Captains of Industry

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. Let us do our thing, chicken wing

I’m obsessed with The Oatmeal. Not the kind with flakes and a puritan man on the box, but the website with hilarious and sometimes crude comics about everyday life. This morning, I came across a comic called, “How a Web Design Goes Straight To Hell.” The comic basically describes the demise of what could have been a very beautiful and effective website due to a client and agency who just couldn’t communicate. And it got me thinking about how important the client/agency relationship actually is. The dance between the two can be a delicate one. We, the agency, want to make you, the client, as happy as humanly possible. Maybe even as happy as inhumanly possible. And not just because it’s our job to do so, but because we really want you to be successful. But what many companies don’t realize is that the road to the holy grail of kick ass work is paved in trust.

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By Ted Page, Captains of Industry

(Spoiler alert – you may not want to read this if you haven’t seen the movie yet)

Last weekend I saw Inception, and it’s certainly a mind blower ­– but I couldn’t help but thinking that there is a much easier way to plant a powerful idea in someone’s head than drugging them and pulling them into the fourth level of dream state. Just do a really nice marketing campaign. Sure, you can call me a kill-joy, and I know the 4th level of dreaming and all the gunfire and mayhem made for a great popcorn gorging Hollywood wow-fest, but the fact is that the reason billions are spent on marketing each year is that, quite simply, it works. We get powerful ideas planted in our heads every day. And if you think you’re immune to this, you’re dreaming. Do you have an iPhone or a Droid? What kind of car do you drive? Are you wearing Nikes or Pumas? Somewhere, some time, inception took place in your brain so you made a choice about which brand to buy, and today’s version of Don Draper put it there. Without you even knowing it.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Wednesday Deal:

1. But, all the cool kids are doing it!

In high school, the coolest kids always started the biggest trends. In my heyday, it was tight, bellbottom jeans, white eyeliner and unfortunately, velour tracksuits. I still shudder at the thought. But, even though I’m no longer rocking a J. Lo inspired ensemble with “Juicy” written across my behind, I still think that the coolest, most happening people are the ones that get the ball rolling when it comes to new ideas and major trends. Case in point, Renewable Power News just announced that Google recently decided to purchase wind power for the next two decades to provide clean energy to its data centers. If Google isn’t sitting at the cool kids table, I don’t know who is. Hopefully, Google’s example will inspire other companies and institutions across the nation to rethink where their power comes from. And if your CEO still isn’t convinced that renewable power is the way to go, just let him know that the cool kids are doing it.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Monday Deal:

1. It turns out Twitter isn’t useless after all

There are still a lot of people that have yet to jump on the Twitter train. I get it. I was a skeptic, too. I couldn’t understand why someone would want to publicly announce their every move, thought or quandary in 140 characters (or less) multiple times a day. Did I need to know that you ate a Big Mac for lunch and now you’re regretting it? No, no I didn’t.
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Friday Deal:

1. Nike loves Iron Women

You know those people you see out running on Sunday morning when you’re en route to the nearest diner so you can attempt to soak up those Long Islands still in your system from last night? Yeah, well one of them is probably my sister. Not only does she power through marathons like they’re a lovely stroll through the Common, but she recently conquered a 1/2 Iron Man and fully intends on taking on the whole. For all those of you who don’t know, an Iron Man is a long distance triathlon that consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and then a 26-mile run. In that order. Without a break. Rain or shine.

It makes me tired just writing about it.
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. Premature Sweatalation

I love any commercial that brings a man to his knees. The latest spot for Axe Deodorant shows how guys can “lose it prematurely” when they see a pretty lady. Even in Spanish, this commercial rocks.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Daily Deal:

1. You’re pushing your luck, Dr. Pepper

Like any good brand looking to cause a stir and get people talking, Dr. Pepper decided to create a social media campaign that required contestants to give The Doc full reign over their status updates. According to Bill Green of Make the Logo Bigger, updates ranged from minor embarrassment to major humiliation. Up until this point, I really liked what Doctor Pepper was cooking up. The rest is downhill from here. Prepare yourselves.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. Let’s give ‘em something to talk about

Your entire teenagehood is spent in a state of utter paranoia, basically praying to the Popularity Gods that no one thinks you’re like, the lamest kid ever. Does that person think I’m ugly? No. Do my parents sit around twirling their mustaches and plot how to make my life miserable? Maybe. Is everyone staring at my huge zit? Yes.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Wednesday Deal:

1. Be Citywise

It all started when I was 16 years old. After years of only receiving lame credit card offers and belated birthday cards from distant relatives, I longed to open the mailbox and actually find a piece of mail addressed to me—and only me. To lift my spirits, my mom used to let me open the letters addressed “To The Campbell Family,” but alas, it just didn’t satiate the thrill of opening my own piece of correspondence. But then one glorious day, it all changed. I was bombarded—make that assaulted—with mail. I got postcards. I got packages. I got letters. It was like Christmas every day at 3:30. In fact, I’d say that I received the most mail out of anyone in my household. Why the sudden change? I certainly wasn’t paying the bills, and I didn’t pick up any pen pals. Nope, all I had to do was turn 16. This is the age when teenagers start thinking about which college they want to go to—and the signal for any college or university in the country to start peddling their brochure-ware.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Tuesday Deal:

1. It’s not TV. It’s BigTV.

Lauren Lloyd is kind of a big deal. She’s produced over 60 movies in Hollywood, and also acted as a casting director and big shot studio executive—go on, brush ya shoulders off, girl. Lloyd proclaims that she was in the movie biz because she’s a sucker for good content, so when YouTube was born, she was pretty jazzed that content was back in the hands of the people, not just a small group of movie execs in The Wood. But, Lloyd was slightly horrified at some of the “content” people were creating. Apparently, watching someone’s cat take a dump on the toilet just wasn’t her cup of tea. So, she decided to take matters into her own hands and created BigTV. According to Lloyd, it’s “Oprah meets YouTube.” Meaning, it’s a place for people to discuss and share their mutual passions. But, don’t get it twisted. BigTV isn’t some boring, scripted, run of the mill-type web channel for content that makes you want to bang your head against the wall. No, no, no. Llyod wanted BigTV to be chock-full of content for real people, by real people. In fact, BigTV already has a variety of shows for you to indulge in. They range from “The Unemployment Chronicles,” the story of a man trying to find a job he actually likes, to a show called “The Downtown Pirate,” a story about an LA homeless man who dresses in complete pirate regalia—right down to the patch. So, if you’re in the mood for some good content, check out BigTV. In the words of Lauren Lloyd, it’s pretty freaking sweet.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Monday Deal:

1. How do you like it shaved?

After years of starring clean-cut, towel-clad guys who seductively rub their shaven faces with knowing smiles, Gillette has finally decided to mix it up a bit. In their latest web video, the razor and shave gel company features women, and only women, to promote the Gillette Fusion Pro Glide Razor, and here’s the kicker: Gillette interviewed women of all shapes, colors and sizes (some clothed, some not), and asked them how they like “it” shaved. The answers ranged from “just a little patch” to “I like it completely shaven. When it’s smooth like that, I can’t keep my hands off it.” Ow, ow! The video comes off as risqué, but I think it’s smart. After all, it’s us women that have to kiss those hairy faces. It’s about time men asked us what our manscaping preferences are.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Friday Deal:

1. Mike, Mike, Mike Weinstein

Typically, I’m not a fan of political advertising. To be perfectly honest, I think it’s a crock. Some of the better candidates for government will never get a shot because they don’t have enough cash to back their campaigns, and those that do, waste their 30 seconds of air time trash talking their opponents. Not to mention, the commercials are almost always boring and predictable. Smiling candidate. Crisp white shirt and red power tie. Shaking hands with “the working man.” “I approve this message!” and you’re done.

Bah.
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