Snooki's media placement more interesting than her ad

Every once in a while, I see something good on Funny or Die, but the lowbrow video site definitely has a following.

That's why I found it really interesting that Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi of Jersey Shore has chosen to advertise her new perfume exclusively on the site.

The Scent of Snooki from Snooki

With over 43,000 views so far, this video was uploaded and sponsored by Snooki's own account. It's kind of funny, if much too long, as it lampoons Calvin Klein. But the real interest I have is how successful she will be in a medium that:

- Is difficult to embed (I had to swipe source code)
- Is unviewable on iPhones and iPads (which won't play Flash)
- Is only going to be seen by a specific segment online

But perhaps that's the whole point of the brand. After all, she sure knows her target.

Perfume pill lets women sweat (sorry, "perspire") designer scent

My agency colleague (and part-time fashion blogger) Amanda sent me this "ad" for Lucy McRae Swallowable Parfum:



The McRae blog says,

"Swallowable Parfum is a digestible scented capsule that emits a unique odor through your own perspiration. Excreted through the skin's surface the body becomes an atomizer; a biologically enhanced second skin synthesized directly from the natural processes of the body.
Swallowable Parfum is a provocative campaign developed alongside synthetic biologist Sheref Mansy initialised to open discussion with the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, fashion and technology industries."

So, is this a product or is it art?

McRae describes herself as:

"...an Australian artist straddling the worlds of fashion, technology and the body. As a body Architect she invents and builds structures on the skin that re-shape the human silhouette. Her provocative and often grotesquely beautiful imagery suggests a new breed; a future human archetype existing in an alternate world
Trained as a classical ballerina and architect her work inherently fascinates with the human body. The media call her inventor, friends call her a trailblazer. Either way, she relies on instinct to evolve an extraordinary visual path that is powerful, primal and uniquely Lucy McRae."

From the press release in the Swallowable Perfume site:

"Amid growing rhetoric around the body as the new frontier for technological advancement,
Swallowable parfum by internationally celebrated body architect Lucy McRae, is a digestible
scented capsule that breaks entirely new ground in the science of human instinct.
Once absorbed, the capsule enables the skin to become a platform, an atomizer; A biologically enhanced second skin synthesized directly from the natural processes of the body. Fragrance molecules are excreted through the skins surface during perspiration, leaving tiny droplets on the skin that emanate a unique odor. The potency of scent is determined by each individual’s acclimatization to temperature, stress, exercise, or sexual arousal. 

Swallowable Parfum is a capsule that enables human skin to emit a genetically unique scent
about who we are, and how we perform our identities. A provocative campaign initialised to open discussion with the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, fashion and technology industries, challenges the way we consume parfum in the future. After working for four years as a body architect at Philips Design in a far future research program exploring emotional sensing and part of a team who claims our bodies are a platform for technology, this cosmetic capsule is part of an on going exploration that re-defines the role of skin. 

Lucy McRae teams up with acclaimed synthetic biologist Sheref Mansy and are currently
in research phase to develop a capsule that consists of synthesied fragrant lipid molecules
that mimic the structure of normal fat molecules naturally found in the body. The human body has enzymes that metabolise fat in a series of steps that free lipids and lipid-like molecules from their scaffolds. Swallowable Parfum takes advantage of these natural enzymes found in our bodies to release fragrant molecules from larger structures. Subsequently, the liberated fragrant molecules are excreted through the skin’s surface during perspiration."

Again, product or art? I guess it's up to just what you're willing to swallow.

'80s music video mogul manages to make Scarlett Johansson bland

Dolce & Gabbana describe this short film (or way-too-long ad, depending on your perspective):

"Dolce & Gabbana presents the new uncut The One film, revealing the provocative yet effortless femininity of the eternal diva."

Their idea of "effortless femininity" is dolling up Scarlett Johansson like Marilyn Monroe and having her deliver a series of ditzy one-liners to fake reporters in an apparent drunken haze.

It was directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino, a French fashion photog who was a big cheese in music videos during MTV's golden age. (You can see his style in David Bowie'd "Never Let Me Down", Bryan Ferry's "Slave To Love", Don Henley's "The Boys of Summer" and Madonna's "Justify My Love", among others.)

This spot, however, is boring and trite. And it's a real waste of a perfectly good talent like Scarlett Johansson.

Emma Watson's new Lancôme spot is like an awful '80s music video

Via BuzzFeed:



It really is. Don't believe me? Let's set the wayback machine to "suck":







Had enough?



Okay. My point is made.

F'd Ad Fridays: It's b-a-a-a-d

Via Vintage Ad Browser

You've got to hand it to the 1970s: Subtlety was just not their thing.