16915: Years Worth Of Content On Ageism In Adland.

 

Advertising Age published yet another lengthy report on ageism in Adland.

 

Gen Yers and Gen Zers will not have the patience to read the content, and Boomers will not have the stamina to complete it.

 

Why, it’s multi-generational fluff.

16442: Could Consumer Complaints Create Cultural Change?

 

Advertising Age reported on a 4-year survey whose 2023 results showed 53% of consumers think corporations should not get involved in political or cultural concerns, versus almost 30% saying corporations should take a stand on issues. The figures indicated an increase of about 10 percent versus the survey’s 2019 results.

 

Ad Age also noted the following:

 

“Support for corporate activism grew among younger consumers in the wake of the 2020 killing of George Floyd, and sentiments have stayed that way … Among millennials and Gen Z, 41% say corporations should use their influence to impact political and corporate issues, up from 27% in 2019. Support among Gen X and baby boomers is also growing but remains well below 50%—just 17% of boomers are supportive, with support among Gen X is at 23%.”

 

The data poses questions that could apply to Adland. That is, how would consumers react upon learning that most corporations are partnering with White advertising agencies where diversity is a dream delegated, deferred, diverted, dodged, and denied? Might consumers demand that corporations use their influence to impact change in the exclusive industry?

 

It’s clear that commitment to racial and ethnic diversity has dwindled in recent years at White advertising agencies and corporations. Yet consumer dedication remains steady.

 

MadMen character Don Draper once quipped, “If you don’t like what is being said, then change the conversation.” Hey, if you don’t like the lack of diversity in Adland, perhaps it’s time to invite consumers to join the conversation.

 

Brand activism—over half of consumers not interested in hearing companies’ political and social stances

 

Brands might be better off supporting their employees rather than making public statements, Morning Consult finds

 

By Erika Wheless

 

A majority of Americans say brands should not take stands on social, corporate, or cultural issues—but a desire for companies to speak out is rising, especially among younger generations, according to a new report from Morning Consult. And some issues are more polarizing than others: General statements about diversity in the workforce have widespread support, but there is less support for backing LGBTQ+ rights, especially among older Americans.

 

The report is based on a survey of roughly 20,000 U.S. adults between August 2019 and Sept. 2023. In 2023, the survey found that 53% of respondents said corporations should not get involved in political or cultural issues, while almost 30% said corporations should take a stand. In 2019, 61% of respondents said corporations should not get involved while 19 percent said they should take a stand, according to the survey. (The remaining respondents said they don’t care or don’t know.)

 

Support for corporate activism grew among younger consumers in the wake of the 2020 killing of George Floyd, and sentiments have stayed that way, according to Joanna Piacenza, head of industry intelligence at Morning Consult. Among millennials and Gen Z, 41% say corporations should use their influence to impact political and corporate issues, up from 27% in 2019. Support among Gen X and baby boomers is also growing but remains well below 50%—just 17% of boomers are supportive, with support among Gen X is at 23%.

 

For marketers speaking to a broad audience, this presents a damned if you do, damned if you don’t scenario. But the report also outlines what issues consumers care about the most: often what’s happening internally at a company.

 

It’s what’s on the inside that counts

 

Across generations, how a company treats its employees and customers is a paramount issue. The report found that roughly 9 in 10 Americans said that it’s important that companies they buy from take care of their employees, have products readily available, and always do what’s best for customers, even in challenging times.

 

The data showed that internal company actions resonated with customers more than external advocacy —71% of consumers said they viewed a company as more favorable if they paid their employees well; 69% said they viewed a company as more favorable if a company was known to be a place where employees liked to work; 66% liked if the company paid men and women equally; 65% liked if it made goods in America; and 60% cared if the company supported the U.S. military.

 

“There is a ‘keeping your own house in order’ feel that consumers have toward brands,” Piacenza said. “Brands should be doing more to show their benefits or highlight why their employees are happy. Treating workers well is its own form of good advertising because then you aren’t risking an angry employee going viral about you online.”

 

The actions with the least impact on a brand’s favorability included supporting the Me Too movement, advocating for gay rights, supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, advocating for transgender rights and advocating for stricter abortion policies.

 

External issues

 

If brands are going to issue public statements, there are five issues that consumers feel that brands are able to speak about: support for the police, diversity in the workforce, climate change and the environment, women’s rights and gender equality and voting rights. Race and racism in America was the sixth-most popular topic, with 67% of U.S. adults saying that brands are able to speak about it. But this was a topic that had the greatest difference between the general population and Gen Z, with 73% of Gen Zers saying that corporations should issue public statements around race, compared to 56% of the general population.

 

Among the issues consumers want to hear about the least from brands is access to abortion and contraception, though that topic resonated with nearly 60% of millennials who want brands to speak out, compared with just 45% of the general population. Online censorship, LGBTQ+ rights, transgender rights and efforts to ban books were also among the issues consumers want to hear about the least from brands.

 

Bud Light and Target are among the brands that faced backlash this year among some consumers for LGBTQ+-related marketing campaigns and products.

 

Issues that U.S. consumers agree corporations should be taking a stance on include threats against U.S. democracy, the protection of government institutions, women’s rights, climate change and diversity and inclusion in the workplace, according to the report.

 

Piacenza notes that company statements around certain issues have to be specific, including how they phrase their stance. “We have women’s rights high up as an acceptable issue for brands to make public statements about, but abortion access is lower,” she said. “So if you are a more female-focused brand or a brand with a majority-female customer base, and you want to make a statement about the Dobb’s decision, you should phrase it as a women’s rights issue, not access to abortion.”

 

Why the divide

 

Majorities of Gen Z adults, millennials and Democrats said “a lot” or “some” corporate brands are in touch with the average American, compared with less than half of Gen Xers, boomers and Republicans who said the same. It’s another sign that younger and more liberal Americans see corporations drifting toward their own viewpoint, while older and more conservative Americans feel increasingly isolated from brands.

 

“If you believe that a brand aligns with your values and they take a stand, you’re more open to hearing from them,” Piacenza said. “But on the other hand, if you feel that you aren’t aligned, you don’t want to hear from them as much.”

 

A misalignment in values led to Bud Light’s woes, which began last April when conservatives complained about transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney posting about a custom can bearing her image, eventually leading to a steep sales decline. Morning Consult’s report found that roughly one in five Americans said they have boycotted a company over the past year for political reasons. Younger, college-educated, high-earning consumers, baby boomers, and Republican men are the most likely groups to boycott brands for political reasons.

 

“This really comes down to knowing your audience,” Piacenza said. “If you are unsure about taking a stance, keep your head down and go about your business.”

16428: Talkin’ ‘Bout My Generation, Gripin’ ‘Bout Your Generation.

 

The latest Digiday confessions series installment presents the professional perspectives and pet peeves of a communications executive in their early 30s who is managing a worker in their mid 60s. Of course, there are plenty of cutting counterpoints and vapid videos regularly published in advertising trade publications, wherein Old White Guys hype the value of experience and wisdom. It all underscores a reality that spans the generations: people in communications companies do a lousy job of communicating—especially with each other.

 

‘I find myself being their IT support’: Confessions of a team leader on the pressures of managing older workers

 

By Cloey Callahan

 

The workforce is ageing, and it’s raising new challenges. How do you work seamlessly with someone when there is a 30-year age gap while also steering clear of ageism?

 

Baby boomers – folks currently aged between 57 and 75 years old – are staying in the workforce for longer than people ever have before. So the gap between the ages of more seasoned workers, as well as those at the start of their careers will only widen further.

 

While multigenerational workforces are a must-have and an asset for any organization, at times, presumptions and miscommunications can lead to awkward moments. That goes doubly if you’re a young boss.

 

For the latest installment of our Confessions series, where we trade anonymity for candor, we spoke to a 33-year-old communications executive who manages someone in their mid-60s about the challenges they’re working on overcoming together.

 

This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

 

What is it like working with someone in their mid-60s?

 

Largely the average age group [at the company] is in their 30s. We’ve got some people who are about 10 years younger, and then we’ve only got a few people who are older. So the older generation is very much the minority within the whole agency, but they have been here from the very beginning. There’s one person who has been freelancing and came on full time. They’ve been put onto my team and there’s a significant [age] gap between us. It’s the biggest age gap I’ve ever had with someone I’m managing. It’s come with a whole different set of challenges that I’ve just never dealt with or had to think about before.

 

There’s a common stereotype about the older generation not being able to embrace technology. What has your experience been?

 

I’m hyperconscious of this because then I overanalyze that I’m being ageist and if I have an unconscious bias that older people don’t know how to use technology. But I do often have difficulty getting them up to speed with the software that we use and I find myself being their IT support a lot of the time. This person goes to great pains sometimes to explain to me that they lived through the age of moving on to email, so it’s not that they don’t know how to deal with new technology. It’s that the technology isn’t working for them. But I can’t help but notice that no one else in the whole team has these technical issues.

 

I really struggle with that because I have sympathy for it and I have time for it and I understand how frustrating it is. Something that frustrates me about going hybrid and working from home a lot is that everyone’s had to become IT specialists and that drives me bonkers. So I understand the struggle, but it’s frustrating to always hear that excuse as well as to why they can’t log on or that they’re late.

 

I ask him [the 60+ staffer] to share his screen and what to click and how to do it for software issues. But if it’s beyond that, I often pass it off to HR or IT support because it’s just taking up too much of my time. I need to just give the problem to someone who is more familiar with talking through systems and processes because it just takes me a really long time to figure it out. They do a much better job because they’re onboarding people all the time.

 

How have you changed your management style?

 

I’ve just had to become a lot bolder and confident with it. For a long time I was quite apprehensive and nervous to manage him in the way that I manage my other team members where I take the approach of just being super honest and firm, but fair. I was much more gentle because I was nervous about being ageist or saying the wrong thing or seeming patronizing to someone who is older than me. But I’ve come to realize in the last few weeks that actually that’s not fair on my other team members to see that I treat him differently. This person does seem to be performing better with stricter guidelines and they haven’t pushed back saying they know what’s what because they’re older than me. I need to just manage him the way that I would anybody else. That’s fairer than trying to adapt.

 

He does make me think about how we work. I see the value in the way that he works, which is technically a bit more old fashioned. But he gets good results often and proves that the way he would go about something is actually the right way. He just can be slow to get tasks done and I questioned if I can say ‘this is taking too long,’ and I really sounded it out. I realized like no, this is just taking too long, it missed the deadline. Of course I can say that.

 

You’re a millennial, but how do baby boomers and Gen Zers work together?

 

It hasn’t gone well and I’ve had to deal with that. It’s not that anyone has been rude to each other, but the generation gap was far too much and they couldn’t work together well. It’s more than a 40-year age gap and they could not find their rhythm. It was mutually recognized that they just couldn’t figure it out. With me, it’s more like 30 years and we can figure it out. We moved things around because the 20-somethings and 60-somethings just couldn’t finish the project together.

 

It was chaos. Different working styles and paces. He needs time to really sit with it and consider the meatier sides of the project, whereas the younger staffer was just like ‘let’s get it done,’ using tools and technology to move faster. They both said they felt like the other wasn’t listening. I do put that down to the age gap more than anything else. They didn’t seem to be able to just joke around with each other and have fun because ultimately they aren’t on the same page. Their references are too different. I hate sounding so broad strokes and stereotypical, but it did happen. That’s why I struggle with this topic.

14162: Dirty Old Freeman…?

Advertising Age reported Translink, the Vancouver transit system, put the brakes on using Morgan Freeman as a voiceover for rider announcements after the iconic actor was hit with allegations of inappropriate workplace behavior. One odd sentence in the Ad Age story reads: “Freeman joins several others of his generation, including Charlie Rose, Kevin Spacey and Jeffrey Tambor, who have faced similar accusations.” Is sexual harassment now a generational issue?

Vancouver transit silences Visa’s Morgan Freeman campaign

By Adrianne Pasquarelli

Allegations of inappropriate behavior are already costing Morgan Freeman at least one business relationship. TransLink, the Vancouver transit system, said Thursday that it is pausing its collaboration with the actor, just one day after announcing that Freeman will voice rider announcements this summer.

Freeman’s TransLink announcements are part of an ad campaign with Visa Canada for its tap-to-pay offering.

“In light of information we’ve learned this morning of allegations regarding actor Morgan Freeman, TransLink has decided to pause his voice announcements as part of a Visa ad campaign on our transit system,” TransLink said in a statement, adding that it will discuss the matter further with Visa.

A Visa spokeswoman did not immediately comment on the company’s relationship with Freeman.

On Thursday morning, CNN reported allegations that Freeman engaged in inappropriate behavior, including making sexual comments about female employees and creating a toxic work environment at Revelations Entertainment, the company he runs with business partner Lori McCreary. Freeman joins several others of his generation, including Charlie Rose, Kevin Spacey and Jeffrey Tambor, who have faced similar accusations.

Freeman’s publicist did not respond to a request for comment.

Freeman’s well-recognized baritone is frequently heard in commercial voiceovers for brands including Visa. The actor also recently starred in a high-profile Super Bowl spot for Mtn Dew. He has served as the narrator for documentaries such as the Academy Award-winning “March of the Penguins” and hosts National Geographic’s “The Story of God.”

National Geographic did not respond to a request for comment.

Freeman’s Mtn Dew ad has not aired on TV since May 14, according to iSpot. A representative from PepsiCo, which owns the soda brand, confirmed that the talent rights for the ad expired.

Several spots in Visa’s “Everywhere you want to be” campaign that use Freeman’s voice, including “Party” and “Banana Boat,” are currently airing, according to iSpot. The actor is also voicing Visa’s FIFA World Cup campaign, which stars soccer star Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Two years ago, Freeman provided the voiceover for an ad in Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. In the spot, he asks, “Our children are looking to us. What example will we set?”

Contributing: E.J. Schultz, Jeanine Poggi

12107: Old Ad-Guys™ = Old White Guys.

Tucked in the AgencySpy comments insisting Millennials are the root cause of unhappiness in the advertising industry is a link for Old Ad-Guys™—an apparent startup labeling itself as “a network of senior industry guys and gals who still love the business.” The site unintentionally verifies the label in a number of ways:

1. The design and user experience is crude—and that’s being polite—indicating the elder creators are digitally ignorant.

2. There is an overall lack of transparency, as no one is identified and the pay scheme is fuzzy—a sure-fire characteristic of old school, political dinosaurs.

3. The enterprise fosters exclusivity, only interested in hiring people with at least 20 years of experience—which will probably perpetuate the dearth of diversity poisoning our industry (as well as present high overhead costs).

4. Sorry, but the work sucks. It’s a bunch of contrived bullshit. Unfortunately, this flies in the face of the company’s premise that “experience is everything.” Younger, cheaper and less experienced creatives could produce results not significantly worse than the predictable dreck Old Ad-Guys™ offer.

The site states: “Our goal is to create a permanent agency, with permanent salaries and ultimately a network of Ad Guy agencies across the country and North America.” Um, it sounds like Old Ad-Guys™ wants to erect yet another mcgarrybowen, JWT, Zimmerman or any other traditional shop run by Old White Guys.

12106: WTF UWG AWXI Ad.

Wonder if anyone seeing this advertisement in the 2014 Official Guide for Advertising Week will know—or care—who UWG is. And why is the agency thanking Advertising Week for celebrating the culture in all of us? The seminar and workshop for LGBT and Hispanics appear to be the standard fare—that is, it’s the stuff attendees ignore. Hell, Millennials, Boomers and White Women will get far more attention than minorities this week.

12045: Digiday’s Boomer Flip-Flop.

Digiday published a report titled, “The Boomers in 5 charts: Marketers, ignore them at their own risk”—presenting an argument for targeting the elder audience. Yet whenever the blog comments on boomer adpeople, it illustrates stories with the most unflattering, stereotypical images possible—or verbalizes disrespect and disdain for veteran employees—ultimately displaying a hugely anti-boomer attitude bordering on ageism. On the flip side, Digiday takes every opportunity to praise and even award millennials. Wonder if the Digiday staff reflects the diversity of the major high-tech companies they revere—and/or matches the exclusivity of the traditional advertising agencies they abhor.

12028: Old White Guys Endangered?

Campaign published a piece by High50 Editor-in-Chief Stefano Hatfield titled, “Talking about my generation,” which examined the growing and potentially profitable “superboomers” being ignored by most advertisers. Wondering why brands are not actively wooing an audience that controls 79 percent of U.K. disposable wealth, Hatfield speculated the following:

Can it be as simple as the fact that the average age of an employee in the UK ad industry is 33 (IPA Agency Census 2013) or that only 6 per cent of its employees are over 50?

Wow, 50-year-old employees are yet another minority in the ad game—although excluding mcgarrybowen, it’s unlikely that the elder workers control 79 percent of Madison Avenue’s disposable wealth. Then again, the holding company honchos might control over 79 percent of the wealth. Regardless, given that the U.K. advertising industry appears to mirror the U.S. advertising industry in terms of diversity, it’s safe to presume the boomer percentages hold up for American adpeople as well. In short, Old White Guys may be the industry’s new endangered species.

Sound the alarms! Order the Chief Diversity Officers and Diversity Development Advisory Committee members to start scouring inner-city assisted living facilities and nursing homes for candidates pronto. Why hasn’t the 3% Conference launched a 6% Conference spin-off (hell, Cindy Gallop could run the thing alongside her porn program)? The AAF can add grey to its Mosaic Center, while the 4As introduces GAIP—Geriatric Advertising Intern Program. ADCOLOR® should hand out a Silver Fox Award presented by AARP and Depend. And God only knows what senior citizens like Dan Wieden, Jeff Goodby and Sir John Hegarty could bring to the party. Battle stations, boomers!

12026: Whines Of A “Veteran” Writer.

Digiday published a puff piece titled, “Confessions of a journalist moonlighting as a native ad writer: ‘I’m not proud’”—an interview with an alleged “veteran freelance writer who has written for top women’s magazines and other national publications.”

Slaving on native advertising is such an angst-ridden struggle for the writer. When asked why she/he is doing it, the suffering scribe replied, “It would be called debt. I’m getting $500 a day. It was the same as a [journalism] job I had a couple years ago. And the reality is, it’s a whole lot easier. I’m doing a job, and I’m not dealing directly with the client. I feel like I’m writing in a vacuum.” Um, $500 per day sounds like a pretty sweet deal for even a “veteran”—especially when there are plenty of entry-level writers who would do the job for less. What’s more, a millennial worker would probably not do much worse than the “veteran” in terms of content quality. It is native advertising, after all, which the “veteran” called “the lowest common denominator” of assignments.

When asked why she/he doesn’t want byline credit on native advertising, the “veteran” remarked, “Because it’s not work I’m proud of. It’s not anything remotely interesting. But I was at [a major news organization] and didn’t put my name on many stories. If I were writing stories for dumb women’s magazines, I wouldn’t want my name on many stories, either.” Gee, perhaps the long-time freelancer is a tad burned out and disillusioned with her/his career. Native advertising sounds like the perfect way to slide along and pay the bills for this hack.

Another peculiar statement from the “veteran” read, “I’m getting too old to make a living from my body, so I’ve got to make a living from my pen!” Is she/he a prostitute on the side? And is she/he still actually writing with a pen?

In reference to the state of freelancing, the “veteran” whined, “I despise it. It’s not worth my energy. They’re paying much less money for stupid stories. The Daily Beast is paying $300 for an article. It’s offensive. That’s what the Internet has done.” Ah, yes, the evil World Wide Web has squashed all the opportunities for old school writers who pine for the days of print. Sounds as if the “veteran” must accelerate the efforts on her/his blockbuster screenplay or Great American Novel pronto. Do the rest of society a favor and help a 20-something escape their Starbucks barista gig to take over the terrible $500-a-day purgatory of native advertising.

11825: Crazy Dork & Mindy.

As predicted, CBS series The Crazy Ones persuaded Pam Dawber to embarrass herself on the pathetic program. There’s something about this scenario that accurately reflects the real advertising industry; that is, the prevalence of irrelevant people (e.g., Dawber and Robin Williams) seeking to regain or prove their relevance in pitiful fashion. It’s like watching a washed-out athlete well beyond his/her prime still struggling to stay in the game. The Crazy Ones is AMC series The Pitch, performed by C-grade celebrities. Stop the sadness.

11040: Do Boomers Matter?

From The New York Times…

Why Don’t Advertisers Care About Me Anymore?

By Eric Nagourney

Greetings. You people are all irrelevant.

Well, let’s not paint with too broad a brush. Almost all of you are irrelevant. You 48-year-old boomers bringing up the generational rear? You may have as much as a year left of mattering. Then you, too, will slip out of the 18-to-49 demographic that advertisers most want and TV programmers cater to.

Ouch.

Why? you may well be asking. Why? I do my part. I can consume with the best of them. There is a good chance I am earning more now than I ever have before. And there are so many of us boomers. Why ignore us?

It’s not that none of you are pierced or tattooed (though if you are, here’s betting there’s a good back story). And it’s not that you don’t buy lots of stuff. It’s just that, Summer of Love generation — how can we put this? You are not very good at playing hard to get.

Advertisers know where you are, and they’ll get to you when they get to you. Your generation is watching five to six hours of TV a day, as much as an hour or so more than the national average, The Wall Street Journal reported. And though boomers are hardly averse to using digital recording devices or streaming shows, many still engage in “appointment TV.” That means that if “Seinfeld” is on at 9 p.m. Thursday, you will be dutifully sitting on your couch at 8:55 — though if you were planning to do that this week, we have some bad news for you.

“The boomers are an important audience, but boomers are a little easier to find, because they probably watch TV in a more traditional way,” said John C. Verret, an associate professor at the Boston University College of Communication. That’s a polite way of saying that for advertisers, it’s like shooting fish in a barrel — chubby fish with bad knees and AARP discount cards.

Those 18- to 49-year-olds, on the other hand, have an air of mystery that advertisers can’t resist. You can never be sure where to find them, and when they do, advertisers pay for the privilege.

So in 2010, when “Dancing With the Stars” managed to pull ahead of “American Idol,” it didn’t really help ABC’s bottom line, Bill Carter noted in The New York Times. “Dancing” viewers were older than “Idol” viewers, so even if there were more of them, a 30-second commercial on the first show cost about $209,000, compared with $642,000 on the second.

Herbert Jack Rotfeld, a professor in the marketing department at Auburn University in Alabama, said in an e-mail that advertisers liked the younger viewers because “in general they are the ages at which people are most willing to change the past way of doing things.”

He continued, “Since advertising often tries to attract new customers, or get prior customers to buy more often, younger people are more likely to make this happen.” But advertisers often put too much faith in younger audiences, and when they do they risk losing older customers, Professor Rotfeld said.

It’s not just a matter of energy drinks and headphones. Twenty-year-olds might not have much disposable income, but sooner or later they may be buying cars and washing machines, and advertisers want to lay claim to their loyalties now.

There is evidence that some of this may be changing. As audiences age, The Journal noted, TV shows are increasingly featuring older characters. And advertisers may be starting to realize that baby boomers appear more open to change than older consumers once were. But boomers are unlikely to emerge fully from the shadow of younger viewers.

Don’t feel too bad. We had our moment. “When the boomers were younger,” recalled Professor Vetter, who was in the business for 29 years, “we were really hammering them.”

9997: WTF DDB NY.

DDB NY demonstrates extraordinary cultural cluelessness with this PSA hyping safe sex to seniors. Could there possibly be a more irrelevant—and downright ignorant—way to communicate to the audience? DDB NY CCO Matt Eastwood said, “It was important for us that our creative response felt empowering to the 55, 60, 65+ demographic. Whether the younger generation likes it or not, our grandparents are having sex. We wanted to make a sexy ad that maintains a level of tastefulness and encourages seniors to enjoy their sex lives—safely.” Yo, douche bag, you failed miserably. The spot feels like the perverted fantasy of a drunken frat boy. Oddly enough, the key creatives responsible for this shameful shit are women. Somebody sign up these assholes for The Pitch. And why is the Black granny depicted with multiple partners?

9647: Energy Drinks To Target Grandma.

From The New York Daily News…

Energy drink market to target senior citizens in 2012 as way to experience more active lifestyle

‘Cheers’ actor John Ratzenberger to hawk energy drinks to the 60+ set

AFP RELAXNEWS

The energy drink market will experience a significant change in 2012, with beverage makers shifting their focus away from younger demographics to senior citizens, and consumers seeking out natural sources of liquid energy over sugar-loaded, canned beverages, predicts a consumer research institute.

Traditionally marketed towards younger consumers, the energy drink market will slowly wake up to the fact that it has been neglecting an even bigger consumer market in the over-60, retired crowd and become increasingly popular among seniors, predicts The Values Institute at DGWB in California.

Take for instance 5-Hour Energy’s partnership with actor John Ratzenberger, best known for his role as Cliff Clavin in the 1980s sitcom Cheers, the report points out.

At the beginning of 2011, the company which produces pocket-sized energy drinks enlisted Ratzenberger to hawk the product as a restorative pick-me-up for a senior citizen crowd keen to maintain an active lifestyle.

Unlike energy drinks, energy shots come in portable 2-ounce or 50 ml bottles that deliver a powerful shot of caffeine in a few sips. Brands like 5-Hour, Rockstar, 6 Hour Power and NOS Power contain as much caffeine as their larger counterparts like Red Bull, Monster and Lucozade, only in concentrated formulas and less calories.

Common ingredients include stimulants like caffeine and herbs like guarana, ginseng or gingko biloba.

Meanwhile, the energy drink market also has the potential to swing the other way, says the same report, with more and more consumers seeking out energy boosts the all-natural way through foods and ingredients like green tea extract, vitamins, whole grains and fresh fruit.

Juice bars like Jamba Juice and Booster Juice, for instance, sell natural, fruit-based energy shots and are enjoying rising popularity, while Starbucks recently announced plans to move from java to juice after acquiring juicery Evolution Fresh, based in California.

More consumers will also adopt the “Flexitarian” lifestyle in 2012, the report says, as they voluntarily reduce their meat intake for health reasons. The rising popularity of Meatless Mondays, an initiative developed in association with John Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Public Health, is offered as a prime example of the rise of the part-time vegetarian.

User-generated online recipe site Allrecipes.com also cited Flexitarians as a rising trend that will change the way home cooks eat in 2012.

9484: Fake Fidelity Ads Show True MAS.

This fake campaign for Fidelity by Miami Ad School students shows once again that the instructors are irresponsible hacks—while the kids are inexperienced hacks. Ironically, the instructors will likely live quite well in their retirement years, while the graduates will be saddled with student loan debt and probably never know financial solvency and security.



From Ads of the World.

9333: Stuff Betty White People Like.

No comment.

9204: Create Cross-Cultural Mentoring.

Advertising Age published a column on cross-generational mentorships, whereby coworkers of different age groups hook up to allegedly teach each other about 21st century life and the ad business. Sounds like a scheme hatched by Old White Guys to help them create the illusion that they’re still relevant—while also allowing them the opportunity to hook up in other ways with hot newbies. Worse yet, the piece was written by a talent recruiter, which puts a greater irrelevant spin on the perspective. Whatever.

Yet has anyone considered cross-cultural mentorships? And no, it’s not anything related to the cross-cultural con artistry hyped by places like Draftfcb. Rather, let’s connect culturally clueless White people with people of color. Ship Dan Wieden to Uniworld and Jeff Goodby to GlobalHue. Organize a Texas-based exchange program between Sanders\Wingo and The Richards Group. Hey, White ad people love minority internships. So let them experience one versus simply making meager monetary donations.

8742: Clowning Around.

A midweek MultiCultClassics Monologue…

• 50 Cent is launching a comedy site, with proceeds going to Japan’s relief fund. Um, is this an apology for his “comedic response” to the disaster in Japan?

• The White House released a copy of President Obama’s birth certificate. In a press conference, President Obama said, “I know there is going to be a segment of people for which no matter what we put out this issue will not be put to rest. But I am speaking to the vast majority of the American people, as well as to the press. We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We’ve got better stuff to do.” Donald Trump offered this silly response: “I am really honored and I am really proud, that I was able to do something that nobody else could do.” Apparently, not everyone has better stuff to do.

• A new poll showed Baby Boomers do not have major age-related problems in the workplace. According to the poll, 61 percent say their age is not an issue at work, and 25 percent think it is an asset. The figures do not apply at all to the advertising industry.

8370: JCP OMG U SUCK.

Note to JCP Teen: If you hope to appear credible to teens, stop creating messages that feel like the work of old hacks. Just a thought.

8300: Old, Mean Girls.

From The Chicago Sun-Times…

Bullying among senior citizens getting more common

Social workers, recreation-center officials and others who work with the elderly say bullying among senior citizens is getting more common.

As the retirement population increases and more people enter care homes and retirement centers “it’s a pretty big deal,” said Melanie Starns, an assistant Arizona Department of Economic Security director overseeing the Aging and Adult Services Division.

“The mean girls were there in school and as we get older, they are still around,” she said.

Robin Bonifas, a gerontology expert at Arizona State University, estimates that 10 percent to 20 percent of older people in care homes experience some type of abuse from fellow residents.

Doris Lor, 76, said despite repeated complaints to the director of her homeowners association in Chandler, Ariz, she still can’t get a seat at a card table, gets the cold shoulder at the women’s club and has been chased away from seats at the community pool.

“No matter where you go, even if you pay for the activity, the clique saves all the seats,” Lor said.

8050: Non-White Issues From Ad Age.

The latest Advertising Age is titled The Consumer Issue, focused on the ever-changing marketplace that Madison Avenue continues to be clueless about. The coverage includes the usual suspects and topics. IW Group Chairman-CEO Bill Imada explains the potential of Asian American consumers. GlobalHue VP Najoh Tita-Reid discusses assimilation’s effect on the mythical American Melting Pot. Pepper Miller and others seek to redefine “urban” as meaning more than inner-city Blacks. Bradley Johnson presents a personal and professional perspective on connecting with the LGBT market. Plus, there are stories on tweens, mommies, Gen Y and Baby Boomers.

Kudos to Ad Age for continuing to spotlight non-White affairs. Yet it is both mind-boggling and unfortunate that cases must be made again and again for marketing to diverse audiences—although maybe not surprising, as there is a constant need to make a case for diversity.