FCB Chicago Wins Nestlé Corporate Brand Assignment

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Back in June, Nestlé sent out an RFP to a select few agencies for a corporate makeover repositioning Nestlé as a “recognized and trusted food and beverage, nutrition, health and wellness company.” Now Nestlé has chosen FCB Chicago for the corporate brand assignment, AdAge reports.

According to the original RFP, the scope of the assignment is domestic and will include a “big idea” along with four TV executions with a focus on Nestlé brands Nesquik, Gerber, Outshine and Pure Life. It is unclear when FCB Chicago’s first campaign for the assignment will launch and AdAge was unable to reach Nestlé for comment.

The assignment comes on the heels of FCB Garfinkel winning creative duties for Nestlé’s North American regional water brands, which include Poland Spring, Arrowhead and Ozrka. According to Kantar Media, Nestlé spent $813 million on U.S. measured media in 2013.

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72andSunny Opens Up Shop in New York, Hires Guillermo Vega as ECD

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72andSunny has just opened up 72andSunny New York, a 13,000 square foot office located on the top two floors of 30 Cooper Square in the East Village.

“We think we’re better for being part of the New York creative community—and we think we can make it a little better by being there,” said Chief Strategy Officer Matt Jarvis.

The agency also announced the hiring of Guillermo Vega, formerly executive creative director of Wieden+Kennedy São Paulo, as executive creative director of the New York office. Vega helped found W+K São Paulo, bringing it from a shop with three employees to one with over a hundred over the course four years, while winning clients such as Nike, Coca Cola, Levi’s, and Heineken. Prior to W+K, Vega spent over 13 years at Y&R, where he rose to regional creative director and oversaw Latin America from the Y&R headquarters in New York.

Vega will lead 72andSunny’s New York office along with managing director James Townsend, who will be relocating to New York from the Los Angeles office. While with 72andSunny in Los Angeles, Townsend worked with clients such as Samsung, ESPN, Truth and will continue to lead the Samsung brand from New York.

72andSunny’s New York staff currently consists of “40 designers, writers, strategists, social media planners, brand managers, and content production people” and they will initially focus on the Samsung and Smirnoff brands. (more…)

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Eleven Gets Strange, Creepy in Marathon Effort for Virgin America

San Francisco agency Eleven has a strange new campaign for Virgin America centered around an extremely long online video.

The ad, entitled “Have you been flying BLAH Airlines?” depicts, in real time, a flight on the imagined rival airline from Newark to San Francisco: a five hour and forty-five minute flight. If that sounds boring, well, that’s the point. It’s also a bit strange and creepy, since the passengers are all mannequins. There are long shots of the mannequins doing absolutely nothing in their cramped seats, punctuated by occasional “action” such as a woman devouring some ribs.

“There’s a very distinct odor coming from somewhere nearby,” says a man on the flight, while the woman goes on and on about the ribs she’s eating. And that’s about as much action you can expect as you (inevitably) skip around. Still, there’s actually a kind of strange charm to the ad and its surreal humor when taken in small doses, and you kind of have to appreciate the great lengths Eleven went to to make its point.

“The passengers have no choice but to be on ‘autopilot’ to get through the tedious journey,” Virgin told Adweek. “Just trying to watch the video is downright painful—and that’s the point. If you wouldn’t sit through the entire film, why would you pay money to experience it in real life?”

(more…)

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Leo Burnett Unveils ‘My Burger’ Winners for McDonald’s UK

Leo Burnett is unveiling McDonald’s “My Burger” campaign today, as the chain announces that five crowd-sourced burgers are being made available in the UK.

“My Burger” truly began back in May, with McDonald’s calling upon consumers to submit burger ideas through an online “burger builder” created by digital agency Razorfish. Entrants combined a beef patty with their choices from over 80 ingredients for toppings. The most popular burgers were then assessed by a panel including English rugby legend and Celebrity MasterChef winner Phil Vickery and McDonald’s Managing Director Mark Hawthorne, who chose the ultimate five winners. Leo Burnett’s documentary- style campaign introduces the winning burgers by way of some almost-winners who either went a step too far with their ingredients or, in one case, had the same ingredients as the winning burger but forgot to submit. The five winning burgers will each be featured on the menu for one week before the next winner is introduced. They include the “Big Uno,” “The Sweet Chili Fiesta,” “The Ultimate Supreme” “The McPizza Pepperoni Burger,” and “The Big Spicy Bacon.” The “Big Uno” launches today, and the promotion will end with “The Big Spicy Bacon Burger” from November 12-18. (more…)

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Droga5 Swarms Taylor Swift with Kittens for Diet Coke

Earlier this month, Droga5 released the spot “Car Wash” as part of its “Get A Taste” campaign for Diet Coke. Now the agency is rolling out a new 30-second ad starring Taylor Swift and a whole lot of kittens.

In the spot, entitled “Kittens,” Swift is playing with a kitten when she takes a sip of Diet Coke and all of a sudden there are two kittens. She takes another sip and there’s an entire table full of kittens, and before the end of the spot the entire room is filled as the singer/songwriter is engulfed in a swarm of feline cuteness. “What if life tasted as good as Diet Coke?” says text at the end of the ad, before Swift works in a quick plug for her new album. Since everyone with a soul likes kittens, this one is sure to be a hit. Add in Swift’s star power, and a preview of a new track featured exclusively in the ad until the release of her new album on October 27th, and this is all but guaranteed millions of views.

The ad was launched online today and will make its broadcast debut this Friday. As part of the campaign, Diet Coke is also giving fans a chance to win “concert tickets and a flyaway trip for two to an upcoming performance through iHeartRadio.com, RyanSeacrest.com and other sites.” The brand is also sponsoring Swift’s co-host appearance on “On Air with Ryan Seacrest” on October 30th, the first time a celebrity co-hosts the entire program as well as the first time it is presented by a single brand. (more…)

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Colle+McVoy Wins Grain Belt For The Agency And Minnesota

I used to collect beer cans as a kid. So, I know an iconic local beer brand when I see one. Old Style, Iron City, Olympia, Pearl, and Yuengling—with beers like these, who needs PBR? Now that we’ve established that, some ad news… After a competitive review, Minneapolis agency Colle+McVoy has been selected to oversee […]

The post Colle+McVoy Wins Grain Belt For The Agency And Minnesota appeared first on AdPulp.

Barton F. Graf 9000 Presents ‘Dead Mouse Theatre’ for Tomcat

Barton F. Graf 9000 delivers one of the stranger campaigns you’re likely to see this week, with “Dead Mouse Theatre” for Tomcat mousetraps.

In the campaign, Barton F. Graf 9000 dreams up a solution for all the dead mice left in the wake of Tomcat, repurposing the corpses as puppets for theatrical purposes. It’s a pretty dark premise, but it’s certainly attention-grabbing. In the best of the 30-second spots (or my favorite, at least), a washed-up old-timey baseball player named Fitzy Gibbons revisits the scene of his downfall when questioned by a young fan. Other spots feature a leprechaun confronting a gangster who stole his gold and a lifelong friendship destroyed by a Viking raid. Strange stuff, indeed. (more…)

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RPA Turns Nick Thune into ‘Brad, the Lyft Driver’ for Honda Fit

RPA is debuting a new online series promoting the Honda Fit with “Brad, the Lyft Driver,” a hidden-camera style video starring Nick Thune as Brad, an (overly) accommodating Lyft driver.

The series, directed by Fred Savage (Modern Family, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia), shows Thune (in character as Brad) “maintaining a good vibe” while yelling obnoxiously out the window, rehearsing soap opera scenes with passengers, and creating creepy personalized mix tapes. While the antics can be amusing in small doses, the video stretches well past the three minute mark, overstaying its welcome a bit in the process.

As part of its “Fit For You” campaign, RPA is also teaming up with Vine stars Jordan Burt, KC James, Cody Johns and David Lopez for a series of Vine videos with each utilizing the Honda Fit in a video showcasing their individual style. (more…)

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EVB Introduces Feline to Wearable Tech for 9Lives

EVB has launched a new digital campaign combining the Internet’s love of cats with the burgeoning phenomenon of wearable tech for cat food brand 9Lives.

In the trailer, EVB introduces Morris (the cat) to wearable tech, or, as his owner calls it “a face computer.” Morris seems pretty jazzed on the experience, impressed that it appears to know everything about him. It’s a bit on the cheesy side, but should appeal to cat lovers (and who else is watching an ad for cat food?). You can check out the trailer above, but for the complete interactive experience, including Easter eggs leading to 9Lives coupons and a Morris poster, head to the site. (more…)

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72andSunny Visualizes Music for Sonos

72andSunny has unveiled a new campaign for Sonos’ wireless hi-fi system which playfully imagines what different genres of music would appear as visually.

Taking the notion that Sonos can transform your home literally, the spots each match musical genres with a distinct visual style. So, for example, in the ad set to “Nous Etions Deux” by La Femme, a home is taken over by pop art, starting with spots covering random appliances. In other spots the folk-pop of Sylvan Esso is rendered in claymation, the electronica of Mount Kimbie melts the walls and the croon of Isaac Hayes is paired to (what else?) liquid gold.

Music for the spots was curated by KCRW Music Director Jason Bentley prior to the shoot, informing the pacing, mood and feeling for filming. This approach seems to have payed off, as the music and visuals, created using a combination of practical and CG effects, combine seamlessly, as the sounds seem to transform the space. The homes pictured, “designed to represent people around the world in all kinds of living spaces” are also perfectly matched to the music and chosen form of visualization. Shot over the course of five days in Argentina, everything comes together for a series of ads that imaginatively illustrate the benefits of Sonos’ product and are a lot of fun to watch. (more…)

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BBH Introduces Sofa Bear for Virgin Media

BBH introduces the likeable Sofa Bear in a new ad for Virgin Media, plugging its “Big Kahuna Movies Bundle.”

The 60-second spot opens on the bear, sprawled out on the couch watching The Wolf of Wall Street. “That’s Ed,” intones a nature documentary-esque narrator, “He’s a sofa bear, obviously.” He goes on to explain that, since sofa bears can hibernate for entire weekends, they go for Virgin Media, “so they can access an immense library of movies and box sets.” It’s a fun character, and one that fits in with the advertised service. If there’s a complaint with the ad, it’s that the music at the end for the explanation of the “Big Kahuna Movies Bundle” is a bit invasive, but aside from that it’s a clear winner. Let’s hope BBH can find a way to utilize Sofa Bear in other Virgin campaigns in the future.

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Layoffs Follow Account Loss at Peter Mayer

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Yesterday, the New Orleans Times-Picayune updated readers on the status of hometown agency Peter Mayer Advertising: the shop had to lay off 40 employees after losing the CenturyLink account.

No one at the agency would confirm the loss, but “sources” told the paper that the client in question was CenturyLink, or the largest telecom provider we’ve never heard of. Mayer helped launch the brand back in 2009, but the company began talking about a creative review way back in May 2013, with more sources telling Adweek that executives were “examining their creative account with a primary focus on digital marketing.” McKinney also reportedly continued “do[ing] some work for the combined company” after its merger, and Vendi of La Crosse, Wisconsin now references CenturyLink in the past tense.

Here’s the official statement from Mayer:

“In the lifespan of any agency, there are times when client needs generate significant growth and other times when the business contracts. Therefore, we are in the unfortunate position of having to rebalance our workforce to meet the needs of current clients. This is a painful thing to have to do. Our employees are the most talented, hardest-working and creative professionals in the industry.”

No word on CenturyLink’s future plans, but we expect their search for a new shop to become official soon. The last news of a new campaign from the company came in March 2013 with no agency information provided.

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DLKW Lowe Gets Weird with Ashton Kutcher for Lenovo

DLKW Lowe teamed up with Ashton Kutcher for a series of offbeat ads promoting Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 Pro.

In the spots, Kutcher engages in some unusual pastimes, including milking his goat for his morning cereal (while reading the tablet), painting beaver portraits with his toes and knitting. Offbeat humor is nothing new for the brand, which teamed up with Onion Labs for the ongoing satirical fantasy football series Tough Season. While this latest effort from DLKW doesn’t reach the comedic highs of Onion Labs’ creation, it certainly is memorable. (Who could forget Kutcher’s horrifying beaver portrait?) (more…)

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Skipintro Celebrates Relaunch of the Rijksmuseum

Dutch agency Skipintro celebrates the relaunch of the famed Rijksmuseum in a new campaign that puts Dutch music center stage.

The campaign includes a 30-second broadcast version, and 60 and 90-second online versions, of an ad showcasing the Rijksmuseum as a place to appreciate all forms of Dutch culture. Instead of tacking on music at the end of the production process, director Mattias Schut brought creative production outfit The Ambassadors on board at the start of the process to compose a piece of music that was then performed by a group of Dutch musicians in the museum’s main public walkway as visitors appreciate the art of the Rijksmuseum and the music simultaneously.

“From a musical point of view, being involved from the start of the creative process enables you to lift the production in a way that would be impossible to create in such fine detail without having a close relationship with the director,” said Sebastiaan Roestenburg, founder and sound designer/composer, The Ambassadors. “It was vital to start by researching the required feel of the music, so that we could create something that would truly work as the starting point of the whole production.” (more…)

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MediaCom Wins Media Buying, Planning Duties for A-B InBev

Anheuser–BuschAnheuser-Busch InBev announced today the appointment of WPP’s MediaCom as its agency for media planning and buying in the U.S., following a review which began in July.

A-B InBev initially began searching for a new media agency in April, launching a review that also included media buying and planning over the summer. Starcom formerly handled media research and planning, while in-house group Busch Media handled buying. According to Adweek‘s sources, Publicis Groupe’s Spark was the other finalist. The brewing giant, whose brands include Michelob and Stella Artois, in addition to Budweiser and Bud Light, spends around $575 million in media annually. MediaCom’s appointment follows on the heels of the media agency’s winning of the Merck account at the end of last week.

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BETC London Launches ‘Room to Play’ for ibis

BETC recently launched a new campaign for ibis hotels focusing on the chain’s communal spaces with a musically-themed broadcast spot.

In the spot, entitled “Room to Play,” a group enjoy spending time in one ibis’ communal spaces. Each move a guest makes elicits a specific sound, until the entire room is playing in unison to Caribou song “Crayon.” It’s a fun approach, a welcome departure from the typical fare in the category which helps ibis stand out.

“The musical execution dramatises ibis’ unique design and guest offering, proving that it’s a desirable destination for everyone – whether you’re a business traveller, couple on a city break or young family on holiday,” explains BETC London Creative Director Rosie Bardales.

The ad, which is being broadcast in both 30 and 60 second versions, debuted last Friday across Channel 4 owned and partner channels, and will also run during the new season of Homeland beginning on October 24th. “Room to Play” will be supported by in-hotel activations which use  “sound to bring a further surprising, interactive experience to hotel guests in ibis shared spaces.” (more…)

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Publicis Kaplan Thaler Brings BBQ to the People for Wendy’s

Publicis Kaplan Thaler recently launched a campaign for Wendy’s new barbecue offerings, entitled “#BBQ4Merica.”

The online campaign debuted with a kind of mock PSA, introducing Wendy’s new menu items as tackling the issue of “barbecue inaccessiblity” for people in places like Miami Beach, Cape Cop and Malibu. “Hi I’m a celebrity, and these are just a few of the geographically underprivileged places where millions of Americans don’t have easy access to quality barbecue,” says a solemn Carlton Alfonso Ribeiro in the ad. He’s joined by Ralph Macchio and Steve Austin for the effort, and the trio appear individually in a series of other videos for the campaign (stick around for a couple after the break).

In addition to the online videos, the digital effort includes a call to make barbecue the “National Dish of America” and an invitation to “sponsor” friends by tagging them on social channels using the hashtag “#BBQ4Merica” There was also a recent 24-hour tweet-a-thon event hosted by Ribeiro, in which participants helped unlock content and win swag. (more…)

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We Hear: Geometry Global Wins General Mills Shopper Marketing

geometry-300x197In quick client news, we hear that Geometry Global, which recently appointed Jon “Not That One” Hamm (formerly of Momentum Worldwide) as its global CCO, will represent General Mills Shopper Marketing as part of WPP’s Shopper Marketing team.

Here’s the internal announcement:

We are pleased to announce General Mills as our newest client. Geometry Global will be part of the WPP Shopper Marketing team solution for General Mills named ShopperWorks.

ShopperWorks is a customized solution led by Geometry Global in partnership with Rockfish, Barrows, Bravo, and Kantar Retail. Together, the team will work to deliver Shopper Marketing solutions for General Mill’s brands in areas such as: retail and field activation, shopper insights, multicultural marketing, digital shopper, e-commerce and retail media.

You’ll note that quite a few agencies count themselves as members of that team, though WPP might want to update the page since JWTAction has been Geometry Global since June 2013.

In other Geometry news, the agency won a couple of awards for campaigns in Asia.

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Starworks Group Rocks the Vote with Lil Jon in ‘Turn Out for What’

Starworks Group enlisted the aid of Lil Jon, Whoopi Goldberg, Lena Dunham, Fred Armisen and a host of other celebrities for a Rock the Vote spot set to a reworking of Lil Jon’s “Turn Down for What” as “Turn Out for What.”

The spot opens with Lil Jon informing Goldberg that he’s turning out for the midterm elections. At the polling center he meets a big fan and runs into Lena Dunham, who won’t reveal Girls spoilers to the rapper, much to his dismay. Around the video’s midpoint, celebrities start mentioning the causes they are turning out to vote for over “Turn Out for What.” (Surprise: Lil Jon is turning out for marijuana legalization.) Say what you will about the ad’s over-the-top approach, but it’s certainly received its share of attention, racking up almost 600,00 YouTube views since being posted earlier in the week. (more…)

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180 Amsterdam Puts Replay’s Hyperflex Jeans to the Test

180 Amsterdam puts Replay’s Hyperflex jeans to the test in a new online video demonstrating the elasticity of the brand’s newest offering.

In the ad, which stars Brazilian supermodel Alessandra Ambrosio and features FC Barcelona players (including Neymar), Ambrosio’s alter ego — Doctor Ambrosio — conducts a series of tests designed to highlight the Hyperflex’s elasticity. The pants are put through such “modern lifestyle tests” as twerking, playing soccer, hip hop dancing, and some more twerking for good measure, ending with the tagline “Stretch your limits.” The 90-second online spot is certainly on the goofy side, but it does demonstrate the Hyperflex’s stretching capacity well, and it has the star power to generate a lot of views. In addition to the online spot, the campaign also includes print and OOH components.

“Replay’s Hyperflex is a revolution in denim,” said Al Moseley, president and chief creative officer, 180 Amsterdam. “Our task was to stretch it to the limits. The tests we put it through were extraordinary. The outcome, as people will see, is truly remarkable.” (more…)

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