Blasts from past Dr Margaret-Anne Lawlor on recyling old trends and why nostalgia can be what it used to be “Don't hold me to it, but I heard they're bringing Wispa back”. So trumpeted the slogan heralding the resurrection of Cadbury's Wispa bar, thanks to popular demand. The rebirth is an example of a surge […]
Articles Archive
In Vogue
Chic of it Fashion expert Caroline Kennedy reviews a new book on branding from Armani to Zara It was The Devil Wears Prada, the hit book and movie based closely on Vogue editor, Anna Wintour, amusingly illustrated the power of the style police to instil sheer terror in the uninitiated. Allegedly this top fashion glossy […]
Year that was
BRAND VALUATIONS: AN A-Z ON BRAND PERFORMANCE, SOME THAT MADE IT BIG TIME AND OTHERS WHICH BOMBED Coolbrands are arbiters of which brands are cool or uncool in the UK. Coolbrands comprises a collective of stylistas, fashionistas, designers, media gurus and self-styled zeitgesters. Ego deficiency is not their biggest problem. It's fair to wonder at […]
A result driven agency
A results driven agency For Aidan O'Connor and Neil McKenna of Kick Communications marketing is about promoting client sales. They spoke to Michael Cullen about their past and what plans they have for the agency, promising ideas, service and results Kick came out of the merger of Index Creative Communications and Inventive Marketing. The principal […]
Easy Listening
A tale of four cities Hugh Oram profiles Martin Block, the main man behind the new 4fm easy listening station Come next February, yet another commercial radio station is due to take to the airwaves, 4fm, targeted at an over-45 audience in Dublin, Cork, Limerick (and Co Clare) and Galway. While it's not the best […]
Enterprise Hopes
Den for those dreams Frank Corr on another reality TV series, Eddie Hobbs in Taiwan and rollicking Raw No, we don't mean the Welsh rugby team. Rather four “wealthy investors” who want to back budding entrepreneurs on television. The latest reality show from Larry Bass & Co at Screentime ShinAwil of The Apprentice/You're a Star […]
Sharks Invested
SHARKS GET BITTEN AS KINSALE CRITICS HARBOUR GRUDGES Stray Thoughts consciously and carefully kept its counsel while the Great Shark Wars of Kinsale raged around adland. The sight of communal and mostly anonymous knee-jerking was not a pretty one, regardless of the merits or otherwise of the case and did not serve the creative cause […]
A fiery hustler
A fiery hustler Michael Cullen profiles Sir Alan Sugar, the Hackney barrow-boy made good It should be interesting to watch guests' body language when Sir Alan Sugar walks up to the podium at the Marketing Society Christmas lunch in early December. Will the festive banquet take on the atmosphere of a school assembly awaiting instructions […]
Figuring out speech
Figuring out speech Colm Carey reviews a book on how marketing metaphors actually translate The metaphors we use when talking reveal much in how we relate to the world around us. By listening to the way people speak about their needs and the products and brands they use, we can identify deep insights which help […]
Crap, TV3 and Dev
Crap, TV3 and Dev Frank Corr kicks off a new column in which he takes a whimsical glance at Irish media Irish Times columnist Michael Parsons has a talent for hackle-raising. Already this year, he has demanded that “the unworkable European Parliament” be shut down. He then encouraged readers to look for their art in […]
No more shamrocks?
No more shamrocks? Pat Kinsley explores the changing face of Irish identity What does it mean to be Irish? With Ireland's recent rejection of the European Union's Lisbon Treaty and the death of our much vaunted Celtic Tiger, this is a question that is harder and harder to answer. Are we in danger of losing […]
Line Calls
Stand and deliver Tony Philpott explains his anti-credo for the boasts put forward by famous drinks brands I don't believe Guinness is alive inside. I don't believe there is a Coke side of life. I don't believe Jameson is seriously playful. What I do believe is that it took months of work, planning and eviscerating […]
