The document is a newsletter from The Russo Group, a branding and marketing agency. It includes the following: - A summary of the TV show Mad Men and how it depicts the evolution of branding from focusing on product features to emotional benefits for consumers. - A case study of how Don Draper's pitch for Kodak emphasized nostalgia and emotional connection rather than just product details, representing an evolution in advertising. - Brief articles about upcoming campaigns from Nike and reviews of the TV show Mad Men from marketing experts. - A mention of looking for "bright ideas" and innovation in marketing for 2008.

1. Revelation THE NEWSLETTER OF
THE RUSSO GROUP
VOLUME ONE - NUMBER SEVEN
The Russo G r oup is a b r a nd i ng a nd i n t eg r a t ed ma r ket i ng a genc y f oc used on RE SU LTS.
Revelations on Madness
IN THIS ISSUE:
FEATURE ARTICLE: A Ride on the Carousel
I spent this past Sunday watching the season premier of MAD MEN, a series
revolving around the fictional world of Creative Director, Don Draper,
and his colleagues at the Sterling Cooper Ad Agency.
RUSSO PROFILE
Hi, my name is Stacey. I am an account executive. I have one daughter.
My husband is an artist. I love my family. I read the New Yorker weekly.
I enjoy debates. I like pirate paraphernalia – I’ve had the same red bandana
since a family trip to Indiana when I was 6 years young.
A RUSSO RESULTS CASE STUDY: No. 00590-08
Radio Campaign: Tsunami Sushi
GALLERY R DOWNTOWN SPOTLIGHT
Gallery R, located in the Russo building in the heart of downtown Lafayette,
is committed to the work of both emerging and established local artists
throughout South Louisiana.
Next month’s featured artist – Lucius Fontenot
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PAG E O N E

2. Revelation
A RIDE ON THE CAROUSEL
Where we’ve been, and where we still need to go –
I spent this past Sunday watching the season premier of MAD MEN, a series revolving around the fictional world of Creative Director, Don
Draper, and his colleagues at the Sterling Cooper Ad Agency. If you have yet to catch the show I will catch you up to speed. Basically, the
show is about a Madison Avenue ad agency during the 1960’s. There is lots of smoking, drinking, womanizing, dysfunctional relationships,
stereotypes and occasionally – inside glimpses into one of the most revolutionary and transitional times in American advertising.
Before this transitional period, agencies and businesses focused primarily on the features of a product, rather than the benefits that would
resonate with their target audiences. What the writers of MAD MEN, and our hero Mr. Draper do quite well, is show the early stages of
what we today call Branding - the ability to bring emotional connections between the consumer and the product. While this evolution did
little to improve the human race as a whole, in the world of advertising and business – it was nothing less than revolutionary.
Continued Next Page
The Sour Side of Branding :
US: 25 POUNDS OF DRAINED THEM: NOT SO MUCH.
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YO U C A N T H R O W YO U R P I C K L E M O N E Y D O W N T H E D R A I N O R YO U C A N H AV E 2 5 P O U N D S O F D R A I N E D W E I G H T P I C K L E S .
APPROX. SLICE APPROX. SLICE NET DRAIN
ITEM NUMBER PACK/CASE SLICE THICKNESS COUNT/GALLON COUNT/(CASE OR PAIL) WEIGHT
600 ± 40 3000 ± 200 25 LBS MINIMUM
50201 1/5 GALLON 1/8” CRINKLE
Pickles by the Pound.
50001 1/5 GALLON 3/16” SMOOTH (REG.) 380 ± 25 1900 ± 125 25 LBS MINIMUM
50200(glass)
4/1 GALLON 600 ± 40 2400 ± 160 18 LBS MINIMUM
1/8” CRINKLE
50121(plastic)
We Guarantee a Drained Minimum Weight of 25 lbs. of Product.
Why do other brands declare only net 5 gallons on their label? Their drained weight is between 18 to 22 lbs.
Bottomline: You can reduce your pickle serving cost by a minimum of 13% if you buy Cajun Chef.
YO U D E C I D E .
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PAG E T WO

3. Revelation
Staying the Course... CONTINUED
What I find remarkable is that almost 50 years later, businesses and advertising aficionados still have a hard time wrapping
their heads around this concept. We give our consumers worn out messages that are tied to outdated delivery systems –
often forcing our agendas upon them. Today, customers are seizing control. They can no longer be manipulated with price
points, sales, discounts, promotions and endless lists of features that fail to connect with their daily lives.
A great example of this philosophical transformation comes during the season finale of MAD MEN from last year. The
episode concludes with Sterling Cooper presenting a pitch to Kodak for their new “wheel” slide projector. Our hero, Mr.
Draper, turns on the projector in a dark conference room and flips through slides of his family as he describes the emotional
connection this device brings to the consumer.
Don Draper: “Nostalgia - it’s delicate, but potent. Teddy told me that in Greek, “nostalgia” literally
means “the pain from an old wound.” It’s a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory
alone. This device isn’t a spaceship, it’s a time machine. It goes backwards, and forwards... it
takes us to a place where we ache to go again. It’s not called the wheel, it’s called the carousel. It
lets us travel the way a child travels - around and around, and back home again, to a place where
we know we are loved. “
Don could have easily talked about the Carousel’s ability to show multiple slides in a continuous fashion, as well as how
affordable this new technology was. Instead, he chose to dig deeper. He chose a message that would resonate with the
consumer, allowing them the opportunity to connect with the product in a way they had previously not experienced. It was
the beginning of an advertising revolution – a revolution that continues to work its way into the fabric of today’s advertising
and business communities.
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PAG E T H R E E

4. Revelation
INSIDE - R NEWS
NIKE PREPARES GLOBAL EFFORT
NEW YORK This week Nike pushes forth with what it is calling the largest campaign in the brand’s history. Based around the Olympics
in Beijing, Nike will debut a new global spot called “Courage,” continue to promote the Nike Hyperdunk shoe and launch the “Human
Race” event. Wieden + Kennedy is the client’s long-time lead agency. (Click here to read more)
LIPPERT’S CRITIQUE: ‘MAD MEN’
I caught up with the entire first season of MAD MEN this weekend by watching the DVD. The four-disc set for AMC’s first original
series starts with a JWT ad, which I found shocking. Oh, it looks great -- more of an opening graphic, really, which is silent and smart,
beautifully designed, and similar in style to the genius, Saul Bass-like opening sequence for the series itself. (In the hyper-stylized Mad
Men opening credits, a dark-suited businessman jumps out of a skyscraper window, and in slow motion falls past the skins of the city
buildings, on which are silhouetted ads for scotch and hosiery. It slyly mixes references to subliminal seduction, Alfred Hitchcock, Andy
Warhol and the whole American cultural nervous breakdown to come.) (Click here to read more)
BRIGHT IDEAS FOR 2008
Times change, of course, but the need for good ideas does not; technology and social mores merely influence how they look, while
innovation remains the immutable constant. So what are some of the hot new ideas in 2008? We went hunting and came back with the
ones featured here. Granted, this list is hardly comprehensive, and these ideas might not all be right for every brand. But each contains
the ingredient critical to any good marketing, cleverness, which solves any problem you’ve g