Adidas Reaching the Ladies

About three days ago, one of the readers of my blog alerted me to a new campaign by Adidas known as “Jersey Swap.” The campaign was designed to encourage women to show support for rugby in New Zealand. Adidas would like women to actively show their support for the 14 rugby teams. They could even have their two favorite players swap jerseys. You can get to the site by clicking here.

Now here is where the sexual innuendos come in to play. After the players swap jerseys they don’t even put them on they simply drape them over one shoulder. Adidas even places a button on the site that makes the players take off the jerseys in slow motion. Yea, like the audience isn’t going to figure out what their intentions were with that move. But hey if it increases female viewer ship, good for you Adidas.

The agency that created the campaign for Adidas is TBWA\Whybin, New Zealand. I am wondering what sort of account planning techniques they used to determine sex sells with this campaign? I am not saying they were wrong, I’m just wondering how they came to the conclusion? The campaign is very creative and seems to be well executed.

By the way I have finally mentioned a new agency. Yay for me!

The reader that alerted me of the campaign also maintains a blog at Sweet Pea.

Best,
A.B.

Pepsi’s I’m Good

I saw the above Pepsi Max spot during last night’s Laker game against the Jazz and must admit I fell out of my chair because of laughing so hard. The ad is more of a slapstick comedy routine versus true promotion of a product. Several guys from the commercial would have severe brain damage if the ad was “real.” I should probably feel bad for finding humor in grown men hurting themselves and then quickly proclaiming, “I’m good.” But doesn’t our culture condone watching people hurt themselves for our amusement? I mean that why the ad above is so funny, right?

The ad agency is once again TBWA Chiat/Day, I seem to be discussing ads for clients they work on a lot the past few weeks. The spot apparently appeared during this years’ Superbowl but I don’t remember seeing it at all. The ad barely shows the product until the last two seconds of the commercial. Pepsi must think that they will be in the forefront of the consumer’s mind simply by being funny. Never mind that they won’t recall what product was being advertised.

As stated earlier, I seem to be discussing Chiat/Day’s work quite a bit the past few weeks. And I know that there is some great advertising out there with agencies that deserve some recognition. So if you have some campaigns or ads that you would like me to discuss please let me know.

Best,
A.B.

Absolut Hugs

Several months ago, on February 10^th to be exact I wrote about Absolut and how it became the first distilled spirits company to have a commercial appear on prime time CBS owned station. The above spot is another commercial in the “Absolut World” campaign. In an “Absolut World” hugs and kisses are the currency of choice traded for real world items. The spot above is the UK version of the ad.

To me, the spot seemed a bit “loving” which is not usually a word you would use to describe anything related to vodka. The song in the spot is “Money makes the World go Around” goes well with the spot. The creative idea is communicated very well through the images and the song in the background.

The spot actually made me feel good, is that weird or what?

Anyway, the ad agency is once again TBWA/Chiat/Day

Best,
A.B.

Cavs Playoff Proposal

I thought the spot above was extremely funny. It a parody on the Heineken commercial created by TBWA\NEBOKO in the Netherlands. Except in the Cleveland Cavaliers commercial they are screaming about shoes while the ladies in the other room are going wild about an engagement. I prefer the Cavs version a lot more then that of the beer brand. It a lot more humorous then its beer counterpart. I feel like I've seen so many beer spots that I've actully grown tired of them.

But to see a pro sports team making fun of themselves, that's not something you see everyday.

The one thing I can't find about the Cavs spot is who created it? Do the Cavs have an in-house marketing department or did they work with an outside agency?



Best,
A.B.

Ads in Private Parts

The ad above appeared on another advertising blog around the 16th of this month but I thought the execution was so unique I had to discuss it in my own blog. The image above would be considered out-of-home advertising. The sponsor for this ad was Silk Soft. The message that Soft Silk was trying to communicate is that their tissue is 100% recycled.

I’m not sure if recycled toilet paper is such a good thing. I’ve heard that Starbucks recycles cups and if you do a DNA test on a recycled used cup, you will more then likely find the DNA of more then just the last user.

Obviously, this promotional effort was intended to have a small amount of shock value to it. I wonder how receptive the public in Denmark was to seeing these in public restrooms? I know that Denmark and other European countries are a lot more open minded when it comes to displaying the human body in a public forum.

The Ad agency responsible for this promotion is By Far, Denmark. I can’t seem to get to a working agency site. I will try again a bit later on in the week.

But I mean come on, what’s next a tampon-dispensing (you fill in the rest).

Best,
A.B.

Beckham, Terminator 5

David Beckham is in another ad, what do you know. This time it isn’t an underwear ad it is for Moterola. I like the ad because its drawing inspiration from the classic Terminator movies. What purpose do these Becham ads serve except for being eye candy for the ladies? The TV spot above barley shows the product.

The ads must have taken some heavy Photoshop work at the semi-comp and comp stage from the people at Ogilvy Advertising, UK. But I am sure they knew they needed to take full advantage of Beckham’s star power. His endorsement of the Aura phone by Motorola gives it tremendous credibility.

I don’t know if the ladies will be cutting the ads out of magazines as much with this campaign as they did with the underwear ads. What do you guys think of the new ad?

Best,
A.B.

Team Hoyt Billboard

I saw the Team Hoyt billboard ad driving around town in Los Angeles and began to wonder why the ad was created. First, you should know that Dick and Rick Hoyt are a father and son team that competes in marathons together. The catch is Rick Hoyt is confined to a wheelchair. His dad pushes him in his wheelchair through every marathon or triathlon race they enter. The story inspires just about everyone that hears about it.

The billboard was created on behalf of the Foundation For A Better Life (FLB). The organization’s mission is to “Encourage adherence to a set of quality values through personal accountability and by raising the level of expectations of performance of all individuals.” The statement was taken right off of their Web-site. I wrote a short email to the organization asking who creates their ads but I got no response.

I honestly think that the FLB creates their ads in-house because they are probably a non-profit organization. I’m not saying that being a non-profit means that you can’t use outside agencies, I’m just saying I’m not completely sure. I have to say that I’m not sure you would have chose to create billboard using this tandem.

There are a lot of fathers in this world that would do absolutely anything for their children. Why are these two getting all this attention? The only reason I paid any attention to the ad is because of the wheelchair. The severely disabled aren’t usually featured in national ads because they just don’t look “good” enough. But back to my original point why are these two getting all this attention? I think it simply because it makes other people feel good about themselves.

I guess I just don’t like to see the disabled paraded around the country to be gawked at. As a person in a wheelchair I’m a bit bothered by that. But let me ask you readers out there, do these billboards inspire you to do good works?

Best,
A.B.

PC, Fighting The Good Fight

On March 28th I wrote about the new ads being produced by Crispin Porter + Bogusky for the Windows platform to fight off the Apple marketing assault. The ads are still attacking the fact that Macs are still very expensive and aren’t available to everyone. In the ad above CP+B uses two kids, while in their first attempt they used the naive PC shopper “Lauren” who we found out later, is just an actress and probably not looking for a new PC.

She probably went back home and got right on her top of the line iMac. I honestly don’t think these ads will make much of a difference in the mind of the consumer. If they are price sensitive they’ll go for PC, if they are not and like what Macs can do they will probably buy it.

Best
A.B.

Adidas Update

Just a quick update on a post I wrote a while back titled “The NBA Goes Back to College.” I found out through a comment on AdGabber, an advertising social network that those NBA Adidas ads were most likely done in-house. This is probably why the user claims there is an appearent lack of polish to the spots. I thought they were pretty good. But again, all this is just my humble opinion.

Best,
A.B.

Down But Not Out

I don’t know how many people recently visited the Enfatico Web-site, it’s actually pretty cool. It has a giant hammer right on the homepage with the agency name plastered right in the middle. I’m not exactly sure what the hammer is supposed to signify, maybe they hammer out ideas. But ironically enough they are being hammered into a division of Young & Rubicam. I could have guessed that from the very beginning of the agency’s life. I don’t think anybody can survive with just one client especially in the current economy.

For those of you who don’t know, Enfatico does advertising strictly for the Dell brand. By the way I read a story that claimed in the early days of the agency Dell’s CEO Michael Dell was visiting the agency one morning so the staff was panic trying to switch out all the office’s computers for Dell ones. Ad agencies are famous for only using Macs. Macs are better for creative programs such as Photoshop and Dreamweaver but remember, this is only my opinion.

So all that work was for nothing, the shop is being folded into a bigger more established shop. Why, because whenever there is an economic crisis advertising is the first thing to go for most companies.

Best,
A.B.

Another Condom Ad, or is it?

So I saw the ad above on another ad blog and as it turned it a condom ad. I have to tell you folks; I had to take a second look because at first I thought it was an ad for suntan lotion. I thought it was a great creative idea but people would have to take the time to think about what they are seeing in order to understand it. The ads I saw certainly grabbed my attention.

By the way this ad was for a French condom brand named Hansaplast. Their agency is TBWA, Paris. The creative suggests the lady has been doing something naughty before coming to get some sun.

By the way I even saw comments on various sites asking if it was suntan lotion ad. Also here is another ad within the same campaign that wasn't executed quite as well.


Anyway, let me know what you think.

Best,
A.B.

Sprint's Present to Twitter

The spot above created by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners must have been Sprint’s gift to Twitter. What other reason could they have for giving them free product placement in their television spot that I believe is airing nationally. The spot gives a shout out to several Web 2.0 product and services such as YouTube and Google. The question is why are they doing this in a nationally aired spot? Are these other Internet companies helping pay for the spot?

I read a few blogs that claim the mobile phone network provider wanted to show that their network and can be used for more then just making phone calls on the go. Almost everybody now has a device that that makes calls, browses the net, sends email, and connects to social networks. But the question still remains, why give those other companies free advertising? The title of this post is “Sprint's Present to Twitter” and that’s because they get a name mention and their stupid birds flying all over the screen. No offense to Twitter, of course.

Usually when products and services other then the one being promoted are mentioned, they are a direct competitor and they aren’t usually mentioned in a positive light. Also, the other social networks mentioned in the spot are mentioned quickly unlike Twitter and its blue birds.

Anyway, if anyone can find solid reasoning for all these product placements in this ad please comment and I’ll thank you and link to your site on my blog if you have a site.

Best,
A.B.

Donation Letter

Dear Friends,

Sport is something most of us have enjoyed at some point in our lives. Some of us even go on to compete at the highest levels of a particular sport. What most of us don’t realize is that if you have a disability, participating in sports can sometimes be out of reach no matter how well we perform. That’s why I'm asking for your help.

I am the best in the sport of boccia in the United States. I also have cerebral palsy.

I began competing in boccia when I was 10 years old. At an early age, I began showing real skill at the game and quickly became one of the top players in the U.S. I even qualified to be on the U.S. team a few times for international competitions.

Every year, there’s a U.S. Boccia National Tournament. This year, the other players are begging me to come, since I’m a champion player and the team is small anyway. I really want to be there for my teammates, and it would mean a lot to them and the sport if I could participate. But this year is the first time I have been unable to save enough money for the trip. The tournament is in Atlanta, and I’m in Los Angeles. Expenses include airfare, hotel, food, personal assistant and transportation in Atlanta.

Boccia is the reason I am asking you to help me raise $3000 so I can join my teammates in the U.S. Boccia National Tournament. Any contribution you could make―large or small―would be greatly appreciated. So please help this Boccia champion support his team and his sport.

You can help by clicking on the Donate button in the left column of my blog at Inside That Ad.

Thank you very much.

A.B.

BK Dwarf Ad

The Burger King ad above will undoubtedly cause some controversy because of the way the used the little person actor. Some people may take offense with the commercial because it could be perceived as making fun of the disabled. The spot is promoting the new BK breakfast shots. I think the main message of the commercial is that it is saying even though the breakfast shots are small they still do the job of filling you up. Just like the farmer, even though he is small in stature, he is still a hard worker and gets the job done.

The story of the spot seems a bit counterintuitive if you ask me. If the point of the spot is that your product the (breakfast shots) fills you up then I think they should have had a significantly larger man claiming these tiny burgers fill him up. But the way they have the commercial setup now it seems like they are poking fun of someone with a disability. Also, how does this little person actor have credibility with the general target audience? Please somebody answer this question for me.

I have discovered that burger King has many agencies and media companies working on behalf of their brand but Crispin Porter + Bogusky currently does most of BK’s US television ads.

Best,
A.B.

Cleavage Day

Apparently April 3rd is national cleavage day in New Zealand. I wouldn’t have found out about it if it wasn’t for one of my favorite ad blogs, Adfreak. According to the post it’s a day centered around bras and other partially scandalous clothing. The day was made popular via the popular social network Twitter. Much like the Adfreak blogger I too think the U.S. must hurry up and come up with a similar day. We can have a day where we all wear a special article of clothing. But I don't think it needs to be anything that will offend anyone.

Best,
A.B.

Microsoft and Basketball

Is it possible that Microsoft is trying to get into the spirit of March Madness with the ad above? Maybe I don’t have as good of a grasp on what quality advertising is, as I once thought. Why is the illustration above relevant to the product being advertised by the Redmond company? For those of you who don’t know, Microsoft Visual Studio is used for writing programs. How does the copy in the ad above make the connection related to monsters and basketball?

Also, what does the illustration represent? Do the monsters represent viruses? My other issue is who exactly is the target audience for this particular print ad? By the way the ad was taken from Information Week. How does this ad promote Visual Studio to the readers of the magazine? I would think that the ad seemed rather stupid to the magazine’s target audience.

I am not quite sure who the ad agency behind the creative is and I know that Crispin Porter + Bogusky does quite a bit of the Microsoft creative. But I highly doubt they did the print advertisement above. They seem to be a class above the work shown here.

Best,
A.B.

Guitar Hero Mania

I’ve been here quite a lot about the game Guitar Hero on TV and other media. Apparently the game is all the rave. Well the game has a new television commercial that feature big time college-basketball coaches. The A-list of coaches includes: Bob Knight, Rick Pitino, Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski. I don’t think they were doing to well playing along with Metallica.

Here is the big question from my point of view, how do these celebrity endorsers help the game sell more? These big time coaches can’t honestly be considered musical authorities, can they? This commercial must be for brand awareness and entertainment purposes only.

The spot was created by Crispin Porter + Bogusky, the big time Miami shop.

Best,
A.B.