New Ad Campaigns

Thursday, May 20, 2010

New Ad Campaigns

Amy's weekly update:

World Cup ads. An ice cream robot makes employees happy... and sticky. Let's launch!

AT&T has launched a series of ads under the "Rethink Possible" theme. They're bringing emotion back to phone company ads! My favorite spot is "Ripple Effect." A chance encounter results in a man changing his train ticket to sit next to a young woman. They eventually marry and become parents of the 57^th president. See it here. A moderator declares 20 kids winners of a "Spelling Bee," since the competition has lasted 48 hours without a single elimination. Blame it on increased Internet access. Watch it here. "Birthday" gives adults the mindset from their childhood days, when obstacles ceased to exist and ideas about changing the world seemed feasible. See it here. "Blanket" illustrates AT&T's coverage by blanketing large U.S. attractions, like the Hoover Dam, Gateway Arch and Hollywood sign, with orange drapery. Reminded me of The Gates exhibit from 2005. Watch it here. Another ad follows a father throughout his house, looking for a place to watch TV without interruption. See it here. The final spot in the campaign, the weakest of the bunch, shows a man talking and surfing simultaneously, causing him to lose track of time and place. Watch it here. BBDO New York and BBDO Atlanta created the campaign.

VH1 Latin America launched two TV spots as part of its "Wonderful World of VH1" campaign. "If You Like" features a series of quirky vignettes coupled with a voiceover directing viewers to text and vote for their favorite. Do you like robot love, overtly serious bocce players, overrated Latino lovers, or a boob with fake boobs? The ad ends with a family of boobs with fake boobs texting in their favorite snippet. As if you need to guess what they voted for? See it here. Existential rock and roll, anyone? "Anti-Rock Star" is great. The premise: for every rock star that exists, there's an anti-rock star to balance out the universe. Yin and Yang. Eating chicken wings with groupies and eating alone in your hotel room. What happens when these two worlds collide? The two touch fingers (think E.T.) and release similarities -- and urine. See the ad here. Young & Rubicam New York created the campaign.

I never realized how much I wanted an ice cream-dispensing robot at work, until I saw an ad for AMP ENERGY Canada. Office worker Eric lights his creative fire after drinking AMP Energy Juice, motivating him to build something special for his co-workers using old computer parts. That something is an ice cream-dispensing robot, complete with ice cream-truck music that turns mild-mannered employees into rabid ice cream eaters. And they socialize with their co-workers, if your definition of socializing involves taking your pants off and licking ice cream off your co-worker's hand. We'll just take the ice cream, thanks. Best part is, the boss in the ad loves the work camaraderie the robot brings. Watch the ad here. Proximity Canada created the ad and OMD handled the media buy.

ESPN launched a pair of TV spots promoting its upcoming English-language coverage of the FIFA World Cup. "Robben Island" is the first spot from "One Game Changes Everything." The ad retells the significance behind the World Cup taking place in South Africa. "Robben Island" is the prison in South Africa that housed political prisoners like Nelson Mandela. Cut off from the outside world, for them soccer was an outlet of inspiration and hope. Watch it here. "United" is amazing. Set to U2's "Magnificent," the ad has a simple message: despite the differences and disagreements among countries and cultures, for one month every four years, the world is united. "It's not about the stock market, black market, orange alerts, green homes, hope, change, fear or loathing," says voiceover Bono in the ad, seen here. Wieden + Kennedy New York created the campaign.

Home Depot launched an ad promoting its sponsorship of the Mexican national team for the World Cup. The ad intertwines soccer game footage on a wet field with DIY homeowners blowing leaves, using a sledgehammer to break down a wall, and tightening a leaky pipe. The spot was shot with a phantom camera and some scenes were shot at up to 7000 frames per second. Pretty cool. Watch the ad here. Vidal Partnership created the ad and Crew Cuts handled the postproduction.

Adidas Japan launched the "adidas Sky Comic" project leading up to the FIFA World Cup. The project spans 13 cities over five weeks, concluding May 25. Football fans and children throughout Japan painted thirteen ginormous 300-square-meter comic-strip panels, each featuring a different player. A camera was attached to a remote-controlled balloon that took flight and snapped pictures of each completed graphic. The panels are joined together online as a digital comic book. The complete set of panels will be erected for two days at Haneda Airport, greeting arriving and departing passengers. See the making of a panel here, created by TBWA/Hakuhodo.

Remember those dirty sneakers you touched today? If you haven't washed your hands, chances are the sneakers are still with you, in the form of germs. Protex antibacterial soap launched print and outdoor ads using the tagline, "The Things You Touch Stay With You." One ad shows a finger with tiny dogs walking and pooping on it. Ick. See it here. Then there are the grimy germs from your sneakers taking up residence below your fingernails. See it here. Young & Rubicam New York created the campaign.

I love a good mystery. Do you know why Jack Daniel's whiskey has "Old No. 7" on its label? Neither does the brand. The first ad speculates that number 7 was JD's lucky number, or the train that carried his barrels across country, or the number of women in his life. Don't expect a resolution, only more speculation. See the ad here. "Proud" portrays JD as a man "who never varied from his recipe, and stayed true to the process." Like "Old No. 7," "Proud" is animated and shot in black and white. See it here. Arnold created the ads, produced by Brand New School.

Random iPhone App of the week: HitFix.com launched "Find Your Fix," a free app that focuses on breaking entertainment events and news, sans gossip. Users can read movie, TV, DVD, CD and concert reviews and purchase tickets and DVDs within the app. There's also a video tab where movie trailers can be watched. The app is available in the App Store.