Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly

This episode explores how small moves can result in huge business gains. While much of the business world spends its time looking for the big idea, many companies enjoy massive results with tiny moves and subtle tweaks. We’ll look at how a hit movie that was turned down by every studio in town was finally sold thanks to a small change in the way it was pitched, how Obama used a small tactic to bea...

This week, we look at the consequences when marketing companies lie.  From the Volkswagen scandal, to a promotion that brought Hoover to its knees, to a company that promised super-charged sexual enhancement, each was a case of fraud with disastrous repercussions. Join us as we explore what happened, and whether those companies could ever regain the trust of their customers. We know you want...

This week, the topic is Zombie Brands - products and companies that had a long run of success, then ran into difficulties, and were either shut down or slipped into bankruptcy - only to rise from the dead and exist yet again. We’ll look at an airline grounded 25 years ago that has taken flight again, a retailer that died and came back, a television show that was cancelled then resurrected to becom...

Most products offer customers as many features and benefits as possible in order to lure shoppers toward a purchase. But then there are some companies that offer you less, and profit more. We’ll look at a book company that eliminated their books and made millions, an electronics company that broke all the rules by eliminating the recording function from a tape machine and made history, and how two...

In our first episode of 2016, we look at how the marketing industry created many of our everyday rituals. We don't think twice about having bacon & eggs for breakfast, or taking a coffee break, or using soap to wash our hands. But each of those routine rituals was invented by marketing companies to sell more product. You may even be surprised to learn that when our kids trick or treat has a ma...

This is the final episode of our 10th season on CBC. And to celebrate, we turn the show over to you. That means Terry will be answering listener questions. He’ll talk about why he chose advertising as a profession, how political marketing differs from product marketing, whether the jingle is definitely dead, why some bad commercials actually work, and how he would advertise marijuana if it ever be...

This week, we take the marketing lessons from big brands and apply them… to you. If you have to sell yourself, sell your services, if you want more “likes” and followers, or if you’re looking for a job - this episode explores how to manage your social media, how to pick the best profile photo, how to maintain a consistent tone of voice, how to avoid cliches in your resume. It’s time to overhaul yo...

This week, we look at the impact of the Internet of Things on the world of marketing. Soon, most of the devices in our lives will be given a digital voice. Your fridge will be doing your weekly grocery shopping for you - and that means marketers will have to send discount coupons to your appliances now. Your car will be able to make appointments with a mechanic all by itself, and you can now order...

This is our annual episode dedicated to great stories from our Under The Influence research books that didn’t make our regular season. We’ll tell the story of why Tim Hortons always chooses brown bricks for their stores, how Best Buy helped men set up their electronics without offending their manhood, an amusing story about the problem of Ronald McDonald taking naps between scenes of a television...

This week, we look at Famous Advertising Lawsuits. Because the stakes are so high in the world of marketing, it leads to some interesting - and odd - lawsuits. We’ll tell the story of how an elderly woman sued McDonald’s because her coffee spilled on her lap and why she won the case, how Microsoft came gunning for a 17 year-old Mike Rowe's website with the domain name  www. MikeRoweSoft. com...

This week, we explore how Product Packaging influences what you buy. We'll tell the story of how the famous Coke bottle was born, how the psychology behind packaging designs influence you in grocery stores, and how Tropicana and Tide learned the hard way that package design can be bad even when it's good. We know you want to listen to all the ads in this show. On the off-chance you  don’...

This week, we explore the world of product placement. From the first product placement in a movie in 1927, to E.T., to the latest movies and TV shows, advertisers look for opportunities to give their products starring roles. We’ll look at the history of product placement, how it evolved, and the most famous examples of how it went right - and how it went horribly wrong. We know you want to listen...

This week, it’s Terry's annual look at his favourite brands. They may not be the coolest brands, or the newest or the biggest - they are just fascinating studies in marketing. Terry looks at an armoured truck company that decided to transport money instead of packages, a business that started because of spilt milk, a board game created to protest capitalism, and a 51 year-old game show that still...

This week, we look at the world of Tourism Marketing. Every country and city competes for lucrative tourism dollars, and the resulting marketing is often highly creative and fascinating. We’ll tell the story of a city that promised to keep secrets, a state that offered one tourist the job of a lifetime, and a country that actually benefited from being insulted in a movie.  We know you want to...

Many marketers often release special-edition products of their mainstream brands. It may be a special limited-time flavour, or colour, or it may be a kooky version of their usual product. It’s an interesting marketing strategy, because marketers create limited-edition brands for very specific reasons - to generate new attention, or test-drive a new product or to celebrate an event. Some work, some...

This episode takes a look at the most recent - and interesting - marketing innovations from around the world. From an edible pizza box, to a glove that will play music and take pictures, to rentable office desks, to personal climate controls for airplane seats, to rain that actually smells like brands - the latest marketing innovations are simply unbelievable. We know you want to listen to all the...

This week on Under The Influence, we look at one of the newest trends in marketing, called Giftvertising. Where marketers  surprise  their customers with elaborate free gifts, film their reactions, and put the resulting video on YouTube. Hoping it will go viral. From airlines to banks to retail stores, big brands are embracing the trend. We’ll also look at the psychology behind Giftverti...

One of the biggest factors fuelling the sharing economy is the mindset of the Millennial generation. A demographic bigger than the Baby Boomers, Millennials have been conditioned by the Great Recession to shed the responsibility of ownership. They want the movie, but not the DVD. They want the music, but not the CD. They want the ride, but not the car. That attitude is beginning to have an enormou...

The issue of geography is a subject the marketing world subscribes to.  Many companies, and even entire industries, attach their brands to geographical points of origin as a way to differentiate themselves and assert superiority. From German engineering to Russian vodka to Swiss watches, “Geography as branding” is a powerful marketing strategy that often comes with a premium price tag. This w...

The Academy Awards are coming up soon - and the wins and losses on that night change the fortunes of actors, directors and films. But what the public never sees is how movie studios - and some actors - campaign to win those Oscars. The strategies used to influence Academy voters are fascinating, involving millions of dollars, trade advertising, parties, swag, the White House, law suits, and e...

Just in time for the Grammy Awards, we look at how hit songs are marketed. With music sales in decline, recording artists are turning to inventive marketing ideas to sell their albums. From the first 24-hour music video, to hiding lyrics in library books, to downloading a new album onto 500 million music libraries to the opposite strategy of issuing one, single copy of a new album, marketing hit s...

In Part Two of “Selling The Moon,” we pick up the story with the success of the Gemini program, which leads NASA to believe they might reach the moon faster than anticipated. But then tragedy strikes, and the Apollo project is put on hold for more than a year. But when the improved Apollo program returns, the race to the moon accelerates - as does the remarkable marketing that surrounds it. NASA c...

Across the two episodes, we’ll trace the way NASA marketed the expensive moon landing to both the American public, and to Congress. In this first part, we see how the Russians got to space first, prompting President John F. Kennedy to promise a moon landing - not only as a way to win the space race - but to improve his public relations after the Bay of Pigs fiasco. The journey to the moon will be...

Not all products are beautiful. While it’s easy to sell a gorgeous item, the degree of difficulty ratchets up when the item is butt-ugly. Some ugly products need a lot of clever marketing to succeed, while no amount of marketing can save other hideous brands. Then, every once in a while, some ugly products become runaway hits. In this episode, we tell the story of how a big grocery store figured o...

This week, we tackle the topic of Controversy Advertising. The number one job of all advertising is to get attention, and many brands choose to use controversial advertising ideas to break through the clutter. It’s a risky strategy, as controversy always courts trouble. We look at how Kmart used controversy to blow the dust off its staid image, how Kimberly-Clark used an eyebrow-raising idea to se...