New Ad Campaigns for the week

Thursday, October 02, 2008

New Ad Campaigns for the week

It's nearly everyone's favorite feature here and it's from Mediapost:

by Amy Corr

Eat like an Alpha. Experience "Airphoria" on Virgin Atlantic Airways. Xbox campaign targets everyone. Let's launch!

Honda Fit launched a TV, print and online campaign promoting the car's gas mileage and sporty qualities. Gas-guzzling cars, in mosquito form, suck the gas out of gas tanker trucks in the first ad, seen here. When the carsquitos take aim for the Honda Fit, they fly into the light. " Defense Mechanism" is great. A gas-guzzling bully scares all the other cars off the road, except for the Fit. When the bully and the Fit meet face to face, the Fit blows up like a blowfish, causing the bully to soil the ground with oil and speed away. The final ad, "Bats," shows how spacious the Fit can be, as a slew of bats exit from the rear. Watch the ad here. Print ads " Gas Hogs" and " Cavernous" follow the same theme as the TV components: roominess and great gas mileage. RPA created the campaign.

ESPN launched three additional TV spots promoting "Monday Night Football." The premise for each is the same: no matter how bad the beginning of your day is, at least there's "Monday Night Football" to look forward to. A college student wakes up late for class, bangs his head against the ceiling, runs through a sprinkler, and shows up to class with a wet crotch in "Class." Watch it here. A store employee must deal with customers born without the common sense gene, among other issues, in a second ad, seen here. Ever go into a three-hour meeting to discuss previous meetings and upcoming meetings? Then you will love the final ad, seen here. Wieden+Kennedy New York created the campaign.

It's beef jerky time. Oberto Sausage Company launched its first national ad campaign on Sept. 22 targeting alpha males, or 25- to 45-year-old men who eat beef jerky. TV spots for the "Eat Like an Alpha" campaign play off an alpha/sidekick relationship (think Batman and Robin) in an eccentric way. In "Copstache," a female police officer mimics her suave partner in every way, down to the moustache. See the ad here. An ER visit is needed for a sidekick in "Jump the Pier." After an unsuccessful jump, resulting in the sidekick having a piece of wood impaled in his shoulder, his jerky-eating friend informs him that there's only one alpha in the group. Watch the ad here. The ads are running on Comedy Central, ESPN and SPIKE, and online at www.eatlikeanalpha.com. Ground Zero created the campaign and handled the media buy.

Xbox 360 launched a global TV, outdoor, online and print campaign illustrating the console's many offerings to a broad range of consumers. Each TV spot begins with a close-up of a person's astounded face. The camera pans to the back of their heads to reveal the trigger moment that caused their emotions. It could be playing "Rock Band" with their friends, watching a movie downloaded via the console, or playing a video game with Dad. So why does each person in the "Live Your Moment" campaign look like they're having a lobotomy? Judge for yourself here, here and here, and let me know what you think. "Rock Band" is the only spot currently running; the remaining ads launch Oct. 26. T.A.G. created the campaign and Universal McCann handled the media buy.

Virgin Atlantic Airways launched a U.S. print campaign highlighting the amenities found in its Upper Class and Premium Economy cabins. It's "airphoric." The on-ground and in-flight offerings are aplenty; from complimentary limo service to an 8,000 square-foot Heathrow Clubhouse and onboard bar, among others. One ad chronicles minute-by-minute luxuries experienced from the beginning to the end of a flight. See the ads here, here and here, running in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Crain's Chicago Business. McKinney created the campaign and Mediaedge:cia handled the media buy.

Curves, the women-only fitness center, launched a TV, radio, online and print campaign supporting its CurvesSmart personal coaching system, a technology that offers a customized workout, instant feedback and progress reports. "I am CurvesSmart" ads feature a woman dedicated to her workout routine who receives instant feedback as she moves from machine to machine. See the ad here, running on Lifetime, Oxygen, HGTV and FitTv. Publicis Dallas created the campaign

Midwest retailer Meijer launched a humorous TV spot that takes place at a printing company tasked with producing 10,000 circular Price Drop signs. Sounds easy, until the boss confronts his employee with an obvious observation: the signs are not circular. The best part of the ad is the employees bantering about the actual geometric shape of the signs. Trapezoid, isosceles rectangle or rhombus? I thought trapezoid, for sure. Watch the ad here. DeVito/Verdi created the campaign and handled the media buy.

Bring wine to a gathering and everyone's family. Gallo Family Vineyards launched its first TV commercial in 25 years, coinciding with the company's 75^th anniversary. The simple black and white spot launched Sept. 22, featuring groups of family and friends gathering for various events, including a wedding. See the ad here. "Together" was created by BBDO West and Mediaedge:cia handled the media buy.