Here’s their exact copy for the search:

Think you are the Next BIG Thing?

Calling curvy ladies everywhere! Our best-selling Disco Pant (and around 10 other sexy styles) are now available in size XL, for those of us who need a little extra wiggle room where it counts. We’re looking for fresh faces (and curvaceous bods) to fill these babies out. If you think you’ve got what it takes to be the next XLent model, send us photos of you and your junk to back it up.

Just send us two recent photographs of yourself, one that clearly shows your face and one of your body. We’ll select a winner to be flown out to our Los Angeles headquarters to star in your own bootylicious photoshoot. Runners up will win an enviable assortment of our favorite new styles in XL!

Show us what you’re workin’ with!

As a copywriter and as a woman, there are just so many things wrong with the wording of this campaign, including but not limited to the fact that not once do they use a positive or real adjective to describe plus-sized women. As one irate blogger says, it’s just “jokey, made up words like ‘junk’ and ‘XLent.’ Nothing that denotes attractiveness without a crude reference to size.”

Essentially, it was hard for me to take this campaign seriously, and apparently, I’m not the only one.

To Nancy Upton, a Dallas-based blogger, the contest was one big fat insult. “The puns, the insulting, giggly tones, and the over-used euphemisms for fat that were scattered throughout the campaign’s solicitation began to crystallize an opinion in my mind. How offensive the campaign was,” Upton wrote in a post on the Daily Beast. To Upton, “The company was co-opting the mantra of plus-size empowerment and glazing it with its unmistakable brand of female objectification.”

And not only did her words strike a chord with American Apparel’s Creative Director, Iris Alonza, so did the spoof photos she submitted to the contest. Upton teamed up with friend Shannon Skloss to take modeling pictures of her devouring fried chicken in a pool, soaking in a bath of ranch dressing, smearing an entire pie on her face and body, and other satirical situations.

Photo credit: Shannon Skloss

See Upton’s full submission here.

The irony here is that Nancy Upton won the contest, at least in popularity, but she won’t be modeling for the company anytime soon. The brand hasn’t announced their official winner, but in a scathing response to Upton, Alonza wrote:

“Oh—and regarding winning the contest, while you were clearly the popular choice, we have decided to award the prizes to other contestants that we feel truly exemplify the idea of beauty inside and out, and whom we will be proud to have representing our company.”

What she meant to say was, “We decided to pick a winner who already likes our brand in hopes that she will just sit there on her ‘full-sized fanny’ and look pretty, er…I mean, XLent.”

So what can we learn from all this not-so-XLent publicity that the “Next BIG Thing” campaign has garnered for American Apparel? To put it simply, tone is everything. And for a company who’s built their brand with what some have labeled as misogynist advertising, they probably should have steered clear of their “Hey, girl, we get you!” tone, especially for a target that’s been purposely excluded up until now.

*Made-up statistic pulled out of thin air to add some color to this post
**American Apparel (AA) threatened to file bankruptcy this year. With the belts of so many Americans loosening, maybe AA decided it was time to expand…literally.

Who’s Talking?

Someone needs to spread the message. Called connectors, accelerators and influencers, they have deep and wide social networks and pass along information they care about to others. The key is to tap into the right people for your specific product or service. Here are three types of “go-to” people:

Enthusiast. The stereotypical brand advocate who serves as a passionate brand ambassador.
Local Expert. The know-all about a specific category—car or gadget nut, knows about new restaurants or TV shows.
Jack-of-All-Interest. An interesting know-a-lot vs. an annoying know-it-all.

What Are They Talking About?

First of all, forget everything you learned about traditional brand management. If this process starts by trying to convert a well-crafted brand statement into a word-of-mouth campaign, it won’t be successful. The product or service must be looked at through a different lens.

It’s not what you want to say about your product or service, but what consumers find talkable about it. Finding the relevance in a product or service is crucial. If it’s relevant, the more likely it will be deemed worth sharing. Once something is worth sharing, it has value. High-involvement categories tend to increase information value. The collision of talkability and relevancy becomes the social currency in the message.

Dig deep to understand the consumer. Think about what people like to talk about, why they like to talk, and how an actual conversation might transpire. Remember the book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus by John Gray? It’s quite appropriate when creating word-of-mouth messages.

When developing word-of-mouth messages directed toward men, think in terms of Guysmanship. Male word-of-mouth triggers tend to be competitive, fact-based and opinionated. Men talk to “show that they know” or “be first.” Look at ESPN or read the sports page—facts and opinions are expressed in sound bites.

For women, it’s all about Fempathy. Female triggers are more empathetic or deal with community building and emotional outreach. They talk “to help” and “to be heard.” And far from sound bites, their conversations are centered on shared experiences and expressed as complete stories. It’s Oprah and Lifetime and their stories of women facing their challenges, from the life-changing to the day-to-day.

So Get to It.

Find the right people to spread the word. Craft the right message that’s talkable and relevant. Activate it using the tactics most appropriate for the topic. There’s a world of technological options; be sure to find the tools that will best seed or spark the conversation. And remember, the true magic lies in the social currency of the idea—it’s what keeps the idea moving to others.

• Our #1 hit of 2010 was our celebration of the innovative marketing efforts of… a car company? An American car company?? Yep, Ford has Facebook all figured out, especially with their live launch of their 2011 Explorer. No other marketer demonstrated such a nuanced approach to engaging with consumers via Facebook. It’s the perfect case study for seamlessly applying all the features that Facebook has to offer, and giving consumers what they actually want from a brand on social media. (It’s also one of the reasons we wholeheartedly agree with Ad Age naming Ford marketer of the year for 2010.)
• Part of the impetus for naming Cause with Effect as a 2011 trend came from watching the shifts in cause marketing over the course of 2010. Pepsi Refresh was clearly the game changer in this category, but we put Levi’s “Ready to Work” campaign under the microscope because it really drove home the depth-over-breadth approach that we expect to become a bigger focus in 2011. Likewise, one of the few bright spots that came out of the Haitian disaster was discovering that enormous sums of charitable money could be generated by aggregating millions of small (mobile) donations. If only this breast cancer awareness gag could have tapped that tactic!
• Anyone could’ve told you that food trucks are poised to upend the restaurant world in 2011, but readers were enthusiastic about our coverage of non-food applications for the food truck fad.
• It’s not everyday that our readers get jazzed about billboards, but these outdoor spectacles changed that perception pretty quickly. Likewise, we think this might be the only time a conversation about sustainable packaging has ever been so damn sexy.

Head this way for Part 2!

Since yesterday’s augmented reality update was such a hit, that seems like the best place to start. You may remember us calling out Ben & Jerry’s in our Smartshot webinar on QR codes. At the time, we argued that the brand’s Target-exclusive flavors had missed an opportunity to provide more information about the charitable component to the shopper marketing program. We’d suggested that a QR code on the lid could have delivered that content effectively, which is true. Of course, bringing those programs to life through 3D augmented reality animations works, too. The video below shows how the brand’s iPhone app interacts with a variety of Ben & Jerry’s containers, and without the need for an AR marker. Consider our criticisms vanquished!

You may also remember us struggling a bit with the “I Like It On…” Facebook meme that, ostensibly, was intended to raise Breast Cancer awareness. Our critique focused on the fact that there wasn’t much of a payoff: no one used the campaign to raise money for research, and the in-on-the-joke approach made it difficult for outsiders to learn more about the issue. Fortunately, a campaign from Abraxis Bioscience (pictured at the top of the post) got the balance right. Abraxis created a site called sharethelittlethings.com, where women were encouraged to post stories about their own (or their loved ones’) breast cancer survival. The submissions (which could be posted to Facebook and Twitter, t00) ranged from encouragement to actionable advice, providing a legitimate emotional and practical impact for visitors. Better yet, Abraxis donated $1 to breast cancer research for every post, ensuring that this effort has a long-term impact, even after the campaign ends. Maybe it’s not quite as fun as the “I Like It On” joke, but at the end of the day, Abraxis’ approach sure seems to a more effective approach to cause marketing.

(Say, that sounds like a trend worth watching in 2011, doesn’t it? We bet that if you follow the Awesome Blog on Twitter, you’d be the first to find out!)

“I like it on the kitchen chair…”

“I like it on the kitchen stool…”

Man, my Facebook friends like “it” on a lot of furniture.

There’s a decent chance that these inexplicable statements have popped up on your Facebook feed over the course of the week. If you’re a girl, you’re probably snickering because you’re in on the joke. If you’re a guy, you’re probably just confused.

Ok fellas, here’s what’s happening: the “it” is not exactly what you think it is. It’s a handbag, and your female friends are telling you where they like to put “it.” In the process, they’ve conspired to get you all worked up about “it,” knowing that once you started investigating the strange (and titillating) trend, you’d realize that this was all a viral stunt to get guys thinking about Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Whoa, that took an unexpected turn, didn’t it?

Yes, score another one for the ladies. Much like the bra color meme from a few months ago, they’ve managed to pull a fast one on the Facebook boys. It speaks to the viral power of a niche network, in which a shared secret among an intentionally exclusive group has generated an enormous amount of online conversations (as evidenced by the one million Google hits for the phrase). And, clearly, there’s a lesson to be learned here for the potential of viral cause marketing, since the mysterious nature of this conversation has driven participation through the roof. And of course, the payoff for breast cancer awareness has been…

Um, what has the payoff been? That part isn’t as clear.

And we’re not just saying that because this particular author happens to be a guy. (In fact, I happen to think most of the Rethink Breast Cancer work is exceptionally clever, and does drive breast cancer conversations – and donations! – among both men and women.) But, when the person finally makes the connection between “I like it on…” and breast cancer, where is the follow up? Where is a breast cancer nonprofit – or, one of the hundreds of brands on the breast cancer bandwagon – to jump in and, say, donate X cents for every “I like it on…” comment on Facebook? Or, why aren’t any of those one million Google queries pointing to something like, say, a cause-related celebrity video from Funny or Die? Or, why isn’t someone at least trying to aggregate these conversations in an interesting manner?

Without any of those outcomes, this Facebook meme seems like a dead end. It drives an enormous amount of curiosity among men, and creates a massive in-on-the-joke conversation for women. Those seem like two fantastic opportunities to make a legitimate impact in the fight against breast cancer, even if the creator of the meme didn’t have a particular goal other than generating a bit of conversation.

But then again, maybe you think your humble narrator is just jealous that he wasn’t in on the joke? Are we being hypocritical, since this meme did lead us to create a blog post speaking about breast cancer awareness? Are we just being a bunch of buzzkilling crankypants who should just relax and enjoy a fun little Facebook joke? We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on this phenomenon in the comments below.

Calm down, calm down – that rated-G title was just too easy to pass up.

More importantly, lets look at the coup that these FCUKing guys have pulled off on YouTube. (Ok, ok, we won’t drive that joke into the ground.) Normally, the annotated links that are overlaid on videos can only link to other content on YouTube, in order to keep the spamming to a minimum. But, as you can see in the video above, by officially partnering with YouTube, FCUK got special privileges that allow viewers to buy the clothing featured in the video just by clicking on the items.

While that’s certainly the most attention-grabbing detail of this video, FCUK’s YouTube channel in general does a great job maximizing the potential of this social media platform (visit it here). As we’ve argued on multiple occasions, we think it’s a huge oversight for brands to ignore online videos in pursuit of the next tech-du-jour. It’s hard to think of another medium that allows you to deliver more engaging content than shareable, short videos.

Case in point: rather than using their videos to make blatant sales pitches, each FCUK clip is themed around a particular fashion solution, from “sparkling at a wedding” to “shining on a night out.” (Your humble narrator will now describe himself as “glowing” in his pair of worn out jeans and a striped t-shirt that’s too big for him.) We like the fact that the brand is connecting to its consumers on a deeper emotional level, offering helpful recommendations while recognizing the greater role that clothing plays in their shoppers’ lives. And, with over 160,000 views on their channel, it sure seems like their consumers are making the… connection.

Just one question: when did the skinny-Zach-Galifianakis look become chic?

In our Smartshot webinar on Radical Demography, we told you about four dramatic demographic shifts that need to be in marketers’ peripheral vision, including “DINK” (dual income, no kids) households and multigenerational households. Well, guess what? In Nielsen’s new Pop-Facts® Demographics report, they describe these shifts as an integral part of their five demographic key trends for the next century. And, they’ve got the numbers to prove it. (Contact us if you’d like a copy of the deck.)

Then again, that shouldn’t be new news to our frequent readers. What is new is that marketers are paying attention, particularly to the rise of multigenerational households.  A recent article from Ad Age shares a number of examples, including:

• Nintendo marketing their Wii gaming systems to appeal simultaneously to kids, adults, and grandparents, including games like Brain Age and Wii bowling
• Toys ‘R’ Us has offered targeted coupons to grandparents, since grandparents “buy one in four toys, four of every 10 children’s books, and one of every five video games.”
• Ameriprise Financial advisers have been trained to address the specific needs of adults who are now tasked with caregiving for their parents
• Even TV shows like “Modern Family” and “Parenthood” are starting to portray multigenerational households as the norm. And those shows are likely to have more multigenerational households watching them, providing advertisers with the opportunity to target this demographic more effectively.

Oh, by the way, don’t think our other two trends from Radical Demography (single person households and female-headed households) were left behind. In fact, they recently came together when single women lauded Lowe’s for positively portraying single women in their 30s in their TV spots. See, demography can be radical.

Speaking of radical, don’t forget to vote for Upshot’s proposed panel for SXSW 2011. Voting ends this Friday. You’ll need to create an account to vote, but we promise that it takes less than a minute. We appreciate any help we can get!

Don’t forget: we also covered the topic in a more lighthearted manner in our latest Potty Posting, which is available here.

Be sure to follow Upshot on Twitter (@upshot_agency) for information on subsequent Smartshots. And, if you have marketing topics that you’d like to see us tackle (in 15 minutes!), just shoot us a message using the “submit something awesome” box to the right.

As always, a PDF version is available for sharing and perusal right here: Totally Radical Demography.

But, if you’d prefer a text-only version of the Posting, just continue right on reading.

TOTALLY RADICAL DEMOGRAPHY

Like, totally.

While we’ve been tracking all of our 10 Trends for 2010 throughout the year, the recent Census got us re-stoked about the eighth trend on our list: Radical Demography. As a refresher, Radical Demography warned us to look beyond the same stories we’ve been hearing for years: explosive Hispanic population growth, aging Boomers, Gen X-headed families. Now, we’re talking about social shifts that are so dramatic that they’re worthy of such an 80s-tastic phrase as “radical,” if not “most excellent.” Taken individually, these changes provide important clues about how to better target and message to often-ignored niches. But, as a whole, these righteous shifts have given the bogus concept of the “average consumer” a facial disgracial (in English: it’s now totallyless than a quarter of all households. We’re not mental; this is the world of outdated). By the time the Census results come out next year, the traditional family (a married couple with children) is expected to account for Radical Demography. Let’s take a look at four emerging (or re-emerging) household types and how the most bitchin’ marketers are targeting them.

SINGLE, READY TO MINGLE: Does a “singles cruise” bring to mind a scene of mass debauchery (perhaps an “excellent adventure”), or a sign of savvy marketers reading the demographic tea leaves? Well, probably both. But the fact that Norwegian Cruise Lines is offering single-occupancy rooms for the first time in their 43-year history shows a recognition of the startling spending power of the single consumer, who now accounts for 35% of all US spending. With Americans delaying marriage longer and divorce rates still hovering high, the rise in singledom isn’t especially surprising. Over a quarter of Americans currently live alone (27% in 2007 versus 17% in 1970), and married couples only accounted for 60% of home purchases in 2009 (compared to 81% in 1985). By the way, 21% of those unmarried home purchases were made by single women (meaning only 10% by single men), which may explain why Home Depot’s now (wisely) offering “Do-It-Herself Workshops.” But, when other marketers (especially in food and CPG categories) don’t address this population, they’re really doing it themselves, like singleedition.com’s recipes-for-one and kitchen gadgets for solo cooks.

SH*T MY DAD SAYS, IN THE NEXT ROOM: Even before the Great Recession forced youngsters to move back home (most heinous!), we were already witnessing a longer-term resurgence of multi-generational households. 2008 saw a record number (16.1%) of Americans living in households with multiple generations of adults, and there are plenty of explanations: the rising share of immigrant families (especially Hispanics and Asians, although many African-American families are also in this boat), the rising age of marriage, and Medicare cuts. Regardless of the cause, the effect is multiple generations having input on household decisions. With each cohort responding to dramatically different purchase drivers, these families may require simultaneously messaging to a number of household members in independent ways.

DINKS AREN’T JUST SPACEBALLS CHARACTERS: Although it sounds like an insult, “DINK” is just short for “Dual Income, No Kids” households. In 2007, married couples with kids made up a smaller percentage of US households than married couples without kids (22.5% vs. 28.3%). Throw in the aforementioned single folks (without kids) and childless cohabitators and you’ll realize that the majority of US households now lack those grody little weasels. As we asked in our original 10 Trends, how much of your marketing is based on the assumption that you’re talking to parents? When you’re talking to Gen Xers (and even some older Gen Yers/Millennials) who don’t have kids, their priorities, their interests, and their disposable income will all be greatly impacted if they’re not subject to the iron grip of Hannah Montana.

MORE ELYSE KEATONS, FEWER PEGGY BUNDYS: What’s your idea of a breadwinning head of the household? Is he a cranky middle manager like Jack Arnold? Is he generously affluent like Phillip Drummond? Is he even a “he”? PSYCH! With women increasingly outlearning and outearning their husbands, many households are reversing traditional gender roles. Our creative briefs frequently refer to the multi-dimensional mom who’s bodaciously juggling kids, work, household chores, and her own interests, but how much does that description change if we add “And, she’s the primary source of household income”? Suddenly, she’s not the overstretched “supermom” who needs a break and a pat on the back; instead, she’s driven, focused on the big picture, and, while perhaps short on time, knows exactly what she wants from marketers. We could even say she’s most triumphant.

Obviously, these are different folks (with diff’rent strokes), so we’re not saying you should be targeting all of these household types at once. In fact, we’re saying the opposite: divvying up your demographics can take your targeting to the max! When your target is Jessica the Gen Xer, ask whether your campaign also resonates with her intentionally-childless friend and her neighbor whose father has moved in. You may find your marketing taking a radically different approach.

the hotspot for haute thought is the pot at upshot

demography is totally crucial at theawesomeblog.net

You didn’t forget, did you? If so, not to worry – Teleflora can send a virtual bouquet of talking flowers that’s sure to arrive on time.  Each card also enters the user into a sweepstakes for a year of free flowers for both the sender and the recipient’s mom (which almost seems like an oppressive quantity of flowers, doesn’t it?).

But Mom’s Day isn’t really about gifts; it’s about showing appreciation, right? (No, really, I’m not just being a cheapskate.) That explains why Hallmark is using their Facebook page to create a tribute wall for moms (see the image to the right). Users can post multimedia tributes to their moms, or view others by categories such as “childhood memories” and “inspiration.” On the other hand, spafinder.com is running a promotion through their Twitter page, where they’re rewarding 5 people with gift certificates for the best stories about moms going above and beyond for them.

And what if your mom’s also a grandma? Well, Emeritus Senior Living is dangling cash prizes for the Facebook users who do the best job explaining what makes their moms special. (Aww, this might’ve been the sweetest posting we’ve ever had on the blog.)

Happy Mother’s Day, folks, and we’ll see you on Monday.