Eye Spy: Ashley & Martin

Well I’m back – for better or worse, richer or poorer. After a few weeks of Oasis Ball/CB Awards madness, then a holiday, then a week to recover from the holiday…

Speaking of the Oasis Ball, what another great night it was. We didn’t do our ‘Best Dressed’ this year but if we had, our top 5 would have been:

Deidre Nelson – elegance personified in a beautifully understated pale green dress.

Taryn Payne – a hint of 1920’s flapper in an off-white dress trimmed with black and perfectly matched heels and accessories.

Sue Stirling – stunning again in a shimmering silver and cerulean (I learnt that from The Devil Wears Prada) dress.

Asha Dyson – gorgeous in an off-white halterneck finished with a contrasting black ribbon belt.

Melissa Fazari – sexy-pretty in a ‘brown is the new black’ short cocktail dress.

If you haven’t seen them already, check them out in the ‘official’ photos here. Anyway, that’s enough perving for now.

I’ve been watching a bit of the IPL on ONE, which has given me plenty of opportunity to see this long-running Ashley & Martin ad.

Baldness is a curious thing. Some men seem come to terms with itquickly and ‘go the dome’, but for others it’s a major issue affectingtheir self-esteem. Obviously the latter group is a big one because thehair re-growth industry seems to be thriving.

So this ad is probably well targeted. It’s all suitably scientificlooking with diagram of a hair follicle, rapidly ascending numbersunder it (the amount of money you’ll be spending?), geometric lines.

There’s a little clip of an earlier TVC playing in the background,where the male model type has just emerged from the surf demonstratingyou can still run, swim and live an active life with your new crop ontop (like a Stayfree ad for males).

All the while a guy in a white lab coat talks to us in a calm,reassuring tone about A&M’s qualified health professionals and thechances of re-growth. Sub-text: “We understand your pain; we take itseriously and we’ll help you.”

It’s well put together and strategically ticks all the boxes butsomehow it just feels a little condescending. Perhaps I’d feeldifferently if I was more concerned about my own hair loss.

Having said that it’s not especially offensive, which is a good thing given its media placement.

The problem with any cricket sponsorship is that ads get flogged todeath during the telecast, so there’s a big risk of wear-out.

In this case it’s less of an issue. There’s no joke to become un-funny,no smart-arse talent to become annoying. Sure, that might mean thewhole thing becomes ‘wallpaper’ but I’d rather that between overs thansomething with the laxative effect of a week-old curry.

And the repetition is probably good for the target audience. I don’tthink it would be an impulse purchase for most men and there’s probablya longish lead-time to actually making an appointment, so a constantreminder (Sub-text: “We’re ready when you are”) is appropriate.

Non-baldie: 3/5. Baldie: 4/5.

Martin Trevaskis