A majority of ads go unnoticed. Only a handful get our attention and an even smaller number are remembered & recalled. Here are a few creative ads I noticed and liked from last week.
Mothercare: Body Proud Mums
Advertising is often accused of air brushing reality. In most campaigns, especially those for fashion and women, show ‘beautiful people’ in their perfectly sculpted figures. Dove’s Evolution ad and the subsequent ‘Real Beauty’ campaign captured the essence well. Very few everyday, regular brands too choose to portray people who look like regular folks. A new campaign from Mothercare ‘celebrates the beauty of the post-birth body and represents a part of motherhood that is rarely portrayed in the media’.
Agency: mcgarrybowen, London
#ShotOniPhone: NHL
When the smartphone wars began anchoring on cameras, many Android phones used to list down technical specifications of the camera (mainly in terms of mega pixels). Apple decided to showcase the benefit instead and plastered many cities with their #ShotOniPhone campaign which evoked the reaction that the phone takes great pictures – a classic stimulus-response approach. The campaign has gained popularity with many user-contributed pictures making it to the billboards. A smart new twist to this campaign is the use of candid images taken by sports celebrities from he NHL in the US. Also this is a text-book example of how outdoor done right – minimal copy, arresting visuals and message delivered well in a fleeting medium.
See more images here.
AAAI: Stop Food Wastage
The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) wanted to create a call for entries campaign among young creatives for the upcoming Young Lotus competition with the theme was ‘Stop Food Wastage’. A set of posters customised to call out the agency’s creative or business head were created. Such posters were created with actual food wasted by the agencies.
Agency: FCB Interface
Here is an actual poster:
See rest of the work here.
Kumbh Mela: Dabur Red
The gathering of millions of consumers under one ‘roof’ as it were and that too for a good two month period would make any marketer salivate. The Kumbh Mela offers just that opportunity for activation, sampling selling and more. Dabur Red toothpaste not only created a sales opportunity with the concept of ‘dant snaan‘ (a bath for your teeth) in line with the event’s significance but also made a music video out of it.
Nike: Dream Crazier
The best thing about Nike’s marketing & advertising juggernaut is consistency of messaging. For years now, they have showcased different facets of ‘Just Do It’ – a rallying cry for all of us, not just world-class athletes. Of course, their arsenal of celebrity spokespersons is a huge advantage. But that has not resulted in run-of-the-mill safe advertising as we see often with brands riding piggyback on celebrity endorsements. In its latest, Nike pays tribute to ‘female athletes who have broken barriers, brought people together through their performance and inspired generations of athletes to chase after their dreams’ narrated by Serena Williams.
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy
iPhone Depth Control: Alejandro
In another spot highlighting the depth control feature in the iPhone XS and XR series, the tongue in cheek humour brings a smile.
Shutterstock: stereotypes
Stock image brands and their benefits is a favourite subject among creatives perhaps because they use such services very often. So we have seen some award winning campaigns for brands like Getty Images and others in the domain. Here’s Shutterstock’s new service Offset which claims to be more representative of the times we live in.
Agency: Mercado McCann, Buenos Aires, Argentina
NZ Transport Agency: Belt Up
Campaigns aimed at changing behaviour – like giving up smoking, not drinking & driving or following safety precautions like wearing a seat belt while driving, have a tough task ahead as they have to tackle an irrational behaviour. People know and agree that smoking is bad for health yet they continue with the habit. In that context, I feel some straight talking like what Transport Accident Commission did in Australia helps put fear in the hearts of consumers and is a lot more effective in changing behaviour. A new campaign from New Zealand shares disturbing images of road accident survivors – whose lives were saved because they were wearing seatbelts.
Agency: Clemenger BBDO
Reese’s Puffs: really really want
Millennials prefer brands which stand for a social cause and brand purpose apparently. ‘Change the world’ is also a common goal many such seem to have. Without knocking them, Reese’s Puffs cereal has created these engaging, funny commercials which reveal what they really want.
Agency: Erich & Kallman
Toyota: drop by drop
In a TV spot featuring a blind surfer and others who defied physical limitations to achieve the impossible, Toyota connects it to Mirai – the car which emits water.
Agency: The & Partnership London
Netflix: Make Room
In a relatively short span of time, Netflix has created compelling original entertainment across the world. Some of the shows have gone on to become household names. Until now such entertainment was only possible from established film studios in Hollywood and elsewhere. In this film Netflix takes a subtle dig at the old establishment.
Activision: Call of Duty – Black Ops 4
In this hilarious spot, ‘The Replacer’ is kind enough to sit in for world leaders and celebrities allowing them to take time off to play Call of Duty Black Ops 4.
Agency: 72andSunny
Coca-Cola: The Chase
How do you convey the launch of a new flavour (vanilla & orange) of a regular every day brand like Coca-Cola? With some entertainment of course.
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy
Liberty Mutual: LiMu Emu
After tigers, cats, meerkats and other assorted animals as brand mascots it is time for an emu. Liberty Mutual has launched a campaign in the US to convey that they offer customised insurance where customers only pay for what they need. The ads feature LiMu Emu and Doug – playing buddy-cop in a series of fun spots.
Agency: Goodby Silverstein & Partners
Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.
2 Comments
Nike: Dream Crazier – Loved this one out of the lot. Very moving and inspiring.
Once again, a lovely collection. It’s difficult to pick the best as there are different categories. But, here’re what have stayed back: Mirai, Nike, and Dabur Red. They are three triggers, why I will share this article.