Warren Paull

Is it time to call direct mail something different' How about Indoor Advertising

Went to the Campaign Big awards last night, which?apart from BBH collecting an almost unhealthy stash of perspex desk ornaments?was notable for the way in which it was structured.

In a clear attempt to challenge traditional media demarcations, everything was split into sectors, with best executions then awarded prizes within that sector. Mostly it worked, though some sectors were understandably better than others, was a good attempt at representing all the main disciplines, Digital, Direct, Outdoor, Press, TV, Radio as equals.

A couple of things struck me though?

It used to be that Ambient advertising was, for some reason, lumped in with direct (because there?s no paid-for media'), but Campaign had (wisely) decided to include in the Outdoor section, which immediately elevated that category since so much ambient activity is heavily idea-based (and is increasingly influencing paid-for outdoor media).

That then got me thinking that maybe Direct could do with a similar boost. Might it not be an idea to call it Indoor Advertising'

This would also embrace both traditional direct mail and Matter, which is, of course, in-direct.

Warhol Cans - National Galleries of Scotland (BBC) - Finalist Campaign Big Awards 2008

Normal service now resumed

Sorry. We had an interruption to the web service over the weekend-something technical I don?t pretend to understand. Anyway, as you can see, it?s now fixed and we?ll try and make sure it doesn?t happen again.

Hope you all didn?t think we?d just vanished.

Photo: Robert Brook, used under creative commons licence. Thanks

Thing of the day

Here?s the first in an informal series of notable things. They might not be new, and it might not be every day.

No 1? MILLENNIUM CHANDELIER ( 2004) by Stuart Haygarth, which I happened to see at an exhibition at Mother in London last week is made of 1000 exploded Party Poppers collected after the Millennium celebrations in London.

You would think

I came across this inspired piece of product design: a redefinition of the scotch tape / selotape dispenser. Sadly, many people can?t get on with tape dispensers and so they become little more than desk ornaments. Maybe that?s why there are so many aesthetic designs. Few products could have demanded a re-think than this. I thought.

My next thought was to imagine the unstoppable viral effect and that this genius idea (assuming it works, I haven?t tried it) would be all over the internet, and that the makers, Yanko Design and the product?s creator Paul Sandip would be household names.

But, there seems to be a flaw in this plan for world-domination as a Google search for TapeWORM revealed a lot of medical detail and not much else. Is this a candidate for how-not-to-name-in-the-internet-age or am I missing something'

Rusty stickers

Here is a set of stickers of intricately designed rust patches you can apply to your car or bike, in an effort to deter thieves. Whether it works or not isn?t the point?indeed its creator, Dominic Wilcox doesn?t make any promises, though he does claim that they?ve allowed his bike to remain in his possession for thirteen whole days in London.

More curious is that here?s a product made specifically to reduce the desirability of something else. Nice though.

Lost in the supermarket

Wandering into my local Sainsbury?s last night I was met by this curious little vignette of the current consumer price anxiety?a homespun display of real products arranged in a slightly unappealing, if enthusiastic manner on a table immediately by front door.

Aside from the curious selection of products, with its strange focus on breakfast foods, it made a simple and powerful point about the cost advantages of own-brand goods over big-brand goods.

This piece of winsome merchandising had the delightful charm of an amateur-dramatics performance?clearly put together by someone in the store, and not a crack team of display artists parachuted in from head-office.

But the printed graphics card gave the game away. The products laid out on the table faithfully matched those on the display card. Not the work of a local price-action hero trying to save his customers some money off their groceries, more an orchestrated effort by Sainsbury?s promotions department to drive home a prescient message using real products?and a little homespun innocence?to add impact and theatre.

Clearly it?s not Harvey Nichols, but that?s kind of the point. There was a real innocent charm about this display that matched the message of saving money in hard times. It said ?Sainsbury?s are saving money it too; we?re all in the same boat?. A million miles away from Jamie Oliver and his million pound pay cheque.

Hard times are interesting times.

Don?t be fooled by the headline?

Matter seems to be getting its fair share of attention with features across the marketing and media press in the last week. Even the Mail On Sunday found a big space on its pages last Sunday to tell a uncharacteristically positive story (about Royal Mail).

Matter?s innovation might not be immediately obvious?what could be simpler than a box full of cool stuff'?but it flies in the face of a lot of accepted wisdom in advertising. Though our subscribers might not appreciate it, but you are the first to join an entirely new way for companies to talk to consumers.

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• Is it time to call direct mail something different' How about Indoor Advertising


• Crystal Head Vodka, really'


• Crowd Sourcing a Jigsaw Puzzle


• Pop up book


• Normal service now resumed


• Thing of the day


• You would think


• Rusty stickers


• Lost in the supermarket


• Don?t be fooled by the headline?

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Phew, it?s been a very busy week and a there?s been a lot of interest in Matter. The next box is coming in October, and such has been the interest in Matter, that we?ve now had to close the list to get the next edition?you?ll see an announcement on the subscription page. If you signed up beforehand, you?ll get the October edition.

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