When it comes to marketing, I’m one critical person, and sometimes too critical. This can be bad, though sometimes good. Lately, I have been noticing and critiquing Ally Bank’s television commercials and have to admit — I love them! This is very rare for me to say, but I am being absolutely honest. I think their marketing campaign ideally positions the bank in a time when banks are frowned upon and not trusted. The commercials establish trust and a sense of transparency that I have not seen before. In business, transparency is extremely important.

Advertising is one of the few aspects of a business that needs to really, and I mean really, be impeccable. There is no cutting corners, saving a buck, and settling for less. If you can’t go big, go home. Over the years, I’ve run across many clients that allocate just enough money to reserve an ad slot (television or print), but do not factor in the cost of graphic design or video production. At the last minute, there is a mad dash to collect additional funds so the advertisement will come out halfway decent. This is not the proper way to plan a marketing campaign and such should be calculated far in advance.

As the title says, I’ve come to the conclusion that bus stop advertisements, namely the ones that appear on the rear of benches, are truly a joke, especially in populated cities. Really, what’s the point? More than 90% of the time people are sitting at the bus stop; their bodies cutting off the punch line of a cheesy ad. For the other 10% of the time, the ad isn’t visible due to graffiti, urban mobile homes (shopping carts), etc. This is the sad reality. I sit here now, recollecting cloudy days gone by, and I think to myself: when has a bus stop advertisement ever caught my attention? The answer — NEVER.