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My abandoned blog has been rediscovered!

Firstly, I have to apologise for my lack of posts for nearly two months! It’s my last year at university and I am already completely overwhelmed with work, grad scheme applications and life! As I have completely abandoned this blog, I thought it would be necessary to share a few things that I have found interesting and hopefully you’ll enjoy this post!

Red Bull – Revolutions in Sound

Isn’t Red Bull just the coolest brand? People may disagree with me, but they are one brand that continuously push boundaries in order to create amazing and engaging content for their consumers. Collaborating with Felix Baumgartner free-falling from space last year was one thing, but now as part of their Red Bull Music Academy promotion, last night they decided to throw 30 gigs in the London Eye (I mean, not just anybody can hire out the London Eye). Bringing the best of the UK music and club scene together, artists such as Lily Allen, Shy FX and Miss Dynamite all came together to give different live performances in one of the 30 pods. Each pod was hosted by a popular club night in the UK such as “The Warehouse Project”, which ultimately is every ravers dream, bringing all the acts they love together for one night only.

Each pod was streamed online on Channel 4 at 7:30pm last night so viewers could tune into their favourite acts, as well as the campaign hashtag #RevsInSound that was being tweeted all night. The best thing I feel about the whole idea, is that people who appreciate the London music scene at the moment were given an exclusive chance to tune in or go along to be a part of the experience. There was a big push about “no repeats or replays” which meant that fans knew that the live stream was exclusive to them, at that time. I personally tuned in and was amazed by the fact that I could toggle which pod I wanted to listen to, and the website was really clear in who was performing where.

Overall, Red Bull as a brand embody “living life to the full” and these are the same values that make the UK Music/Club Scene thrive. This collaboration is brilliant because the people interested in this event would create positive connotations between Red Bull and music, therefore increasing the likelihood to purchase or even loyalty to the brand.

Christmas Adverts 2013 (a small round up)

Here is a small round up of how I am feeling about a few of the adverts for Christmas 2013.

– John Lewis – “The Bear and the Hare” – adam&eveDDB

As much as I have previously loved John Lewis and their Christmas advertising, this year I was underwhelmed. As much as I am a fan for cute cartoon animals, there isn’t really anything that pulls on my heartstrings like the little boy in 2011 or the snowman journey in 2012. Many people will say I have a heart of stone, however I think that next year, John Lewis should try to do the unexpected, whereas this year I felt like the story was too predictable. Lovely to watch, and I absolutely love the song, but just not ground breaking. I must say though that the advert has had more YouTube views and Tweets than last year, so I guess consumers love it…

– Sainsbury’s – “Christmas in a day” – AMV BBDO

I thought that this short film made for Sainsbury’s was really nice. I feel more emotion towards an advert that seems real, or that portray things (such as Christmas) in a way that I as a consumer can relate to. Similar to their adverts last year, Sainsbury’s have stuck to a real “family feel” advert that shows how many different families, from different areas and backgrounds, celebrate Christmas. There is a real light heartedness to this advert that doesn’t make you feel like your being sold something, but shows you joy at Christmas in all its different forms, from children seeing their presents for the first time or adults preparing Christmas dinner. I liked this advert a lot, it’s relatable and doesn’t give off the “try hard” factor like many other brands Christmas advertising.

– Aldi – “There’s a lot to like this Christmas” – McCann Manchester

I have always had a soft spot for Aldi ads, mainly because I find them hilarious, but also because they depict a true, imperfect version of British people. The cheeky sarcasm and humorous children add so much value to the advertising because the brand aren’t saying they are luxurious or making promises they can break. The brand are literally saying they have a wide range, to suit everyone’s needs, to penultimately have a great Christmas.

And here are a few more that people are talking about on Twitter ;

– Marks and Spencer – “Believe in Magic and Sparkle” – RKCR/Y&R

– Morrison’s – “Go on…it’s Christmas” – DLKW Lowe (I think the backlash and ASA complaints from their advert last year have steered them towards this)