I don’t often get too hot. I’d even use the term “rarely”, but when MichiganRadio.org says today’s 91º “feels like 99º”, I know what they mean. So I’m toughing it out this week, considering the AC would never reach into my office anyway. And I’m utilizing an advantage of working from home: working in your underwear. TMI? Too bad.

This set of ads came up in my account today, and it’s a great example of the pros and cons of demographic advertising. Yes, I’m a 30-year-old man, but no, I am not interested in laser hair removal. On the other hand, whoever targeted this moustache t-shirt ad hit me dead on. I’m pretty sure facebook doesn’t know I’m participating in Moustache May. I haven’t even blogged about it yet, and it certainly isn’t part of my demographic info. But I’m not complaining. Great t-shirt.

The first sketch is of the butterfly gardens and free flight aviary, the second from the reptile house. I felt surprisingly comfortable drawing at the zoo — I rarely draw in public. It reminded me how much I enjoy drawing from life, taking what I see and translating it onto the paper.

Check out the other results (from literally all over the world) in the Sketchcrawl forum.

Macintosh 700 MHz G4 Emac (upgraded optical drive)
Macintosh 1Gb G4 Powerbook Aluminum (replaced/upgraded optical drive)
Macintosh 4th Gen U2 Edition Ipod (replaced battery)

Notable items I do not “own”:
1998 Chrysler Town & Country (unless you count opening the door)

Again, creative aside I like a few things here:

1. It’s current (i.e. shows Dentyne is paying attention to the world around it)
2. The imagery is emotional
3. There is no URL on the ad.  That’s right, no URL.  Think about the call-to-action … “Make Face Time.”  A URL would be a conflicting message.  Glad to see this execution won out in what I can only imagine was a rigorous debate.”

I think this ad campaign is brilliant, and I would add a fourth note to Ian’s commentary: It’s an effective marketing message specifically for chewing gum. Gum is as “offline” a commodity as I can think of. Not only isn’t it bought online. All of it’s social impact is strictly face to face. Whether positive (flavored kisses, fresh breath) or negative (incessant popping, loud chewing), none of chewing gum’s effects translate over the web.

I also resonate personally with the message. My workdays are spent almost entirely online, and I love the web. Still, my most meaningful friendships are offline, only augmented by e-contact when nothing else will work. My brother and I work together, he in Chicago and me here in Detroit. We talk “face to face” over skype nearly every day. Yet, when we meet in person I inevitably comment, “In the flesh!” and give him a big hug as if I haven’t seen him in months. I haven’t.

Enter Field Notes. They’re the perfect size, and the interior is graph paper (which I love). The key to their success, however, is being tailor made for the consumate design geek. The back inside cover gives detailed production specs in witty, feel-good one liners. The cover is described like this:

Cover: French Dur-O-Tone 80#C “Packing Brown Wrap,” with a thick, brute force, 1-Color application of “Dachshund Nose” black ink.

and the binding like this:

Binding by a Mueller saddle stitcher, with quiet appreciation to Samuel Slocum, George W. McGill and William J. Brown – the “Founding Fathers of the Staple.”

If that doesn’t give you a warm feeling inside, you’re not a design geek. If it does, I’ll bet you’re two seconds away from Googling “Field Notes” and buying a set. I’ll save you the trouble:

http://fieldnotesbrand.com

Molly ran across this ad while looking through, of all things, her latest Martha Stewart magazine. We both erroneously associated it with the series of beef ads featuring meat landscapes.

Molly: Ugh, meat is not appetizing Don’t make it bigger! Put a little piece on a plate and surround it by leaves or something.
Seth: You’re just not the target market, honey.
Molly: I can’t imagine Martha Stewart readers are the target. And I even like meat!

I had to admit she had a point. Who exactly is this ad targeting? I love meat, and I find this at best unattractive. Yet when I went searching for the aforementioned beef ads, I also found some even more disgusting raw meat landscapes from Negroni. Stop the madness, people.

Notable additions are a blog (which you’re looking at) and detailed descriptions of the design services I provide (click “Home” to check it out). Some of the links may have gotten wonky in the redesign process, so if you find anything strange happening with the site, please let me know

Instructions on how to make them here. This would make a great summer night activity.