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Ad Examples
Client: Seiko Instruments - Scientific Instruments Division (SID)
The Unknown Sample
Background: SID was about to introduce a new desktop-sized x-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument designed to evaluate and determine the atomic content of a sample. SID was targeting four market segments: Gold processing, mining, archeology, and art museums. We researched media for various markets and settled on a broad-based industry tabloid, Laboratory Equipment.
Results: The publisher called us a few weeks later and informed us that this ad had drawn over 4,000 leads, more than any other ad in the history of the publication.
(to see the full-sized 1.24 MB ad in .jpg format, double click the thumbnail)
Client: Seiko Instruments - Robotics Division
Class 10
As robotics entered semiconductor manufacturing processes, customers wanted robots suitable for clean room environments. Seiko Instruments launched the first such robot, designed to meet the then rigorous requirements of a Class 10 clean room. After conducting media research, we recommended Semiconductor International and the client agreed.
Results: This was the first ad Seiko Instruments had ever run in any semiconductor publication. It also happened to be a month in which the publisher conducted a readership study to rate each ad's effectiveness with the readership. Winners in such surveys tend to be large, repeat advertisers who buy 2 page spreads. This ad finished second in the readership survey, missing #1 by a fraction of a point. In addition, the client received multiple leads and sold many robots into this market.
(to see the full-sized 1.69 MB ad in .jpg format, double click the thumbnail)
Client: Plasma Materials & Technologies (PMT)
Uniformity, Selectivity and Edge Exclusion Take A Bite...
Background: PMT had developed a new etch technology that offered superior performance over existing technologies. They offered customers a substantial increase in yields, always crucial in the highly competitive and cost-sensitive semiconductor industry. We recommended that the series of three ads run in Semiconductor International. We also produced a set of three matching brochures for use at the upcoming industry trade show and as follow-up mailers.
Results: Not long after the ads ran, the President called me into his office and related that their chief technologist had recently attended an industry technical conference. At one point, a competitor stood and declared that PMT's ads were "unfair." Since the company's objective was to gain industry visibility, the president considered this a very positive sign that, in fact, the ads had caught the industry's attention. The company was eventually purchased by a larger player in the industry.
(To see the full sized jpg of any of the ads, double click the thumbnails below. The ads are respectively from left to right: 978 kb, 860 kb, and 1.32 MB)
Selectivity Ad #1 Uniformity Ad #2 Edge Exclusion Ad #3
Client: Bristol Motherboards
Call Hugo
Background: When we met with the client, the VP Sales insisted that quality was their number one benefit to advertise. Despite our best efforts, my designer and I could not dissuade them from this conviction. With a background in manufacturing processes and quality, I interviewed the quality control manager, a guy named Hugo. He was extremely enthusiastic about quality control and the dedication of their manufacturing team to produce motherboards with zero defects. At our suggestion, we decided to personalize the concept of quality in the "persona" of Hugo, actually installing a working number corresponding to the ad copy in his home. We also suggested running a much lower cost b/w ad and spending a little more on photography and a model.
Results: The ad ran in the upcoming trade show daily. A competitor bought the company at the trade show.
(to see the full-sized 1.32 MB
ad in .jpg format, double click the thumbnail)