Sufficiently impressed with Wolverine, the movie, (and it helps that I am a Japan fan), I did what I usually do AFTER seeing a movie I like: started reading it up. Imagine my suprise (being ignorant of the fact) that the current Wolverine movie is a sequel! On Wikipedia, reading of the first Wolverine movie, I discovered an amazing para regarding opening day collections of Wolverine: X Men Origins:
“However, in an article for the “piracy issue” of Screen International magazine, film critic John Hazelton was doubtful of this explanation, writing that the film’s initial performance was “uncertain” as the outbreak of swine flu in territories with the worst piracy problems means that other territories did not compare at all.”
Our world is more connected/interdependant than we realise. Of course, with a virus outbreak, movie attendance will dim, public fears and all that. Despite our seeing the logic in it, that phenomenon of one incident having a unexpected effect on another industry… I hadn’t put swine flu and multi-country opening weekend revenues of Hollywood movies together.
Advertising being one of the more ‘barometric industries’, we watch for this capricious combination of events. There is no knowing what will affect the brands you have. We know an effect is anticipated when our clients calls at a very odd hour and evenly commands: “Stop all advertising”.
There is an age-old discussion about the correlation between hemlines and the economy. Put simply, it is theorised that hemlines go up in economical upswings and down when the economy falters. One argument being made is that the buoyancy of the general enviornment in a economic upswing lifts human spirits all around and inspires ‘edgy living’, so to speak. Also, the caution that weighs down the esprit de populii in a downswing moves us to ‘wrap our clothes around us tighter to ward off the chilling ennui. There may be some logic there, and a google search immediately clocks ‘corelation f hemlines with the economy’ at least 37000 entries, including the irate point of view that this is a myth. I’d put my money on it being not …
Idea Domain is a ‘mainline’ + pharma advertising agency and we have enough of a splay of accounts to realise that our pharma clients who are manufacturing drugs for sleeplessness, anxiety, hypertension and acidity gear UP for an UPSWING in sales when the economy goes down. Friends at agencies with condom brands have concurred. People actively recaibrate their lives according to the enviornment. They draw the wagons and bolt the doors. Cinema houses start offering morning Rs 100 only tickets. Roadside vendors know that customers will shop from the street looking for easier prices.
Just sayin’ ….. its seems to be starting again.
The view from Alvin 