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