I for certain am not an ad critic. However, I find the Vanilla Coke ad one of the better campaigns running on television at the present time. It not only captures the viewer’s interest, it also manages to keep you intrigued for the entire 30 seconds – which is not a long time but can feel like an eternity.

To say, ‘A job well done for the Coke creative team’ would be an understatement.

Stephanie Gouveia

Media Supervisor

Griffin Bacal Volny

Toronto, Ont.

I hear you!

Gotta be ‘Can you hear me now?’ – especially the one in the empty stadium. Good!

The television ad for Verizon Wireless starts slightly out of focus, the background noise is similar to that of a teeter totter (it turns out to be stadium seating), along with the well-known ‘Can you hear me now? …Good!’ The front man, complete with cellphone, is eventually brought into focus and he is pictured moving from seat to seat in a vast and completely empty stadium.

Verizon’s series of ads are innovative and catchy. I’m always waiting for the next location or twist. Although they have a high frequency, they don’t come across as repetitive or offensive. And I certainly can’t resist making ‘Can you hear me now? …Good!’ a part of my day.

(Verizon is) Not available in Canada? Pity.

Gerald Zak

Marketing director

S.I.R. Mail Order & Sports Store

Winnipeg, Man.

Brand that’s hurting

due to bad ads?

Answer: Rogers cable. They have the worst advertising when it comes to their cable network and trying to get people to purchase their packages.

The ones with the nuns (which I personally find very offensive) and the ‘odd’ couple are particularly terrible. Their ‘return your satellite if you…’ ads don’t do much either in terms of getting people interested in their company.

Rogers should try concentrating on advertising the actual programs and/or channels with sample viewing to entice people. Audiences are much more sophisticated today and many remotes have that mute button – which I know gets used quite a bit at my place when their adverts come on.

Just my opinion.

Micheline St. Clair

Manager, Database Marketing Solutions

Burlington, Ontario