Are Calvin Klein Jeans Too Racy?

On my way into work this morning, I heard about the Calvin Klein Jeans billboard posted on the side of a building in New York City. The billboard displays a topless girl lying on a topless guy while kissing another topless guy. While those three are on a couch, there is another guy who looks passed out on the floor with his jeans unbuttoned. In the top left corner of the billboard is simple lettering: calvinkleinjeans.com. (I found a decent picture in this article. Thanks to WPIX in NYC for posting.)

The discussion surrounds whether or not this is inappropriate for a New York City billboard. I have no problems with people voicing their opinions, and I do not necessarily agree that the billboard is appropriate for all eyes, but the outrage is directed toward the wrong parties. Calvin Klein (especially Jeans) has always pushed the limit of "appropriate" advertising. This is no exception. As far as they are concerned, it is a highly successful campaign. For the price of one billboard (large as it may be), they got their ad out to millions of people everywhere. I would be willing to bet that the advertising team for Calvin Klein sat around a table, discussing this exact scenario: contraversial campaign = people talk about it = more eyes on CK Jeans ad = more eyes on calvinkleinjeans.com. I cannot blame people for doing their jobs well. I guarantee you that Calvin Klein will not lose sales from this ad. If anything, they will have more eyes on their site, and more eyes on the site usually means more sales.

The issue here is really with the billboard space and the people responsible for allowing this to happen. Any advertiser will push limits as long as there is freedom to do so. The complaints should be taken to the city or the county or whoever cares enough to listen and do something about it. My blog is not a political commentary, so this is where I stop. I'm just saying... this is nothing new... and we've all given them exactly what they want.

"I'm just gettin' started, baby! Wooo!"

Even though my Orlando Magic did not tie up the series last night, I thought it was appropriate to have my first ad post be about the NBA Finals. NikeBasketball put out some great commercials for the playoffs this year. They are the MVPuppets commercials, featuring puppet versions of LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. The ads were created by Wieden + Kennedy Portland. These are some of the best commercials I've seen in a while. Everyone who has seen them can't help but rave about them.

Kobe and LeBron are roommates in these commercials. They don't really look like the athletes and they don't sound like them, but you don't care. They are hilarious, and I find myself laughing just as hard every time I watch them. They get your attention, keep your attention, and the Nike logo is displayed at the end of the commercial (sometimes within, also) in Nike fashion. W+K did a great job with these, and Nike was smart to go with them... but that's why they're Nike. If you have not seen these, you must stop what you're doing and watch them now.

The most popular ones are on the Nike website http://www.nike.com/nikeos/p/nike/en_US/video_wall#?guid=15677a17-3368-22a5-d807-a2e5cde5d37f_id1255

W+K also has a couple on their blog http://blog.wk.com/2009/05/nike-mvpuppets.html

Good stuff... I'm off for now.

First Thoughts

My original thought was to create a blog exclusively for my thoughts about advertising. The more I think about it (especially with my impending move to Seattle), the more I want to leave it open. So, instead of only writing about marketing and advertising, I will add food and travel to the category list. I have a particular passion for those areas, but I can't promise that I won't sneak in a random subject now and then. Now for a little background on my main subjects...

It took me a while to understand that I am not an average consumer. Anyone who has taken college-level Marketing courses (and paid attention) will see things differently than the average person. A couple of months ago, I had to give up my DVR. I have now regained my appreciation for commercials. In a time when we are all so easily distracted, some companies have stepped up their games and others have stuck to the same predictable advertising. The same goes for print, online, radio, and every other form. Let me tell you, you may think that advertising does not affect you, but you are mistaken. Even those of us who know the games they're playing get sucked in at some point. Last week, I had my boyfriend go to the store and get me a Snickers Ice Cream Bar, because the commercials reminded me that they were good, and I hadn't had one in a while. I was thinking, "The stupid commercial got to me, but this is really good".

That brings me to food. I love food. It doesn't have to be covered in butter or some other fat for me to love it (although there are just some things that can't be substituted). I like to cook as well as eat out, and I like watching people cook. I think food and travel go hand in hand. There are few better ways to learn about other cultures than learning about their food and breaking bread with them. I am not the person who goes to another country and eats at one of the many American fast food chains that have invaded. I am more likely to go into a local restaurant and point at some random item on the menu, because I don't speak the language. My parents used to tell me that I had to try everything at least once. If I didn't like it, I didn't have to eat it, but how would I know that I didn't like it if I didn't try it? It is a good point, and I'm grateful to my parents for enforcing this "rule". (Of course, in my case, it backfired... I was the 5-year-old kid asking for lobster and crab.)

Anyway, future posts will be less random and actually have a point. That's enough rambling for now.