ATOMIC DESIGN

Now that Valentine’s Day is over give us the best, or the worst, Valentine’s Day marketing or promotional tie-in that you found? Provide link & example/screen shot/website.

I must say my heart went all a flutter when I heard the news. My sister and I used to talk about our dream concerts and if we could see anybody who would it be. Her choices were easy and attainable; Madonna (check), Back Street Boys (check), Prince (check)….

Mine; Led Zeppelin (Jimmy page with the Firm and Jason Bonham opening with Virginia Wolf was as close as I got), Jimmy Hendrix (nope) and leading the list the Police (nope). Now I have seen A LOT of concerts in my day including Sting 5 times (opening for the Grateful Dead in Buffalo, NY was interesting as was having Elton John join him at The Fox Theatre in Atlanta).

I missed the boat on The Police Though. I managed to catch Journey Frontiers Tour, Def Leppard, Pyromania and even saw the Kinks all around 1982-1984 ( I was 12-13 years old) thanks to friends parents taking us.

My parents went to NYC in 1983 and brought me home their fifth album Synchronicity. I loved it and The Police became my favorite band. I soon owned the entire discography just in time for the Police to break up. I eagerly awaited every Sting solo album and became a big fan of his.

I was always perturbed by rumors of petty differences and in-band fighting. Selfish me thought, “why can’t they put the differences a side and fulfill my concert wish and even record another album!”

Tomorrow I go online and hope I can secure pre-sale tickets. And not just any tickets - the best humanly possible! I will be competing with all of the ticket brokers and e-bay sellers drooling at the mouth on how much they can profit from this tour. In an ideal world true fans would have first dibs. All I am asking for as a fan is two tickets. God bless America and capitalism! Maybe I’ll buy two extras myself and resell them to cover my costs.

I waited nearly a quarter of a century. Hopefully the wait will be worth it!

Wish me luck!

Isn’t smart marketing meant to be subtle and noninvasive?

Marketing is supposed to cultivate attention and interest, not aggravation and disgust. Why then are these rules being ignored come Valentine’s Day?

Valentine’s day is a beautiful holiday that celebrates love and
relationship. Why does it have to be spoiled by substituting material things for love?

Men are being bombarded with messages from jewelers, florists, card and candy stores:

• “Get the woman in your life something she will really love. A diamond from our jewelry store”
• “Show her how much you love her with a diamond necklace”
• “This Valentine’s Day celebrate this journey with a diamond from our store”
• “He went to Jared”
• “Propose to your sweetheart live on News this Valentine’s Day”
• “Send Valentine’s Day Flowers”
• “This Valentine’s Day spice things up”

As a woman, I feel bad that men are being pressured year after year into buying expensive gifts to show their love and appreciation. Yes, all women LOVE receiving gifts, but its not the same when guys feel obligated to do so. American businesses create the hype for their products, putting pressure on people whether they are in a relationship or not.

If you don’t have a special one on Valentine’s Day, you are being
automatically excluded from the celebration. You feel insecure and isolated. Aren’t those days that we call “holidays” supposed to bring happiness and joy, not loneliness and sadness?!

Valentines Days stresses people out!

In this day and age where heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, do we really need to add more stress to our not so simple life.

Does bad marketing kill? Are we going overboard?