The line between public and private space in advertising is often blurred. From product placement in movies to the targeted ads in your personal e-mail account, the advertising world has become bounded only by creativity, not advertising space.  However, we can always appreciate when creativity brings advertisements into a useful utility.

Today, promoters of the new USA series “Covert Affairs,” handed out free fans to New York subway riders as they exited the station. The advertisement, a thick piece of cardboard attached to a stick, came in handy on this hot New York morning. The reverse side of the ad displays in bold font “YOUR MISSION: BECOME A FAN!”  This pun of encouraging people to become a “fan,” and use their fan reflects how far are companies willing to go to reach their audience?

Rather than simply displaying an advertisement, the advertisement becomes a part of a useful item. People seem to pay most attention to a creative and practical advertisement, because they are mutually beneficial, the advertisement gets promoted and the people get something in return.

A lot going on in the office this week;  multiple on-going projects, post production editing, the big move to our new office and sprinkle in some sub-90 degree heat for good measure.

On the occasions we do step out of our air conditioned office and into the summer heat, we like to check out the construction of the gigantic billboard on Park Ave. Usually, billboards aren’t really blog worthy topics, but we really appreciate the hand painted ones, which are a dying breed (as everyone has gone to vinyl).

The short documentary Up There from the Ritual Project does a great job telling the story of the men and women risking their lives above city streets to keep one of New York’s oldest traditions alive, hand painted advertisements.

If you had the chance, what would you paint? Do you think billboards can be art?

Today is FourSquare Day!  The first global social media holiday, ever.

Didn’t get your friends anything?  Don’t worry, this is a holiday for sharing information and earning badges, not gifts.

Foursquare is a social network game, primarily used in mobile devices, for users to share their location with friends and also earn bragging rights by obsessively visiting locations for badge points.

For instance, around the corner of our NYC office, Timo K. is the Gym Rat of Equinox and down the street, Tony C.  is the Mayor of “The World’s Best Sandwich Truck”.

So today, throughout 100 major cities across the world, Foursquare Day will be hosting official “check-in” locations, where people can physically meet, earn their Foursquare day badge and perhaps awkwardly exchange words.

At CreativeFeed, we’re impressed with how Foursquare has redefined business competition on a customer loyalty basis.  Traditionally, businesses compete for customer loyalty through an exchange of quality goods or services, with Foursquare, customers are competing for customer loyalty via virtual badges; and it’s working!

If you’re reading this and you’re a Foursquare user, please chime in!

Do you use Foursquare and how does it compare to other apps like Yelp or Loopt?

Are you using Foursquare for its ping feature or the gaming aspect?

For you New Yorkers, the “Foursquare Day Swarm” will be at the Roger Smith Hotel on 47th and Lexington, from 7:00-9:00PM.

Here is a full list.

Just around the corner of our NYC office, sits one of the largest ‘top-wall’ billboards we’ve seen in Lower Manhattan.

Last week, it had a enormous, ‘Clash of the Titans’ poster, and now, well, we just can’t figure out what it’s going to be.

Take a look and see if you can guess. Winner gets a big virtual pat on the back!  (I’ll be uploading pics daily so stay tuned)

4/7/10

my wayward son?

4/8/10

4/9/10

Okay.  So, it was Sex and The City 2.  Not so exciting, but it was cool watching the progress of the painters putting this billboard together.

Interesting project happening on 23rd and Broadway, near Madison Square Park. Starbucks is encouraging people to switch from paper to reusable mugs. Their way of doing it? Bring your paper cup and walk away with a great reusable mug.

The project which took place over 2 days created an image of a huge tree made up entirely of coffee cups. There has been coffee cup artwork before, but this has more relevance in the messaging.

Keep watching for the time-lapse of the project soon.

For this week, the CF On The Street team covered the (almost) momentous occasion of fellow employee and all-round cheerleader Kate eating her very first burger. Yes, hard to believe that someone could go 20+ years without succumbing to an iconic piece of Americana, but so it was.

With the help of George Motz, America’s foremost hamburger expert, Kate’s first was a Bill’s Classic made to order by chef Brett Reichler, from Bill’s Bar and Burger. Catch the short movie on her experience (“It’s like a taste explosion in my mouth”) at the upcoming NYC Food FIlm Festival, or read Micah Cohen’s report about it in the NY Times (out soon).

Thanks to Erika and Brett (Bill’s and BR Guest), George and Micah.

With smaller Main Street retailers feeling the pinch of the financial crisis and closing up shop, where does that leave ailing landlords? Some shuttered stores in high traffic areas like 5th Ave or 23rd St have become street-level billboards, plastering their windows with advertising.

We don’t really care for more visual pollution, but making the best of a bad situation gets a tip o’ the hat.