Guess what? It’s a recession. Companies and individuals alike are freaking out, mustering up ways to pinch pennies and save money. Frankly, I’m a little tired of magazines and television telling me to stop eating out, start walking and begin selling all my stuff. But hey, as times change habits and practices naturally tend to evolve as well.

In regards to advertisement though, besides the obvious (yes, it’s been hit by a recession too) something interesting has been happening in publishing houses, municipalities and even schools. In a desperate scramble to get more money fast they are selling ad space. Ridiculous, lofty ad space. Ad space on school buses, ad space on rooftops, ad space in civic buildings, hey, even ad space on turnstiles, windows and swimming pool floors. A city in Texas now has advertising in its 50 year old coliseum, Colorado is selling space in parks, many cities are making school buses or trash cans available and in New York, a city congested with ads, the subways will now be allowed ads in-window, on the tunnel walls, on the cars itself and even the turnstiles.

Clearly at first glance this sounds like a great advertisers dream – more channels of communication, more ways to get your message across, more outlets for creativity. Admitedly, some brands take these opportunities and exploit them to create an experience that manages to be aesthetic and meaningful. But some don’t. So before advertisers start going berserk and naming subway stations after their brand (which they will soon be able to do on Chicago’s L line) it’s important to step back and think about what all this really means.

At Naked we have a saying, “We don’t chase shiny objects,” which in this case would mean for a brand to not necessarily go for the branding-the-subway-and-turnstiles-brand-new approach unless they are really seeking awareness of the in-your-face, attention demanding kind. You would not advertise in a school bus unless…well would you advertise on a school bus?

It’s true, buying ads in unconventional places, or even lofty spaces in websites seems like an excellent solution for companies in need of money and brands who want different channels. But in some cases, especially regarding schools or serene places, both parties need to step back and ask themselves, is this the best way? Are we really making a considerable profit? Is my brand giving the desired communications? Because our world is already cluttered enough. We are already in an economical recession. A recession in our thinking, back to the old “shiny objects” times would be the last thing we need.