We come across hundreds of commercial messages everyday. A majority of them go unnoticed. Only a handful get our attention and perhaps even smaller number remain memorable. Here are a few which caught my eye this week:
Combiflam IcyHot: Strong pain
Advertising for consumer goods – be it everyday food and beauty products or OTC drugs have a predictable template. Setting up a a problem and then providing a solution is one such – the ‘before-after’ template. There are other elements like a cutaway product window complete with graphics to show ‘deep action’ or whatever the product feature is. Needless to say, this leads to a sea of sameness in most categories – detergent, toothpaste, beauty care, automobiles and more. In this context, the new Combiflam IcyHot is clutter bustlingly different. ‘Pain’, ‘icy’ and ‘hot’ have been characterised and come to the rescue of a pain afflicted protagonist. Loved it.
Agency: Ogilvy, Mumbai
StarPlus: #SachMein
The use of celebrities is common in advertising. Many years ago only a select few brands could afford to sign up celebrities as brand ambassadors (Lux for example). In that milieu, such ads stood out from the clutter. Over the years, signing up of celebrities is seen as a sure-shot way to create brand awareness and many brands can afford to sign up such. The creative execution though is largely about talking heads – as there are several constraints in shooting with the celebrity (paucity of time, being available only in a studio etc.). Some see it as a lazy way out as the executions are largely about the celebrity mouthing some dialogues holding up the pack or pointing to the brand. There is also the question of brand fit as it can be incredulous to expect a super-rich celebrity endorsing ‘every day low price’ brands. Some ads featuring celebrities still break the clutter as they have an idea and use the celebrity as a character. A new ad from StarPlus to announce one of their value packs is such an example. M S Dhoni seems to be a cut above in terms of delivering performances compared to other sports celebrities. Hardik Pandya too is a surprise package in this spot.
Disneyland Paris: the little duck
Brand ‘Disney’ is associated with fun and happiness the world over. Another word which comes to mind as a brand association is ‘magic‘ – there’s something magical about the way they evoke emotions in us. A new film for Disneyland Paris tells the story of a little duck and her ‘hero’. Loved it.
Agency: BETC Paris
Vodafone Premier Badminton League: mysterious characters
When it comes to web-only films, capturing the emotions of someone who is taken by surprise (e.g. getting them to meet a long lost friend) is common. Sometimes one feels the entire act is staged and the final product lacks credibility and spontaneity. A new stunt from Star Sports to promote the Premier Badminton League is executed very well.
Netflix: Selection Day
While chase your dreams is a common rallying cry from brands, the creative device of juxtaposing an obviously incongruous voice to mouth a dialogue gets your attention and drives home the point.
iPhone XR: Colour Flood
A new ad for iPhone XR which attempts to highlight the colours is a big production film which manages to hold your attention even if you can guess the message at the beginning. It also reminded me of the famous Sony commercial from 2010.
Compare the Market: AutoSergei
The meerkats of Compare the Market have been great brand mascots. The client and the agency have consistently used them in a playful manner. A new film pokes fun at tech even keynotes to drive home the message ‘designed to Keep life simples’.
Agency: VCCP Blue
Welcome to Winter: Queenstown
The job of a commercial to promote a tourism ‘brand’ is to create the desire to visit the place. Akin to indulgent food commercials (e.g ice cream) the visuals ought to look delicious in order to make the brand inviting. A new ad for Queensland, New Zealand does that with some breathtaking visuals.
Agency: Young & Shand
Which one was your favourite? Comment in.
