I was reading our local news paper (The Harrisburg Patriot) and noticed a letter to the editor. This letter was written by a concerned citizen in South Annville Twp., PA, which is just a few miles from Hershey. His suggestion was for various ways the state of Pennsylvania can make money through non-traditional advertising methods. This, of course, grabbed my attention immediately.
Here is Mr. Kearny’s letter:
Your editorial (July 21) against the “clever” idea of opening up highway emergency signs to advertising was too tepid and cautious. The genius of that idea is how many other openings for easy state funding it opens up.
Think of fire engines — those lights, those sirens, those long sides cluttered with ladders instead of ads. And why should they make that god-awful screech when they could be playing a Pepsi jingle instead?
And the roadways themselves. Those endless 10-foot-wide ribbons of boring asphalt and concrete could be jazzed up with the genius of Madison Avenue.
Or how about a two-track 911: “If you would like to expedite service, please press 1 and have your credit card handy. Otherwise, stay on the line and one of our dispatchers will be with you shortly”?
Our highways are befouled by too many billboards. Instead of adding more, we should tax them by the square foot, using the money to remove obsolete and unprofitable signs, to beautify the roads and to promote the tourist industry. Instead of privatizing yet another public asset, we should charge private industry when it encroaches on the commons — our beautiful Penn’s Woods.
To this I responded with the following:
I love the idea of the jingle playing when the fire engine is coming down the street! But Pepsi? Why not make a local tie in with the Hershey “Sweetest Place on Earth” jingle. That way we’ll be reminded how great this area is during times of tragedy.
Lastly, I think you forgot the annoying cross-walk sound. Instead of “beep beep” it could be “Metro bank gives you dog treats” or “Capital Blue Cross-we care about your health, so cross cautiously”. You sir, are a genius!
Think "outside" the box.
Mr. Kearney,
Unlike a lot of people are able to do in this day and age, you THINK outside of the box. Without knowing it (or maybe you do), your demonstration of marketing thought processes should be rewarded (no matter how tongue-in-cheek). Too many businesses these days care more about painting inside the lines and copying their competition, that truly imaginative advertising is few and far between. I commend your ability to brain storm and I hope you are involved with the advertising industry.
Business owners take note, be creative, don’t just “run an ad” — turn some heads! I bet a fire-truck blasting “ba-da-da-da-da, I’m loving it” would get a second look.
