Archive for November 10th, 2010

Why there are nitwits and scoundrels in Washington ?

November 10, 2010

I think everybody has wondered at one time or another: with so many talented, solid citizens around, why are our election day ballots littered with losers? 

Why do we have to pick the least of the evils rather than being torn between 2 highly qualified candidates who both deserve to get elected?

Peggy Noonan has a perspective: Negative advertising tears everything down.

It contributes to the cynicism of the populace, especially the young.

It undermines the faith in government Democrats are always asking us to have, by undermining respect for those who govern, or who seek to.

It wears everyone down.

And in the long term, though this can never be quantified, it keeps from electoral politics untold numbers of citizens who could bring their gifts and guts to helping solve our problems.

I will never forget the visionary real-world entrepreneur who sighed, when I once urged him to enter politics, “I’ve lived an imperfect life. They’d kill me.”

WSJ, The Twister of 2010, Oct. 1, 2010
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704483004575524340160716872.html?mod=djemEditorialPage_t

Posted in Elections - General | Leave a Comment »

Give It to Me Straight…about Toilet Paper

November 10, 2010

TakeAway: Quilted Northern’s self-identification as “bath tissue” demonstrates the toilet paper segment’s fondness for euphemism, but a new campaign for Soft & Strong aims for straight talk.

It’s a change in messaging for a brand that ran ads for most of this past decade showing cartoon “Quilters” talking about its products. 

However, some people still don’t think it’s candid enough.  Exactly how candid do they want to get!?

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Excerpted from Brandweek, “Quilted Northern Ads Try New Approach: Candor” By Elaine Wong, October 3, 2010

Ads for Quilted Northern Soft & Strong show women against a white backdrop speaking their mind. “It’s time to get real about what happens in the bathroom,” says one woman. “Stop all the cutesy stuff,” another adds. A third woman states, “Feeling clean is so important.”

Campaigns for brands in this space often tout that a particular product is “soft” or “strong,” but those happen to be the basic “prices of entry” into the category, said Quilted Northern’s senior marketing director.  He claims that people buy toilet paper to get clean.

In the last year, ads from consumer product companies like Procter & Gamble and Kimberly-Clark have opted for straight talk relating to topics like feminine hygiene and adult incontinence.

Nevertheless, rivals in the category are also moving toward a more frank approach. Ads featuring a family of bears for Charmin show what happens when toilet paper “leaves pieces behind.” Kimberly-Clark is encouraging consumers to spread the word about the “freshness” one can achieve by using its Cottonelle Fresh Flushable Moist Wipes.

Edit by AMW

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Full Article:
http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/packaged-goods/e3ifd62d5f2cdeae60e68f7cb7dbafe7bab

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