C'mon, you mongoose!

First, on a day for cockney rebels, let’s give some credit to the Corsa C’Mon Talking Plush. That ten inch cross between Dennis Wise, Bob Hoskins and an oven glove we see marching across our TV screens advertising that small car. I can’t pin down what it is about this cockney character that I like. Certainly not the product. But, unlike most, it’s an ad I’m always prepared to watch. Now, the latest ad to come up and see me and make me smile is Alexandr the Meerkat. When I first saw or heard these Compare The Market ads, I thought the whole thing was such a corny calabash. Nothing but a flabby foot shoehorned into a tight boot. But I couldn’t get the voice out of my head. And now, I find myself walking around the house speaking in that Russian accent. All because some creative bright spark decided to link the sounds of meerkat and market. Simples! Never mind the human menagerie, I’m a soft touch for inanimate objects of this kind. In my imagination (and, I dare say it, in that of half the UK population), ever since the talking chimps of the 60s PG Tips ads, these things easily take on a life all their own. Here at Ideal, Debbie has worked very closely with Kirk, the woodland creature, as part of the successful, award-winning Yellow Woods Challenge since 2001 (see http://www.idealconsulting.co.uk/Yell_case_study.asp) In the course of my brand naming work over the years, I’ve named ocean cruises, charity fundraising campaigns and government departmental initiatives, among others. But nobody has yet asked me to name a soft toy for the purpose of animating a whole brand. If they were to do so today, I think I’d call it Sebastian.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

There's always something there to remind me

To the disbelief of many who observed my early development as a human being, I make my living as a writer and have done for nigh on 15 years. For me, making a living from writing means crafting a marketing brochure, shaping a website, inventing a strapline, capturing that essence rare. And those are the good days. People who don't write for a living but have to write on a daily basis (most people who work in offices) ask me how I do it day in day out. How do I focus on such things? How do I block things out and narrow things down so that what I'm describing is what it is and nothing else? Bizarrely, I tell them that, far from blocking out and narrowing down, I open up. I let the world in and work with whatever is there. It's the only way to achieve the pitch necessary for this writer to begin his work. Interference or inspiration? Both, probably. This week, I've been enthralled by Shakespeare's The Tempest and Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire. And, one way or another, I will bring their influence to bear on the work I'm doing for my clients. I'm no slave to circumstance. And far from a puppet on a string. But, when it comes to the importance of remaining human when writing for brands, there's always something there to remind me.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

Can I dip my bread in your gravy?

Can anyone tell me the Carry On film in which Bernard Bresslaw says to (I think) Jim Dale, ‘Can I dip my bread in your gravy?’ Both are incarcerated in adjacent prison cells. Bresslaw removes a stone in the wall between them, pops his head through and asks the question. Dale, as acquiescent as ever, hands over his dish of gravy. Predictably, Bresslaw takes it back through the hole in the wall. Then, with true comic timing, the next thing we see is the stone being replaced and a suitably indignant Dale cursing his luck. It’s one of my favourite Carry On moments. Partly because ‘gravy’ is one of my favourite words, carrying so many meanings, yet always returning to its simple, viscous self. As a wordsmith, it’s important to have favourite words. Even if you are very unlikely to use them in your daily work. For they act as a perfect counterbalance to the payload of corporate vocabulary we all recycle every day.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

Ca plane pour moi

Recuperating from tracheitis gives me some time out to put some time in on time itself. But I actually prefer it when time intrudes upon my thoughts unexpectedly. It's very difficult to sit here and wait for time to say something spontaneous. That just wouldn't be timely. The big thing about timeliness is its spontaneity. It counts for everything. It's an acceptance of whatever is there, knocking at the door. Today, I have 51 year-old Plastic Bertrand announcing himself on my threshold. Let him in. Take a good look at him. He's not necessarily who I would've expected. After all, every day I'm writing about serious things. I'm helping all kinds of organisations to get across their marketing messages more effectively. Some need to sell a product or service. Others need to encourage a change in behaviour from hard-to-reach people. They come to me with their thoughts and priorities. They have confidence in my ability to frame their messages. They expect a certain result. They do not necessarily understand how I get it or where my inspiration comes from. Then again, in my approach to meeting their needs, I rarely set out from the same place as my clients. I listen to their needs. Then I just open the door to whatever is there and invite it in. And that's where I begin. It works for me.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

Time and time again

Today, 23rd February 2009, is 100 days to my 50th birthday. One or two people have noticed how time is appearing in these blogs in both regular yet serendipitous ways. With such an anniversary on the horizon, it’s hardly surprising that my mind enters the world every day through this horological doorway. It will be interesting for me to see how the flow of time now enters my work. But not today – I have laryngitis. Sleepless of Stratford will not be open for talking shop. Clients often ask me how I write and write again. Sitting in front of a blank piece of paper, or a screen, for something like the ten thousandth time, means you have to be confident of starting somewhere, of being able to start at all. I’ve never had this problem of starting with words. I think it’s because the door is always open to the inspiration of whatever is there and whoever is strolling past. Hello, there’s Howard Jones, asking his perennial question, What is love, anyway? And there’s David Sylvian answering it, singing The Song Which Gives The Key To Perfection. The trouble is, the backdrop to all of this is Ballroom Blitz by The Sweet. Bassist, Steve Priest, is singing that he sees a man at the back, as a matter of fact, whose eyes are as red as the sun. As the cough medicine kicks in, that’s me staring at the mirror. Good day and good night.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

Futurism is 100 today

Futurism…like it or loathe it, now there was a brand for you! Marinetti, Boccioni, Carra, Balla, Palasechi! When Filippo Tommaso Marinetti published his Futurist Manifesto in the French daily newspaper Le Figaro 20th February 1909, what was he letting loose? Sure, a passionate loathing of everything old, particularly political and artistic tradition and conventions. But an art movement that glorified war?! What were they playing at? OK, it all led to castor oil cocktails for the caring comrades in the end, but there were some interesting ideas about speed, youth and energy there. But then, February 20th is an interesting day in the calendar. Tony Wilson, creator of Manchester’s Factory Records (a brand of brands) and a futurist if ever there was one, was born on this day. Then again, so was Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, not so much a futurist as a look-backwards-over-your-shoulder-ist. It’s a day for tough people and big ideas. Back in 1977, Alan Hull, singer with rock group Lindisfarne, who also shared this birthday, told me that, where he came from, punks were people who put safety pins through other people’s noses. Which is why I’ve always been scared of visiting Newcastle. February 20th is a day full of people who talk tough and do things first. So, happy birthday, too, to Sidney Poitier, Jimmy Greaves and Mike Leigh.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk

Gearing up for Guinness 250

My publisher, Martin Liu (Cyan Books), contacted me today to let me know about his recent book promotional activities in Dublin. This year is the Guinness 250th anniversary and it seems my book Guinness Is Guinness could stir some interest once again. OK, I published it 5 years ago now, but what has really happened of any note since in the world of Guinness? Closure of the 70 year-old London Park Royal brewery and a reprieve for the iconic original at St James's Gate, Dublin. Oh, and the launch of Guinness Red, the beer that looks light and tastes...sshhh, don't tell everyone. Back in 2004, I did some great book launch radio interviews when people still seemed interested in Guinness as an iconic brand - with Robert Elms on BBC London and Gerry Ryan on RTE 2 in Dublin. I remember telling these luminaries that future Guinness marketing was more than likely to be a repeat of Guinness past. Here was a brand whose past was too good for its present. And, true enough, in this special 250th year they'll be re-broadcasting the best Guinness TV ads of the past five decades. Pop has been eating itself for the last 20 years. Now it seems that beer is, too. Fine, there'll always be 17th March. And now there'll be 26th September - Arthur's Day. But don't blink, or you'll miss it. Me, I'll be waiting by the phone for Ireland to call...

Mark Griffiths http://www.idealconsulting.co.uk/

Everything's gonna be alright

John Lydon advertising butter. Iggy Pop flogging insurance. Now Marley's ghost is coming our way - but how and when we do not yet know. The word is out that the estate of Bob Marley has agreed to license the singer's likeness and name to retailers and brands 28 years after the great man's death. How will they select those brands? And how will they fit in with Marley's own brand? If the cap fits, let them wear it...Should be a fascinating space to watch.

Mark Griffiths www.idealconsulting.co.uk