Skittles Savant

WARNING: I feel like I may soon experience hyperglycemic shock due to an excessive consumption of Crazy Core Skittles today. Therefore, I apologize in advance for the hyperactive nature of this post.

Now that you’ve received fair warning, I am INFATUATED with Skittles.

I get absolutely giddy when delicately bursting into a package of fruity goodness. The colors, the aroma, the texture, the taste. I am overwhelmed by the aesthetically pleasing and appetizing treat! My roommates enjoy making fun of my childish exuberance for the hard, sugar-shelled candy, but I just can’t contain my excitement.

Imagine my reaction when I discovered the content-rich, eccentric Skittles.com. Holy double rainbow—authentic, engaging content created by one of my favorite brands.  I immediately fell into an interactive marketing-induced euphoria.

Once revived from my intense state of transcendent happiness, I explored the rainbow-themed site. Staying true to its friendly, quirky self, the Skittles’ brand invited me to “Taste the rainbow” by scrolling down. The site eschews typical navigation in favor of a single, endless website—similar to a rainbow.

As I explored, I found content ranging from an offbeat YouTube video to a picture of a clown in an astronaut suit. All the content can be shared through Facebook and Twitter. One of my favorite posts, “Sometimes I think peninsulas are just islands that aren’t trying hard enough” received 15,131 Facebook “likes” and generated 902 comments.

These stellar stats are a common occurrence for the site. A status stating, “Wouldn’t it be great if elevators replaced all their buttons with a single Surprise Me button?” garnered 16, 294 “likes” and 1,338 comments.

As my sugar coma approaches, I’ll conclude with a final, exclamatory thought: Bravo Big Spaceship for creating an interactive, innovative site that remains loyal to the brand’s essence. 

12 BU Advertising Majors explore NYC Ad Agencies

Spring Break 2011 WOO!

Although not the typical booze cruise most envision when I say the phrase “Senior Year Spring Break,” I, along with 11 other ad junkies, ventured to the big city to explore the glitz and glam of Madison Ave.*

Boston University Advertising Professors, Tobe Berkovitz and Christopher Cakebread, organized visits to six leading agencies in NYC:

• Publicis
• BBDO Worldwide
• Grey Group
• McGarryBowen
• Digitas
• Big Spaceship

In an effort to spot a Don Draper look-a-like, I flip cammed most of the trip. After meticulously  reviewing the footage, I concluded that Don Draper flew to Punta Cana with the rest of BU for the week. Sad days.

Good news though! As a result of my quest, I stumbled upon some great advice from ad industry insiders as well as my classmates’ reactions to the agency visits. Take a look!

*Disclaimer: None of the agencies were actually located on Madison Ave, but the spaces were super swanky and creative. More on the decor in my next post.