Mark Hitting

Advertisements border on the ridiculous. The day to day ridiculous ones involve ordinary men picking up women with a little help from their bikes, their shaving razors and their mobile phones and independent, smart women walking around with their heads held high because of sanitary napkins with stretchable padding. The once in a while ridiculous ones have been listed here. But occasionally there comes along this real corker of an ad which just makes you suddenly sit up and raise an eyebrow or two. If you survive that part (unlike poor Humpty D., god rest his yolk) then that advertisement will elicit a laugh out of you. After the laughter fit passes you will be doing some serious introspection about the ad, the product, your life and the world in general. What got me up and ranting this time was the ad released by Chevron quite some time back which was left behind by the one that Pakistan (PDF/JPEG) got on the WSJ recently.

But apart from the ridiculous I also see all sorts of old and/or failing marketing campaigns all around me. The old ones, in a manner reminiscent of John McCain, have everyone wondering how they’re still around and assuming that they’ll be dying out soon. The failing marketing campaigns, the Sarah Palins of that world, are much more entertaining. The fact that big powerful money-laden companies are trying hard to get people to think better of them or are just being completely out of touch with people’s perception always get me Colgate smiling. It makes them seem a lot like all of us normal people who don’t have private jets and talk when we have an important phone call.

Just in case you haven't figured out Obama's campaign yet

If ever I'm in a generous mood  I will start to open my own charitable marketing firm exclusively for those who can’t afford good marketing firms that ask for money. I'll call it Mark Hitting because, that’s what marketing is all about anyway. My logo, funny, relevant and eye-catching, will be a picture of Mark with a black eye. My portfolio would be as below.

The evolution of the Congress logo. The more it evolves, the uglier it becomes, just like pikachu.

Do you know what people search for the most? Freud just did a little jig in his grave.

When there isn't enough liquidity then you don't smile and bow graciously.
You have a heart attack

A possible Nike India marketing campaign. (Image credits)

You can read about the iPhone ad here. (Image credits)

(Facebook tells me Steve Jobs passed away yesterday. He was an inspirational guy, iMourn. Let the last one be in his remembrance.)