This week, it’s Terry's annual look at his favourite brands. They may not be the coolest brands, or the newest or the biggest - they are just fascinating studies in marketing. Terry looks at an armoured truck company that decided to transport money instead of packages, a business that started because of spilt milk, a board game created to protest capitalism, and a 51 year-old game show that still attracts over 25 millions viewers per week. Each wildly successful, each still going today, and each one of them survived because of an unforeseen opportunity. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at the world of Tourism Marketing. Every country and city competes for lucrative tourism dollars, and the resulting marketing is often highly creative and fascinating. We’ll tell the story of a city that promised to keep secrets, a state that offered one tourist the job of a lifetime, and a country that actually benefited from being insulted in a movie.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many marketers often release special-edition products of their mainstream brands. It may be a special limited-time flavour, or colour, or it may be a kooky version of their usual product. It’s an interesting marketing strategy, because marketers create limited-edition brands for very specific reasons - to generate new attention, or test-drive a new product or to celebrate an event. Some work, some don’t - but the stories behind them are often fascinating. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode takes a look at the most recent - and interesting - marketing innovations from around the world. From an edible pizza box, to a glove that will play music and take pictures, to rentable office desks, to personal climate controls for airplane seats, to rain that actually smells like brands - the latest marketing innovations are simply unbelievable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Under The Influence, we look at one of the newest trends in marketing, called Giftvertising. Where marketers surprise their customers with elaborate free gifts, film their reactions, and put the resulting video on YouTube. Hoping it will go viral. From airlines to banks to retail stores, big brands are embracing the trend. We’ll also look at the psychology behind Giftvertising, why it works, and the pros and cons of employing it.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the biggest factors fuelling the sharing economy is the mindset of the Millennial generation. A demographic bigger than the Baby Boomers, Millennials have been conditioned by the Great Recession to shed the responsibility of ownership. They want the movie, but not the DVD. They want the music, but not the CD. They want the ride, but not the car. That attitude is beginning to have an enormous impact on marketers, as the biggest consumer demographic in history would rather share than buy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The issue of geography is a subject the marketing world subscribes to. Many companies, and even entire industries, attach their brands to geographical points of origin as a way to differentiate themselves and assert superiority. From German engineering to Russian vodka to Swiss watches, “Geography as branding” is a powerful marketing strategy that often comes with a premium price tag. This week, we explore if that premium price tag is justified... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Academy Awards are coming up soon - and the wins and losses on that night change the fortunes of actors, directors and films. But what the public never sees is how movie studios - and some actors - campaign to win those Oscars. The strategies used to influence Academy voters are fascinating, involving millions of dollars, trade advertising, parties, swag, the White House, law suits, and even trips to old age homes to sway elderly voters. Grab a bag of popcorn and tune in. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just in time for the Grammy Awards, we look at how hit songs are marketed. With music sales in decline, recording artists are turning to inventive marketing ideas to sell their albums. From the first 24-hour music video, to hiding lyrics in library books, to downloading a new album onto 500 million music libraries to the opposite strategy of issuing one, single copy of a new album, marketing hit songs has never had more interesting notes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Part Two of “Selling The Moon,” we pick up the story with the success of the Gemini program, which leads NASA to believe they might reach the moon faster than anticipated. But then tragedy strikes, and the Apollo project is put on hold for more than a year. But when the improved Apollo program returns, the race to the moon accelerates - as does the remarkable marketing that surrounds it. NASA continues to sell the moon landing as a technological marvel that will benefit Americans, advertisers jump on the bandwagon, television networks brace for the big landing, and Neil Armstrong finally delivers on JFK’s promise. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Across the two episodes, we’ll trace the way NASA marketed the expensive moon landing to both the American public, and to Congress. In this first part, we see how the Russians got to space first, prompting President John F. Kennedy to promise a moon landing - not only as a way to win the space race - but to improve his public relations after the Bay of Pigs fiasco. The journey to the moon will be one of the most expensive endeavours in history, and NASA needed to constantly market the program to keep Americans interested, and Congress signing the cheques.Part One is all about putting the moon shot in motion. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not all products are beautiful. While it’s easy to sell a gorgeous item, the degree of difficulty ratchets up when the item is butt-ugly. Some ugly products need a lot of clever marketing to succeed, while no amount of marketing can save other hideous brands. Then, every once in a while, some ugly products become runaway hits. In this episode, we tell the story of how a big grocery store figured out a way to sell deformed vegetables, how ugly footwear continues to attract millions of customers, how ugly toys created an empire and how the car industry has had mixed success selling some of the ugliest cars in history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we tackle the topic of Controversy Advertising. The number one job of all advertising is to get attention, and many brands choose to use controversial advertising ideas to break through the clutter. It’s a risky strategy, as controversy always courts trouble. We look at how Kmart used controversy to blow the dust off its staid image, how Kimberly-Clark used an eyebrow-raising idea to sell a discrete product, and we tell the story of how one advertiser tried to sue his advertising agency for generating the wrong kind of controversy during the Super Bowl. Hope you’ll tune in. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at some of the strangest brands that exist in the world. Some are the result of odd licensing deals - like WikiLeaks, which is now licensing its brand out to other manufacturers. Others are the result of unusual marketing opportunities - like a Burger King body spray. We kid you not. From Mandela wines to Motörhead Shiraz, we explore how these strange products came about, the thinking behind them, and the resulting sales results. Hey, even the U.S. Marines have their own cologne. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Well, this is the final episode of Under The Influence for the 2014 season. As as we do every year, we turn this show over to our listeners. Terry answers all the marketing and advertising questions listeners have sent in, and this year, the questions are better than ever. Terry will trace the history of how Kool-Aid/Lemon-Aid stands came to be, he’ll give a first-hand report on how the very last swan-song Eaton’s campaign was developed, he’ll discuss why #1 brands still feel compelled to advertise, he’ll explore why Cadillac owners don’t like vanilla ice-cream, why advertisers love using babies and small critters in their ads, what the rules are when it comes to the amount of advertising allowed every hour - and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Under The Influence, we look at brands that mock other brands. It’s a risky strategy, as one company has to ridicule another brand to make a point - and mocking a rival always fuels retaliation. We’ll talk about how Miller High Life mocked Anheuser-Busch during the Super Bowl, how Jaguar mocked Mercedes, how Samsung mocked Apple, how Apple mocked Samsung, and how Apple kind of perfected mocking when it set its sights on Microsoft. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we search for companies that offer 100%, no questions-asked, no fine print lifetime guarantees. They're hard to find, as not many companies are willing to offer that unlimited return policy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at 21st Century Brands. Only 14 years into a new era, and it's astounding to look at all the new brands and categories that have changed our world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at how companies sell death. While death is usually a forbidden word in advertising, the subject of death is slowly becoming more mainstream. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we discuss what happens when founders are the face of a company. No one can relay the passion of a company like the founder - but while they may be the heart and soul of a company, should they be the face? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at the subtle art of "nudging." Schools, marketers and even governments are now using small nudges to gently steer people toward making more positive decisions in their lives. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Under The Influence, it's Terry O'Reilly's annual episode where he features four brands he admires. It might be because the brand broke new ground, or has managed to stay #1, or just because it has been a part of our lives for so long. With that in mind, he'll celebrate a certain mac & cheese that has been with us since 1937, a TV show that broke ground in 1969, a condiment that has been #1 for over 100 years, and the most successful movie franchise of all time. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we air our annual book show. The research for Under The Influence requires a lot of reading, and listeners always ask for more information about the books we mention. So we take the opportunity every year to talk about the research books we've read, and tell additional stories from those books. In this year's show, we'll talk about how Bobby Orr met Gordie Howe's elbow, how the Romans turned their weakness in sea battles into a strength, how baggage inspectors at El-Al Airlines put their lives on the line, and how the rock band Kiss did something so wonderful for their fans that it ended up putting Kiss on the map. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The marketing industry is a business of short, concise messages. Be it the confines of 30 seconds, the space in a print ad or the restrictions of twitter or a website. The true test of an idea is whether or not it can be explained in just a few words. An elevator pitch forces that discipline - if an idea can be explained in the time it takes an elevator to go from the first floor to the second floor, it's probably a solid idea. And if it can't be - it probably means the advertising idea is fuzzy. We'll explore the art of the elevator pitch in business, in publishing and in the land of the quick pitch - Hollywood. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we explore how the weather affects marketing. With 75 years of climate data cross-referenced with reams of shopping research, marketers can now use the weather to predict sales. Sears Automotive knows that 5-year old car batteries die after three consecutive days of sub-zero temperatures, so they advertise on day four. The busiest day of the week at Harley-Davidson dealerships is exactly 22°C and sunny. When spring temperatures hit 21°C, hair removal products surge 1400%, and BBQ sales jump 200%. And did you know that when the temperature drops just one degree in the Fall – just one degree - mousetrap sales surge 25%? Marketers do.And while they can’t manage weather, marketers can certainly now manage the financial implications of weather.It’s a whole new day. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we look at famous people who began their careers in advertising. Many of the people who have gone on to shape popular culture cut their teeth in the world of marketing. From Dr. Seus, Salman Rushdie and Bob Newhart, to Sir Alec Guinness - yes, Obi-Wan Kenobi himself - they all spent their formative years writing copy.Each learned some valuable skills on their way to the top. And their stories are remarkable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we look at the wild and crazy world of Viral Videos. Some brands spend big money on videos and nobody watches, meanwhile a cat video is viewed by millions. It’s a world with no rules, fuelled by luck and timing. We’ll look at the most viewed videos ever, including a video a woman made when she quit her job that attracted almost 10 million views, the Evian bottled water video that went into the Guinness Book of World Records, a Nivea viral video that might have gone too far, and a Dove video that broke the Evian world record.These days, marketers can’t necessarily spend their way to consumer attention, they have to earn it.And Viral Videos can be just the ticket. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a 100 years of Mass Production - where one size fit all - 21st century marketing is moving to Mass Customization - letting you custom-design everything you buy. From cars, to clothes, to shoes – to your own breakfast cereal.This week on Under The Influence, we’ll explore how companies profit from personalized products, how they market those products, how consumers are drawn to companies that offer customization, and how brands use customization to fight competitors.Including how Burger King stole market share from McDonald’s by letting customers personalize their burgers.Their slogan: “Have it your way!” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we look at Ambush Marketing. It's a form of marketing where a brand tried to connect itself with an event like the FIFA World Cup - but WITHOUT paying sponsorship fees. It merely ambushes the festivities. Or one brand intrudes on another brand's advertising to gain attention. Either way, it's uninvited advertising, it's very controversial - plus the stories are riveting.And the Olympics has a long and fascinating history with ambush marketing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just in time for the Sochi Olympics, we take the opportunity to look at the big-money world of Olympic advertising. From the very first Olympic sponsors in 1896, we'll track the ever increasing presence of advertising in the Games - from the marketing milestones to the resulting controversies - including the year the IOC approved Olympic cigarettes! We'll also analyze how the IOC deals with the tension between keeping the Olympic ideals in place while needing more and more advertising revenue every four years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Unlike public service announcements or corporate philanthropy, Cause Marketing is when a Not-For-Profit organization teams up with a For-Profit company to further a good cause – but the For-Profit partner makes a profit while helping. It’s a contentious strategy – as most people don’t like to hear the word “profit” in the same breath as “charity.” But this new marketing strategy depends on profit to survive.  We’ll tell the story of how Cause Marketing began in the 1980s, how Bono’s RED organization learned a hard lesson about cause marketing, and how several big corporations teamed up with worthy causes to make the world a better place. While making their balance sheets better at the same time. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we explore how we're all influenced by pricing. Like how the price of a bottle of wine has an enormous affect on how much you enjoy that wine. We’ll analyze how restaurants design menus to steer you toward the most profitable dishes, and how retail stores use psychology to persuade you to spend more.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In our first episode of Season 3, we explore #1 Brands. We'll look at popular categories and identify the runaway best-selling brands and analyze why they are #1. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's our last episode of the season. And every year, we turn our annual season finale over to listeners and answer their questions about advertising. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This penultimate show of the season features the various lessons I've learned over the course of my 30-year advertising career. From the fact small brands need big personalities, to thereason why committees aren't creative, to the truism that all marketing is theatre, to six tips for presenting ideas that have never proven me wrong, to a secret my car mechanic taught meabout presenting invoices to nervous clients, it's a collection of insights and learning. This I know: All knowledge should be shared. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s become a $2 billion dollar industry. And the marketing of dead celebrities not only attracts lots of big brands, but lots of controversy.We’ll trace the use of dead celebrities in advertising, we’ll analyze “Dead Q Scores,” we’ll list the top-grossing dead celebrities, and we’ll tell some amazing stories about ads that featured Audrey Hepburn, Michael Jackson, Fred Astaire and Marilyn Monroe – and how their families felt about those commercials. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode explores the arrival of real-time advertising. Over the past 100 years, advertisers could never respond to an event or opportunity in minutes. But now with the Internet and social media, advertisers can. This clip talks about two of the most talked-about instances of Real-Time Advertising with Oreo Cookies and AMC Theatres. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most pilots, lawyers and doctors roll their eyes at the way Hollywood depicts them, and ad people are no exception. From the 1947 movie The Hucksters, to the Rock Hudson/Doris Day film Love Come Back, to Darrin Stephens in Bewitched, to Dudley Moore in Crazy People, to the Tom Hanks movie Nothing In Common, all the way to Mad Men. We'll rate them all, and see where they got it right, and where they got it very, very wrong. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is my annual look at the brands I envy.They may not be the hippest, or the latest, or even the coolest brands. They could be a product, a service or even a person - but I envy them for a reason. Like a famous toy that was discovered when its inventor was installing a light fixture, a television network that leads the Emmy race every year, a knife that can be identified from 30 feet away, and a person who has built an empire by breaking all the rules.All extraordinary brands, all I envy as a marketer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the very interesting selling strategy where one product is given away for free, or at a high discount, in order to attract people to buy another more profitable product. We’ll track the earliest loss leaders of shaving blades and Jell-O recipes, all the way up to today’s printers, video games and even Kindles – all of which are loss leaders. You might be surprised to know how many loss leaders swirl all around you every day.Advertisers know what to give away in order to profit.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They’ve been around for almost 80 years, and entertain millions. But game shows are also powerful marketing vehicles. We’ll trace their history from early radio to their debut on network television, and explore their interesting evolution from quiz shows (and the quiz show scandals) to the modern game show format. We’ll also analyze how Let’s Make A Deal and The Price is Right work with advertisers to sell thousands of products, and we’ll tell a fascinating tale of how one contestant broke down the basic advertising formula of The Price Is Right to win big. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 Along with the most famous marketing blunder of all time - the Edsel - we’ll look at what caused Coke to make the mistake of changing their fabled formula, how a company went actually out of business by promising a product improvement, how a fashion house tweeted inappropriately and had an immediate PR disaster, and how a fast food company made a big mistake betting on the U.S. Olympic team.They are all great stories. Just be glad they didn’t happen to you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the history of the advertising industry, the full force of persuasion has been put behind many products turned out to be incredibly unsafe. Even when those products were used exactly as advertised – they created enormous hazards, physical risk, and in some cases, even death. We’ll explore how we invited Asbestos and DDT into our homes as miracle products, how certain games for children ended up posing incredible risks, and how a much-heralded drug ended up being one of the most devastating products in modern history.In most of those cases, no one could foresee they were selling danger. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re on the hunt for great companies that went out of their way to treat their customers well. From an amusement park that delivered such superior customer service that other corporations asked for lessons, to a shoe company you can order a pizza from, to a store that actually accepted a returned product they didn’t even sell just to keep their customer happy – join us as we search for companies that go the extra inch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are millions of successful brands in the world, but very few of them are in the exclusive billion dollar club. We'll test your ability to guess which brands in your life are the billion-dollar ones, and we'll tell you which of P&G's brands reached $10 billion first, which cookie is worth a cool billion, which Hollywood movie star is has sold the most tickets, and which NHL franchise is the only billion-dollar team in the league. Join us as we look at the mega brands that outsell all the others.The list may just surprise you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we look at Marketing Stunts.Many brands try to get into the Guinness Book Of World Records as a marketing strategy. With that in mind, we’ll talk about how an energy drink staged a record-breaking jump from space, why a giant popsicle stunt melted before it even started, why unsuspecting travelers ended up running through a train station like James Bond, and how Richard Branson pulled off a stunt that drove British Airways crazy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, just in time for the Oscars - we take our annual look at creative movie trailers. We’ll see how Walt Disney convinced the public to watch the first-ever full-length animated movie, how some trailers don’t show a frame of the actual film they’re advertising, how some trailers contain footage not found in the movie itself, and we’ll tell you the story of why thousands of people bought tickets to a movie, watched a trailer that ran before the movie started, then got up and went home.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Under The Influence, we look at the companies that actually profit by asking you to BUY LESS.We’ll explore a burger company that asks its customers to eat less beef, a printing company helps you print less, why Gillette has suddenly started encouraging men to change blades less often, and why a clothing company insists that you buy less of their apparel.It’s a completely counter-intuitive marketing strategy, but each of these companies is doing more business than ever. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.