Comments on: Your Thoughts: The Idaho Lottery

By: laughing at Davies Moore

laughing at Davies Moore — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:12:30 +0000

Sooo I just stumbled upon these ads on the Idaho Lotto site http://www.idaholottery.com/idahoraffle/

WOW – HORRIBLE. Its sad that these got on air. I bet the board that picked Davies Moore…a fresh company (since the merger) are just kicking themselves…Drake would have knocked it out of the park…so sad.

By: Unidentified Sissy

Unidentified Sissy — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:23:56 +0000

They oughtta just re-run the old “Grandma’s got some hot balls!” campaign. That was brilliant!

Seriously though, and to echo Not Anonymous’s sentiment, why aren’t there more opportunities to criticize local work on this blog? This obsession with the Idaho Lottery & Davies/Moore seems awfully lopsided and really smacks of sour grapes.

To put this in context (it’s about selling, lest we forget George Parker’s sermon), the Lottery’s raffle promotion will sell every ticket, no matter what. It’s a great economy for lottery sales, after all. So really, what’s the point of putting any extra effort into these spots?

Sure, the new spots aren’t great, but they aren’t terrible either. They’re solidly in the middle of the spectrum, above “yuck” and below “meh,” right along with 99% of all the world’s advertising. We’ve all done far worse in our careers, and we know it.

So let’s all cut Davies/Moore some slack. Yeah, they’ve got their issues, but so does every other agency. I can’t think of a single shop that hasn’t had some major mishap in the past. Singling out D/M’s work because of a high-profile client win is specious at best.

If we’re really looking for open, fruitful dialog about the local ad scene, then let’s get some more local work up here on the chopping block. And with some actual audio & video, please.

By: Trying to be Civil

Trying to be Civil — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:51:16 +0000

Great agencies can execute great ideas no matter what the budget. If the Lottery spots were funny or clever, we wouldn’t care that the lighting or acting was sub-par. In fact, the crude production value might have even added something to it.

I saw a TV spot for Betty Boop scratch-offs last night and the VO was so screechy and bad it sent me diving for the remote.

And the “hurry, going fast” message doesn’t work when they’re “going fast” for weeks and weeks.

DM and the Lottery both took big risks here. DM by making its entrance with a high-profile account (and fumbling it), and the Lottery by going with the lowest bidder. I’m sure they both learn from their mistakes.

By: Not Anonymous

Not Anonymous — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:56:10 +0000

Please. This is a thinly-veiled invitation to bash DM — perhaps as a nod to Drake Cooper? The ads in my opinion reflect the client’s decision to go with the lowest bidder. I’m sure they are working under a much smaller budget. I don’t see an open invitation to post on, say, the Idaho Dairymen campaign. Too sacred?

By: Edward

Edward — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:37:11 +0000

Doug -

So, I guess you’re saying that DaviesRourke was inept (despite their 54 year history in Idaho) and MMG is arrogant? I would love to here further how you came to these conclusions. If I (or any other member of the DM family) have displayed arrogance to you personally I would also like the chance to apologize. Feel free to contact me directly at edward@daviesmoore.com or (208) 472-7460. I look forward to listening to your thoughts.

Edward

By: Doug

Doug — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:39:46 +0000

Brian, are you trying to make it sound like you weren’t looking for a catfight? I understand blog rating books are coming out soon.

By: Doug

Doug — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:04:23 +0000

Geraldo?…Can we be?….Copywriter?…Trying to be?… Unidentified commenting is for sissies.

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:44:39 +0000

Just a reminder folks, let’s keep it civil.

By: Geraldo

Geraldo — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:43:16 +0000

These spots are truly pathetic. There is fresher stuff on youtube. The camera work is unremarkable. The acting is well, acting. Voice over…forgettable. Concept…confusing. Pay off? None. Not sure the agency is very well rounded with all types of media. Somebody’s brother-in-law is now doing tv spots.

By: Doug

Doug — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:38:04 +0000

Sorry, that Geo Parker thing is still in my mind from a few weeks ago.

By: Doug

Doug — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:32:19 +0000

I’ve never seen the work. But gauged from these comments…. Sounds like what happens when ineptitude is ( merged ) with arrogance.

I’d like to get a job in this town, but it will probably never happen now.

By: Can we be honest?

Can we be honest? — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 02:19:26 +0000

The new ticket spots aren’t good. They’re confusing, not funny and, worst of all, not very memorable. As others have noted, it would be very difficult to top all of the work done by Drake over the past decade. (That said, I think Drake was having a tough time out-doing itself there towards the end.) The only chance at success the new shop had was to do something very different, but who knows if the client would allow that.

Finally, I thought the spot with Brade Duke was kind of funny, but also kind of mean-spirited in a neener-neener I’m rich sort of way. It highlighted the fact that the lottery is just gambling. That seems like a bad strategy.

By: copywriter

copywriter — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:27:35 +0000

Is that a member of the fool squad in the suit? I don’t really get if they are real surprise-people-in-the-street or scripted. If it’s the former, I think the interactions could be more interesting/weird, and the visual style should be more telling. If it’s the latter, it could have been a much funnier script, with more of a unified message. The video editing seems to lag a bit too. Like everything is just one second longer than it should be. But seriously, Drake Cooper would be a tough act to follow. (I do not work for Drake Cooper.)

By: Trying to be Civil

Trying to be Civil — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:10:16 +0000

I’m not a fan. I don’t really get the ads. I can’t tell if they’re trying to be campy, dorky or genuinely funny. I also think they could have put more care into production – the lighting on the TV spots is really bad, for example. There’s also a major disconnect between the TV spots and their colorful “Wooh!” sign-offs (left over from Drake if memory serves).