Red Ink

Slavoj Žižek quotes an old Eastern European joke in the introduction to his book Welcome to the Desert of the Real . The  joke goes like this: A Czech (or East German or Polish) worker is transferred to Siberia. He know that when he will write letters from Siberia to his friends at home they  will be read by the censors and so he tells his friends : "Let's establish a code: if a letter you receive from me is written in normal blue ink, it's true; if it is written in red ink, it's false." After a month, his friends receive a letter written in blue ink: "Everything is great here in Siberia: the shops are full, there is plenty of food, there are great and beautiful apartments, you can see all the latest Western films in the cinema and there are beautiful girls ready to go out with you - the only thing that you cannot get here is red ink."

These days, our shops are finally full in Eastern Europe (at least in the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary) and there are all the Western movies in the cinemas.  And advertising is wetting our appetite for more.  Advertising in Eastern Europe is shouting loud, celebrating products and services, assuming that people will keep their love affairs with brands that are pushing their primitive messages through TV.

Most of the manufacturers (both local and international) have bought into the cliche that, unlike  Western Europeans, Eastern Europeans must be treated with simple "push" advertising that "really sells."  These ads, packed with product benefits, might be good  for short-term sales but they don't  build an emotional connection between a brand and people.  The people featured in these ads have usually very little to do with the lives of people in the CEE region: they are just mannequins or people who are being used as metaphors for the products in the ads (or their  specific features). It is interesting how this approach has been used to tell the world about ourselves:

If there is ever a contest for ads packed with the most cliches about Prague, this ad must be a winner: blondes, alcohol, nice servants in wigs (is the servant standing for a reformed Czech taxi driver who is no longer stealing or beating his customers?) and Mozart (to signify culture). Has this ad been created to attract  more young English guys to Prague? Those that are stumbling out of their EasyJet planes and barfing before they reach passport control? Probably yes and the ad might do the job there - the guys might be encouraged to come to Prague on Friday evening, get drunk and get laid (if they overcome their shyness and need to do everything in a group ranging from 6 to 10), and then leave Prague Sunday evening, spending there $300 each. Is this ad going to attract to Prague the people that I have met in London - smart and affluent professionals? I doubt it - the ad might take away their  illusions about the creative potential of the people in Prague and Prague's genius loci. 

Our shops are overflowing with goods and we are getting fatter. The only thing that we are lacking is the red ink - to tell bits of truth about ourselves in an interesting way, as this (I believe) is the only way to build stronger brands - including the brand called the Czech Republic.

Comments

[Viktor Prochazka]

Well what can I say. :(

[Jakub Plášek]

Looking at this ad from marketer's point of view I agree with Jaroslav. It's neither witty nor appealing, however, it sais so much about Czech society or specifically Prague.... Reading it as text within an appropriate context we may learn that a guy from city hall, who is in charge of making this commercial, has recently broken the system of grants for non-commercial cultural activities. We can also find that Miss World acting in the ad is (surprisingly :-) this guy's girlfriend.
Considering the fact the ad should attract snobby auditorium watching Fashion TV (it was mentioned in Czech media) we cannot be surprised by its execution...

And Prague as the brand? It would definitely need some brisky genious brand manager even after Prague was positioned next to Azerbaidzhan capital Baku when competing for Olympic Games...

[Jaroslav Cir]

Thanks for the context, Jakub - quite revealing. I think that we could have an interesting little film if we dramatize the little Czech story about the guy from the City Hall and his gorgeous girlfriend, getting this advert done - a bit like 8 and 1/2 meets the Firemen ball.
Here is another, insightful comment to this ad from youtube:
"this commercial sucks. This ad cost 8 million crowns ($500,000 US) and its a complete waste of money. The city is just a prop for the chicks in the ad. By the way, one of the girls dates the minister of culture. Sounds like a conflict of interest to me".

[Steve]

Good comment for Jakub.
This commercial is quite revealing about the Czech reality - lack of creativity, combined with a bet on Prague stereotypes, topped with a starring 'girlfriend'. However, let's be realistic. Fashion TV is most watched in Russia. I believe it can work there, especially taking into account the target audience.
I think this might be a nice kick-off for a discussion what is the purpose of advertising:
Foremost it's selling.
However, many marketers believe that the best way is to 'mirror' people and behavior of those I want to sell to. Not thinking about strong emotions.
Yes emotions are very important, they drive ability to get through the clutter and make a message relevant. Moreover, I believe that all rational messages are filtered through emotions. They work as an important bouncer of all rational messages.
BUT let's do not forget, in the end it's most often about selling NOW. However, somewhere in the back of our minds should be building equity & memory structures long-term.