Marketing ritual as family values

July 29, 2008 - 1:52 PM by · 3 Comments
Filed under: General 

Kiddush with the familyIn Israel, Fridays are similar to European and North American Sundays in many ways, a key one being the extra-thick newspaper. When Israel Israeli sits down to watch soccer on TV and spit sunflower seeds into his Turkish coffee regs, nothing makes for better reading material than a multi-kilo pile of not-quite-dry ink on super-thin paper containing hyper-local news tidbits, the following week’s TV highlights, in-depth feature articles illustrated with full-page photos, a circular outlining the latest cosmetics on sale at SuperPharm and fliers selling religious ritual to the presumably uninitiated.

Statistics have been said to indicate that the Passover Seder is Judaism’s most popular ritual (I know, it does seem odd that it would beat out henna parties, the Fast of Gedalia and upsheirin), so it makes sense that on the Friday preceding Passover, an advertising-laden Hagadah gets included in the pile. But this week, the Yediot tabloid included a Shabbat Kiddush flier insert that not only touted the sanctity of the Friday night family meal but also included the relevant liturgical text.

It’s not clear what kind of market research went into this initiative, nor what religiously coercive organizations were secretly involved (a comment on the flier here notes that Yediot publisher Nachi Dankner’s Supersol supermarkets are currently engaged in a stiff competition with Shefa Shuk, a chain which has made some enemies in the ultra-Orthodox world), but the sales pitch angle is an interesting one.

The flier doesn’t focus on man’s ritual obligations to his Maker, nor on the mystical attributes of the seventh day. Rather, what’s being sold here is happy, wholesome family time. In Israel, even for the secular, Shabbat (and the Friday night dinner that ushers it in) is a time when we surround ourselves with the people and tasks that really matter: taking it easy with the immediate clan. The smiling mother, children and wine goblet-wielding father sit at a table that’s in a “reserved” parking space, and the headline reads “Friday [night] is reserved for family.” It’s not easy for one’s heart to remain unwarmed.

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Freebies

July 16, 2008 - 1:53 PM by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: A New Reality, Business, General, Immigrant Moments, Israeliness 

In the 14 years I’ve lived in Israel, which isn’t a very long time compared to some, I’m consistently amazed by the increasing sophistication of product placement in this country. Granted, there are a few other things to be impressed by, whether it’s the Silicon Wadi, medical advances or perhaps other items of a higher moral standard.

But when you’re coming from a place that practically created product placement — whether it was the plastic Coke cups from which we slurped our 7-11 Slurpees or the Tropicana orange juice t-shirts that were available through a mail-rebate offer — to go live somewhere that doesn’t know from touting its products, well, it’s just missing some flavor.

So you can imagine the pleasure and pride I felt at two recent events where different companies used the opportunity to tout their products in a fairly creative, somewhat useful manner. The first was at the opening event of the Jerusalem Film Festival, where each attendee received a hot cup from Nescafe, including packets of the all-important Nes coffee packets inside. I’m not a particular fan of drinking ‘Nes,’ and would have much preferred another of the light fleece blankets that Pelephone handed out last year, but I could appreciate the effort.

The next handout was a few nights later, at another film festival event, one of the free outdoor movies at Jerusalem’s old train station. After getting our free tickets, my friend noticed the Orange mobile phone posters telling customer to punch in the word ‘Enjoy’ and send it to 999 for a treat from the company. With great excitement and anticipation, I approached the stand and was handed my gift in an Orange bag. Could it be a blanket? But no. It was a sweet, slightly edgy gray teddy bear. Perhaps useful as a cushion while watching The Band’s Visit from the hard, stadium-style seats and certainly a welcome collection to my stepdaughter’s stuffed animal collection. Yet nothing like the white Bezeq-branded cushions we were given years back at a Shlomo Artzi concert in Caesarea.

Still. Effort counts. And I’m getting a lot of use out of my complimentary Khalifa pen; received when I purchased my new pair of Teva Naots. So that’s something.

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