Hasta La Creative!

The best April Fools’ Day gag products are the ones that leave you wondering why it’s not already a real thing.

That’s definitely the case with Tinder for Uber (and its partner site, Uber for Tinder), a partnership between two of the moment’s most popular mobile apps.

The supposed service lets you swipe your way to a romantic rendezvous by finding a match on Tinder and then each booking Uber rides to go meet in the middle. I’m sure there are already affair-planning sites that offer something similar, though for the sake of my search history and my marriage, I’m not going to Google that one. 

Would you let Samsung turn the birth of your child into an ad, if it meant the company would also set up a live-streaming virtual reality rig, so your partner could witness the moment—despite being away for work?

A new six-minute, documentary-style commercial does just that for a couple in Australia. The father, Jace, has a fly-in-fly-out job, meaning he spends four-week stretches some 2,500 miles from his family. The mother, Alison, is expecting their third child. Samsung saves the day, with a 360-degree swivel camera in the delivery room in Perth and a VR headset for the dad in Chinchilla, Queensland. 

The results are at the same time beautiful, highly sympathetic and slightly unsettling. Samsung may be giddy with the tech-happy zeitgeist, but at what point does a marketer become intrusive and exploitative?

On the one hand, there’s the appearance of clear benefit for the couple—the father gets to be more present than he would have. On the other hand, the slow-motion footage of the mother pushing her way through labor pains while the music makes a melodramatic crescendo takes what should be an intimate moment and turns it into a heavy-handed piece of entertainment-as-sales pitch.

The shot of the newborn resting on Alison’s chest for the first time is irrefutably powerful stuff. Samsung has invited the entire world to take part in a scene that, while universal, is also incredibly personal. And we’re seeing it not quite from the eyes of the father—but from the eyes of Samsung, in which Samsung is, of course, the hero. 

Sure, it’s a well-shaped piece of advertising—by definition it’s going to be manipulative. But the marketer’s socially awkward perspective is clearest in the kicker. The ad shows Jace at the airport after his flight home, meeting “his newborn son,” the smug, on-screen copy reading, “for the second time.” Technology isn’t an aid to help bring together a family separated by necessity. Technology is a bonafide substitute for reality, and the dramatic effect of the message—that Samsung was the solution—becomes more important than the fact that this guy is actually, finally getting to hold his kid.

So next time, maybe just have your mother-in-law FaceTime the birth for you. 

Here we are, less than 24 hours from the spectacle that is SXSW. As the minions descend on Austin, and the rest of the world gawks from afar, there’s a vocal contingent who literally can’t even.

A healthy disdain for SXSW has developed in recent years, and seems to be hitting a crescendo, oh, right about now. Below, check out some snark-laden tweets from people who are going, can’t go—or are already there but would rather be anywhere else.

See you in Austin, haters!

Mandatory 24-hour Meerkat streams for all SXSW attendees who have their employer paying for the trip.

— Bored Elon Musk (@BoredElonMusk) March 12, 2015

Welcome to Austin. Enjoy the barbecue. Now go home. #bbqueue #sxsw pic.twitter.com/FdvQdgn2OM

— Franklin BBQ Line (@FranklinBBQline) March 12, 2015

A bot that replies to all SXSW party invitations with “I am 35 and I do not leave New York. #blessed“

— Rachel Fershleiser (@RachelFersh) March 12, 2015

Let’s do a thing where u literally don’t tell a single soul you’re going to SXSW. Let’s bring back the mystique!

— billy eichner (@billyeichner) March 12, 2015

bragging you’re not going to sxsw is the new bragging you’re going to sxsw.

— Brian Morrissey (@bmorrissey) March 11, 2015

If we get to 8,000 followers by the end of the day, I’ll give away 28 wristbands to Guy Fieri’s air hockey tournament/karaoke buffet! #SXSW

— SXSW Partyzzzzz (@SXSWPartyzzzzz) March 12, 2015

SXSW needs more industry panel discussions about SXSW industry panel discussions

— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) March 12, 2015

Drones have been banned at #SXSW. Now if only they would ban #SXSW. http://t.co/gZMmGWy9dA

— Drones (@drones) March 12, 2015

I have ZERO FOMO. RT @caro: “Hey, how’s it going, you guys are in our startup accelerator, right?” overheard in line to board flight to SXSW

— katierosman (@katierosman) March 12, 2015

omg there’s definitely going to be a band playing on my flight to sxsw isn’t there fuck me

— maria sherman (@mariasherm) March 12, 2015

Every ten seconds in America, a @sxsw or @Comic_Con happens.

— Chris Regan (@ChrisRRegan) March 12, 2015

I just saw the first awkward SXSW badges worn far away from the events downtown and it doesn’t even start til tomorrow

— Ben Brown (@benbrown) March 12, 2015

Packing question: what does a middle-aged suburban dad corporate sellout wear to #SXSW?

— Alex Stamos (@alexstamos) March 12, 2015

“Back in my prime, son, I used to delete hundreds of SXSW-related emails a day. Kids these days don’t know how easy they have it.”

— Dave Segal (@editaurus) March 12, 2015

And then there’s poor Colin Hanks, who’s actually excited to be there.

Can we just be at SXSW already? Pretty Please with Shiner on top?

— Colin Hanks (@ColinHanks) March 11, 2015

“We own the universe. Galaxy is overrated.”

If you enjoy that level of hyperbole from a scrappy smartphone underdog like HTC, you’re going to love the brand’s ridiculously self-indulgent new rap video, “Hold the Crown.”

Touting the HTC One as nothing less than “the greatest smartphone ever created,” the song features rapper Doc G, best known for joining legendary hip hop and soul group P.M. Dawn during its 2005 comeback. 

The video is certainly laughable, but it was clearly made with an admirable level of self-satire. My favorite stanza: “Make like them nerdy bloggers. Put it in your pocket now.”

Doc G’s costar (shown above) is actually HTC America senior marketing manager David Bruce, and you can watch the two of them chat about their mutual love for the Taiwanese brand in the interview clip below.

Justin Bieber sure made a lot of noise on the Internet this week.

On Friday, the music website BreatheHeavy.com published what it claimed to be an untouched image from the pop star’s new Calvin Klein ad campaign, but has now issued a retraction. The GIF suggested that Bieber’s head, arms, legs, chest and below-waist area were exaggerated in the final image.

While it’s still possible that the unretouched photo could be real (and that BreatheHeavy simply wants to avoid a lawsuit), the image does look a bit fishy, particularly since Bieber’s head seems sizably larger compared to the after photo.

“We sincerely apologize to Bieber for the hit to his ego and to the millions of tweens on social media we upset,” BreatheHeavy writer Jordan Miller says.

Indeed, the untouched photo sparked a storm of chatter about the CK campaign on Friday (see some examples of reactions on Twitter below).

BreatheHeavy.com obtained the photo from a source who also claimed that Bieber caused a scene on the set of the shoot.

But CK CMO Melisa Goldie tells US Weekly a much different story. “We shot the print and video campaigns over several days at Silvercup Studios with photographers Mert and Marcus and Johan Renck, who directed the campaign video,” she said. “Justin showed up early every day with amazing energy; he completely trusted us and gave it his all.”

“Justin Bieber’s body is photoshopped” Yeah whatever makes u sleep at night but he’ll still model for a brand you can’t even afford

— S (@JUSTlNFTGRANDE) January 9, 2015

When someone says @justinbieber was photoshopped. ? ?|? ? ??? ??? ?? ?/ ?? ??? ??

“@JBCrewdotcom: Fans in New York went to visit Justin Bieber’s Calvin Klein billboard. pic.twitter.com/Gi5OYVnVa9“

Facebook, at long last, finally seems to be getting the hang of the whole advertising thing.

In addition to the pleasantly whimsical “Say Better” ads, which have been rolling out in recent weeks, the social network has also been working on a cute series of tutorials called “Just In Case Studies”—which use quirky storytelling to explain how to accomplish various technical steps on the Facebook app.

Four videos have been released so far. The best of the lot is “How to Block Someone,” which shows a girl doing just that with her boyfriend after a painful breakup—though it doesn’t exactly go as planned. Like all the videos in the series, it’s quietly amusing, relatable, nicely shot and charmingly self-conscious—with a voiceover that’s just as halting as our heroine.

The tutorials, made by Facebook’s in-house creative studio The Factory, also include “How to Edit a Post,” “How to Share With Just Friends” and “How to Untag a Photo.” They’re not ads, per se—but they have the same bemused tone as the “Say Better” spots.

And that’s a good thing.

Jim Henson creations have a storied history in advertising, going back to the 1950s, when a violent proto-Kermit pitched Wilkins Coffee with 10-second TV spots.

Tappy, the latest creation from Jim Henson’s Creature Studio, is similarly off-kilter in his role as a living credit card reader at a checkout counter. 

Tappy is the new voice of Softcard, an e-payment product that works at McDonald’s and other major chains that now accept phone swipes as currency. Softcard needed a new mascot and some rebranding after changing its name from Isis, an unfortunate name since being co-opted by the infamous terror state.

Tappy is a bit out there as a concept, turning a boring inanimate object into a somewhat obnoxious little critter, but that’s what the Henson team has done for decades, building characters for brands to support their more artful Muppet projects. In fact there’s a roster of corporate mascots that come from The Jim Henson Co. that you might not know are basically cousins to Kermit, Oscar and Big Bird. For Instance, Snuggle bear is part muppet and so is Jack In The Box’s oversized snowman.

Here’s a look at the some of the characters made by Jim Henson’s Creature Studio for commercials and video marketing:

Tappy, Softcard
In a history of oddities, Tappy stands out among the Henson creations for sheer adsurdity. He’s a credit-card reading machine with teeth. We could learn to love him, maybe, on a long enough timeline.

Mel, Kraft
Mel the MilkBite is part dairy, part granola bar and totally confused. He’s a character with an identity crisis, pondering, “What am I?”

Life, Pacific Blue Cross
Life is a Muppet in the classic sense, and he promoted insurance for Pacific Blue Cross. In the commercials, he bites people in the butt, symbolizing unexpected events like dental emergencies.

Polar Bear, Coca-Cola
The Coca-Cola polar bear, which debuted in commercials in 1993, is a classic, and Jim Henson’s Creature Shop brought him to life for appearances with the public.

Puppet Jack, Jack in the Box
Puppet Jack has very similar mannerisms to Kermit, like when he throws his hands in the air and freaks out. A true pitchman who knows where to find a receptive audience, he shows up on couches to educate stoners about fast-food deals.

Great Chocolate Factory Mystery Experience in 4D, Hershey’s

Hershey’s Great Chocolate Factory Mystery Experience is an interactive show featuring talking candy bars at Hershey’s HQ in Pennsylvania. Henson made the digital puppets for the experience.

Lenny, Lending Tree
Lenny could be brothers with Kermit, given he’s so obviously Muppet and green. He basically just follows around a guy named Len, trying to talk him out of taking a loan from a bank.

Fairy-tale characters, Reading Is Fundamental

The literacy effort Reading Is Fundamental featured puppets alongside famous cartoon characters for this ad inspiring adults to read to children.

Rico, Air New Zealand
Rico was a rather NSFW spokesppupet whose South American accent and wordplay raised eyebrows, such as when he praised “a nice Kiwi beach.” He was best known for the viral marketing collaborations with edgy celebrities, including Snoop Dogg and Lindsay Lohan.

Snuggle Bear, Snuggle

Snuggle the fabric softener bear has deep Muppet roots. The bear debuted in 1983, a creation of Kermit Love (not related to the frog), who also made Big Bird.

We rely on our hands to get us through our various daily projects, whether it’s typing on a computer, creating works of art or instructing others to follow a plan. Now, HP wants us to use the power of our paws in the digital space.

HP’s Sprout is a new immersive computing platform that scans and senses the objects in proximity of the device to allow people to create in real-time 3-D. In simpler words, you can put things directly on the touch mat and, thanks to a projector above, wave your hands around to virtually mold the design you want on the screen. As the ad shows, that includes spilling coffee beans on the flat surface to get that effortlessly strewn artistic look.

Watch the ad below, and then give your hands a pat on the back for all the work they do.

CREDITS
Client: Hewlett-Packard
Spot: “Hands of Time”
Agency: 180LA
Production Company: Park Pictures
Director: Vincent Haycock
Director of Photography: Mattias Montero
Head of Production: Anne Bobroff
Executive Producer: Jackie Kelman Bisbee
Executive Producer: Mary Ann Marino
Producer: Valerie Romer
Original Music by human

Today’s cool-but-slightly-horrifying vision of the future comes courtesy of Yourbot, which is a combination of a digital time capsule and man’s search for immortality.

Yourbot is a service that creates a psychological profile of you, then uses photos of you to create a 3-D digital avatar that can be shared with your descendants after you pass on, fully capable of communicating your memories and personal anecdotes such as your first kiss.

While users will primarily interact with Yourbot on the Web or via a mobile app, the creators are also developing a voice-activated device featuring your interactive avatar. The device will only be available to Kickstarter backers. 

Via PSFK.

Some people think animated GIFs are stupid. Some find them charming. Possibly because of this rift, Twitter seems caught in a pictorial purgatory that makes everyone unhappy.

Like it or not, animated GIFs have become a massively popular form of communication, quickly evolving from passive-aggressive zingers to earnestly useful bites of video that are convenient to watch on just about any platform.

While Tumblr and newer sites like Ello have readily embraced them, Twitter and Facebook have most certainly not. Aside from last year’s quasi-hoax from Giphy, Facebook’s been pretty consistent about not wanting animated GIFs in news feeds. (I originally took this as a stance on user experience, but now that all Facebook videos autoplay silently, I realize I was a chump.)

And then there’s Twitter.

Its love-hate relationship goes back a few years. Here’s a quick recap:

September 2012: Twitter bans animated user avatars but existing ones are grandfathered in (that’s why you still see them from time to time). In fact, other than nudity and profanity, this is just about Twitter’s only restriction on avatars.

November 2013: Animated GIF service Giphy announces it’s been integrated into Twitter’s Media Cards, meaning you can (kind of) post an animated GIF in a tweet. But they were more like attachments you had to expand and didn’t show up in most Twitter streams. And you were restricted to using Giphy images instead of any animated pic you liked.

June 2014: Twitter Support announces you can “share and view animated GIFs on Twitter.com, Android and iPhone.” But that’s not entirely true, since what you’re sharing is a GIF that’s been converted into a looping MP4 video file, meaning you have to click to watch it.

September 2014: Popular GIF service Twitpic announces it is shutting down due to the high cost of a trademark battle with Twitter. This is especially bad news for animated GIF lovers who rely on the third-party service to share animations on Twitter. However, Twitpic announces a few days later that it has been acquired and will stay alive after all.

Where things stand now
We did test runs on the three most common options for posting an animated GIF to Twitter. We tried out Twitter’s built-in media upload feature, the popular Giphy database and the scrappy third-party Twitpic. We tested each on the Web, in TweetDeck and in the official Twitter mobile app. The result are below.

Spoiler alert: Each is flawed, cumbersome and questionably worth the effort.

Excited? Great! Here we go!

 
1. Posting an animated GIF directly to Twitter or TweetDeck.
This is definitely the easiest route, but it has the huge setback of not actually appearing as an animated GIF in people’s streams, and on TweetDeck it looks like total garbage.

How it looks on Twitter:

Testing something w/ animated gifs. Please ignore. http://t.co/v9a3McVKRl

— David Griner (@griner) September 25, 2014

How it looks on TweetDeck:

How it looks on Twitter’s mobile app (Android):

(Clicking the thumbnail would play the GIF, which is actually converted into an MP4.)

Conclusion: It doesn’t autoplay, it’s not really a GIF, and it doesn’t work on TweetDeck, even though the desktop and Web app was acquired by Twitter way back in 2011. So I wouldn’t call this a great platform for sharing GIFs. Because it doesn’t.

 
2. Posting an animated GIF via Giphy:
I got a “forbidden” error when I tried uploading my test GIF to Giphy, but I was able to find a similar one already in the site’s database. I then clicked to share via Twitter, which automatically populates your tweet with a Giphy URL and lets you edit the tweet before posting. As you’ll see, the end result is mixed.

How it looks on Twitter:

Another animated gif test, this time via giphy. http://t.co/bKqjK8HO7C

— David Griner (@griner) September 25, 2014

(While Giphy was the only one of the three options that actually autoplays the GIF in a Web tweet, this only works if you embed the tweet like I’ve done here. In a user’s Twitter stream, it’ll just look like text and a link unless the follower clicks to expand the tweet. In other words, it’s likely to get overlooked by Web users on Twitter.com but would look good if dropped into a blog post.)

How it looks on TweetDeck:

How it looks on Twitter’s mobile app (Android):

(Clicking the link expands it to a video thumbnail, which you have to click again to watch on Giphy.com. Bleh.)

Conclusion: You still don’t get your animated GIF into the stream on TweetDeck, and on mobile it’s barely noticeable. It does look good on the Web when expanded or embedded, but not too many active Twitter users see tweets that way. I’m not altogether condemning Giphy as a service, but I would say its role as a tool for sharing animated GIFs on Twitter has likely been overstated.

 
3. Posting an animated GIF via TwitPic:
At AdFreak, we’ve been using TwitPic for a while now as our animated GIF tweeting service of choice. It autoplays GIFs in TweetDeck, which a lot of our readers seem to use. So you can see why we, like many others, were disturbed to hear the service was being shuttered and then relieved to hear about its stay of execution.

How it looks on Twitter:

Another animated gif test, this time with TwitPic. http://t.co/Rw3Z0wNvJc

— David Griner (@griner) September 25, 2014

How it looks on TweetDeck:

(Hey hey, it worked! Twitpic was the only one of these three options that actually played a GIF in stream on TweetDeck.)

How it looks on Twitter’s mobile app (Android):

(Clicking to expand the tweet only shows it as a still image. You have to click the link to view it as an animation on Twitpic.com.)

Conclusion: Twitpic is great for TweetDeck but looks pretty bad on mobile and Web. But with no TweetDeck support for animated GIFs from Twitter itself, playing in stream is a pretty good selling point for Twitpic.

It’s worth noting that my Twitpic posts were the only ones to get a positive reaction from followers, likely because many of my friends are TweetDeck junkies:

@griner FYI, I saw the twitpic one in my stream on TweetDeck, but just a link for the pic.twittter one…

— Jeremy A Williams (@jeremyawilliams) September 25, 2014

@griner Ironically enough. I would have expected the exact opposite

— Jeremy A Williams (@jeremyawilliams) September 25, 2014

@griner I can see this one in Tweetdeck. The others are links. I’m not good at ignoring Madagascar.

— Andrea Updyke (@AndreaUpdyke) September 25, 2014

In Summary
Tweeting animated GIFs, for now, is still like trying get to the grocery store by riding a tricycle made of wet cardboard and rusted coffee cans. You’ll eventually get there, but you’ll look and feel like an idiot most of the way.

Which service you should use really depends on your audience. If most of your followers are mobile-savvy millennials on the go, Twitter’s native upload feature is probably best, though it’s still disappointing and (again) doesn’t actually use animated GIFs.

If your audience is more likely to be Twitter power users savvy with TweetDeck, I’d stick with Twitpic (while it exists). 

Hopefully Twitter will get past its conflicted feelings on GIFs soon and decide to either support them 100 percent or block them outright by forcing them into click-to-play MP4 videos. I wouldn’t bet on seeing autoplaying GIFs in all your streams anytime soon, though. And with Twitpic being an outlier that’s already in the crosshairs of Twitter’s legal team, I wouldn’t get too comfortable with that being a long-term option, either.

Everything’s crappy and nothing works like it should. Welcome to the future, everybody.