FITZWILLIAM INSTITUTE

Advertising - It’s a Funny Old Business

In a world of homogeneous brand messages, humour can often help to cut through. Yet advertisers don’t go for comedians as often as you’d think.

In a world of brand strategies and tightly defined product messages, humour is the great variable. Even for companies targeting the youth market that is the major consumer of comedy, the profile of the performer is usually of less significance than the script’s ability to press the right buttons.

Although Ireland is renowned around the world for the wit of its literary figures, economic and social factors prevented stand-up comedy from taking off in the way it did in the UK and US during the 1970s and 1980s in particular. However, this began to change in 1987 with the establishment of the Comedy Cellar in Dublin by Barry Murphy, Ardal O’Hanlon and Kevin Gildea, the first of whom has since become a regular on the voiceover circuit.

Fast forward a few years and comedy had become the new rock ’n’ roll. The UK comedy scene had never disappeared, but in the early nineties it enjoyed a renaissance with the emergence of talents like Eddie Izzard and Bill Bailey.

Meanwhile, the more relaxed political situation in Northern Ireland had a dramatic effect on nightlife in Belfast and stand-up comedy was much in demand in venues like The Empire.

As the vast majority of the audiences were in the 18-35 age group, marketers targeting this demographic began to wake up to the possibility of using comedians in their ads. Leading British comedians were recruited to promote a variety of products from video recorders to chocolate bars and some became synonymous with the brand, for example Harry Enfield with the Dime bar commercials.

The overall quality of ads featuring comedians over the last 20 years is a bit patchy – neither John Cleese or Billy Connolly will look back on their efforts with any great affection – but others worked very well. Indeed, the Philips ad featuring Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones where the former is a customer looking to buy a video recorder was voted the best radio commercial of all time by the UK Radio Advertising Bureau.

Many of the current examples of humour in Irish advertising are to be found in beer commercials, explained Dara O’Connell of Brown Bag. "Promoting the product as a bit of craic alongside the message about enjoying the product sensibly is quite effective. It creates a better feeling towards the product rather than getting any particular message across."

Ironically, despite the fact that humour is finding its way into ads for cars and even previously terribly serious subjects such as banking, O’Connell reckons most clients purposely avoid using comedians. "They don’t want to make the humour appear forced – punters respond better to ’real people’ and also react well if they think the dialogue is not too scripted. It is very hard to make an ad sound spontaneous."

One of the difficulties for any celebrity who agrees to promote a product or service is the impact it might have on their public image. An interviewer once rather snootily asked Jane Horrocks (who made her name in the British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous) why she continued to appear alongside Prunella Scales in what ended up as a long running Tesco ad campaign when she was so well regarded as a performer. Her reply was simple- it allowed her to pay off her mortgage!

Of course, very few funny people are given the opportunity to secure their financial future simply by playing the put-upon daughter of a fussy senior citizen for 30 seconds, but it is not hard to see why those who are asked to perform in this environment reserve the right to lend their image and/or persona.

Comedian and actor Paddy Courtney says he would not be worried about damaging his artistic integrity ("I wasn’t sure I had any in the first place!") and as a comedian who is a trained actor, would not have a problem appearing in an advertisement. "However, I do reserve the right to pick and choose the castings I would put myself up for. If I used a product or service in my everyday life, I would see no problem in advertising it."

Tara Flynn, best known to ad watchers as one half of the couple in the IFSRA "People don’t talk like this" commercial, is also careful about what she would lend her face or voice to. "I don’t do voiceovers for political parties I wouldn’t vote for and I once turned a company down because I was concerned about their operation overseas."

But she also admits that – to paraphrase Helen Mirren on nudity- it is never really about the script, it is about the money. "Most Irish performers can’t afford to turn down work; that is why you will have seen me in a dressing gown for the IFSRA. That was a very funny script and I got to work with a wolfhound, but the great Bill Hicks would definitely see such wantonness as an example of "sucking satan’s c**k".

Given that any performer will be more comfortable with a script that they have contributed to and that most comedians write a high percentage of their own material, allowing them some creative input might sound like a sensible strategy.

At first glance it appears illogical to employ someone known for the quality of their material as nothing more than a conduit for someone else’s words, but according to Al Byrnes of production company Caboom this is how it has to be if the agency and client are to control how their product or service is portrayed.

"The copywriter has resppnsibility for the brand and it is up to the copywriter to ensure that the script gets the message across," he said. "It is usually pretty much set in stone before the performer gets their hands on it."

"With any other acting job, I would offer script suggestions to the director, but more often than not the advert is fine tuned by a copywriter and the client in order to have it right before casting or shooting," said Paddy Courtney, while Tara Flynn revealed that there are times when her tongue is well and truly bitten.

"Most copywriters encourage a bit of ad-libbing to make the delivery more natural, but clients can be a different matter! When you write your own gags or are an improviser, it is very difficult not to make a suggestion. You have spent years thinking about what is funny and why and you just want to help. You are trying to do your job and make it as good as it can be, but sometimes it is not as a client heard it in their head and at that stage you just have to deliver it as they wish and put your instincts to one side."

She acknowledges that a much worse situation arises when the client’s input extends to advice on delivery: "If a client demonstrates a delivery style and encourages you to parrot it back, you may as well not be there and the finished product always sounds affected."

Most comedians believe their effectiveness as a marketing tool is down more to their delivery than public profile or script. "I know of some comics who have appeared in adverts because of their acting ability and more specifically their timing, so skill rather than celebrity is clearly the important factor," said Paddy Courtney.

There are relatively few genuine Irish celebrities anyway and most Irish comics are well known on the circuit but not on TV, added Tara Flynn. "But that doesn’t mean they could not do an ad as an ’unknown’ in an acting capacity and do a great job. Getting a laugh is a great way to get a product to stick in a listener or viewer’s mind. If an ad is believable (and most good comedians tend to be good actors) it gives the product credibility."

John Holohan, IAPI information manager and director of the Shark Awards festival says clients have to be careful that the humour doesn’t overwhelm the brand. "However, humour can create a goodwill factor and get around some of the limitations on what you can say about a brand."

He referred to a number of well known campaigns for beers and tobacco products as examples. "Hamlet built a brand on using humour in its advertising because it could not actually talk about the product. Such limitations force you to be more creative in your thinking. Humour can also be used to make a serious point through the use of sarcasm or irony."

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Young people in Ireland flocking to the net

Irish kids as young as eight are going online for the first time, according to a new report on internet usage.

According to the "State of the Net" report from Amas and the Irish Internet Association, young people are embracing the online medium, with a typical teenager spending an average of two hours a day on the internet.

The web is now becoming the "channel of choice" for those in the communications business in a bid to reach younger consumers, the report said.

"Top down communications from government bodies, businesses and ’officialdom’ doesn’t work in seeking to influence or communicate with a young audience," said Aileen O’Toole, managing director of Amas, in the report. "Bottom-up, peer-to-peer communication seeded and carried through a variety of online channels is more likely to deliver the desired result."

Social networking website Bebo is proving a top draw for Irish teens, with the site claiming 700,000 registered Irish users. Meanwhile, one in ten children between nine and 16 years old use online instant messaging every day.

"When they enter their teenage years, they’re more likely to be talking about Bebo in the school yard than who did what in a favourite TV soap," said O’Toole.

However, this new trend is not without its downsides. According to the report, almost a quarter of nine to 16-year-olds have received "unwanted sexual comments" online.

The report also noted a "yawning gap" in the e-government sector. According to recent data, Ireland is still below average in the e-government stakes, and the country is classed as a "follower" rather than a trendsetter. Canada and the US top the e-government charts.

However, it’s not all bad news. Sixty eight percent of Irish citizens class e-government services as "easy to use", while usage levels are up 6 percent annually. This increase is the third highest among the countries surveyed.

In general, Irish internet users consider themselves a savvy bunch, with some 35 percent of the Irish population describing themselves as "advanced" or "expert" internet users, in line with the EU average.

Ryanair buys 16% of Aer Lingus, reveals takeover intent

Low-cost airline Ryanair has announced it has launched an offer worth €1.48 bn to buy Aer Lingus.

The Ryanair board has today announced its acquisition of over 16% of the issued share capital of Aer Lingus.

Ryanair is now set to make an all-cash offer of €2.80 per share for the issued share capital of Aer Lingus not already in the ownership of Ryanair.

This offer is conditional on obtaining at least a majority of the shares in Aer Lingus.

This cash offer values Aer Lingus at approximately €1.481bn and represents a premium of approximately 27% over last week’s IPO share price of €2.20 per share and a premium of approximately 12% over yesterday evening’s closing price for Aer Lingus shares of €2.51.

Speaking at the launch of the offer this morning, Ryanair’s CEO, Michael O’Leary, said: "This offer represents a unique opportunity to form one strong airline group for Ireland and for European consumers.

"This offer, if successful, means both companies will continue to operate separately and compete vigorously in the small number of routes on which we both operate - currently around 17 of the approximately 500 routes operated by the two airlines.

"We believe the price of €2.80 to be an excellent offer. If accepted the Irish Government will realise over €500m from the sale of their Aer Lingus shares, and the employees will realise over €220m which equates to an average of over €60,000 per employee."

Adwalker May Do Deal With Outdoor Giants

Adwalker, the Irish "wearable media specialist" that is listed in London is reported to be in talks with two of the three major outdoor advertising firms in the UK with a view to a major collaboration.

According to reports in the UK trade press, Adwalker, which is headed by Simon Crisp, the talks centre on development opportunities rather than acquisition possibilities.

Adwalker currently has over 100 UK shopping centres and other outlets on its books in addition to over 200 shopping malls in the USA.

Elton charity launch makes scents

Elton John has launched a new range of candles and home fragrances in the US which he hopes will raise a million dollars a year for his Aids charity.

The collection, launched in Bath & Body Works and White Barn Candle stores, will also be available online at bathandbodyworks.com.

Neil Fiske, CEO of Bath & Body Works expects the collection – inspired by Elton’s country estate in England – to generate sales of $10m (€7.8m) in the first year, 10% of which will be used to benefit the Elton John Aids Foundation.

“Clearly, this has the potential to be big,” Fiske said yesterday, after a news conference where he was joined by the rock star and president of parent company Home Design, Harry Slatkin.

The Elton John Fireside Home Fragrance Collection, ranging in price from $7.50 (€5.90) to $16.50 (€13), includes scented candles, scented stones and home fragrance oils. The collection is expected to be expanded to include soaps and other categories.

John, dressed in a black pinstriped suit, said the partnership with Bath & Body increases exposure for his foundation, which has raised $100m (€78m) since it was established in 1992.

Slatkin said he became friends with John started eight years ago, when the two collaborated on a line of candles, a partnership that raised a total of several hundred thousand dollars for John’s foundation.

“He has a passion for candles. He is my kind of guy,” Slatkin said.