Whether you're a mother or not, I think we can all agree that parenting is a tough job and moms (and dads and guardians, legal or otherwise) should be celebrated in one way or another. So moms, your big day was yesterday, and that's it for celebrating you until next year! At least, officially. 

Mother's Day is also a great time to sell cleaning products. This ad from Mr. Clean encourages men to become "Man Maids." Sounds like a nice idea, especially if your guy (or you're a guy who) is baffled by the idea of cleaning and ignores any kind of mess until someone else takes care of it. 

The stereotype of domestically-clueless men never seems to get old in marketing just about anything that has to do with cleaning, cooking, parenting and laundry. Is it time to move on, or are ads like this harmless parody?

I understand the utility of stereotypes as cultural touchstones, especially when marketing to broad audiences, but it would be nice to see more innovative, creative alternatives to the constant rehashing of formulaic gender-roles. Ads like this one feel more than a bit dated to me.

Moms? Men? Other interested parties? What do you think?

… well sort of. We don't have a president within aasman, but our creative writer, Jen Solomon, is the new President of the Frostbite Music Society! Congratulations Jen. It seems like a good time to ask her a few questions about her new position.
 

ER: So Jen, how does it feel to be the new president of the Frostbite Music Society Board?

JS: It feels like riding a unicorn through a chocolate forest.

Seriously though, I feel pretty good about it. There have been a lot of excellent people in this position and I’m thankful to be a part of that legacy. Plus, being on the board is totally (well, mostly) fun.

ER: The festival in February sure is fun… how does the board support it? What do you guys do?

JS: Oh man. Well, we’re a very active board year round. We spend a good part of the year on fundraising activities, which includes producing small-scale shows. We also develop the strategic direction of our organization as a whole, as well as the festival specifically, with the producer. Each board member usually heads up a committee for the festival, and we all support Andrea any way we can.

ER: Who's Andrea?

JS: Andrea Burgoyne has been the festival producer for the past two years.

ER: Frostbite has been around for a long time, how has the brand changed over the years?

JS: Yikes. Good question. We’re coming up to our 35th anniversary next year, so there have been lot of different people—different boards, producers and volunteers that have put their stamp on this festival. It’s hard for me to say how the brand has changed because I obviously wasn’t around for most of Frostbite’s incarnations. I like to think of our brand as being inclusive, friendly, diverse, community-minded, and maybe a bit nerdy-cool. It seems to me like these traits, more or less, have probably always been a part of Frostbite’s identity. And, of course, the Yukon winter defines Frostbite’s character. I think people associate the festival with a chance to blow off some steam, dance and have a good party—a bit of cabin fever relief, so to speak.

ER: What inspired you to join the board in the first place? How long have you been on it?

JS: A friend who was (and still is) on the board encouraged me to join—that was two years ago, and I had been a Frostbite volunteer for several years before that. I seriously considered applying for the producer position, but thankfully Andrea stepped forward. After seeing how much detail is involved, how much responsibility is on the producer’s shoulders, I really am glad it’s Andrea’s job and not mine–haha. I love being on the board, though. 

ER: Favourite Frostbite moment?

JS: Hmm. That’s a tough one. There have been a lot of great moments, so it’s hard to pick just one. Hands down, the best part of being involved with Frostbite in general is getting to work with such a fun, diverse, hard-working group of people.

ER: What are you listening to right now?

JS: Right now, I’m on a website called You are listening to Los Angeles. It’s good background sound for writing. I like to tune into New York and Montreal too. 

ER: Thanks! Can't wait for next February! Ha ha. Okay, I can wait…. let's do summer first. Do you want to add anything Jen?

JS: Sure, stay up to date with Frostbite events or get involved. It’s super-fun to volunteer for!

www.facebook.com/FrostbiteMusicSociety
www.frostbitefest.ca
 

Tell your boss, make an announcement on the intercom, get your latex gloves out of the first aid box, and take an extra 20 minute break to pick up trash outside. It's a sunny day!

At aasman we even made it a conversation about branding.

Last year the people of Whitehorse made their voice heard about how to brand the city. Result: our iconic boat logo and the tagline "the wilderness city". No one wants to find trash in the wilderness, so let's live up to that perception today. We can impress our visiting family and friends and those cute new seasonal employees with clean streets.

If we keep the roadsides clean, passers through are more likely to keep them that way. It's one small way to control the city's image.

Graffitti be gone!

We're coming to get'cha, you nasty trash pieces! 

Well, we don’t know either because TED isn’t a who, it’s a what. And it’s going to be making a Whitehorse debut in October.

If you’re not already familiar with TED, it’s a non-profit organization that’s all about sharing ideas. There are annual TED conferences held in different parts of the world, where big thinkers get together and talk about “ideas worth sharing.” These are huge events, with high profile speakers.

TEDx, which is what will be happening Whitehorse on October 6, is a way for communities to share in the TED experience.

A short video that gives you the scoop, TED-style:

Even though TED isn’t a person, it definitely has a personality and an identity, evidenced in the presentation and content of the TED talks, and, of course, in every way that the organization communicates to the public.

Based on the explanation video, what do you think TED’s personality is?

Just for fun (i.e. if you have a bit more time to kill), have a look at their website, and maybe watch a talk or two. Does your first impression of TED’s personality from the video still stand? Do you feel like the TED brand is communicated consistently?
 

Every now and then a campaign actually promotes healthy human values in an advertising market filled with smut (think Dove's "Real Beauty" campaign) and they're worth sharing!

Car commercials are known for their emotional appeal by engaging our desire for power and sex appeal. Volvo comes to mind as one that strays form the norm… I think volvo and I think safe. Good job Volvo. Well here's another odd man out. Subaru is using long term relationship commitment in their latest campaign. I was mighty surprised to see these "experience love that lasts" ads on TV. In a car commercial??!! Check it out: 

At aasman we talk a lot about the difference between information and communication. Information being a list of features (eg. snazzy rims, super seat belts, flashy lights) and communication is finding resonance with the audience (e.g. emotional appeal, understanding).

Bonus: their website firstcarstory.com takes a different approach but talks to the same audience. You get to watch or tell your own first car story.. generally about how gross your first car was…. because what you really want is your first new car that you'll cherish for the next ten years.

“The two words information and communication are often used interchangeably, but they signify quite different things.
Information is giving out; communication is getting through.”
~Sydney J. Harris