Thursday, March 10, 2011

New Ad Campaigns

Our weekly update from Amy:

Doritos asks fans to "write the end" of its TV ad. Old Spice guy gets around. Let's launch!


1Looks can be deceiving when online dating. You choose someone from his or her profile picture that, you come to find out, was taken 10 years and 20 pounds ago. Imagine the woman's surprise in Orkin's "Blind Date." Her match went from Todd the hottie to a termite looking to colonize her house. Fortunately, the Orkin man brings her home safely -- which still doesn't stop the termite from driving by, playing romantic music, no less. Watch it here. Orkin launched a fun Web site to play off the online dating TV spot. BlindDateLove.com is an online dating site where users are matched up with ideal partners that soon prove otherwise. My ideal match is Robbie Rattall. His favorite movie is "Mallrats," and his favorite music is Garbage. I love how the likes of the profiled pests matches perfectly to real-life bands and movies. Users can share their matches on Twitter and Facebook. A second spot, "Vacation," won't air until June, to coincide with summer vacations. A family returns home to find a pair of rats playing Guitar Hero. Orkin Man removes the pests, who drive away in a rat rod. See a 30- and 60-second version here and here. The Richards Group created the TV campaign and THINK Interactive developed the Web site.

2Activision launched two online films supporting the Call of Duty: Black Ops First Strike map pack. The first film, "Berlin," tells the story of East versus West; people separated by politics, yet sharing a love of singing the 1990 hit "The Winds Of Change" by The Scorpions and playing their weapons as guitars. I'm not afraid to admit that I sang along to the song I grew up listening to, but when the beautiful white dove bit it, I could sing no more. Watch it here. "Ascension" takes a more light-hearted, humorous approach, welcoming gamers to a place rampant with human and monkey zombies. "So put an end to animal testing by sending their hairy asses into the atmosphere," says the announcer. See the ad here. DOJO San Francisco created the campaign.

3Danone launched a TV spot for its Activia yogurt, starring a woman named Clarice and a creepy caller who's holding something for "Ransom." Her poop. I would have loved it if the caller asked her if the lambs stopped screaming. The woman drives to the grocery store, buys Activia, and hopes for regularity. This woman even looked constipated. I'm rooting for her. "Get your digestion back, " closes the ad, seen here and created by Young & Rubicam Prague.

4FAGE Greek yogurt launched its first TV spot in North America on March 2, entitled "Plain Extraordinary." The 45-second TV spot whimsically illustrates the evolution of the word plain and plain yogurt into something that redefines the word. A rhyming poem is recited while a sea of plain yogurt is combined with beautiful colors, representing fruit flavors. A cow emerges, as does a beautiful woman, between a stream of white and purple yogurt. The spot closes with a cup of Blueberry-Acai FAGE, the brand's newest flavor. Watch the ad here. Mullen created the ad, directed by Psyop.

5Ever wonder what's behind the curtain in the Emerald City? Apparently, it's where Doritos holds taste tests that determine what flavors stay and which are banished for eternity. Doritos Canada launched a TV campaign that asked viewers to "write the end." Inside the Doritos research facility, two flavors of are invented: onion rings n' ketchup and buffalo wings n' ranch. Each flavor is presented to the queen, hidden behind a green curtain. She tastes each flavor, then proclaims that the lesser flavor must be destroyed. The TV spot then asks Canadians to write the ad's ending, choosing which flavor remains on store shelves and which is destroyed. Canadians can submit their endings online for a chance to win $25,000 and 1% of future sales from the flavor remaining on shelves. Voters will select seven finalists for each flavor. The winner will be announced when the completed ad airs. Watch the ad here. BBDO Toronto created the campaign, directed by Nick Gordon, with visual effects provided by Crush.

6Relationships come and go. A man decides to part ways with his blender in "Fly," once he discover Skittles Blenders, which taste like blended fruit beverages. Keeping with the brand's unusual ads, the blenders is set free, to fly away into the world. The man wasn't expecting the blender to fly back inside the house, crashing through a window and unleashing damage. The blender is shooed out, only to crash inside a second time. Watch the ad here, created by TBWA/Chiat/Day New York.

7Old Spice guy returned Monday with a 15-second TV spot where he rose from a sandy beach, playing a guitar filled with adorable puppies. This is how your man can smell, if he wears Old Spice "Fiji." Watch it here. Three accompanying print ads highlight Fiji and two other lines of Old Spice scents: Komodo and Matterhorn. Expect a volcanic eruption, a fire-breathing dragon and mountain climbing. See the ads here, here and here, created by Wieden + Kennedy Portland.

8Subway launched SubwayDunkFresh.com as part of its ongoing relationship with NBA star Blake Griffin. Users upload a photo of themselves and select one of five different ways to slam-dunk a basketball. Choose from tomahawk, windmill, two-handed, up & under and off the glass. The site launched NBA All Star Weekend, in hopes that Griffin would win the Slam Dunk Contest. And he did. Quick reminder: he jumped over a car. Catalyst came up with the original concept and the site was designed and built by Digitaria.

9Random iPhone App of the week: Excited about the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games, and a fan of countdowns? Destination Greenwich launched a useful app for visitors to the Olympic host city. There's 2012 Olympic news, a countdown to the festivities, and sightseeing tips for those visiting Greenwich, located in southeast London. Greenwich is known for historic landmarks such as the National Maritime Museum, the Old Royal Naval College, the Cutty Sark and Greenwich Park, London's oldest Royal Park. The app is available for free in the App Store.


Amy Corr is managing editor, online newsletters for MediaPost. She can be reached at amyc@mediapost.com.

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