Cool idea by DPZ Propaganda in Sao Paulo. Here's the Heinz Dip & Squeeze. Via Ads of The World.
AC #68: The Super Bowl 45 Edition
Bites and Bytes from John amd Tug's Super Bowl Party. What scored? What bored? Listen up to opinions from John and Tug plus a whole ton of AC friends. And remember kiddies, AC is NSFW.
Looking for a second or 10th opinion? Check out what the Ad Hole Jason Fox has to say (note: he does not always agree with us).
Neither does Bill Green.
And check out all the good stuff from the AC community on Twitter at #acbowl
I may be late to this party but I don't care: This shit is amazing. The thesis as put forth by thefuntheory.com:
This site is dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better.
As proven by the piano/stairs video, they got it totally right. Add the fact that they also have a contest to crowdsource more ideas that prove their thesis, with videos and voting and such and the whole thing goes from great to simply brilliant. Seriously.
The biggest thing for me though, is who is sponsoring the whole thing. Right, it's VW. They are paying somebody to manage the site, to do the original stunts and to maintain the whole thing. Yet aside from the front page of the site, I don't see a VW logo anywhere. Or a picture of a car. Or a link to our newest TV campaign. Or even a list of correctly-spelled dealer names. Sure you've got a © Volkswagen at the bottom, but of course you're gonna get that.
My questions:
1. How do we get our clients to sponsor this kind of "initiative"? There's clearly a shocking amount of earned media here, but, as you guys know, that's really difficult to pin an ROI onto.
2. Are some clients just too unsophisticated or simply unwilling to greenlight a project like this? And if so, is there any way to get them to change their thinking?
3. What can you do that takes a non-advertising idea and turns it into way to get your clients earned media and, dare I say, viral attention?
In all, I think this is about the most awesome thing I've seen in awhile. What do you guys think?
A glimpse at what AR will be up to once the novelty factor has worn off. Amazing what happens when creativity is tied to usefulness. Found via @dabitch.
It seems as if more and more prominent celebrities are voicing commercials in the last few years. George Clooney for Budweiser. Gene Hackman for Lowe’s and Oppenheimer Funds. Kiefer Sutherland for Bank of America. Julia Roberts for AOL. Gary Sinise for Cadillac. And now, Adam West for LendingTree.
Debate Adam West's celebrity status if you will, but there’s no debating that the voice of Batman carries big-time recognition. Maybe the economy is down and prominent celebrities voice commercials for money instead of worrying about any associated stigma. Or maybe there's just something comforting about a familiar voice that makes us stop and take notice.
See the rest of the sports on Adam West's Web site.
When I first started in the agency business, computers were already used extensively (although where I started all the Macs were networked in one big room). Even so, every art director still had a drawing board and a fine set of Rapidograph pens in his or her office. More often than not, numerious exactos were hurled into the ceiling. We also had a hot wax machine for the paste-up guys which was also occasionlly utilized as a torture chamber for unfortunate insects. An awesome post from Adbroad reminisces about more of the great stuff the art directors used to have laying around. For more check out the Museum of Forgotten Art Supplies.
My grandfather had a silver cup that hung on a hook in the kitchen of 2020 Moyle Street. Printed on clear glass at the bottom of the cup was the phrase, "When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer." I drank Dr. Pepper out of that cup every summer as a kid. Zipping home the other day, I heard a radio spot announcing that, "...the classic Schlitz formula, the one that made Schlitz the most popular beer in the country in the 60's is back." I thought it was an interesting enough play and hopped on the Schlitz site where I found that the campaign was paid off with loads of 60's ads and merchandise (sorry, no silver cups).
Then I saw this post on Adpulp. The retro trend has been hot forever it seems. For years, however, we played more with iconography that hailed from 50's and early 60's (yeah, 30's and 40's, too). Today, it seems that retro design is sprinting toward late 60's, 70's and even, gulp, the 80's. It all makes sense, of course. Since 2001 times have been more than a little unsure. Whether they really were or not it's soothing to our senses to look back at "simpler times." Well, that that and all the art directors are watching Mad Men.
Somewhere someone got asked the question, "How do we make Schlitz relevant again?" I think the decision to just let its old brand shine again is right play (although I am certain there were meetings where someone said, 'Why do we want to look old? We need to be contemporary!").
Could be I'm biased by my grandpa's old cup, but I'm buying Schlitz this weekend.
File under: marketing to men
Back in the day, Orson Wells freaked America out with his radio show about a Martian invasion. Modern fears aren't centered in outer space. Nope, there's enough to freak out about right here on Earth. Like the coming takeover by Skynet, the Cylons or Google. Here's how McCann Digital, Israel effectively turned technology against its teen masters.
Yesterday we had an interesting lunch with a colleague about social media and at the end of the lunch, as we were saying our good-byes, an interesting question was asked, "what are you guys doing over there?" The question wasn't in reference to someone being curious as to your current goings-ons, but rather to a group of people doing a body of work. The more I thought about that question, the more I tinkered with how it could be asked.
What are you guys doing over there? (Good Scenario 1)
You consistently bring fresh and new ideas to your client, which flabbergasts them. Oft-times they don't know what you're talking about, but are glad that you're giving them options and educating them on current trends.
What are you guys doing over there? (Good Scenario 2)
You're doing something that has piqued someone's interest. Enough interest, in fact, that they're wanting to talk to you more and explore some possibilities of future work relations.
What are you guys doing over there? (Bad Scenario)
Your client is doing the leading and they're questioning your
motivation (and maybe more). Are you behind on the times? Are you just doing what the
client asks? Are you giving a care? In any case, it's not good.
I'm sure there are more scenarios out there, but the question is out there and it's one that you might want to ask yourself from time to time (a little inward constructive criticism never hurt).
So, good or bad, what are you guys doing over there?
Record a comment from your computer right now. Be pithy.
Everything I need to know about advertising I learned from Star Wars