Norway

This week I've decided to blog about Norway, a country I'm unfamiliar with but soon became interested shortly after watching a several YouTube videos. Based on the videos, Norway seems like a simpler country, not controlled by the consumerism of Great Britain and America. It reminded me of Ireland or the U.K. of the past. The people enjoyed life and human relationships, as it seems. They seemed like a social people, and sought to experience all life had to offer. The towns looked rural, and little to do with advertising and branding.
As for most European countries, the commute differed from American traffic. There were few cars on the road, and those which were were small and compact. Train tracks ran throughout most of the country, as it is one of the most efficient way to travel in the country.
It seems odd to brand a country, but most of the videos seen were a good representation of Norway as a brand. If you seek adventure, simplicity, beatiful scenery, and welcoming natives, then Norway would be a brand for you!

McDonald's

It seems like forever since I've last posted on this blog! Anyway this week we were asked to investigate a National Brand and see how they market to multiple cultures. I chose McDonald's, as I've always noticed that they have marketed towards many cultures particularly the Hispanic market. Thei home page consists of several images featuring several characters from different backgrounds. There are Caucasians, African Americans, and Hispanics displayed doing numerous activities while enjoying McDonald's food. Most of the page was reflective of their advertising strategy. In fact, there were more minority models in many of the images seen on the site. The site also featured the ability to change the language to Spanish with one-click.
Their were several links featured that ported me over to McDonald's endorsed pages. The most noticeable was Myinspirasian.com, a website that recognized Asians in the McDonald's work place and among other things, activities that Asians would find enjoyable and interesting.
There was also 365black.com, a web site that targeted African American visitors, very similar to the Asian web site.
More of the same was featured, and I was fascinated by the whole experience. I had no idea that McDonald's was THIS diverse in their marketing efforts!

The advertisement I decided to write upon this week is a Japan based ad which was filmed several years ago. The ad was so popular that the "short" version was also aired in North America. The commercial is for the video game company, Nintendo, and i know I've written on their company before but I love what they do with marketing. The advertisement features several hundreds, if not thousands, of school aged Japanese kids sprinting, jumping, flipping (etc.) to the nearest electronics store to get their Nintendo product. All the children were previously bored in school and anticipating the release bell. I think this ad says wonders about the youth culture in Japan.
As we all know, Japan is a country that manufactures a great deal of wonderful electronics. Whether it be television, cell phones, and in this case, home video games. The current generation of Japanese youth is incredibly interested in new technology and eager to play hours and hours of video games. Nintendo is hugely popular in Japan and its clear in this ad that most kids would do anything to get their hands on a system. This is a type of ad that I think could work in many countries, including the U.S., and still be successful with minimal changes.
The commercial ends with the face of a thousand Marios. Nintendo's flagship game and mascot.

Leather Flag -- San Francisco

Last week I blogged about Castro street in San Francisco, California. The area is famous for gay and lesbian pride, and it's reputation preceded the video. The video featured the raising of the Leather Flag at Harvey Milk Plaza, a few streets over from Castro. The video was shot in September of 2007, and featured several older, gay men, proudly hoisting the large flag. The men stood united, posing for pictures, sharing kisses, and also dealing with police officers. the culture seen in the video was expected given the neighborhood. there was little to no dialogue, but the presence of nearly a dozen gay men helped display the culture of the neighborhood in San Francisco. The Leather Flag was hoisted in honor of Gay Pride Week.