Absurdly polished advertising for shitty used cars is a fairly common thing. Every year we seem to get another example, from art director Castor’s “Buy My Volvo” to Chris Murphy’s “F150 truck for sale.” Now, we have another entry in the canon, as filmmaker Max Lanman put together a cinematic spot for his girlfriend Carrie’s…
YouTube views are a valued currency for many advertisers. And now, J. Walter Thompson Amsterdam is turning them into an actual currency–convincing automaker client Opel to accept views of viral videos involving its vehicles as payment for them. It works like this: Consumers are encouraged to create videos of Opel’s new “Online Edition” while loaning…
A moving new campaign is seeking to raise money to battle Alzheimer’s by using one of its best known victims in one of his most iconic roles–Gene Wilder singing “Pure Imagination” in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. A 90-second PSA from the nonprofit Alzheimer’s Association and agency MullenLowe features the late performer in one…
It took a few weeks, but Coca-Cola has rolled out an upbeat commercial in Saudi Arabia, celebrating King Salman’s decree back in September that allows women to drive–finally ending the only ban on women drivers anywhere in the world. The minute-long spot opens with a father and his daughter switching seats so that she is…
Cristiano Ronaldo may be one of the most famous footballers in the world (the Real Madrid forward is a four-time world player of the year), but he’s apparently not immune to an off-season slump that involves lying on the couch and eating junk food. What will become of his internationally famous six-pack? An ad for…
The video below starts out looking like your average hidden-camera social experiment, building up to laughter from the prankster and the prankees. But the spot from Unicef takes a grim turn. Unsuspecting parents, in the midst of shopping, are introduced to a line of furniture that has safeguards for children who are abused–be it physically,…
Zappos is leaning into its reputation for customer service with a new set of ads reenacting the absurd lengths to which it will go to satisfy people who buy its products. One spot features a toddler ballerina and her father. Decked out in a pink tutu, she keeps refusing the various ballet shoes he’s ordered…
At a time when issues of sexism and harassment in the workplace have never been more in the spotlight, Australian lingerie brand Honey Birdette has rolled out a holiday commercial that would seem absurdly oblivious to that dialogue–yet the company’s founder is brushing off criticisms as “ridiculous.” The spot has a clear workplace theme. It’s…
We often take for granted how lonely the holidays can be for some–especially in big cities, where, sometimes, it seems the people you know best are those you see just outside the window. Ahead of the holidays, and for its “Keep Reinventing” campaign, HP gives us “Reinvent Giving,” the charming story of a woman who…
Life can be a real buzzkill. There’s the mortgage to stress about, the tiger moms to compete with, the kids and the aging parents to care for. What does a Gen X gal with a little disposable income have to do for some relief around here? Subscribe to a marijuana delivery service that can send…
Cities around the U.S. have been falling over themselves pitching themselves to Amazon as candidates for its second headquarters. But Little Rock, Arkansas, took a unique approach. Its response to the HQ2 RFP was gracious and clever, but fundamentally different than all the others. Thanks but no thanks, Little Rock told Amazon. The Little Rock…
Billboards are designed to cause a reaction. Not necessarily 911 calls, but Associated Bank will take it. Minneapolis agency Colle McVoy recently made some billboards for Associated Bank’s Green Bay Packers checking program, showing photos of Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb. The ads were outfitted with fog machines, to mimic the look of players exiting…
Ikea touts itself as a brand that draws inspiration from the everyday lives of people. In its home market of Sweden, it’s leaned in to this philosophy with “Where Life Happens,” which has given us heart-wrenching ads about divorce, single parenting, adoption and even the slow dissolution of father-daughter bonds. But in addition to its…
You know you love yourself some ASMR content, that stuff of soft sounds that apparently result in ticklish little braingasms. But the cottage industry goes way further than mere whispers. Have you met Bread Face? The Bread Face blog launched in early December 2015, at which time her Instagram account swelled to over 20,000 followers….
It’s been a particularly fun year for Halloween advertising, with lots of marketers producing mini horror movies in place of their usual 30-second spots. We’ve collected a lot of that long-form stuff here in our 2017 Halloween roundup, along with other memorably creepy ads and stunts. We’ll update this story as more frightful and fun…
Asked your neighbor for a cup of sugar lately? They might not have that … but they could have a garage full of Hondas to sell you! Honda doesn’t have a ton of dealerships in France. So, to get its newest CR-V and HR-V SUV models in front of prospects, it had to get scrappy….
Add Google to the list of companies that have a Stranger Things season 2 activation. Netflix partnered with the tech giant to create a voice-activated game for the second season that you play through your Google Home or Google Home Mini voice assistant. The device acts as a walkie-talkie–all you have to do is say…
Enough with the somber, tear-jerking goodbyes already. When a beloved superstar from the world of sports decides to hang it up, could there be a lighthearted changing-of-the-guard moment instead of a two-hankie weep-a-thon? If you’re Mountain Dew, and you’re sending off racecar legend Dale Earnhardt Jr., who’s retiring at the end of the season, maybe…
It’s no surprise that a fake-meat burger would feel obligated to sneak into famously carnivorous Chicago. And that’s exactly what Impossible Burger did last night, with a pop-up underground “meateasy,” or speakeasy for faux beef. For three hours at an undisclosed location on Division Street in Wicker Park, the godless heathens could devour the brand’s…
If you’ve been thirsting for the world’s first mockumentary about lactose-free dairy products, Natrel’s got the campaign for you. Developed by agency lg2, “Intolerance: A Lactose Story” presents Miles Granderson, a middle-aged dairy-foods lover who is also extremely tall. (Hey, milk helps you grow, right?) Alas, one day, after dinner, dude’s rocked to the core….
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