308 Commandeering Holidays

Is the meaning of major holidays- from Easter and Passover to Christmas and Ramadan- becoming lost in a sea of holiday marketing? This week Terry O’Reilly explains why advertisers don’t dare ignore the opportunities presented by holidays. Just as marketing has come to dominate major Christian holidays, Terry explains how, in a sense, the baton has been passed: it was the church, after all, that commandeered many of its holidays from pagan traditions.

307 Breaking the Contract

Monday, 16 February 2009 11:30 am and Saturday 21 February 2009 4:30 pm
(Originally aired October 19, 2006)

When Advertisers take our time and attention, shouldn’t they give something back? Terry O’Reilly thinks so. This week Terry examines the unwritten “contract” forged between Advertisers and audiences more than 80 years ago. He’ll tell the story of ad giant Albert Lasker, who, in the 1920’s, pioneered the idea of sponsor-driven broadcasts. You’ll discover why an understanding of the contract makes you a better consumer, and why today’s advertisers violate the contract at their peril.

306 The Human Face of Persuasion

Originally aired November, 2006

Hooda thunkit: for all their flow charts and profit projections, Marketers are re-discovering the true “secret weapon” of persuasion: people. In this episode from Season One of the Age of Persuasion, Terry explains the value of putting a “human face” to a brand: from the fictional Aunt Jemima to the very real Chef Boyardee. And how Radio uses the power of the human voice to say things about a brand… without saying them.

305 According to Hoyle

Are there “rules” for creating great ads? This week, Terry O’Reilly dusts off the Great Rulebook of Creative Advertising and shares some of its immutable laws, and plays successful ads that… well… mute them. He’s show how ‘rules’ and conventions in ad creative change with time. And he’ll share a few ideas he’s scribbled in the book over the years, as he explains why- as he’s fond of saying- “There are no rules in advertising. Only sins.”