Who is Crispin Porter fooling?

[by Todd] Hi, I'm Todd, and I don't like Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

Oh, come on! Where's the support? Is everyone so taken with the "Craziest Ad Guys in America" that you have no tolerance for a little dissention?

I will gladly admit that CP+B is a powerful creative force. But every time I see their stuff it seems to suffer from too cool for you syndrom. In fact, several times I'm not sure anyone could even tell you what the product was.

What CP+B does do well is understand their clients' market -- so long as that group is 18- to 24-year-olds with broadband connections, and a tolerance for sophomoric humor.

Take the much heralded Subservient Chicken. It was dumb. While it was a nice piece of viral communication, I doubt seriously that it drove any increased in sales of chicken sandwiches at Burger King locations. Ditto with Sith Sense and Mini's Men of Metal.

If too many old-school agencies are to blame for beating consumers into submission with their hard-sell message, CP+B is guilty at the other end of the spectrum. They are creating a new generation of irrelevant branding. Their ads consistently lack any information of value about the products. And as their body of portfolio work grows, that absence is growing painfully obvious.

Which is not to say that I dislike all that CP+B does. The cornerstone of their approach is a critical departure from so many agencies today, controlling all the pieces. Virtually every interview I've read notes that CP+B won't work for clients where it can't control everything, from the creative to the media and even some of the POP.

That's critical, and too often overlooked by agencies that have strict definitions of the services they offer. Burger King's customers are the same, whether they're seeing a commercial or a tray liner. Why would anyone think having different messages for each touch point is a good idea?

I just wish CP+B would put a little more thought into the message and not just how cool the delivery is.

Update: If you haven't see it already, apparently even my own colleague thinks I'm nuts.

Comments

[Garrett]

What do you think of CP+B's new VW work, esp the TV ads showing car crashes to highlight the Jetta's high safety rating? Dealers say inquiries are up 50% and sales are 20%. That sounds pretty good to me.

And is it such a bad thing that they want to get involved in everything (like the way they changed the name of the VW Golf to the Rabbit to hopefully tap into a part of the history of the brand that drivers were more passionate about), given the fact that everything (not just the ads) have an impact on sales and the brand?

[Todd Copilevitz]

Garrett,

I'll take your last point first. My point is that every agency needs to get involved with all the details. Far, far too many agencies draw a strict boundary around their work and don't even look at the other pieces. So CP+B gets high marks from me for taking this firm approach.

I think the VW work has some potential. It is built upon solid insights and is clearly connecting with consumers. But how will they bridge this work with consumer interaction? I'll be curious to see if they can.

[Vivek Chaudhuri]

Crispin Porter by far is the most creative agency of today. They have repeatedly succeeded in grabing attention of audience; albeit a specific niche more so: the powerful consumers of tomorrow (16-30years old with access to broadband connection). Isn't it great that they have figured out the mantra of viral marketing along with other means that can achieve BUZZ for their clients. Our debate online about CP+B or their work is a strong testimony of CP+B's impact.

That being said, I totally agree there could be a concern for relevance of the brand itself(they promote) in their work. Most of their work is so engaging or/and entertaining that one tends to forget about the brand. But again, isn't this SUBTLE approach (that creates BUZZ Currency) the real mantra of getting the fast moving customers of 21st century who have access to new and ever improving technology.

Looking forward to more engaging discussions here. Liked your blog.

Thanks,
Viv

Vivek Chaudhuri
Partner, Edesigntree
Philadelphia, PA