Eight arms are better than two (apparently)

Now, many blogs ago our esteemed creative director argued that sometimes ideas are ok without insight and planning. I argued vehemently for the opposing view. I believe that all ideas must be based on research, understanding and insight - the key that opens the door to the opportunity for your brand to connect with your audience.

You only need to take a look at last weeks Apprentice to see how right I am. Last week was my favourite episode of the series – the one where they make the rubbish ads. The task – to design a new brand of cleaning product and create an ad for TV and radio to launch it.

Bring forth exhibit A – “Octi-clean”, because apparently women genuinely wish they had 8 arms (perhaps only to punch each member of team Synergy in the face with for creating an ad that was so desperately partronising it made Michael Winner look like a campaigner for women’s rights in comparison) . Plus call me a crazy rational fool (indeed an oxymoron – perhaps a better name for their product), but surely if you call a product Octi-clean then it needs to erm, like clean 8 ways or clean 8 different surfaces or something vaguely ‘oct’

Now for Exhibit B – the insane ‘Germinator’; the entire strategy cooked up (with added gravy) based on a strapline and the vague notion of wanting to do something “different” in the cleaning product market. Backwards, mad and wrong wrong wrong Plus note to ‘tomorrow’s captains of industry’ (yeah right) the product promised to get rid of germs, the ad was about getting rid of stubborn stains, the bottle looked like B&Q’s own brand of sink unblocker and to top it all the ad contravened all the rules of the ASA by using a child in the ad. Bloody marvellous shout-at-the-telly telly though and you’ve got to love it.

Anyway back to my initial viewpoint - I rest my case: The best ideas in advertising can only come through insight.