Macedonia: Ridiculous Advertising Songs · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

Twitter user Blagoj Kapsarov warned [MKD] that…
The trend of ridiculous promotion continues…
…linking to a video [MKD] containing images of young singers Aleksandar Belov and Sanja Lefkova [MKD], and a tune exalting the virtues of studying at a private university in Skopje. The lyrics literally claim that…
…the best students study at MIT
it's world famous, and always a hit!
Come study at MIT, you'll become famous
and you'll always be the main man!
The Macedonian MIT is related in acronym only to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, even though zombifikacija pointed [MKD] that the brand choice with global appeal should be checked against the local linguistic context, as the word “mito” (мито) in Macedonian means ‘bribe.’
Apart from the use of a silly song, this is the latest instance of marketing practice to recruit celebrities to join the student body of private educational institutions as a way to lure customers. It was initiated by FON University in 2007, which bragged about [MKD] the enrollments of singers Toshe Proeski (who left the state music academy to major as detective) and Karolina Gocheva, as well as the football/soccer striker Goran Pandev.
As another example [MKD] of this trend, Kapsarov pointed a video [MKD] by a dairy company, featuring model Sara Leshi and the lyrics
When you're expecting guests
and need to arrange a buffet
the time is flying fast
and you must be on time
greet your guest with Zdravje Radovo!
In a comment, YouTube user paneporfavor compared the MIT advertisement to the song about Ohridska Banka (“Ohrid Bank”), which is widely considered ‘the mother of all’ ridiculous advertising songs, made famous when leaked [MKD] online in 2007, with an introduction by the editor of the portal On.net:
I read that that French company–Société Générale–is supposed to purchase Ohridska Banka. Well, it's the perfect time to raise the price of the purchase. You have to see this clip. It is not a commercial, it is psychedelia, a banking epic, madness!!! Starring Gjoko Taneski and Kate “Neli ti rekov” [name of her band]. The music is a mixture of [children's festival] Golden Nightingale and a military march. The video featuring teenage girls dancing in front of a church, and Bank clerk hotties swaying their hips! But the lyrics are the song's biggest trump card!!! Unbelievable! It goes like this:
Ohridska Banka is wherever you are,
has knowledge which adorns her always and everywhere,
it respects its savers and depositors,
and can complete all tasks with efficiency.
Ohridska Banka is a bank of trust,
known abroad and in Macedonia!
Ohridska Banka always secure
behind us we have experience and tradition.
Ohridska Banka knows about shareholding,
it already introduced electronic banking,
it knows how to achieve profitability,
and follows the trends professionally!!!
:)))))))))))))))
Hаааааааааааааааааааа!!!! You think this text is unsingable? [In Macedonian, as in English, there's no rhyme also.] Just watch!
However, do not underestimate the power of marketing in any form. Even though the bank clip never ran in the traditional media, the singer Gjoko Taneski in the meantime rose from his previous status of a local hero in Ohrid to a national representative at this year's Eurovision Song Contest.
In order to boost the appeal of Taneski's song “Jas ja imam silata” (= “I have the strength,” which local Star Wars fans translate using the synonym “I have the Force” – and say it proves Gjoko is a Jedi), his production company released an official video stuffed with local top models.