More from the Gruen Transfer

Cleaning house, contacts and notes lists to prep-up for the start of the active Razorback seasons, I came on this bit overlooked from earlier in the summer.

My favorite television show on advertising -- aside from Mad Men which gets Season Three this Sunday -- is The Gruen Transfer. It's a short-run talk show from the Australian Broadcasting Company, and it's the McLaughlin Group of PR.

Tod Sampson is one of the regulars, and he said this:

The internet is the ultimate truth serum

This was from an episode about bottled water and brands, and the reference was to the fact that if you as a brand put something out there, you will be held accountable for it on-line. He also added the fantastic thought about why more people just don't drink tap water. Utilities don't mount campaigns to get people to drink tap water because "they're lazy marketers."

Gruen is filled with great info -- and I highly recommend you putting it on your iTunes list. Sadly, I lost half of season one thanks to a stupid iTunes error, but I save every episode to my desktop for storage.

The panel had a compelling discussion about the importance of first experiences in forming a brand allegiance. Why did Shell Oil spend so much money on toys and other items that were pointed at children? Because in some controversial research, Shell discovered that setting the brand hook early was crucial.

I loved this passing reference at the end -- the best way to kill a bad product is to advertise it successfully.