Rating: 
Summary: "Where The Suckers Moon" Is At The Front of The Class
Review: "The Nerd from the Back of the Class"'s criticisms of Rothenberg's excellent, meticulously researched "client's eye-view" book seem to be focused on three areas: Subaru isn't "sexy" enough, the book is four years old, and that Rothenberg's cool refuses to crack in order to glamorize the ad game or its participants. In fact, one can infer from "Nerd At the Back of the Class"'s review that Rothenberg's writerly sang-froid is a deterrent from a reader's enjoyment or even basic understanding of the book. A question: What word in the English language didn't you understand, Nerd? This is as fine a primer on the processes and pressures relating to advertising as I have ever read. And I'm not a Joe Blow--and I doubt that "Nerd At the Back Of The Class" is either-- but, in fact, have made my living as an advertising copywriter for five years now. Rothenberg's cool detachment, his knowledge of his subject (ostensibly modern advertising agencies but, in fact, the history of advertising agencies themselves, and, in fact, Subaru and its parent company in Japan) his patience, his eye for detail, his recording of the filming of the Subaru commercials and the organized chaos that is The Creative Process, his willingness to hang around legendary hothead Joe Pytka for crying out loud--these things make the book what it is: a treatise that modern consumer culture and in fact modern corporate America are neither godlike, infallible or perfect. Rothenberg is Toto, pulling away the curtain to reveal the Wizard for who he is--a little fat guy with a lot of smoke and mirrors at his disposal, a man who loves power and flattery. (Think of the original owners of Subaru and their covered motorcycles, or the divisonal Subaru car salesman or Wieden & Kennedy for heaven's sake.) And by the way, if anyone doubts Rothenberg's street creds please see his weekly column in Advertising Age, one of the industry's leading publications. If "Where the Suckers Moon" strikes anyone as being recondite, then perhaps you need to eschew this book for something a little less thorough. Perhaps an ad for Apple with its sexy lines and pretty colors...pretty colors good...and sleight of hand. Me, I prefer to know that I'm not being suckered. And that Rothenberg isn't suckered either. And as for the complaint that this book is four years old and out of touch...As someone in the book says, advertising is all about people and relationships and they don't change. This book is as much about the people as it is about their business. If you're looking for sexy, they have plenty of Web sites for that sort of thing...sorry. Rothenberg can't help the fact that Subaru, try as they might, ain't sexy nor will they ever be. And frankly I'm glad he doesn't see the manufacturing nor selling of a car as sexy or feel that he ought to dress it up for the bored people at the back of the class. But, however, the auto industry is quite important to the U.S. economy, and so is the ad business. However, if you're looking for history, knowledge and detail--things that seem to be lacking in most advertising agencies--then this book has it in abundance.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting in-depth view at the birth of an ad campgaign.
Review: "Where the Suckers Moon" starts out with a very interesting premise, whether you are a fan of the advertising world or not. Rothenberg seeks to sort of "pilot-fish" his way along while a million-dollar car company chooses an advertising agency for its upcoming million-dollar campaign. The ups-and-downs of the search are sometimes funny and generally interesting. But the hard-bottom line which Rothenberg shows clearly is that advertising can be a cruel and unfair business. The only bias he seems to have is a mild contempt for the advertising industry. If you swallow the majority of facts that he offers repeatedly, it would be hard not to share his contempt. I did not share his contempt and was annoyed by to employ what is considered to be a necessity in the advertising world: The ability to be concise. Rothenberg offers many bits-and-pieces about the selection process which just are not needed, which he follows up by omitting large parts of the overall selection process. Yet, I found it an interesting book to read. Though I would not consider it an easy, smooth read.
Rating:
Summary: True Insight into the World of Advertising!
Review: For anyone interested in advertising, especially auto advertising, this is a must-read! This is a great book for anyone in the advertising field and it is also very entertaining! Sure, it's a bit long, but well worth the read.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting..
Review: For those who work or will work on a car's account. This books give you all the inside information of how different agencies fight for the big Subara's Account. Although it's not one of the best book I have read, it's interesting.
Rating: 
Summary: A must-read for anyone interested in advertising, marketing
Review: I remember it well: a dramatic image of a sleek black car, against a black background; a gruff world-weary voice dissing conventional auto advertising; an arresting multi-layered scroll of selected text over the fixed image, corresponding directly with the voiceover as the words were read... and remember thinking: "this is an amazing ad. This ad will be incredibly influential." It was, too, insofar as it almost immediately spawned similar art direction for a host of other products. Only problem was: it didn't sell cars. "Where the Suckers Moon" explains why. It explains every aspect of the businesses involved -- how car sales are based on image, not mechanics, and and how automobile advertising became the holy grail for agencies. You learn all about Subaru, and how their corporate structure all but guaranteed failure. You learn about the hubris and arrogance of Weiden and Kennedy, the "hot shop" selected to create the doomed campaign. You learn about how cars have been sold in the past, and gain understanding into how they're sold today. The lessons pointed out in "Where the Suckers Moon" are relevant for other businesses as well, because the book almost painfully explores the human dynamics of the company that created the product, the company chosen for promoting those sales, and the dramatic and catastrophic effects of a lack of alignment between the two parties. It can -- and does -- happen elsewhere. So don't imagine that you won't get anything out of it simply because you aren't directly dependent on cars or advertising for your bread and butter. Failings? It's longer than it needs to be, and sometimes veers into philosophical discussions of advertising which clearly reveal the author's own biases. As such, it does somewhat undermine its own attempts at reportorial quality. This is a bit disappointing, because the research is spectacular -- the access that the author had to the entire process is stunning, and the candor of the participants would be enough to make most senior managers cringe. Minor squabbles. All in all, this book is not only the most important book about advertising written in a long time -- it's also a genuninely entertaining read. Footnote: Once you understand the mindset of Subaru management during the failed campaign, the shift to Subaru's current Paul Hogan/Crocodile Dundee campaign becomes even more remarkable. Sells cars too....
Rating:
Summary: A must-read for anyone interested in advertising, marketing
Review: I remember it well: a dramatic image of a sleek black car, against a black background; a gruff world-weary voice dissing conventional auto advertising; an arresting multi-layered scroll of selected text over the fixed image, corresponding directly with the voiceover as the words were read... and remember thinking: "this is an amazing ad. This ad will be incredibly influential." It was, too, insofar as it almost immediately spawned similar art direction for a host of other products. Only problem was: it didn't sell cars. "Where the Suckers Moon" explains why. It explains every aspect of the businesses involved -- how car sales are based on image, not mechanics, and and how automobile advertising became the holy grail for agencies. You learn all about Subaru, and how their corporate structure all but guaranteed failure. You learn about the hubris and arrogance of Weiden and Kennedy, the "hot shop" selected to create the doomed campaign. You learn about how cars have been sold in the past, and gain understanding into how they're sold today. The lessons pointed out in "Where the Suckers Moon" are relevant for other businesses as well, because the book almost painfully explores the human dynamics of the company that created the product, the company chosen for promoting those sales, and the dramatic and catastrophic effects of a lack of alignment between the two parties. It can -- and does -- happen elsewhere. So don't imagine that you won't get anything out of it simply because you aren't directly dependent on cars or advertising for your bread and butter. Failings? It's longer than it needs to be, and sometimes veers into philosophical discussions of advertising which clearly reveal the author's own biases. As such, it does somewhat undermine its own attempts at reportorial quality. This is a bit disappointing, because the research is spectacular -- the access that the author had to the entire process is stunning, and the candor of the participants would be enough to make most senior managers cringe. Minor squabbles. All in all, this book is not only the most important book about advertising written in a long time -- it's also a genuninely entertaining read. Footnote: Once you understand the mindset of Subaru management during the failed campaign, the shift to Subaru's current Paul Hogan/Crocodile Dundee campaign becomes even more remarkable. Sells cars too....
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining, quirky little book
Review: If you follow marketing, if you like Subarus, if you enjoy corporate history, or if you just like offbeat non-fiction, settle in for an illuminating account of Subaru's efforts to pick an ad agency to launch their misunderstood SVX. Follow the agencies in the review from over their shoulders, sit in on Subaru's deliberations, and then watch how their plans and intentions fare against the actual world. It's a wonder that any advertising ever emerges from these labyrinths to wind up on our TVs, our magazine, and our billboards. You will never look at a car ad the same way.
Rating: 
Summary: ZZZZZzzzzzzz
Review: Must agree with the reviewer below who called this book dated and unsexy. I picked it up at a garage sale a couple weeks ago for a song. The book was too long and I found the author's tone arrogant, too eager to show how smart he thought he was. And does anyone really care about an old Subaru campaign these days?
Rating:
Summary: Turf Wars a plenty
Review: One the best books I have ever read with regards to the managing of advertising campaigns within a company. Few other books have provided such an insight into the realities of the pitch process, getting agencies on board, the client/agency relationship and the palava of producing an ad campaign.
But where this book truly strikes home is in the laying bare of the internal politics - Agency vs Marketing vs Sales vs Dealers vs Operations (production). Local company vs Off shore Parent. And even more enlightening/entertaining is the strife within each divisional silo.
It is set within the Automobile world but the actions and truths to be found are equally applicable to many businesses but especially to the Client/Agency interface. I squirmed when I recognised situations that I have faced as an FMCG marketeer and when things hit home that way you know you are reading a book with true insight.
Rating:
Summary: Best Advertising Book
Review: Simply the best, most sophisticated book ever written on advertising. At least that's the opinion of one guy who's read them all.
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