Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly - S7E25 - Ask Terry 2018

Episode Date: June 21, 2018

This week, it’s our annual Ask Terry episode - where we answer listener questions on the air. From the inspiration behind our theme song, to why some commercials overstay their welcome, to whether lawn signs really affect elections, this year’s questions were fun and insightful. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly. As you may know, we've been producing a lot of bonus episodes while under the influences on hiatus. They're called the Beatleology Interviews, where I talk to people who knew the Beatles, work with them, love them, and the authors who write about them. Well, the Beatleology Interviews have become a hit, so we are spinning it out to be a standalone podcast series. You've already heard conversations with people like actors Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and Beatles confidant Astrid Kershaw. But coming up, I talk to May Pang, who dated John Lennon in the mid-70s. I talk to double fantasy guitarist Earl Slick, Apple Records creative director John Kosh. I'll be talking to Jan Hayworth,

who designed the Sgt. Pepper album cover. Very cool. And I'll talk to singer Dion, who is one of only five people still alive who were on the Sgt. Pepper cover. And two of those people were Beatles. The stories they tell are amazing. So thank you for making this series such a success. And please, do me a favor, follow the Beatleology interviews on your podcast app. You don't even have to be a huge Beatles fan, you just have to love storytelling. Subscribe now and don't miss a single beat. We'll see you next time. new locations. What matters is that you have something there to adapt with you, whether you need a challenge or rest. And Peloton has everything you need, whenever you need it. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca. From the Under the Influence digital box set, this episode is from, no, no.

You're not you when you're hungry. You're a good man with a heart. You're under the influence with Terry O'Reilly. Esther Pauline Friedman was born on July 4th, 1918. 17 minutes later, twin sister Pauline Esther Friedman was born on July 4th, 1918. Seventeen minutes later, twin sister Pauline Esther Friedman was born. The sisters were extremely close and grew up sharing clothes, purses, and dates. They both studied journalism and psychology and wrote a joint gossip column for the school newspaper called The Campus Rat. They got married in 1939 on the same day in a lavish double ceremony while wearing matching wedding gowns, followed by a double honeymoon.

In 1955, an advice columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times named Ann Landers died. So Esther entered a contest to become the new Ann Landers and landed the job. Her Dear Ann Landers column was so successful, she had trouble keeping up with the backlog of letters from readers. So she asked Sister Pauline to help with the replies. Pauline enjoyed it so much, she applied to the San Francisco Chronicle three months later, asking to write her own advice column. The paper already had that position filled, and she was about to be shown the door

when the editor gave her a chance to rewrite the answers given by the current advice columnist just to see if she could do a better job. By the time she got home, the paper had already called three times to hire her. She took the job and coined a pen name, Abigail Van Buren. The column was called Dear Abby. When Esther found out her twin sister

was writing a competing newspaper advice column, the two didn't speak again for ten years. The sisters had very different writing styles. Esther's Dear Ann Landers columns were lengthy and offered homespun advice, whereas Pauline's Dear Abby answers were short, direct, and often risque. While both columns were wildly successful, Dear Abby was definitely bolder.

For example, when someone wrote, Dear Abby, my wife sleeps in the raw. Then she gets up and fixes our breakfast, still in the buff. We're newlyweds, so I suppose there's nothing really wrong with it. What do you think? Signed, Ed. Abby responded,

Dear Ed, tell her to put on an apron when she's frying bacon. Dear Abby received up to 25,000 letters per week and employed four full-time letter openers. Her column became one of the most widely syndicated in the world, published in 1,400 newspapers, read by over 110 million readers. She answered questions for 44 years. Pauline Friedman, a.k.a. Dear Abby, died at the age of 94 in 2013.

Her sister pre-deceased her in 2002. Between the two of them, there wasn't a question they couldn't answer. Between the two of us, there are lots of questions I can't answer, but I'm going to try. Welcome to our last episode of the 2018 season. As we do every year, we answer listener questions in our final episode. We've received the most questions ever this year, and some good ones.

Questions like, do the side effect disclaimers in pharmaceutical advertising terrify people? Or, what is the oldest slogan still in use? And, do lawn signs really work in elections? All great questions. So, sit tight. I've got a show full of answers. And who knows?

I might even dispense a little advice today. You're under the influence. Okay, let's start with Instagram. At Sireland30 asks, I'm curious about the inspiration behind the intro theme songs to both Age of Persuasion and Under the Influence. Was there an intended feeling or image you wanted the listener to imagine? Do marketers purposely craft songs, themes, and jingles to promote warm feelings toward their products?

Well, let me answer your last question first. Yes, all marketers purposely craft music to fit their brand or the advertising idea in a commercial. Many times, the music is composed to fit the idea of the commercial. For example, if it was a beer commercial, the music would be written accordingly to be cool and fun. If it was a dramatic car commercial showing a car zooming along a winding road, the music would be exciting. As for the theme music for Under the Influence, when we first talked to composers Ari Posner and Ian Lefevre,

we wanted the theme to reflect the show we had planned. We wanted it to sound interesting but cheeky, with lots of twists and turns. We wanted it to be instantly recognizable, and we wanted it to reflect the humor of the show. Plus, we asked them to create five little pockets

in the theme where we could insert famous advertising slogans as you hear at the start of each episode. And as you may have noticed, each of those slogans begins with the word

your, which eventually leads into your under the influence. I love our theme song. On Facebook, Dave Teelking asks, What happened to all of the physical media that held commercials? For example, the 16mm film for TV or the tapes for radio?

Are there classic commercials that will never be seen again? Did anyone archive this stuff or is it gone forever? That's an excellent and important question, Dave. Now that everything has gone digital, I think a lot of that old media is now lost to the sands of time. Or, let me be more precise, Canadian commercials are being lost to the sands of time. Doing research for this show reveals a lot about the state of commercial archives. I can say, without any hesitation, that I can find virtually any ad or commercial ever done in the United States.

Americans are serious about archiving their marketing history. On the other hand, it's extremely difficult in Canada to find past ads. An online Canadian advertising museum tried to get off the ground a few years ago, but stalled due to funding issues. A friend of mine once saw some of my advertising work in a museum in Japan, yet you wouldn't be able to find it here in Canada. It's a shame that Canada hasn't taken a major step to preserve its advertising history. And that's my two cents.

David Fisher asks, What is your favorite billboard campaign of all time? Good question. We don't talk enough about creative billboards on our show. There have been so many great billboards. Billboards are the ultimate test of a creative idea. You have to create impact with seven words or less. Two of my favorites were both Canadian. One simply said,

Introducing the new Porsche 944S. And all there was on the billboard were two tire skid marks. No car. So simple, so bold. Created by my good friend, art director Peter Day. Pete was once the bass player for the Zombies, by the way. The other billboard I've always admired had a big sheet of white billboard paper peeling off half the actual billboard, just blowing in the wind. And in the corner, it simply said, Quick, the Elmer's glue. Such a smart idea.

And it used the billboard as part of the idea, not just a place for the idea, if you know what I mean. I tried to find a photo of it online. It's a Hall of Fame billboard idea, yet I could not find it anywhere. Which harkens back to my beef with the lack of Canadian advertising archives. Speaking of Hall of Fame ideas, Joyce Spies asks this. My interest in

radio started many years ago when I heard a commercial where they drained Lake Ontario, filled it up with hot chocolate, and had a jet plane drop a cherry on top. I have no idea what that commercial was for, often wondered. Well, Joyce, you have a pretty good memory if you only heard that once. Actually, it was Lake Michigan, and it was a mountain of whipped cream

that was rolled into the lake. Then the Royal Canadian Air Force dropped a 10-ton maraschino cherry into it. That one-minute commercial was written by the ingenious Stan Freeberg back in 1964 for the U.S. Radio Advertising Bureau. It was titled,

Why Should I Advertise on Radio? It highlights the most powerful aspect of radio that I've always believed in. Namely, that you can do more on radio creatively than you could ever do on television. Here it is. Radio? Why should I advertise on radio? There's nothing to look at, no pictures. Listen, you can do things on radio you couldn't possibly do on TV.

That'll be the day. All right, watch this. Okay, people, and now when I give you the cue, I want the 700-foot mountain of whipped cream to roll into Lake Michigan, which has been drained and filled with hot chocolate. Then the Royal Canadian Air Force will fly overhead towing a 10-ton maraschino cherry, which will be dropped into the whipped cream for the cheering of 25,000 extras. All right, cue them out. Cue the Air Force. Cue the Maraschino Cherry. Okay, 25,000 cheering extras.

Now, you want to try that on television? Well. You see, radio is a very special medium because it stretches the imagination. Doesn't television stretch the imagination? Up to 27 inches, yes. Maybe the best advertisement for radio ever done. And we'll be right back. Heyman Buwan asks this question on Twitter. How can those lengthy voice disclaimers for drug ads not scare people?

Saw one ad where the time to verbalize all the warnings took longer than the initial ad! Yep, those possible side effects may include disclaimers are downright terrifying. Those are U.S. ads you're referencing, and in the States, pharma companies must give equal time to possible side effects in all commercials. So, Heyman, it may have sounded like the disclaimers were longer

than the original message, but in reality, it was equal time. E-Trade once did a hilarious commercial parody of drug disclaimers that still makes me laugh to this day. At Gene Enterprises, we've harnessed the power of the human gene so you can say goodbye to your allergies forever with new Nozula.

Nozula may cause the following symptoms. Itchy rashes, full body hair loss, projectile vomiting, gigantic eyeball, the condition known as hot dog fingers, children born with the head of a golden retriever. The condition known as hot dog fingers. Love that. On Twitter, Alan Kelly asks an interesting question. What's the oldest tagline still used today?

That's a tough one to pin down. I'm going to say the oldest slogan still in use today might be for ivory soap. The slogan? 99 and 44 one-hundredths percent pure. It was created in 1882 and is still on the packaging today. Another listener, at the Chess Star, asks if it's true President Theodore Roosevelt coined the slogan good to the last drop for Maxwell House coffee.

Maxwell House ground coffee, always good to the last drop for Maxwell House Coffee. Maxwell House ground coffee, always good to the last drop. Maxwell House Coffee says it's true. But when I research it, there seems to be a weird discrepancy in the dates.

Most sources say Roosevelt was enjoying a cup of Maxwell House Coffee in Nashville in 1907. And when he was offered another cup, he said, Delighted. It's good to the last drop.

It's said Maxwell House adopted the slogan on the spot. Yet, Advertising Age magazine, who carefully documents advertising history, says the slogan wasn't officially used until 1917, ten years later. Hmm, strange. But I stumbled on another piece of interesting trivia along the way. Good to the last drop was actually first used by Coca-Cola in 1908.

Who knew? Dr. Trent Tucker sends us an interesting question on Twitter. He asks, Do lawn signs make any difference in an election? I'm going to give you my personal answer to this. Yes. I believe lawn signs signal momentum in an election. That momentum for a particular party may sway undecided voters. There is a truism in marketing, and you see it used all the time on car lots.

When dealerships put sold signs on cars, it attracts business. It could be that potential car buyers sense there are deals to be had at that dealership, or that the brand of car is extremely popular for a reason. In any event, it spurs activity. The bigger, more important element in elections is getting the vote out. Politicians may have a big block of supporters, but getting them out to the polls is the trick. In the latest Ontario election, 58% voted. It was the highest turnout in 20 years.

There were a lot of lawn signs up in this election. Maybe being surrounded by lawn signs might have spurred unmotivated voters to step up this time. Bob Prentiss and Debbie Garland posed similar questions about annoying commercials. Some ad campaigns seem to overstay their welcome. Is it an ad agency decision to continue? The company's lack of future budget for new ads? Cheap media rates? Or is it a combo of many things?

The quick answer is, the commercial is still on the air because it's still working. It's a mysterious aspect of marketing. Sometimes a commercial that is annoying can still drive sales. Or, and I've said this often, an annoying commercial is annoying because it isn't aimed at you. It's aimed at a different audience, and that audience isn't annoyed. This reminds me of a funny and insightful story about a famous ad man from the 50s and 60s named Rosser Reeves. Reeves is famous in advertising because he developed an advertising concept

called the USP, or Unique Selling Proposition. In a nutshell, Reeves believed a brand should be built around the single biggest benefit the product delivers. He believed all advertising should pivot

on the one thing that makes that product unique. And he believed in repetition. Lots of repetition. With that philosophy, Rosser Reeves attracted a lot of clients and built a very big advertising agency. But it has to be said that Reeves also created advertising that made people hate advertising.

Here's a taste of Reeves' handiwork for Aniston. This commercial actually ran on Ed Sullivan the night the Beatles first appeared on the show in February of 1964. This message can save you hours and hours of pain. Headache pain.

Pain. Depression. Pain. Tension. Pain. Anxiety. Pain. Fatigue.

Pain. Pain. It tells of today's Anisim, the tablet that is strongest in the pain reliever doctors recommend most. That commercial ran unchanged for seven years. It probably created as many headaches as it relieved. Sales tripled. That commercial made more money for Anacin than Gone with the Wind,

and it was made for $8,000. When another client of Reeves complained that his commercial hadn't been changed in five years and demanded to know what the 120 people working on his account were getting paid for, Reeves said, they're getting paid to keep you from changing your ad. Reeves believed in running an ad

until he had wrung every last sale out of it. An interesting side note, ad man David Ogilvie was the polar opposite of Rosser Reeves. He believed in creating classy commercials, commercials that told stories and were a pleasure to watch. Ogilvie railed against Reeves' philosophy, and one, Ogilvy told him his repetitive commercials were irritating. Reeves just looked at Ogilvy and said, do you want to be liked or do you want to be successful? And there you have the divide

between two advertising giants with two conflicting advertising philosophies. Here's the second side note. Ogilvy and Reeves were brother-in-laws. If you're looking for flexible workouts, Peloton's got you covered. Summer runs or playoff season meditations, whatever your vibe, Peloton has thousands of classes built to push you. We know how life goes. New father, new routines, new locations. What matters is that you have something there to adapt with you

whether you need a challenge or rest. And Peloton has everything you need, whenever you need it. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca Gary D. Freeman asked this. Tell us about the importance of a voice in marketing a product. It must be arduous to decide if it should be male or female,

what the intonation should be, if it should have an accent, etc. Choosing a voice is an extremely important decision in marketing. I spent most of my career choosing voices. Whether it was male or female depended on a lot of factors. If the product was aimed at women, I would usually choose a female announcer. If the comedic dialogue was between two men, I would usually choose a female announcer to break it up. If it didn't matter if the announcer was male or female, I would often recommend a female announcer.

My reason? So few actresses are chosen for the announcer role. It was a surefire way to stand out on air. Whether or not an actor should have an accent is an interesting question. I often hired actors with accents, and I would often get complaints from listeners who were annoyed when there was an accent in a commercial. That kind of pushback would often make advertisers hesitant about using accents, which was unfortunate. But Canada is a country of accents. It is not a melting pot.

It only made sense to reflect the culture. In spite of that pushback, I liked to employ accents. Here's one of my favorite commercials that I directed. I've played it before. It's funny, and it demonstrates my point. It was for a new product called the Philips Body Groom Electric Shaver. It was aimed at young men who like to shave everywhere. Yes, manscaping is a delicate subject to talk about on radio.

First, you risk offending listeners when you talk about what the razor is really designed for. Second, I maintain a lot of radio stations wouldn't have aired the commercial. So, how do you launch a product if you can't talk about what the product does? Well, the advertising agency that wrote the commercial solved the problem by talking in code. A code that your grandmother wouldn't understand and therefore wouldn't be offended by. But a code that young men would understand immediately. And listen to the casting. The British voice was perfect for this idea.

Her posh accent was almost a counterpoint to a product that was meant to be used south of the equator. Due to the sensitive subject matter, we cannot discuss the benefits of using the Philips Body Groom Men's Electric Shaver. Instead, gardening tips. Nothing says I care more than a well-kept garden. That's why it's important to mow your front lawn regularly. And if you have one, your back lawn too. And remember, the shorter you go, the more that tree out front will impress. Next week, have a bush that's out of control? Phillips Body Groom. ShaveEverywhere.ca Accent on the hilarious. And that's a wrap for our 2018 season.

Thank you for listening. Your wonderful comments make all the hard work worthwhile. I also want to take this opportunity to tell you about the amazing people behind the scenes of Under the Influence. Our sound engineer is Keith Oman. Keith and I started working together 26 years ago when he was just a young studio assistant. Today, he's one of Canada's top sound engineers.

Our theme music was written by the amazing Ari Posner and Ian Lefevre. Ari has written music for countless commercials and the music for TV shows like Flashpoint. Ian has also composed music for hundreds of commercials, and his songs have been featured in TV shows like Girls and Pretty Little Liars. Then there's the O'Reilly department. We have a very ambitious show with a very small staff, and part of that small staff includes my family. Our producer is my wife, Debbie O'Reilly.

She keeps the entire show on the rails. There are literally hundreds of moving pieces on a weekly show like this, broadcast in two countries, multiple versions, complicated scheduling. Debbie keeps our entire train a-movin'. Our digital content producer and co-writer

is my daughter, Sydney O'Reilly. She is hilarious, smarter than I'll ever be, and such a joy to work with. The audio editing for our Sirius Satellite broadcasts is deftly handled by daughter number two, Callie Rae O'Reilly,

who is now a busy commercial director in her own right. And she also handles all our graphic design. We happen to have the best research team in the business, and they are the very amusing and resourceful Jillian Gora. Jillian is a busy gal. She researches our show, works full-time in marketing,

and has a voiceover career. Allison Pinches is not only a fantastic researcher, she also happens to be a pastor, which I didn't know until we had our wrap dinner last season. Abby Forsyth is a huge Toronto Maple Leafs fan. She is such a big fan, she works for the Leafs.

Lastly, but not leastly, is researcher James Gangle. When he's not researching, James is a comedic actor in Los Angeles you've seen in many commercials and TV shows over the years, and he teaches at Second City. A heartfelt thank you also goes to the amazing Barb Dickey and all the folks at CBC

who have given us unwavering support since day one. By the way, we'll be airing 10 episodes from Deep in Our Archives this summer starting next week. Details at cbc.ca slash

under the influence. You can follow what I'm up to in the off-season at terryoreilly.ca where you'll also find some fun Under the Influence

t-shirts coming soon. Have a safe and happy summer. Meet you here next January. This episode brought to you by our amazing Under the Influence team. We'd like to see your mug shot. Purchase an Under the Influence coffee mug,

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