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Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly
S3E04 - Marketing Rock and Roll, Part One
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In part one of a two-part series, we’ll trace the marketing of rock all the way back to its origins with Elvis Presley and his wily manager Colonel Tom Parker. We’ll tell the story of how the Beatles lost millions by not following Elvis’s blueprint, and how the Rolling Stones borrowed a page right out of the books of Madison Avenue to compete against the Fab Four.Plus, what show on marketing rock and roll would be complete without mentioning the biggest marketing machine in the history of rock and roll – KISS.Part Two will begin with the emergence of MTV.It's a fascinating and interesting journey.
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37. Bookmarks
28:02||Season 15, Ep. 37Because Terry LOVES books, we do an annual Bookmarks episode. This one is from 2024.There’s never enough room to include all the great stories we find in our research books.So this episode is dedicated to all those stories that didn’t fit into our regular episodes. The theme is “bravery” - and we’ll talk about how a brave goaltender revolutionized hockey, how Larry David routinely ignored studio executives, and we’ll salute the bravery of Lucille Ball.
36. The Gong Show: Ads That Could Never (Ever) Run Today
26:59||Season 15, Ep. 36In this episode, we go back in advertising history and take a look at the ads and commercials that could never, ever, EVER run today.They are either so politically incorrect, so sexist, or so inappropriate, you won’t believe your ears.From doctors recommending cigarettes, to 7-Up advertising to babies, to everyone singing about the joys of DDT, it’s amazing to think they all ran back in the day. Ads that couldn’t run today.From our 2024 Archives.
35. How Jerry Goodis Made an Advertisement a Beautiful Thing
27:44||Season 15, Ep. 35Jerry Goodis was one of the most colourful characters in the history of Canadian advertising.He founded a legendary advertising agency and created some of Canada’s longest-running ad campaigns. And while doing that, he attacked the ad industry for producing terrible ads. He was loved and hated but couldn’t be ignored. Another favourite from our Archives.
34. Putting the Awe in Audio
26:56||Season 15, Ep. 34Taking a look at the most creative audio ideas from around the world. Including a podcast for runners that only works if you’re actually running, a police recruitment campaign that capitalized on the popularity of True Crime, and a very ambitious alternative audio track created to be played over Disney’s Pocahontas movie – that tells the truth behind the fairy tale.Another favourite from the Archives.
33. Cars Are The Stars: Automobile Brands In Hollywood
28:53||Season 15, Ep. 33Another favourite from our archives...Almost every movie and television show needs cars, and auto companies are happy to supply them – because it helps sell a lot of cars.We’ll look back at James Bond and Starsky & Hutch, and explore auto partnerships with movie franchises like Transformers and Marvel.We’ll also tell a crazy story of how the most sought-after car from a Steve McQueen movie was finally found – and the cosmic coincidence that led to its discovery. Cars are the stars.
32. Ham on Wry: All About Sandwich Board Advertising
27:03||Season 15, Ep. 32From the Under The Influence Archives, one of our favourites....Take a walk down any busy main street, and you’ll probably see one of the oldest forms of advertising: The sandwich board. They have been around for over 200 years. Cities try and ban them.Storekeepers love them. They can make you smile.They can make you angry.They can attract a lot of attention. They are the pop-up ads of the physical world.
31. Pants are on Fire: When Customers Lie to Marketers
27:08||Season 15, Ep. 31From The Under The Influence Archives...Customers often lie to companies in surveys, polls and focus groups.Yet advertisers rely on that flawed and false feedback to market brands and create advertising campaigns.So what are advertisers to do?One solution is Google.What we type into the Google search window is like a truth serum. We all pour our most intimate, honest questions into that search box.
30. Cheeky Advertising
27:48||Season 15, Ep. 30A favourite episode from our Archives....80% of all advertising is ignored.That’s why some advertisers employ cheeky advertising.It’s usually bold – outrageous – and sometimes even rude – but always with a playful undertone.We’ll talk about a fruit company that printed an open letter to the Pope.An airline campaign that told you to “keep it in your pants.”And a product that claims your grandparents had more sex than you.
29. Billionaire Tourism for the Super Wealthy
27:03||Season 15, Ep. 29An encore episode from the Under The Influence Archives. A very interesting favourite.Most tourism marketing aims at the largest audience possible.This week, we look at a sub-category aimed at the smallest audience possible:Billionaire Tourism. The super wealthy get bored easily.That means luxury tour planners dream up extreme vacation ideas.From outer space, to the bottom of the ocean, to secretly getting the key to the Sistine Chapel, it’s a whole new pricey world.