Every week, I attempt to curate a list of best new creative ads. The first task of any ad is to get noticed. A majority of ads go unseen, ignored – a fate worse than being seen and disliked. So when ads break through the clutter and get liked or talked about it’s quite an achievement.
Cadbury Celebrations: neighbours
It’s Diwali season in India and there will be a slew of feel good ads (along with some brands who will choose to be a bit preachy). In 2021, there was social media outrage around festive campaigns from FabIndia and Dabur-Fem. The former promoted ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ (celebration of traditions) – a line of festive wear which attracted a lot of negative feedback. I wrote a long blog post around that time: ‘Basics of marketing communications and the festive ad controversies‘ and a follow-up article. A new ad from Cadbury Celebrations is first festive ad I saw this season and quite liked it. Two ‘warring neighbours’ who eventually forget their differences and ‘bond’ over a shared interest is a common theme in movies. In this ad, the protagonists are a cranky Bengali gentleman (shades of Piku?) and his neighbour. The role of the product and the feel good factor shines through in the story.
Agency: Ogilvy
Just Eat: stay where you are
Most food delivery brands have focused on convenience as a benefit in their advertising. Some have created interesting work on this premise – such as exaggerating how exactly food gets delivered in 10 minutes. They have also promoted the ease of ordering just one dish or any cuisine you fancy. A new platform, ‘Stay where you are’ for Just Eat UK takes the benefit of food delivery one step further by promising that you ‘get back time‘ to enjoy the moments that matter. The campaign has several films exploring the moments in life people don’t want to leave: from the emotional to the comical – grandad bonding with his grandchild for the first time and a couple of friends being ‘busy’ playing with their cat.
Loved ‘The Lightswitch‘ in this series.
Agency: VCCP
Visit Oslo: the sequel
In 2024, Visit Oslo created an ad to sell the city as a tourist destination by dramatising the ‘negatives’. As I said, ‘while most tourism ads are about visually attracting the prospect through glorious scenes of nature and landmarks, the Oslo ad takes a self-deprecating tone by ‘de-selling’ its attractions – less crowded, intimate city with attractions similar to the well-known popular ones.’ A sequel stars the same protagonist in a musical style ad taking forward the ‘there’s lots to crib about this city’ routine which actually works as a positive.
Production House: NewsLab
Maaza: Don’t Go Na micro drama
Brands like Maybelline, Disney, and Oatly have created successful micro dramas such as Maybe This Christmas, Locker Diaries, and Café con el Abuelo to blend storytelling with subtle product integration. It’s a tricky path as an overt brand promotion might make it no different from a regular ad albeit in a vertical format. In that context I liked the attempt from Maaza who have released an episodic rom-com of sorts. Even though the product makes an entry early in the film and there are frequent references to it, they make an enjoyable watch thanks to the natural context, characters, cast and acting.
Click here to watch Episode 1.
Agency: Ogilvy
Škoda: idents for Kodiaq
I thought making idents is among the toughest tasks in advertising. They could be about a feature of a brand or about the show or event the brand is sponsoring – all told under 10 seconds. TV channels, for those who recall what channels were used it effectively – especially MTV back when it used to be music television (I don’t know what it is now). A new effort from Škoda takes forward the ‘education’ of how to pronounce it’s name in a smart way.
Agency: Leo Burnett
Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.
