the other choice–Sky Mall– gag!) I skimmed through and found a really great piece on how Alabama-based PR and advertising agency Big Communications reinvigorated the state's brand by putting PR first in their content strategy.

John Montgomery is quoted in the article explaining that "The biggest brands in the world are starting to wake up and realize the necessity of a content strategy that thinks PR first."

While many big-time brands have prospered over the decades with a balance of PR, advertising and marketing techniques, as a PR practitioner I believe a balance of the three are essential for success But I feel a PR strategy and/or tactics should be incorporated into any campaign or plan, but not always vice versa. Public Relations is a very powerful and influential means to inform, educate, attract and motivate. A form of communication with the ability to offer that much impact deserves to be taken seriously and considered when you want to gain attention and awareness.

I was so intrigued by the article that I decided to check out the website for myself–great writing, couldn't find the author–I was REALLY impressed. It's immediately eye catching, filled with interesting content, but not over-bearing. I know right where my eyes should go when the pages load.

Check it out for yourselves. http://www.madeinalabama.com. Big round of applause for Alabama Department of Commerce.