Denver Grass

Cute, isn’t it?

Breeze Excel

This neat idea was to mail a box wrapped in a white t-shirt containing a sample of the product to selected people. The postal service of course did a great job of making the t-shirt very dirty along the way, giving the recipient an opportunity to test Breeze Excel claim: “Confidence to remove stains in one wash”.

Orion Telescopes

What a charming idea. Straight forward, simple and a real surprising way of dramatizing the benefit. I wonder though if most people buy a telescope to gaze at the moon or their neighbours? Click to enlarge (no pun intended).

Comedy Central

In a world where everyone can access comedy online and anyone could be an online comedian, what makes Comedy Central a better alternative? Comedy – they take it seriously.

Durex

Durex – The cheaper alternative.

96.3 Rock Radio

Very charming idea for a rock radio station to promote their launch. I just might get myself one of those air guitars.

Volkswagen

How do you get people the use the stairs? Make it fun! This initiative is from Volkswagen and while I don’t see the immediate link to the product it still makes me smile. More ideas can be seen here.

BBC Local Radio

This beautifully executed idea is close, personal and relevant to the products purpose in people’s lives. The choice of music is fantastic and pulls is all together in a very elegant way. Very impressive dramatization of how people might feel about their local station exemplified though icons.

Allan Gray

18 months in the making this epic little film tells a lot about lost opportunity. Definitely not what you expect from an investment bank until they tie it all together in the end with the tagline “Given more time, imagine the possibilities.”

Inlingua

It doesn’t get much simpler or smarter than this. The benefit dramatized in a way you instantly recognize. Very impressive clarity in conveying something that so easily could have become uninteresting.

Ads that make me nod and smile

The Obvious Made Interesting has been a sleep for a while. The obvious reason for this is that it’s time-consuming to find communication interesting enough to share. Lately though, I’ve come across a lot of inspiring stuff – some new, some old. What ties it all together is the “nod-and-smile” reaction I get when I see it.

In the posts to come I’ll try to find examples of communication that pass both the “nod-and-smile” and “the-obvious-made-interesting” tests. The work I’ll try to find will hopefully be examples of this approach to making advertising:

“Planning should simplify a complicated problem down to a single, powerful thought - creative should exaggerate that simple thought into an impactful message that dominates its environment.”

Google Chrome

The one good thing about PC is Google Chrome. Any one who’s tried it will tell you lack of clutter and intuitive navigation will make you ask yourself why you installed all those dumb Firefox extensions.

Folgers

An appropriate post on a Sunday night – I’m pretty sure I’ll remember the payoff “For mornings less complicated” tomorrow.

Uincef

Simple and funny copywriting gets the point across clearly. These as just two in a very nice series of ads that manages to talk about a difficult and abstract topic in an effective and relevant way.

Eurocamp

Creativity wins.

Unicef

In my opinion ambient communication only really works if it’s set in a relevant context. Lately I’ve seen a slight shift from traditional “interruption marketing” principals being used to make ambient stuff to a more context relevant dramatization that manages to convey the brands role in people lives. This powerful piece of communication - sent to me by a friend – is an example of this perspective.

O.L.F.

I’m lucky enough to work with some of the very talented people that made this site and the TVC that goes with it. More of their work can be found here. The website entices the user to explore the potentially dreary subject matter of oil, in a way that makes the topic truly interesting. Click here for the full experience.

An Absolut World

What a great and seemingly endless creative universe Absolut has made with this concept. I guess the aim is to illustrate what role they want to play in peoples lives, something they pull of with easy here.

Phillips Carousel

Such a beautiful execution and spot on when it comes to answering the question why do people by really big TVs? To watch extravagant action movies of course.

Heineken

Maybe not as virally potent as the first version but it did make me crack a smile.

thisisreality.org

This film is The Reality Coalitions response to the American coal industries attempt to convince the public that coal is a clean energy alternative. The film is made by the Coen brothers – a characteristic dark but funny undertone comes clearly across.

Southwest Airlines

As airlines try to copy each other price becomes the only real comparative advantage one can have in the category. But it does come at something else’s expense as these funny films from Southwest illustrate. Try to catch the tagline “Your are now free to move about the country” at the end. Sound familiar?

Xbox 360

Water balloon fights are dead serious - just try to remember the feeling of being high on adrenalin and slightly hysterical the last time you engaged in this noble act.

This film from Xbox does a nice job of describing an Xbox function, which is not that distant from that of a good water balloon fight.

MacHerman

Does your Mac need fixing?

Little People

Small people – big misunderstandings.

GHD: Thy will done

It is a little unfair to compare viral stuff with regular TV commercials – they simply compete on different terms. Nevertheless, if advertising in traditional channels had half of the edge and insight this viral film has, watching TV would be a lot more entertaining.

BBH

- "What do you want to do when you grow up?
- “Work for BBH.”

Hyundai

It’s Hyundai – like Sunday. And that’s that.

Monster

I think this ad articulates the awful truth; a lot of people hate their job because they think their boss is like this guy. Nevertheless, this is funny dramatization of a depressing insight.

Cars.com

Insight: We are nervous when making big financial decisions. Buying a car can be an intimidating experience even for the most ridiculously confident people – like our friend David Abernathy.

Sprint

Roadies haven’t gotten their righteous moment in the sun since Mentos were hot. Sprint gives us a glimpse of a glorious future where roadies run the world.

Bridgestone

I would have loved to be in the meeting when this idea was presented. I’m guessing it went something like this: “Who buys car tires? – Guys. What do guys want to be? – Astronauts.”

HULU

I’m sure many of us nod in agreement when we hear someone lecturing about how TV is making us all stupid. This very funny commercial from HULU gives you at least one reason to laugh at these elitist comments while you clutch your remote.

Pepsi Max

Slightly cheesy tagline but still a very funny dramatization of a relevant insight.

Ballet Classes

Not everything needs a big budget – a good idea will go a long way. 

Audi Q5

Great song for a great film.

Nivea

Nice example of taking a board campaign a step further by making it tangible and encouraging engagement. I also like the contrast in the idea; the fun of popping bubble wrap compared to the function of the product. Click to enlarge.

Sony Bravia

Sony Bravia has made some of my all time favorite ads. They are prime example of the type of advertising that inspired me to make this blog. The best known examples are probably the Paint Ad and Bouncy Balls where gorgeous execution conveys one simple message: Color like no other.

This ad had snuck by most of us. It’s a version made primarily for Egypt and shows the durability and range of the idea. 

And just to show that the extravagance of the idea isn’t limited to the visuals, here is a different direction from the same concept: Sound like no other. 

Pedigree

Maybe you should get a dog? This is the question Pedigree wants you to ask yourself – even if you don’t have a rhinoceros or a wild boar already. 

Find more videos like this on AdGabber

Big Love

HBO series Big Love has just begun its third season. With a polygamist Mormon family as the focal point, it goes without saying that secrets are a central part of the plot. This little piece of advertising addresses this theme in a great way – just plug your headphones into the head of the people on the audio billboard and hear their secrets. Click to enlarge.

As a viral strategy, could they have done a spoof together with post secret? 

Barclaycard

I now understand that this is the only way to leave work. If this commercial doesn’t make you smile you might be mentally ill.



And of course the spoof – this time from Specsavers.

Cadbury Trucks

The latest addition of A Glass and a Half Full Production had passed me by, but apparently came out between the famous Gorilla and the newer Eyebrow Dance commercials. Like the other films it has a feel-good vibe to it and very little to do with the category. Who knew chocolate could be this fun?

IKEA 3D

Brands are always looking to engage and excite their consumers. The vast majority fail. IKEA however has a great history of turning customers into fans – the 3D cover is a great example of this idea put into action.

Carlsberg and Mentos

A funny as hell spoof from Carlsberg yelling “Enough with the Mentos eruption, Coke geyser youtube crap. We have had it – OK?”

Fretex

One of the absolute best campaign websites in a long time - plain and simple. Click here for the full experience.

Samsung Omnia

Great spoof with lots of viral potential – over two and a half million views prove it. Unboxing has become the icon of the experience economy – I love the way this little film pokes fun at the trend.

Cadbury Eyebrow Dance

Fallon creates another quirky and sweet commercial for Cadbury. Like the Gorilla playing drums this add also feels more like entertainment than a commercial – not stealing you attention but deserving it.

FIFA Street 3

Yet another well orchestrated viral campaign from EA Games. It’s clearly manipulated but still ignites something in people – at least judging from the many comments on youtube going “This is fake!” The strongest element in the film is probably the handheld, user generated vibe it gives, borrowing credibility from both the Nike - Freestyle Basketball film and underground urban sport Parkour 

CareerBuilder

How do you know when to quit your job? The average working day might be slightly less dreadful than this ad shows but it does to a nice job of putting the idea of something better in your head – even in these times.


Find more videos like this on AdGabber

Fly

Simplicity wins. Again.

Carlsberg

Fact: Penguins are funny. Penguins playing ping-pong are hysterical.

Uniforms for the Dedicated

Who knew ping-pong had gone underground? It maybe unfair to compare viral stuff to regular commercials but this Swedish fashion brand has made a video well worth spending 1:40 minutes to watch. To get the full experience though – you’ll have to see it on their website.

LEGO

Simplicity gives room for imagination – imagination is what keeps LEGO from going out of style. These print ads are marvelous because they illustrate exactly what role LEGO has in our lives.

Don't Disturb the Working

So much of the communication you see for NGOs is based on the assumption that everyone feels inherently bad for less fortunate people. Dramatizing solely on the premise of a guilty conscience only contributes to people filtering out and avoiding the message. That’s what makes ads like this one so relevant. Rather than using a guilt trip it illustrates the real challenge; the problem isn’t related to blindness, its related to ignorance.

A world without gorillas

The Cadbury Gorilla ad was forwarded, embedded and blogged about all over the web. An untold number of spoofs popped up giving the original commercial even more momentum.

This one is new to me though. It works on the premise that Cadbury has established the gorilla as a delightful character in our minds already. So what happens when he disappears?

Take it to the next level

This is just great storytelling. Using the first person perspective really pulls you in to the story. I guess being a spots star isn’t glorious all the time but it seems to have its moments. This is perfectly in line with Nikes promise to its customers; everyone can be an athlete.

Dove Evolution

Dove has successfully used the insight that real people don’t identify with ideal the beauty industry promotes through its “Real Beauty” campaign. I like brands that have the courage to talk about life’s little imperfections and Dove has certainly found a clear position. The irony is of course that Dove is owned by Unilever. Unilever also own Axe who’s communication has a slightly different tone of voice.



The Dove film had great viral potential and was distributed all over the web. An amusing spoof emerged perhaps addressing that Doves intentions are not as noble as they might seem.

Virgin Atlantic Upper Class

I read the brief and storyboard for this commercial as part of a training course. It was clear that this could potentially be very funny but I was so surprised of how great and relevant it actually turned out. No easy task either; the underdog Virgin now offers “upper class” seats. Rebelling against this was part of their initial positioning strategy against the likes of British Airways. Having to make the same offer themselves without losing credibility is difficult, but this piece of does a great job in achieving just that.

Walk in fridge

A part of me feels this is really dumb, but the other part is laughing his ass off.

Love for All

Beautiful and slightly controversial story told in less than a minute. The creative execution is fantastic, both visually and in regards to the soundtrack. I get the feeling some of the insight the commercial is based upon might be that wives or girlfriends are very influential when deciding what underwear a guy will buy.

Chucky 20 year anniversary

To promote a special edition DVD celebrating 20th anniversary of the movie, Fox sent a horde of tiny Chuckys onto the streets of New York. Not only did they look like him – they acted like him.

Kleenex + ATM

If the financial crisis has brutalized your bank account, at least you’ll have something to wipe your tears away when your withdrawal is denied.

Inner child

It is more difficult to create something inspiring in printed media than using film. This print however does a great job – the design is fabulous and the message works on several different levels.

Tiger Woods 09 - Walk on Water

The videogame Tiger Woods PGA Tour is one of EA games best sellers. The latest version had a glitch so that if you hit the ball into a pond, you could simply walk onto the water striking the ball again. Rumors of the glitch spread quickly on the web - spoofs mocking the game popped up everywhere. Rather than denying or stonewalling the obvious mistake EA games released this response.

Innocent

Innocent is the kind of brand which through transparency invites target group participation. Spoofs like this are the best thing that can happen to a brand seeking the audiences’ engagement and is facilitated brilliantly by the honest tone of voice in their product and communication. This little film starts out kind of eerie but provides such great relief with lines like “one small step for fruitkind…”

Singing Dog

In my opinion one of last year’s absolutely best commercials. Hysterically funny and sweet, it strikes a chord with the audience when we see the dog burst into confident song inside the car. The tagline “Polo confidence” ties it all together for me.

Cadbury's Gorilla

Probably the most blogged about commercial in years, The Cadbury Gorilla still makes me smile. Not only a bold strategy – using a hairy gorilla to sell chocolate – but a creative solution so remarkable that invited the audience to engage in the brand making an untold number of spoofs.

I can do anything

Apple has stuck to its “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC” concept for a while now, much to Mac users satisfaction. Nothing is better than being reassured that the fortune you spent on that new MacBook Pro actually did make you into a cooler person. What better way to communicate this than personifying the PC as a slightly evil dork using the inherent rivalry between Mac and PC users for everything its worth.

Square Peg, Round Hole

EA Sport have made some epic virals and spoofs. This is one of my absolute favorites because it plays into the way we see Tiger Woods; He’ just that good.




This behind the scenes clip is also cool. The crew gets at least as excited as Tiger when he makes the shot, just check out the guy hugging him in the end!

Clay Pigeons

I’m no soccer fan in any way shape of from but this - like they would say in Mad Men – swell.

Ninja Kittens

I guess Toyota had caught on; Cats are pretty ninja - the swinging lights distraction he pulls is hilarious. The product relevance isn’t obvious but I think the tagline" Corolla. Packed with a lil’ action" does a nice job.