Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly

This week, we explore famous products named after their inventors. Some products are so cemented in our minds we forget those names once belonged to people. Shrapnel was invented by Henry Shrapnel, nachos were invented by Nachos Anaya and the leotard was invented by a Jules Leotard. We’ll even look at some inventors who wish their names had been forgotten... We know y...

This week, we look at products that went from worthless to priceless.  Products someone created out of something everyone else ignored. It might be scraps on the ground that people stepped over, or useless waste destined for the scrap heap. But in each case, the resulting product was a masterpiece of instinct and insight… We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chan...

This week, we explore the world of celebrities in advertising. We’ll tell the story of a super shy mega star at one of her very first gigs, how Alan Arkin defied all advertising norms and why an afternoon behind the mic makes Alec Baldwin sweat. Celebrities cost big money, have big opinions and make big demands. But if the commercial is good, their presence can be rocket fuel.   We know...

This week, we debunk urban brand myths. Myths that live on as assumed facts in marketing textbooks, MBA courses, endless business seminars and dinner parties. It's easy to accept rumours as truth because they're usually dramatic and juicy. But many of the myths you’ve heard and maybe even passed along are actually...untrue.    We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show....

This week, we explore the fascinating world of Comic Book Advertising. A world where Sea-Monkeys could be trained, X-Ray Specs saw through clothes, Charles Atlas taught bodybuilding secrets and one-day karate courses could be yours for just a dollar. You probably spent your allowance on one or two in your day... We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance you  do...

This week, we explore how marketers solve difficult problems. We’ll look at how Monty Python stopped piracy by giving away content for free, how a wardrobe change transformed Steve Martin’s career and why the president of Bogota replaced police officers…with mimes. Sometimes the only solution is a wild and crazy idea. We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance y...

This week, we explore how marketers saved certain foods from oblivion by changing…their  names . Many foods you enjoy started out life with very  unappetizing  names. Some so off-putting, I’m willing to bet you would have never gone near them. But you probably have one or two in your fridge today… We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance you  do...

This week, we delve into the emerging world of subscription marketing.  Did you know you could have underwear sent to your door every month? How about joining the Salami of the Month club? Or maybe your cat needs a regular toy top-up.  You can subscribe to just about anything these days - and some of the items may surprise you. We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On t...

This week, we explore the advertising campaigns that had everything stacked against them and yet went on to become hugely successful. The resistance may have come from clients who hated the idea, focus groups that gave the thumbs-down, apprehension within the agency or even that the initial research declared them failures. But they survived and thrived because someone said...Damn The Torpedoes. We...

This week, we analyze how old school products survive in the 21st century. Many brands can’t keep up with the digital age, but others have found a way to succeed – some doing  even better business today. We’ll look at how one company makes money by  retiring  its products, why another partnered up with its biggest competitors to stay relevant and how an entire profession saved...

This week, we explore how some of the craziest fads are marketed. We'll look at how one student's school project changed the way we sleep, why a single toy made Tyco the subject of bomb threats   and how a popular piece of jewellery was inspired...by doctors. From the Thighmaster to the Pet Rock, we'll break down what makes fads  so  absolutely irresistible.  We know you w...

This week marks the final episode of the 2017 Under The Influence season. And as we do every year, we're turning this show over to you, our listeners. We’ll be answering the marketing and advertising questions you've sent us through social media. From how we come up with new episode topics each week, to why mattress companies  don’t  use sex to sell mattresses, to which commercials are m...

This week, it’s our annual Bookmarks episode. The research team at Under The Influence does a lot of reading over the year, and finds a lot of great stories - many of which don't fit into our regular season. But that doesn't mean they shouldn't be told. We’ll look at why Sting laughs at the beginning of Roxanne, how the U.S. military learned a lesson in branding when it got soldiers to eat th...

This week, we journey to Cannes, France for the Cannes International Advertising Festival. It’s the most revered advertising competition in the world, with 90 countries submitting over 40,000 ads. We’ll analyze the entries and answer the age-old question: do award-winning commercials really sell product?  We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance you  don’...

This week, we explore how some of society's biggest taboos were broken by marketers. We’ll look at why toilet paper was a hush-hush product in the 19th century, which publication was the first ever to print an ad on its front page and how Lysol was originally advertised…as contraception. Some taboos were broken years ago, some more recently than you may realize. We know you want to listen to all t...

This week, we analyze how marketing affects the  sports  world. We’ll look at the massive influence that comes with owning the rights to the Olympic games, how the  recent uptick in gambling sponsorships  affects athletes and what happens when major advertisers threaten sports leagues.  It’s a lucrative, but tricky business.   We know you want to listen to all th...

This week, we tell the story of the most interesting adman in the world - Albert Lasker. Lasker had a hand in influencing professional baseball, Planned Parenthood, North American breakfast and not one, but  two  presidential elections. And he just happened to change the world of advertising in the process.  We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance y...

This week, it’s our annual episode where we explore brands I admire. And in celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday, this year’s brands are all Canadian. We’ll look at what may be the most successful global retailer Canada’s ever built, a television pioneer worshipped and revered by generations of Canadians and a world-class brand that operates out of the smallest village in New Brunswick. We’ve ce...

This week, we explore how brands are becoming political for the first time in history. We’ll look at what happens when major retailers decide to “Dump Trump”, the controversial Super Bowl ad that challenged an immigration policy and crashed the Internet and how even Pepsi could drop the political ball. Years ago, most advertisers would have never dreamed of offending anyone with a pulse and a...

This week, it’s part two of our Gender Marketing show. In this episode, we’ll look at how companies that have historically marketed to one gender switch gears to target  another . We’ll analyze how Harley Davidson got women on two wheels, why a 13-year-old girl convinced Hasbro to make an Easy Bake Oven for boys and how Barbie targeted…dads.   By and large, most products  are &...

This week, we delve into the controversial world of Gender Marketing. How did it all start? Why are aisles and products separated by gender? Why do some companies charge women more than men for identical items? Marketing different products to different genders leads to profit but also to big consequences.  It’s not a black-and-white issue, but it’s definitely pink and blue...

This week, we look at the fine art of selling the dream. The world of Real Estate Marketing has its own rules, its own techniques and its own unique breed of salespeople. We'll tell the story of how the word "Realtor" was reluctantly blessed by Merriam-Webster, why so many real estate agents use photos of  themselves  as a marketing tactic and what happens when the real estate business t...

This week, we peek into the emerging world of influencer marketing. Today, the most popular social media Influencers aren't celebrities, they're regular people. Bloggers, Instagrammers, YouTube stars and Snapchatters have amassed millions of followers, promoting products using only the trust of their fans as currency.  We'll look at a single YouTube review that shot Patti Labelle to the top o...

This week, we analyze inventors who later came to regret their inventions. Sometimes it's because the product ended up being harmful. Other times it's because of the way their product was used. And in most cases, the creators simply lost control of their creations. We'll look at why the inventor of the K-Cup doesn't own a Keurig machine, why the creator of Mother's Day later tried to have it resci...

In this episode, we look at what happens when seemingly unrelated companies decide to partner up. By pooling their resources and, more importantly, by leveraging each other's strengths, unlikely brands collaborate to achieve much more than they could have achieved alone. We'll look at a hotel that partnered with an animal rescue organization by bringing dogs into the hotel, a budget-priced car tha...