August 22, 2013

Weekly Round-Up

  1. Beamz by Flo. Starring: Flo Rida. Pitch: "Simply by moving your hands, you can play hundreds of different instruments and sound effects." Comments: I'm not an expert, but Flo Rida seems like a mismatch for this type of product. It's a little too geeky. As for the item, I don't see it catching on -- especially with a final price tag of $199. [ss]
  2.  
  3. Brew Stick. Marketer: Spark Innovators. Producer: Concepts. Pitch: "Make delicious single-serve coffee in seconds." Comments: I think the success of Cafe Cup, this team's current hit in the coffee category (which easily made my mid-year True Top Spenders list), demonstrates that America has chosen the kind of single-serve coffee maker they prefer. There's only room for one. [ss]
  4.  
  5. Brush On Tan. Pitch: "All over bronzer gives you a natural sun-kissed glow." Comments: Another bad category for DRTV. That low-budget creative isn't going to help, either. [ss]
  6.  
  7. Comfy Combs by Scunci. Marketer: Conair. Pitch: Their "silky smooth surface won’t break, dent or tangle your hair." Comments: This has no shot at delivering a CPO, but I doubt that is the goal here. [ss]
  8.  
  9. Eye Majic. Starring: Lisa Ashley. Marketer: Majic Beauty. Pitch: "Perfect eyes in just 10 seconds." Comments: IdeaVillage tried this under the same name in 2008. If they couldn't make it work ... [ss]
  10.  
  11. Neater Feeder. Pitch: "Simply the easiest way to end messy pet feeding areas." Comments: Allstar tried this under the name Tidy Table in 2010. To repeat the comment above, if they couldn't make it work ... [ss]
  12.  
  13. Ninja Guard. Pitch: "Keeps fragile smart phones and tablets free from smudges, scratches and cracks." Comments: Amateur hour, an apparent 'fast fail' -- and it's also been tried before (see Armor Guard). You can watch the commercial here. [ss]
  14.  
  15. Peel Back. Marketer: Edison Nation. Pitch: "The fresh new way to keep leftover produce fresher longer than ever." Comments: Although this is neat catalog-type item, the DRTV category history is terrible (see my comments about Fridge Genie, Press Dome), there is competition of sorts (see Dueling Stretchy Lids) and I don't think there's enough "wow" here to get people off the couch. [ss]
  16.  
  17. Sabi. Pitch: "Hair growth delayer" lets you "stay smooth for up to 21 days." Comments: I have always thought there was DR potential for a product like this. I don't know if this particular product works, or if they can make those claims, but at $10 less this one would be likely to succeed in my estimation. [ss]
  18.  
  19. Stanley Steemer Spill Cleaner. Pitch: "Pulls spills up and out instantly." Marketer: Edison Nation. Comments: Seems like an over-engineered solution for a problem a ShamWow! is supposed to be able to solve. The site is down, but you can watch the commercial here. [ss]