To the folks at Madision Square Garden.
I am directing this to the Marketing Department and addressing those responsible for the new campaign for The Knicks.
People, as an advertising copywriter who has had a hand in marketing the fledgling Florida Pathers and even the Dolphins while I was in Florida, you are doing yourselves a disservice.
Your current Knick campaign (as I have studied on my daily subway ride) is missing the mark by miles.
Not that the "FROM - TO" thing is a bad idea, mind you ... I can clearly see how the idea got approved in the first place ...
but as to the execution;
Not to bash anyone in particular, but I've played the game and I have never heard of a shot called "JUMPS HOOKS"
That was just a typo that got away, right?
The rhyme thing is a pretty good way to go, too. But did somebody get lost in the FROM going for the TO? Doesn't anyone there have anything like a rhyming dictionary or access to a computer?
And just as an aside, who picked the voice over for the TV spots? It was free, right? Somebody's best friend or kid brother?
The production value overall is just not even mediore.
The audio is flat and the video does not exude the excitement of a basketball game at all.
Just a hint: a :30 TV spot for a playoff bound Knicks should contain all the punch of a tied game during the last seconds of overtime play.
The team deserves at least that much - even if you're not thinking of the fans.
Yeah, I'm a writer who is looking for work and all I'm saying is that I would l have done more homework on this campaign ... looked for many more archive shots for, instance ... worked in more names from the old teams for another thing ... and as a real marketing person I would have done what many second tier advertisers do.
As a reminder; tier two advertising is designed to do one thing. For a car dealer it's to sell cars ie. get the people in the door. For a gaming arena it's to get the butts in the seats. You don't have to sell the brand - in your case the the Knicks are doing quite well selling themselves.
Which is why I would have worked off the powerful NOW campaign the Knicks have going ... as in:
"THEN - NOW"
Same idea as you've got going but with more synergy as a tie in with the team.
What you are currently failing to do is remind people that what the Knicks had then they have now and that now is the time to see it happen.
Oh yeah - you've got no call to action. As in: "Get your tickets, NOW!"
I'm just saying that you can take your advertising team to the level that The Garden deserves.
It seems to me that you are spending way too much money to get such an off the rack product.
I think the fans deserve better, too.
BTW, the above idea ("THEN - NOW") Literally came to me on my subway trip in this morning. How many people do you have who do their creative thinking while they're not inside the building?
You could have at least one ... I'm out here ... put me in, coach!
