Review: Easy Reach

Description: A pulley system for plants
Main Pitch: "Lets you lower and raise plants with just a gentle touch"
Main Offer: $10 for two
Bonus: Two more (just pay P&H)
Marketer: Allstar
Producer: Hutton-Miller
Website: www.GetEasyReach.com
Prediction: Likely to succeed

This campaign meets all of the S7 criteria, except perhaps one. It's a great product idea in a proven category presented with first-rate creative.

My only concern is the targeting. You have to be someone who owns a hanging plant to find the first half of this commercial interesting. I'm not sure how many people that is.

Later in the spot, the uses are expanded to appeal to almost everyone. I think that's the right approach to DRTV creative in general: Start narrow and go broad later. The alternative is to muddy your pitch by trying to be all things early on, but it never works. Viewers need to understand what the product is, what it does and what makes it different in the first 30 seconds. That's because most of the spots they see are branding spots of that length. Trying to fit multiple uses into that first 30 seconds is a recipe for confusion, and confusion is a sales killer.

That said, choosing a narrow position also means taking a risk people won't stay with the commercial long enough to see something that appeals to them. It's a Catch-22 that tortures a lot of DRTV marketers, myself included.

Quicksand: Old Gold?

New Name: Sifteroo
Current Marketer: Allstar
Original Hit Year: 1996 (No. 5 on the JW Annual)
Original Marketer: Smart Inventions
Website: www.Sifteroo.com
Prediction: On the fence

This short-form hit from more than a decade ago was originally marketed under the name Quicksand (a better name). Both the key demo and the concept are as cool today as they were back then. Only one cause for concern: A similar item is readily available at Petco under the name Lift 'n Sift.

Review: Couch Coaster

Description: A drink holder and organizer for a couch
Main Pitch: "The first ever portable snacking station"
Main Offer: $10 for one w/ two free tumblers
Bonus: 2nd one w/ two more tumblers (just pay S&H)
Website: www.CouchCoaster.com
Prediction: Bomb

The best version of this idea -- Allstar's Handy Valet -- didn't take off. Neither did the worst version, Couch Commander (#9). That tells me the problem is most likely the idea itself. People just aren't interested.

Review: Wrist Pockets

Description: A wristband with a zippered pouch built in
Main Pitch: "Keep what you really need right at hand"
Main Offer: $10 for three in black, red and tan
Bonus: Three more in purple, pink and teal (just pay P&H)
Marketer: Ontel
Producer: Blue Moon Studios
Website: www.WristPockets.com
Prediction: Likely to succeed

What's not to like? This meets all of the SciMark Seven criteria and is done by last year's No. 1 production company. The odds of success are high.

Review: Sticky Wicky

Description: A reusable lint roller
Main Pitch: "Will pick up anything: dog hair, cat hair, lint, dust"
Main Offer: $19.95 for one
Bonus: Small (travel) and large (handled) version
Starring: An unnamed pitchwoman
Marketer: Ontel
Website: www.BuyStickyWicky.com
Prediction: Unlikely to succeed

Believe it or not, I do not object to the creative approach here. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have a soft spot for old-school pitches. Sure, this pitchwoman's is quirky and her humor is a little odd. But it is also genuine and endearing (instead of tasteless or forced) and the focus is on selling the product. To give credit where credit is due, it's the "Vince Offer Method" done correctly.

However, the product and the commercial both have key weaknesses that make this campaign unlikely to succeed. First, the product is a resurrection of an old item (the "Magic Lint Remover") that was a hit in the 1990s. That's usually a good thing, but sometimes these products just don't have the same impact they had years ago. With so many cheap lint rollers on the market (like this one from Scotch/3M), the need just may not be there. Also, the "reusable" pitch has a credibility issue, but I think the commercial does a good job addressing it. Sticking it to a mirror after it was rinsed was a great demo.

Second, and speaking of demos, the commercial over-uses quads and quick cuts. Inexplicably, the demos the pitchwoman does before your eyes compete with -- or are even covered over (!) with -- "pop up" windows featuring other demos. The effect creates confusion because you don't know where to look. By the time you figure it out, the scene is over. In other words, you never really get a chance to see this thing in action, and that's critical for buying it (figuratively and literally).

If fixed, this campaign could have a shot, assuming consumers disagree with my assessment of the category.