Every City Has Its Television Promotions

I think of myself as pretty media-savvy, and most advertisements in public don't garner much attention from me. Good marketing, really good marketing, creates an "ah ha!" moment in your mind. You instantly connect different methods of advertising and everything comes together. I think this can be extremely useful advertising if it's done correctly.

In the past few days I've noticed the following "graffiti" on block corners:


It didn't register much in me at first, it's quite common to have left-wing political slogans spray painted on the sidewalk (honestly, they're preaching to the choir). This one was original only for its lack of an opinion. It didn't seem to mean anything.

Then, yesterday, in The New Yorker, I saw this ad:

And its oddly familiar tag line:


ah ha!

The marketing will endure through the first rain. The writing isn't permanent ink, and the first light rain will cause the red dye to run - mirroring HBO's "blood in the streets" theme. It's a nice touch.

I'm sure that this kind of advertising happens all the time in larger cities like New York or Los Angeles, but it's not often that this type of marketing reaches DC. I suppose HBO feels the power struggle / political story line will appeal to power-mad Capitol Hill worker bees. Whatever their reasoning, it's nice to see DC included in this sort of marketing plan.

And it works. I'm interested, and I'll be watching.

Update: Also appearing in Chicago.