The Little Printer

Design studio Berg has introduced a great new product called the Little Printer, available from 2012.

According to Berg, the Little Printer "lives in your front room and scours the web on your behalf, assembling the content you care about into designed deliveries a couple of times a day".

Take a look at the video below or click here to find out more. Its a great little gadget!

Martini gets attitude

Take a look at this new French ad for Martini, 'Luck is an attitude'.

A cool, retro look and feel that uses a split screen to demonstrate how choice can change or make your day, especially if you 'choose Martini'.

Great to watch and very engaging.  

See the video below.

Interactive experience uses wine to build a masterpiece

Wine producer Navarro Correas has built a 13 x 8.2 foot interactive structure in Bogota, Colombia with 1000 acrylic cells that are filled by an automated robotic mechanism with 6 different shades of wine.

The concept was for members of the public to interact with the structure, choosing a cell via a text message to be filled.  

The end result was the recreation of Van Gogh’s self portrait and an interesting interactive experience but what a waste of good wine!

See the video below

Another successful night at the B2B Marketing Awards 2011

The B2B Marketing Awards 2011 were a great success last Thursday, 24th November.

For the fifth year The Think Tank managed the awards event on behalf of  B2B Marketing Magazine and it all went very well. The theme this year combined a 60's lounge atmosphere with the glitter of Las Vegas, setting the scene for a fun and enjoyable night.

Jack Whitehall took the stage to entertain the audience and present the awards and after a great dinner and 'refreshment' many headed off to the after-show party until the early hours.

Well done to all the winners and a big thanks to all The Think Tank team for running another successful event.

Dezeen's Temporium pop-up shop is back for Christmas

The Temporium, Dezeen's unique pop-up design store, returns to central London this Christmas with over 20 designers and brands selling their products direct to the public from 1-24 December.

Situated in Monmouth Street, Seven Dialsthe store will offer a wide range of gifts, jewellery, watches, books, home wares and much more by some of Europe’s most exciting designers and brands.

Click here for more details

David Lynch delves into interior design

David Lynch, filmaker and artist,  has applied his creativity to designing a Paris nightclub, Silencio.Opening last September it is inspired by the identically named Club Silencio, which is a key location in his critically acclaimed film noir from 2001, Mulholland Drive.

This follows his exploration into music last year when he released his first vocal single, Good Day Today, but designing a nightclub is a complete departure for the 65-year old.

To see and read more visit Blueprint

Unloved, thrown out and abandoned creations

Using orphaned & unloved antique plates Beat Up Creations has transformed these and many other throw away items, breathing new life into them in interesting and creative ways.
Great for Christmas presents?

See more here

FedEx delivers the dominoes

FedEx has created its own spin on the classic chain effect message using its delivery boxes as dominoes to deliver an important package to a lovable puppy!

A soft execution of this common metaphor but a clever one all the same. What do you think?

Faber Castell viral is quite revealing

Faber Castell has created a really interesting viral video that demonstrates their markers to great effect. Very simple but very clever.

How the Italians do it

You should never be surprised at what the Italians get away with in their advertising and the new ad for the Fiat 500 Abarth is no exception.

Taking innuendo to another level this is just not something you find on a British TV during Coronation Street!

Love it or hate it, it certainly engages the audience. What do you think?

Click below to see the video

World's tallest LEGO Christmas tree unveiled at St Pancras

Built and installed by the UK’s only LEGO Certified Professional, Duncan Titmarsh of Bright Bricks, the tree stands at 10 metres high and is made entirely out of LEGO bricks making it the tallest LEGO tree ever made. This imposing Christmas tree is made with 600,000 LEGO bricks and 172 LEGO branches.

Of course, no Christmas tree is complete without Christmas baubles and LEGO sought the help of children from Edith Neville Primary School, Camden, and Copenhagen Primary School, Islington, as well as the Harpenden Explorer Scouts Unit to make the 1,200 LEGO baubles that will adorn the tree.

The tree is being built on the lower concorse next to the champagne bar, but is so tall, standing at 12m high that it stretches right up through and above the upper level of the station where the platforms are located. The tree branches were built by a team of Bright Bricks builders off-site and are being assembled with the trunk at the Station. Due to the location of the tree the build can only be done at night. Progress started on Wednesday the 9th November and  it is expected to be completed by the 24th November.

On the 24th a celebrity will be on hand to switch on the lights and officially complete the tree model. The tree will remain at the station until the 2nd of January.

To see more about the LEGO Christmas tree visit Demotix or the St Pancras website.

Choice should include offering the chance to say no thanks

Something that is increasingly occupying the minds of marketers recently is choice. Demanding customers want to consume what they want, when they want and how they want. The consumption of marketing communications is no different - consumers want to feel that they have some control.

The television industry has recognised this with ITV mulling a new ad format on its demand service ITV Player. The new format allows viewers to skip ads if they correctly answer questions based on the brand or product on the spot. Channel 4 is one of several broadcasters trialing an ad format that allows viewers to choose which ad they want to watch from multiple brands ahead of video-on-demand content. They will still have to watch the ads - broadcasters and brands need to make a living - but consumers who are offered choice feel empowered and more readily willing to engage with the advertiser offering the option.

Direct marketers have fewer options so are unable to replicate their counterparts from other channels. They can, however, make some efforts to offer consumers a choice of what they receive and when. Indeed, there is already a movement in that direction. The Green Preference Service, launched in June and attracting noteworthy interest, offers consumers a choice of whether they want to receive DM by physical or electronic mail.

DIrect marketing is continually dogged by accusations that it is unscrupulous in its approach - carpet bombing consumers with junk mail and spam email with little or no regard for those they are actually "targeting". One way of tackling this is offering choice. Not only how they receive DM but whether they receive it. Opt out should be proactively offered by brands in a very deliberate visible fashion. As counter-intuitive as that might seem, customers that do not take up a brands' offer of opting out will be more receptive.

To read the full article please visit Marketing Week.

The Think Tank heads off to Russia

Jana Pavelkova from The Think Tank's PR team is in Moscow this week to provide PR support and meeting journalists with Formica Group at the ZOW furniture show.

This prestigious show that is held in Russia, Germany and Turkey showcases products and services supplied to the furniture industry. The first ZOW Moscow show was held in 2004 and each year usually receives around 15,000 visitors.

Formica Group is exhibiting vibrant colourways, intriguing textures and unique designs from the TopLine and Doorline collections, which bring a complete offering to the kitchen and furniture segment. Delegates can visit stand D3, Pavilion 7, Hall 2 from 21st - 25th November 2011 can discover how the Formica Group continues to evolve.

Please click here to see more about the new collections.

New Old Spice Advert tells men to "Smell Better Than Yourself"

Old Spice is back with another unique advertisement. This time the scents of Old Spice turn embarrassingly normal guys into face model champions who smell like adventure and fine cutlery, encouraging men across the world to "Smell Better Than Yourself." See the video below or click here.

Can discounting serve to bring back consumer trust after a crisis?

The Marketing Society Forum, published in Marketing Week and Campaign Live, has looked at the theme “Can discounting serve to bring back consumer trust after a crisis?”, referencing airline Qantas’s offer of free travel to passengers affected by its recent industrial dispute which grounded its entire fleet.  And that got the Think Tank’s PR team revisiting discussions about issue management.

It’s a fascinating theme in that it runs right to the heart of brand experience and corporate reputation.  In terms of PR, how you handle an issue makes all the difference, and ultimately as one of the commentators in the Forum points out; “we all mess up sometimes… apologizing and accepting responsibility for [one’s] failings often diffuses the situation”.

How you attract people back is another matter. Discounting or offering a free replacement of some sort is often the accepted short-term response to help ameliorate the immediate frustration that your customers have felt.  But the tone of that communication is also key, as is the way your employees/staff handle the situation.  If the whole process is felt to have been handled swiftly, in a straightforward and fair way, then most people will give you the benefit of the doubt.

Ultimately though, as the Forum respondents agree, this activity also needs to be part of a broader series of responses too to re-establish trust in a brand and ultimately as part of more regular, strategic reputation and risk management planning that the Board or senior management need to undertake.

See the full article here

Benetton's controversial UNHATE campaign

A new campaign from Benetton is recalling the brand's controversial heyday. A series of posters features world leaders with lips locked to launch the UNHATE project.

Benetton, says the accompanying press material, is inviting "the leaders and citizens of the world to combat the 'culture of hatred'". The UNHATE campaign is the first initiative from a new Benetton foundation of the same name, launched by Alessandro Benetton, executive deputy chairman of the Benetton Group.

The posters, created by Benetton's 'research communication centre' Fabrica in cooperation with 72andSunny, feature political and spiritual leaders kissing. According to Benetton "These are symbolic images of reconciliation - with a touch of ironic hope and constructive provocation - to stimulate reflection on how politics, faith and ideas, even when they are divergent and mutually opposed, must still lead to dialogue and mediation."

The campaign also includes social media activity in the name of the Kiss Wall, where users can upload images of themselves kissing.

Following outrage and pressure from the Vatican, Benetton has reportedly withdrawn the poster featuring the Pope kissing Ahmed Mohamed el-Tayeb. Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi has been quoted in various sources criticising the company for exploiting the Pope's image.

To read more visit Creative Review.

Tiger & Turtle – Magic Mountain

German artists Heike Mutter and Ulrich Genth have completed designs for “Tiger & Turtle – Magic Mountain” in Duisburg, Germany.

The walkable, large outdoor sculpture Tiger & Turtle – Magic Mountain is currently in construction on the Heinrich Hildebrand Höhe in Duisburg Wanheim (D). It overtops the plateau with the artificially heaped-up mountain by 21 metres so the visitor can rise by more than 45metres above the level of the landscape and enjoy an impressive view over the Rhine.

The curved flight of stairs inscribes like a signature on the landscape and plays upon the iconic nimbus of the classical roller coaster. Visitors climb the roller-coaster-sculpture on foot via differently steep steps. So the sculpture subtly and ironically plays with the feelings of promise and disappointment, mobility and standstill, just like a real roller coaster. Visitors happen to briefly meet with oncoming visitors on the steep 1 metre wide corridors. LED-lights are integrated in the handrails and highlight the flight of stairs so the sculpture is accessible at night, too.

To read more visit Contemporist. Photography by Eichental.

Tesco launch augmented reality programme

British retailer Tesco is launching an ambitious augmented reality programme today that will let consumers see 3D images of more than 40 products online.

The technology requires a browser plugin then, after that consumers have to use a “marker” like a Tesco catalog or club card to active the augmented reality (AR). Users can then hold up images from the catalogue to their computer’s webcam to see a floating 3D version of the product.

For instance, an image of a TV set in the catalogue can be expanded onscreen so you can see its actual size and what it looks like on the back. The AR also lets you play with onscreen LEGO sets. Tesco worked with British tech firm Kishino on the project.

Tesco’s foray into AR comes as the technology recently made some serious inroads in the U.S. In one of the most high-profile AR pushes yet, Starbucks launched a Christmas programme this month that uses an iOS-based app to make its red holiday coffee cups project images of animated characters.

To use the programme click here, or to read more visit Mashable.

Photography in abundance

Dutch artist Erik Kessels has printed out and placed one million photographs from Flickr in a room for his unusual installation Photography in Abundance.

He created the mountain of pictures to illustrate how many we share over the internet in only 24 hours.The million uploads are a mere drop in the ocean compared to the estimated total of 6billion images on Flickr, which is the same suspected number added to Facebook every two months.

‘We’re exposed to an overload of images nowadays," The Dutchman explained. "This glut is in large part the result of image-sharing sites like Flickr, networking sites like Facebook and picture-based search engines. Their content mingles public and private, with the very personal being openly and not self-consciously displayed. By printing all the images uploaded in a 24-hour period, I visualise the feeling of drowning in representations of other people’s experiences."

The Photography In Abundance installation is part of the What’s Next display at Foam Amsterdam throughout November 2011.

To read more about Kessels Installation or to see more of the Foam photography visit Metro Online or Foam.

Behind the Tweets: New Twitter Site Reveals Users’ Stories

Last week Twitter unveiled a collection of Twitter Stories designed to remind users “of the humanity behind Tweets that make the world smaller.” There are currently just under 20 short vignettes gathered at stories.twitter.com. And these vignettes are indeed short: between 100 and 150 words in most cases, fitting for a service known for imposing a 140-character limit on all posts.

There are some truly heart warming tales, from the man who saved his mother’s bookstore to movie critic Roger Ebert’s creative use of the service after he lost his voice. Visitors to the site can even read the first Tweet send from space. The tales demonstrate the power of social media and just how life-chaging it can be. At just 140 characters they are definitely worth a read!

To read more visit Twitter Stories.