Deborah Martin, Copy Assistant
Bio
Deborah supports the copywriting team in every stage of the creative process, from brainstorming and researching to writing and proofing. She contributes to projects for clients including the Raleigh Convention Center, GlaxoSmithKline and the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund as well as Capstrat’s own Web site. She is also working with our 2007 pro bono client, the Women’s Center, to raise awareness of Wake County’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness.
Before coming to Capstrat, Deborah interned as a copywriter for Rockett, Burkhead and Winslow in Raleigh. There she wrote ads for BB&T, Biscuitville and Dollar Tree. As a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Deborah was a member of the 2007 National Student Advertising Competition team. Her team finished second in their region for their campaign for Coca-Cola.
Deborah graduated from the UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Journalism and Mass Communications where she majored in advertising.
Articles
-
Don’t try to push my chicken across the road.
I am a die-hard Chick-fil-A fan. If you don’t believe me, come check out my little stuffed cow reminding me to “Eat Mor Chikin,” sitting on the shelf in my pod. I have so many emotional ties to this fast food franchise it’s almost pathetic. (Almost.) When my husband and I first started dating, we dined there religiously. As we got older and our metabolisms got slower, we had to cut back. But we still savor the moments when we do indulge in their delicious two-pickle chicken sandwiches and creamy “hand-spun” milkshakes. Other evidence of my obsession: I get mad at my husband if he eats there without me. A friend wanted to repay me for a favor and knew the best way to show his appreciation was with a Chick-fil-A chocolate milkshake. I could go on, but I think I’ve painted a pretty clear picture. And provided the soapbox for the following rant.
Why did I just confess my undying love for this restaurant chain? Because a certain BURGER joint is attempting to rip off Chick-fil-A’s signature sandwich, and I must speak out against this atrocity. After 50+ years of the Big Mac, the Egg McMuffin and even the McRib, McDonald’s has introduced its “Southern Style Chicken Sandwich and Biscuit.” Guess what comes on this imposter? Two pickles. Give it up Mickey D’s. No one’s going to choose your imitation over the original.
P.S. If I see a single waffle fry or “hand-spun” milkshake under the golden arches, I’ll serve you up the unhappiest meal you’ve ever tasted. -
Boycott your own brand
So you want to position your product as “fun.” Join the club. There are a million brands and products out there boasting their ability to deliver fun: high-tech gadgets, sports cars, a pair of fuzzy bunny slippers. How do you differentiate your “fun” product from all the rest? You could launch a full-blown attack against its “serious fun-ness.”
This may seem counterintuitive. Why would you want to raise opposition to your brand? Because consumers respond well to companies who don’t take themselves too seriously — especially when juxtaposed against an individual or organization that takes itself über-seriously. The key to successfully pulling off this type of advertising is creating the quintessential killjoy.
Welcome to www.nolaf.org. NOLAF (National Organization for Legislation Against Fun) is a fictional, yet somewhat frighteningly believable grassroots group founded to stamp out all things fun. Their public enemy #1? Tostitos chips and dip. This McCarthyesque group of characters are bound and determined to crush the crispy brand to bits, eradicating it and its enjoyable effects. Besides the brilliant casting, flawless execution, high quality production, attention to detail and dry, witty humor, the concept behind this site is pure gold. If you don’t eat Tostitos chips and dip, you are practically in league with NOLAF. Or at least you’re one of their mindless guinea pigs (dressed like the 1970s Olympic track team but not nearly in as good of shape).
The beauty of this site is the barely visible Tostitos brand. They aren’t using the site to sell the brand; it was created for the sheer pleasure of the visitor. I clicked on everything because I couldn’t get enough of the head honcho (love child of Michael Scott and Dwight Schrute) and his geezer sidekick.
By creating an anti-fun group that despises their brand and giving their target a chance to get in on the joke, Tostitos proves that it is a very “fun” chip.
-
MAC: Stands for More Apt to be Creative
And PC stands for Poor Creativity. According to Mindset Media, MAC users are a lot like the MAC guy from the infinitely clever MAC vs. PC campaign. They surveyed over 7,000 people and found that MAC users are more open-minded, have a bit of a superiority complex and tend to be more liberal.
While they found several strong similarities among MAC users, they didn’t find many cohesive qualities among the people who use PCs. This makes sense seeing as the percentage of people who own a MAC is negligible compared to the number of PC owners. However there was one interesting thing PC users seemed to have in common.
"The one area where PC users did stand out as statistically different was in creativity -- low creativity, that is. Mindset Media found they tend to be realists who are emotionally steady and work well with what they're given."
Hmmmm…. As a MAC user, that makes me proud. Does that mean I have a superiority complex? Probably, but I’m open-minded about that.
More about the MAC persona:
-
Who’s your baby?
I don’t know a lot about search engines. And I don’t know anything about becoming a parent. But the combination of the two is fascinating. It seems search engines are becoming fruitful in the area of well…being fruitful and multiplying. A Web site called Nymbler can find the perfect name for your unborn child. Based on names that you enter, the engine will generate new names that you may not have thought of or even heard of before.
Let me include a disclaimer here since I am of childbearing age and have been married for more than five years (apparently the longest a married couple should remain childless): children are not in our near future. But this site is so much fun. First I entered some names I have always liked: Wyatt, Lucas, Maggie, etc. It came up with some good results, all of which seemed like names I would consider. Then I started messing with it. I entered names like Star, Precious, Birdie (it does have some limitations: Flower and Sassy do not exist in the database). The results? Princess, Emerald and Whisper were some of my favorites. Imagine the possibilities: you could use this site to find a name for your pet, your alter ego or even a stage name for when you become a contestant on American Idol.
The voodoo behind this search wizardry is even cooler than the site. Nymbler combines the research and analysis of a human expert with a technology called Hunch Engine, developed by Icosystem, a company based in Cambridge, Mass. The Hunch Engine works on a genetic algorithm. In their words, this innovative technology “solves the dilemma of searching when you don’t really know what you are looking for, but you’ll know it when you find it.” That is me every day of my life. Clothes, home décor, food, shoes, my car keys (wait, that doesn’t really apply here). The algorithm takes the information you give it and identifies subtle patterns. Then it gives you personalized suggestions.
If you haven’t been impressed yet, get ready. The Hunch Engine is trainable. It can be taught to recognize patterns in all sorts of input. Without getting too sci-fi, this search engine can get inside your head and tell you what you will like. Hunch Engine responds to what you give it, but it brings you new ideas, new options in multiple nuances.
I’m hooked. Now I just have to have enough kids to use all of these great names.
-
Smart Brand Extensions Aren’t a Stretch
Precious Moments caskets and urns? That’s just creepy. Who would want those big-headed, doe-eyed children following them into the afterlife? And based on a survey conducted by TippingSprung, a branding company based in New York, it was agreed; this brand extension was DOA.
TippingSprung surveyed 785 marketing executives to get their thoughts on the best and worst brand extensions of last year. Some of the best? Newman’s Own Wines, Curves cereal, PetSmart’s Pet Hotel and Food Network’s kitchenware. And the worst? Danny Devito Limoncello. Disney’s Party Fizz (a bubbly, non-alcoholic party drink) and the Humane Society’s Dog Lovers Wine Club. And coming in dead last, Funeral by Precious Moments. (Sorry for all the puns, it’s just too easy).
The strategy for a great brand extension marries the brand equity with a new marketing opportunity. That may seem intuitive, but many brands get greedy when they see a growing trend. They try to force a connection hoping for a piece of the revenue pie. It is an agency’s responsibility to help their clients avoid the pitfalls and find the right brand extensions. The ones that enhance brands, and excite their customers. And ultimately result in an increased bottom line.
Sometimes it isn’t so obvious at the inception. Who would have thought that Bic, which originally sold ballpoint pens, would easily enter the disposable lighter and razor categories? But “quality disposable household items” fit the brand equity they had created with their original product.
The successful brand extensions will make you say, "Oh yeah, that makes perfect sense. They were made for each other."
Of course, I have to pitch a couple of my ideas:
- American Airlines Luggage: The suitcases and bags have tracking devices sewn into them. Even if they lose your luggage, you can rest easy knowing now they can find it.
- Taco Bell should offer an after meal Gas-X strip. (I see a partnership around the corner!)
- Britney Spears Crotch-less Panties. (too far?)
- And finally: I would love to own a limited edition Vera Wang Lexus (I know, I know – but wouldn’t it be lovely?)
Article link: http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.san&s=74472&Nid=38370&p=460755
-
Drink Responsibly
While you may associate this message with the consumption of alcohol, it seems that a case is being made to apply it to the most basic of beverages. Water. Yesterday in Ad Age, there was a story about a marketing shop and a PR agency that have joined forces to stop the darling of the beverage industry from bottling and selling water.
Mark DiMassimo and Eric Yaverbaum (whose last name sounds like a party drink) have launched an awareness campaign they’re calling Tappening. Basically it’s an anti-bottled-water campaign targeting, as of now, Coca-Cola. The campaign encourages people to drink tap water and buy reusable bottles. Conveniently, they’ve got some for sale that say, “Think Global. Drink Local.” and “What’s Tappening?” Catchy, huh?
Right now DiMassimo and Yaverbaum are planning to collect 1 million used water bottles, stuff them with their message and deliver them to the new CEO of Coke, Muhtar Kent. Their reason for targeting Coke is that it’s the big fish. The goal behind Tappening isn’t to get the beverage companies to recycle bottles. Coke has already agreed to do that. Tappening is about decreasing the demand for bottled water by getting people to stop buying it and helping restaurants and delis profit from the sales of tap water.
All of this sounds great but as a resident of North Carolina, one of many Southern states experiencing the worst drought in recent history, I have to wonder if this course of action is in fact the “responsible” one. I’ve got seven or eight cases of bottled water in my pantry right now. And if it doesn’t start raining soon, I’m going to buy more. It just goes to show that being environmentally responsible isn’t as easy as it seems. -
Give and Let Give
‘Tis that time of year. Every holiday season, companies send out messages of peace and goodwill to their clients and customers. As a newbie at Capstrat, I was pleased to discover that we don’t just spout warm fuzzy wishes about holiday cheer. We back our warm fuzzies with cold hard cash.
This year Capstrat clients will receive a “give certificate” worth a monetary donation to a charity of their choice. We selected our six nonprofit groups from local, national and international organizations as well as different categories (i.e., children, poverty, disaster relief, animals, etc.). In this way, people can personalize their giving. Capstrat is donating the cash but our clients and friends decide who will receive it.
When I joined Capstrat six months ago, I found out very quickly that mine was a generous company. Welcoming me on my first day of work was a 1lb. bag of peanut butter M&Ms (my favorite) sitting in the middle of my desk. A small thoughtful gesture that was only an introduction to the spirit of giving that lives here.
Employees aren’t the only beneficiaries of Capstrat’s generous nature. From clients to causes to our community, Capstrat heeds the old proverb, “It’s more blessed to give than to receive.”
But there is another wise saying that applies to the Capstrat principle of giving: “You reap what you sow.” It just makes good business sense to invest time and resources into our employees, our community and our society at large. Being a responsible corporate citizen means fostering growth, advancement and prosperity. And generosity is a proven way to achieve those goals. Plus, it just feels good.
All Articles