Comments on: Call Guinness. Here’s the dumbest Web site design on Earth!

By: Dean Rieck

Dean Rieck — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 22:28:52 +0000

LOL

I might be a fart. But I’m not old. Let’s keep the insults accurate, shall we?

By: sam

sam — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:27:29 +0000

atleast it is not boring you old fart

By: LJ

LJ — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 22:59:47 +0000

I’m with both Arun and Tom, along with those that said the site is not there to attract website traffic. I think the site is great and appeals to their target market quite well.

Clearly an ad agency such as Leo Burnett would not create a website for small businesses and website surfers, but rather to showcase their portfolio in a creative and original manner for their target market. Maybe this should have been taken into account before the critique!

By: Clive (redegg design)

Clive (redegg design) — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 05:06:43 +0000

Omg I just realised that was meant to be for an advertising agency! I thought it was going to be for some poor client!

By: Clive (redegg design)

Clive (redegg design) — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 05:05:15 +0000

Ouch! You just made my day!

By: Ted Grigg

Ted Grigg — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 21:49:49 +0000

For many clients, they are so bored with themselves and their advertising that they are looking for an agency that thinks out of the box. Notice that I said they were bored, not necessarily their customers.

In fact, this web site sets out to demonstrate that they think differently. Their audience consists of clients that don’t have to see huge returns on their advertising next quarter — or even the next year or two.

Such clients advertise to themselves and for themselves. Not their customers or prospects. It is different for the sake of difference. Not to make money on the advertising.

They actually have convinced themselves that this type of advertising sells. But as a direct marketer, I find this approach does not maximize revenue or sell products efficiently.

Creativity for creativity’s sake does not equate good advertising in my opinion. In fact, it gets in the way of the message.

How often have you seen a “great” advertisement only to shake your head dumbfounded when someone asks you what the product was or what company ran the advertising. You had no idea who ran it or what it was for.

This is creativity that attracts attention at any cost and sells by default.

Actually, the site will attract many such clients who still have millions to waste on their advertising. So it works for the audience the agency is interested in.

As H. Gordon Lewis (a premier direct marketing copywriter) wrote in a recent article I quoted on my blog some time back:
“If you have a budget of half a million dollars, how much do you want to spend on selling something and how much do you spend to build an image? A lot of people use brand marketing as a crutch. My position is looking at the bottom line.”

So is this an effective web site for the targeted audience? I think that it is. Will it attract the company that wants sales results first and creativity as a means of getting there? My guess is that it will not. The demonstrated style shows what this agency considers fun and important. And I don’t see that selling effectiveness takes a high priority for this team.

By: lawton chiles

lawton chiles — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 20:42:38 +0000

I mean that people believe that the more creative and funny you are, the more profits you will make.

This is false.

By: lawton chiles

lawton chiles — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 20:42:02 +0000

I really think that this plays into the fact the creativity sells- while a huge company like these guys happily takes the client’s check for the work- is it actually profitable- and if it is, could it be more profitable with a direct-response or benefit-laden approach?

I think so.

Agree?

By: Janice C Cartier

Janice C Cartier — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:35:29 +0000

Hi,
Gulp. At the risk of being totally wrong about this, I am going to say they are selling leadership. Dimension. The design utilizes another dimension in technology and quality content delivery. It is interactive and yes at first a lot like playing with a Wi the first time. Maybe they are wanting to say to their very big bucks clients who see the market shares of traditional advertising delivery systems shrinking, we can take you into iphone/Wi- land without missing a beat( or a buck).
You all know way more than me, but I LOVED playing with the pencil. They do offer a text guide on the lower right “Feeling Lost” to add a comfort level to those used to a more traditional and 2-d world. Pencil + apple says we are grounded and simple, signature says my name is behind it…. but the rest says, ” oh the places we can go….”
I went over to the other sites Dean mentions to check on some tried and true masters too. All good… so it seems to me it falls into positioning. Just a thought. And actually pretty cool…but they are not direct marketing, no. They are selling a concept on a huge scale. And Brian, you’ve got the best brains that I have seen lately on that.
All best,
Jan

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 17:37:35 +0000

Arun is right,
i think while they are highlighting there freethinking you are missing the point of the site.
although its sightly frustrating to navigate, its certainly different.
If you haven’t already seen it check out mother London’s site: http://www.motherlondon.com/
its flabberghastingly unhelpful.
Its annoying/fun.