Hasta La Creative!

Dick’s Sporting Goods has launched its holiday campaign with an ad meant to tug at viewer’s heartstrings via a basketball hoop, presumably from Anomaly.

Said piece of sporting equipment is given as a gift from a father to his daughter at the beginning of the spot. We then see the girl grow up via a montage of moments with the basketball hoop in the background, until, finally the family packs her up for college and the father is left to shoot hoops alone. The ad does a great job of building emotion and seamlessly leading into the “Give a gift that matters” tagline. At any other time of year, this kind of approach would run the risk of being deemed to sentimental, but that sentimentality fits pretty perfect with the holiday season.

The ad will run on 19 networks beginning this Sunday and running for several weeks. It kicks off Dick’s “Gifts That Matter” campaign, which will also be supported by social media and digital elements.

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360i has launched a new campaign promoting the latest installment in Toyota’s teen driving safety initiative, TeenDrive365.

Based on safety research by Toyota and the University of Michigan Transportation Institute (UMTRI), the campaign aims to influence teens by targeting the number one influence on how they drive: their parents. The latest additions to the initiative include online tools, expert advice, local events and social media elements. To promote the effort, 360i worked with Toyota on a series of videos targeting parents of teen drivers.

Two of these videos focus on “Parents Who Drive Bad Anonymous,” a fictional (and grammatically challenged) support group for parents who drive poorly and are worried that they’re passing on their questionable practices to their children. In the above video, Deb attends a meeting and admits to texting while driving. “I know I’ve been a bad example. I’ve been texting while I drive and it’s got to stop,” she says to a mannequin wearing headphones, presumably a stand-in for her son. Another “Parents Who Drive Bad Anonymous” video focuses on a dad obsessed with checking on his fantasy team. Another video, part of the “Masters of the Wheel” series, focuses on NHRA driver Antron Brown and his teen daughter.

“As a mother of a teenager, I often remind myself that the things I do behind the wheel go a long way in setting a powerful example,” said Dr. Tina Sayer, Toyota Collaborative Safety Research Center principal engineer and teen safe driving expert. “Experience and education certainly help your teen become a safe and more confident driver, but our research shows us that the biggest factor in how teens will drive is their parents.” (more…)

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In an attempt to boost holiday sales, GSD&M enlisted the services of one Weird Al Yankovic on behalf of the struggling Radio Shack.

The resurgent Yankovic, of course, just had the first number one album of his career with his fourteenth full-length, Mandatory Fun. Radioshack CMO Jennifer Warren cited Yankovic’s resurgent popularity and “cross generational appeal” in explaining the decision to enlist the King of Parody, telling MediaPost, “He’s had a resurgence, including a No. 1 album, and an appearance on the Grammies, as well as a recent tour of the talk shows.”

And, indeed, Yankovic has appeal from everyone from those introduced to the parodist in the eighties, to those of us who bought Bad Hair Day on compact dist in elementary school, to the kids just being introduced to him today through the music videos he released to promote the new album. But does GSD&M make it work?

Kind of. Yankovic’s quirky, nerdy charm is certainly on display in the ad, and Radio Shack could benefit from the association, but the spot stops short of fulfilling its comedic potential. When a customer asks if Radio Shack carries HeliQuads, Shack employee Yankovic bursts into song about how it is the perfect place for holidays toys for, boys, girls, and your cousin Bob who is 43 and lives at home. GSD&M worked from a script, collaborating with Yankovic from there, according to GSD&M President Marianne Malina. Given Yankovic’s distinct personality (which is what you got him for), it may have made more sense to just let him come up with his own ideas.

Interestingly, the ad will debut in cinemas, where viewers can use the Shazam app to download a longer version. The ad is part of GSD&M’s larger “Gift Smart” campaign as the agency continues to attempt to start conversations around the sinking Radio Shack brand. Recent efforts include the suggestive back-to-school campaign, which ruffled a few conservative feathers with its innuendo.

“Everything we’ve done together…is about getting buzz, and getting back into the conversation,” Warren told MediaPost. (more…)

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Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO has launched a new campaign for Guiness celebrating the “Irrepressible Spirit” of some lesser-known rugby greats for Guiness, just in time for the sport’s end of year Autumn Internationals.

The campaign is composed of four spots celebrating Jonny Wilkinson, Shane Williams, Bill McLaren and the Munster rugby team of 1978, which debuted yesterday in the UK and Ireland. Each ad focuses on “the inspirational character and integrity that is central to the sport,” Stephen O’Kelly, marketing director, Guinness (Western Europe) at Diageo, said in a statement.

In the spot above, for example, Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO tells the inspiring story of Bill McLaren who was diagnosed with tuberculosis and told he would never play rugby again. Rather than accepting defeat, McLaren found his way back into the game as an announcer and became the “voice of rugby.” It’s an emotional approach that should appeal to diehard rugby fans and casual viewers alike, which should be a winning combination for Guiness. (more…)

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JWT London teamed up with production company th2ng (pronounced “Thing 2,” even though the number 2 looks nothing like an “I”) and directorial team “The Queen” (Dan Lumb and Crinan Campbell) for a new spot for Listerine.

The ad is based around the idea that, since teeth only make up a quarter of your mouth, brushing only cleans 25 percent of your mouth. It opens on a man holding balloon receiving a pizza delivery. When he opens the box he finds only two slices and exclaims “25 percent!?” This opens up with concept for a series of sight gags showing how unsatisfying 25 percent is: including a mini martini, unfinished haircut, an incomplete spray tan and a punchline-less joke. It ends with the man walking in on a woman brushing her teeth and informing her she’s only cleaning 25 percent of her mouth, really hammering home the ad’s message.

The ad was filmed over the course of just two days on a crowded beach on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Despite having to conted with throngs of beachgoers, land to water shots, children and cats, the crew enjoyed the shoot.

“This was a fun and challenging shoot,” said Dan Lumb. “We were determined to hit all of the humor notes on this one, which was so contingent on comedic timing and working around the elements. With such a limited shoot time, we had to rely on the talent and preparedness of the team to make this a success. I think everybody did their part to make it come together in a hysterical way.” (more…)

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Stopp, “an integrated production company that combines creativity, technology and VFX disciplines to create innovative work with emotional connections” has launched a new broadcast and digital campaign for Adidas Outdoor promising the brand is “Open All Winter.”

For the campaign, Stopp partnered with extreme sports stars Hayley Ashburn (slackliner), Jean-Baptiste Chandelier (paraglider) and Junhee Han (ice climber) to show off Adidas’ range of Climaheat products boasting an insulation design that keeps the wearer warm in extreme winter conditions. The spot opens on a seemingly abandoned town as a sign reading “Closed for winter” swings in the breeze. A group of determined runners bust through, undeterred. Then the spot focuses on ice climber Junhee Han as he takes on a steep slope, followed by the other featured extreme athletes showing off their skills, before ending with the “Open All Winter” tagline.

In addition to the broadcast spot, which also runs online, the campaign is supported by digital elements and a competition running over the course of twelve weeks, inviting participants to share winter pics on Instagram and Twitter. A new winner will be picked every week, with an athlete jury selecting one grand prize winner to receive a winter road trip across Canada with four friends.

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Kevin Durant stars in a new digital and outdoor campaign for Talking Rain’s sparkling water brand Sparkling Ice from agency jimwalkerseattle.

In the 60-second online spot, Durant is shown arriving in Seattle, shooting hoops, drinking Sparkling Ice and posing for the camera. Representatives for Durant approached the brand inquiring about an official partnership back in April after the Oklahoma City Thunder star started drinking the beverage and the campaign marks the first creative work to come out of the deal. Digital ads will run on ESPN.com and Bleacher Report, and billboards will be placed in markets with a meaningful Durant connection: Oklahoma City, of course; as well his hometown of Seat Pleasant, Maryland; and Austin, Texas, where he attended college. One place you definitely won’t see billboards is Seattle, a location where Durant’s presence may not help the brand, since the Supersonics franchise moved to Oklahoma City to become the Thunder — much to the chagrin of Seattle fans.

“It would be better if he didn’t have the Seattle connection,” Jim Andrews, a vice president at the sponsorship consultancy IEG, told AdAge. “But the positives outweigh the negatives, if we get any.”

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Mullen, Boston worked with JetBlue on an online campaign entitled “Fly It Forward”, in which the airline gives away tickets to individuals with inspiring stories, who then select from a list of people to receive the next ticket.

The causevertising initative is detailed in a three minute online ad following the stories of several individuals selected to “Fly It Forward.” Their stories vary widely from the inspiring to the not-as-much (Hipster street artist travels to Brooklyn to paint a mural? Are we missing something there?) but the video effectively communicates the philosophy behind the campaign. Ultimately the effort makes JetBlue look good, as the airline manages to support a variety of causes all at once, and even takes the selection process and effectively gives it over to those touched by the campaign. As the ad states, the campaign is effectively set up so that there’s no end in sight. (more…)

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72andSunny combines Alice in Wonderland with holiday sweetness in the holiday ad “Alice in Marshmallow Land” for Target.

The 60-second spot opens on a young girl following Target’s official mascot Bullseye (a Bull Terrier) down a giant Target logo into “Marshmallow Land.” Once there, the girl, presumably named Alice, eats a mini marshmallow and shrinks to join a group of popular toys at a table as they enjoy hot chocolate. From here, Bullseye and Alice continue on their holiday-themed adventures, set to a cover of the holiday classic “Marshmallow World” by Karen O and mostly removed from any of the malice of Carroll’s classic, of course — the one threatening moment involving a giant robotic dinosaur is easily resolved — until the girl wakes up. It’s a cute and imaginative approach that should appeal to families with small children, while featuring a number of popular holiday items at the giant retailer. Although since it’s debuting so early, it certainly runs the risk of wearing out its welcome by the end of December.

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Team One is launching a campaign today to introduce Lexus’ first-ever RC 350 sport coupe and RC F performance coupe.

The multimedia campaign is centered around a pair of broadcast spots promoting each of the new vehicles. In “Face Off,” actor Wes Bentley (Seneca Crane in The Hunger Games, that creepy voyeur kid in American Beauty) confidently walks into a dark factory. As he glances at the Lexus RC Coupe, he likes what he sees (and for some reason lightbulbs explode as he unlocks the door) and he drives off smiling. The spot ends with the tagline, “Once driven, there’s no going back.”

“No Limits” was inspired by the RC F reveal video, and touts the vehicle’s powerful performance as barrier-breaking. It combines footage of the RC F racing through turns with athletes pushing their bodies to the limits.

Both spots launch today and will air during prime time, late night, cable, network television and cable sports, including “multiplatform ownerships within the Thursday Night Football Halftime Show on CBS and NFL Network.” In addition to the general market spots, “three additional RC F commercials geared toward multicultural audiences will also air at launch.” The broadcast efforts will be supported by digital, print and OOH executions. (more…)

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