The remote Faroe Islands continue to show the rest of the world how it’s done on the marketing front, attracting 700,000 visitors from 197 countries with its recent gamified, live virtual tours. For context, the sparsely populated Nordic nation–where its 80,000 sheep far outnumber its 50,000 human inhabitants–had about 130,000 real-life visitors in 2019. During…
For at least a handful of on-trend reasons, it’s the perfect time to market an artisanal domestic vacation, especially one that promises a break from Zoom and Netflix and an intro to “small-batch experiences.” A new digital campaign for VisitLEX, from agency Cornett, positions Lexington in central Kentucky as just such a destination, where curated…
Take a vacation to Minnesota? Nah, it’s too cold and dreary with all that snow and dreary-ness. Brrr…
To combat this common misperception, Explore Minnesota Tourism tricked out a pair of steel shipping containers for an immersive campaign that invites prospective visitors to “sample” a pair of the state’s diverse attractions and share their experiences via social media.
Here’s a fun stunt. To promote tourism, the rural Swiss region of Graubünden got an affable grey-bearded man to yell in real-time from a digital screen to passersby in Zurich’s main train station—trying to lure them with sweet yodeling and a free ticket to an impromptu vacation in a pastoral mountain town.
The take-it-now-or-leave-it twist is basically a local version of Heineken’s Departure Roullette campaign from a couple years back, which offered travelers already at the JFK airport a vacation to a unknown exotic location if they agreed to drop their existing plans.
Still, the Swiss video is a clever enough use of media, with the live dynamic playing on the expectation that the billboard will be comparatively static (in other words, it’s also another take on the intelligent vending machine). Plus, the invitation for an afternoon snack is pretty tempting, and the pitchman gets points for enthusiasm—he even goes so far as to offer to speak with one prospect’s boss, and actually dials another’s school to inform them the kid will be missing a day.
Then again, at the moment he actually starts greeting and shaking hands with guests, it suddenly looks an awful lot like the whole thing is green-screened. The trip from Zurich to Vrin is about 2 hours and 45 minutes by rail, according to Google Maps. So, it’s pretty suspicious that there’s no footage of the actual magical train that whisked people there—or their super fun adventures along the way (assuming Swiss train rides feature dining cars and high-speed wifi).
In fact, it doesn’t even seem like the brand and agency Jung Von Matt (which did a high-profile Facebook stunt for the Graubünden area back in 2011) even bothered to try to make it particularly convincing. For logistical reasons alone, it’s probable that they hired actors to play commuters, and shot the rest in a studio somewhere.
No matter, though, the major point holds. “Get away from the city and head to a relaxed mountain village,” reads the tagline. “[Or maybe just a computerized facsimile of one].”
South Dakota sets the bar low with a new ad campaign that basically says, “Hey, at least we’re not Mars.”
Aimed at both tourists and potential long-term residents, the campaign—developed by Sioux Fall ad agency Lawrence & Schiller—reminds us all that Mars is a barren wasteland with no water or oxygen, while South Dakota is, well, not that. Also, there are jobs. That is quite literally the tone they are using to sell people on life in South Dakota.
However cavalier their attitude may be, the campaign is based on research into the general perception of South Dakota, which itself can be summarized as a “barren wasteland.” One response even compared life there to “living in a mental asylum.” Yet the state has an unemployment percentage well below the national average and is seeing growth in a couple of different industries—plus it has none of North Dakota’s oil-shale boom towns driving up crime and other unpleasantness.
Seeing that the more serious tone of past campaigns hadn’t really changed anyone’s perceptions (including the one touting the state’s lack of income tax), Lawrence & Schiller decided to gamble on a looser tone that plays on a currently trending news item.
And why not? Even if it doesn’t work, it’s still less dumb than volunteering for a doomed Mars flight that probably won’t even happen.
Read more about the campaign here.
At the height of winter, a goofy costumed dude called “Mr. Sunny,” the official mascot of the Fort Lauderdale tourism, hung out at Pompano Beach and bantered in real time via satellite with people at snow-streaked bus shelters in Boston and Chicago as part of the “Hello Sunny” campaign engineered by Starmark.
The shelters were decked out like beach cabanas, complete with heat lamps, which probably saved the bikini-clad models on hand from hypothermia.
“The brutal wrath of Mother Nature—record-breaking snowfall and arctic temperatures in both Chicago and Boston—motivated us to deliver a little warmth and sunshine to our northern friends,” says Starmark CMO Lisa Hoffman-Linero. “It’s all about a positive brand experience. At the right, sometimes unexpected, place. At exactly the right time.”
This is the latest in a series of bus-shelter advertising stunts, and they’ve really run the gamut. PepsiMAX staged an alien apocalypse, Duracell encouraged commuters to join hands to activate battery-powered heaters, and a charity in Norway learned if people would lend their coats to a freezing child.
Those efforts were innovative and memorable. Alas—and here comes the pun—Mr. Sunny leaves me a little cold. He’s like a dimmer version of Jimmy Dean’s sun. (Now that dude’s chill!) Still, catching some rays inside a bus shelter beats pouring rain any day.
If you ever felt the need to visit the Van Gogh Museum or take a canal tour, then you may be interested in this ongoing campaign from DUMBO/Brooklyn-based shop Mustache, which has already claimed that “everything is hip” in Holland.
Mustache, joining forces with the Holland Marketing Alliance, aims to exemplify “De Holland” by demonstrating that this Euro hub’s culture goes well beyond the coffee shops and red light district of Amsterdam (despite that recent 180 Amsterdam campaign).
Mustache continues its three-year relationship with HMA by targeting Millennials in a campaign that also promotes air carrier KLM and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (among others) along the way.
There was enough snow this winter, and spring, that agencies started making ads with it.
At least, Lapiz did in this fun campaign for the Mexico Tourism Board. After an unexpected springtime snowstorm in Chicago, the agency called on local street artist NosE Lanariz to make some outdoor ads from the stuff—as you can see in the video below.
The campaign hit three locations in the city, with headlines like, “Take Your Clothes Off”, “Come Melt Under The Sun” and “Beaches With Sand This White.”
CREDITS
Client: Mexico Tourism Board
Campaign: Snow Graffiti
Agency: Lapiz
CCO: Laurence Klinger
Executive Creative Director: Fabio Seidl
Creative Director: Carlos ‘Ia’ Murad
Associate Creative Director: Flavio Pina
Copywriter: Eduardo Vea Keating
Producers: Bobby Gruenberg and Aldo Gagliardi
General Manager: Gustavo Razzetti
Account team: Ernesto Adduci, Pablo Sabouret
Director and Editor (video): Ben Derico
Editor: Jonny Arcila
Finish house: Optimus
Artist: NosE Lanariz
Liam Neeson is a big softy when it comes St. Patrick’s Day.
The tough-guy actor provides a heartfelt voiceover for this 60-second Discover Ireland tourism spot, waxing poetic about his homeland.
“Every year, on St. Patrick’s Day, the world goes green,” he begins, as landmarks like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Sydney Opera House and Paris’ Moulin Rouge, all lit in emerald hues, flash by. “But here in Ireland,” he continues, “every day is bathed in green.”
We’re treated to shots of rugged coasts, crescent hills and verdant forests, along with city scenes of bustling nightlife, shopping and parades. #GoGreen4PatricksDay is the hashtag.
What would be an attractive if predictable spot really shines thanks to Neeson’s earnest, nuanced narration. The Oscar nominee provides a level of emotional resonance and authenticity often lacking from tourism work. Being Liam Neeson, his delivery is still intense and penetrating, though he sounds legitimately pleased to be talking up the green.
Though I kind of miss the smoldering murderousness he conveys when seeing red.
Fox Mulder would surely be intrigued by this short tale from Geometry Global that promotes tourism for Saga, a city located on the island of Kyushu, Japan — in a very unusual way.
The Mayor of Saga, Mr. Toshiyuki Hideshima, who stars in the films, says in a statement:
“I was initially surprised by the idea of this project and wondered how we might attract more people to the area through WARASUBO – which is not traditionally special to us. The final product is hugely entertaining, and I have no doubt that it will help to encourage people to visit and explore the beauty of Saga.”
Not sure if a monstrous, ravenous creature is key, but Geometry developed a nice clip that makes us nostalgic for The X-Files, Cloverfield, and the 2006 cult horror classic The Host. The twist? Warasubo, aka the “Alien of Ariake,” is actually a delicacy that people have been challenged to eat.
Not the most appetizing dish, but kudos for the cinematic scope of the promotion.
Advertising Agency: Geometry Global Japan (GGJ)
Client: Saga City
Creative Directors: Masato Mitsudera (GGJ)
Art Directors: Akihiko Ono (GGJ)
Producer: Masao Omokawa
Director: Kengo Arima
Camera: Yuta Shimotsu
Computer Graphics: Yoshihisa Toyoda (GGJ)
Casting: Shoichiro Nakajima
Colorinst: Hiroshi Yasuoka
Offline Editor: Shingo Sasaki
Mixer: Yu Sato
Production Manager: Takeshi Shichijo
Production Assistant: Yuka Funakoshi
Cast: The mayor of the city, Mr. Hideshima and citizens of city of Saga
Not every state has a Disney World, a National Mall or a Times Square. So, how do you attract visitors if you don’t have something astounding, amazing or awe-inspiring to show them? How about something … nice?
Nebraska has been doing that lately with perhaps the country’s most unassuming tourism ad campaign, featuring the tagline “Visit Nebraska. Visit Nice.”
“When you visit Nebraska, it’s less about the attractions, and the jam-packed vacation agenda of things to see and do. It’s more about the simple, spontaneous, nice moments you enjoy with the ones you love,” says Omaha ad agency Bailey Lauerman.
In other words, visiting Nebraska isn’t about getting amped up; it’s about slowing down. And the ads embody that. The TV spots feature slow-motion footage of people enjoying quiet landscapes, and the print ads have long copy—you have to slow down to read them.
The idea of “Visit Nice” seemed perhaps too humble to some Nebraskans when the campaign launched last year. But it seems to be growing on people. With gorgeous photography by Andy Anderson, the print ads in particular are eye-catching—they won Best of Show at the Nebraska Addys this year.
Check out more of the work below.
CREDITS
Client: Nebraska Tourism Commission
Executive Director: Kathy McKillip
Agency: Bailey Lauerman
Chief Creative Officer: Carter Weitz
Associate Creative Director: Ron Sack
Senior Copywriter: Nick Main
Account Executive: Rich Claussen
Brand Manager: Matt Emodi & Kelsey Dempsey
Designer: Andrea Trew
Agency Producer: Sally Mars
Media: Sandra Cranny and Sierra Frauen
Diane Kraijcek, Director of Research
Production Manager: Gayle Adams
Senior Art Director: Jim Buhrman Jr.
Photographer: Andy Anderson
Digital Retouch: Michael Perez and Joe McDermott
The downtown business commission in Halifax, Nova Scotia, created this video to get you to buy one of its date-night packages. But it might force you to give up dating altogether.
The concept is actually based on this viral video from 2009, featuring a montage of 1980’s VideoMate dating profiles that was truly full of nerfherders. Halifax’s collection of clueless Romeos and one singular Juliet is likewise sure to bring the Internet to the schadenfreude party as quickly as the original did.
The point is that the hardest part of dating in Halifax is finding someone to date. (And that is probably true, given that OkCupid has an outdated interface, eHarmony will reject you, Craigslist will probably get you killed, and you’re now going to have to pay twice as much for Tinder if you’re over 30.)
But if you’ve got the dating part covered, Halifax will handle the rest.
And after watching the video, couples probably will book date nights right now—if only to make sure they never have to get back in the dating pool again.
Fresh off of his series of Turkish Airlines spots, soccer superstar Lionel Messi moonlights with another air carrier — namely Qatar Airways, the state-owned carrier for Qatar, the nation set to (controversially) host the 2022 World Cup.
In the meantime, we’re privy to the globe-trotting, Qatar-based adventures of Messi along with Neymar, Pique and Suarez, his teammates from FC Barcelona. These lads’ skills play a central role in the action no matter where they travel — be it a Paris cafe, a Texas desert, or a tropical beach.
The :60 ad dubbed “FCB Holiday” comes to us from 180 Amsterdam, which recently landed Barton F. Graf 9000 creative duo Dan Treichel and Dave Canning–aka “the most awarded US creative team in 2014? according to the initial release–just last month.
While the creative pair were not involved with this spot, 180 Amsterdam does still manage to highlight the impressive talent at hand — though it’s hard to compete with Messi squaring off against Drogba and Kobe.
Agency: 180 Amsterdam
Client: Qatar Airways
President & Chief Creative Officer Al Moseley
Creative Director Martin Terhart
Creative Director Martin Beswick
Art Director Ed Ryder
Copy Writer Luke Stone
Producer Susan Cook
MD/Account Director Stephen Corlett
Account Manager Jim O’Regan
Planner Ben Armistead
Project Manager Jo Borton/Eleanor Fitzgerald
Business Affairs Director Sarah Gough
PRODUCTION CO. Stink
Director Agustin Alberdi
DOP Dan Bronks
Producer Annie Hart
Executive Producer Blake Powell
LOCAL PRODUCTION CO. Twenty-Four Seven
Editorial/OFF-LINE EDIT The Circus London
Editor Alex Hagon
Assistant Editor Adam Buckmaster
ONLINE MPC AMSTERDAM
VFX Supervisor Jonathan Box
Colorist George K
Producer Gwenn Hardouin
MUSIC I Get Around – Beach Boys
Composer Brian Wilson/Mike Love
SOUND DESIGN Wave Amsterdam and Adelphoi
Final Mix Alex Nichols
As we inch closer to Sunday’s big game, here’s a somewhat peculiar effort marking what we’ve been told is the first Super Bowl commercial by an Israeli agency for a strictly Israeli brand.
This campaign comes from Tel-Aviv-based YehoshuaTBWA for Fattal Hotels, a hospitality chain that is quite forthcoming regarding its lack of football knowledge. The brand decided to cull its own fictional team from the Midwest — North Platte, NE, specifically — to help reach the audience during the Patriots-Seahawks matchup.
North Platte is used to basking in the Super Bowl spotlight after the Will Ferrell ads from 2011’s championship game.
The campaign targets those seeking a little post-game respite. According to the parties involved:
“We don’t know anything about American football, that’s why we’re the perfect getaway spot for football fans that want to relax their mind after a tiring season. As part of this concept, we decided to pull a small publicity stunt and choose a distant town in Nebraska that has nothing to do with the Super Bowl. Actually, it doesn’t even have a college team. Since we don’t understand anything about this sport, we created a commercial that will be broadcasted strictly in North Platte, Nebraska and stand out by wishing their local (nonexistent) team best of luck in the big game and inviting them for a vacation in Fattal Hotels Israel – a country that knows nothing about football but knows a lot about hosting and vacations.”
Agency: YEHOSHUATBWA, Tel-Aviv, Israel
VP Creative: Maya Kerman
VP Media: Nevo Carmi
Media: Naomi Gabison
Copywriters: Avihai Nizri, Alon Hadad, Tal Schweiger
Art Directors: Ofer Hajayov, Miki Hakim, Noam Laist
You can’t make this stuff up.
Jonathan Cain, the keyboard player for Journey and writer of perhaps the band’s biggest hit, “Don’t Stop Believing,” vacationed in Belize recently—and tweeted about what a fantastic experience it was.
The Belize Tourism Board got wind of this, and with help from its ad agency, Olson, orchestrated an elaborate thank-you to Cain—in the form of a cover song, “Don’t Stop Belizein.” Popular local Belizean group The Laru Beya Boys recorded the song, which you can hear below.
Olsen and the Belize Tourism Board have collaborated on quirky campaigns in the past. Last year they offered free vacations to Vince Gilligan and eight members of the Breaking Bad cast—after the phrase “taking a trip to Belize” was used on the show as a euphemism for getting murdered.
@belizevacation @JourneyOfficial Loved your country and all the people! Thanks!
— Jonathan Cain (@TheJonathanCain) August 25, 2014
Legendary anchorman Bill Kurtis is a man’s man. Just ask Ron Burgundy … or the Illinois Office of Tourism.
A new campaign from JWT Chicago features Kurtis, a veteran Chicago journalist best known today for hosting cable crime shows like Investigative Reports, Cold Case Files and American Justice. This time we see a new side of Kurtis, pitching his home state as an ideal destination for “mancations”—getaways that focus on stock car driving, gambling and—wait, wait… don’t tell me—golf.
These trips are cast as reciprocation for womanly leisure activities like book clubs, because, the argument goes, if a guy suffers in the name of love through a sentimental novel, he should be rewarded.
Kurtis oozes charisma, and the message is certainly more down to earth than the zany miniature replica of Abraham Lincoln the state has been using to appeal to potential visitors. The world didn’t really need another advertising portmanteau, but the real risk for the brand is that Kurtis’s outsized personality eclipses a concept that, at its core, doesn’t add much new to the resurgent trend of testosterone-drenched advertising.
Then again, if a person in a bear suit playing a bugle comes standard with vacations to Illinois, sign me up.
CREDITS:
Advertising Agency: JWT, Chicago
Executive Creative Director: Dan Bruce
Creative Director/AD: Terra Hambly
Copywriter: Mike Beamer
Group Managing Director: Erin Clark
Account Director: Sarah Brick
Account Executive: Kyle Piazza
Production and Postproduction:
Director: Dan Bruce
Production Company: One
Executive Producer: Lisa Masseur
Senior Producer: Sarah Slevin
Line Producer: Alison Ginsburg
Director of Photography: Kyle Bainter
Editorial: Optimus
Producer: Tracy Spera
Editor: Craig Lewandowski
Assistant Editor: Ben Winter
Audio/Sound Design: Marina Bacci
Logo Animation: Tyler Nelson
Explosion animation: BlinkFarm
Been to New Orleans lately?
It truly is a tale of two cities. The lower wards are still — yes, still — trying to recover from Katrina. However, if you stroll down Bourbon, Canal, Freret, and Frenchmen (mark it down), it is arguably the best French Quarter ever.
The New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation (That’s CVB to you and me) proudly lays responsibility for that rebound at the feet of 360i. The New York-based ad agency (a branch of Dentsu Inc. based in Toyko) began running the city’s tourism advertising campaigns in 2012 with much fanfare and bead-throwing.
Its success and payoff after the jump…
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
If you were a miniature version of Abraham Lincoln, you'd be super excited about modern Illinois, according to the state's tourism campaign, which has brought back MiniAbe for another round of quirky sightseeing.
It sort of makes sense, if you're arrogant enough to compare yourself to one of history's (and the state's) great figures but also humble enough to think of yourself as merely a downsized plastic replica.
MiniAbe channels Joey Lawrence in the new spot, from JWT Chicago, as he utters "Whoa" wherever he goes. The approach also makes the footage of tourist locations a little more rewarding than your average vanity shots. It's hard not to wonder though, if MiniAbe isn't a distant relative of whoever's driving London's little yellow street-cleaning submarine.
The "Be More Whoa-ed" campaign launched Monday in 16 U.S. markets and will reach the U.K., Germany, Canada and national cable later this spring and summer. A second spot in the spring campaign will break in early May.
Credits below.
CREDITS
Client: Illinois Office of Tourism
Deputy Director: Jen Hoelzle
Assistant Deputy Director: Jan Kemmerling
Marketing Manager: Lisa Link
Agency: JWT, Chicago
Executive Creative Director: Dan Bruce
Creative Director, Copywriter: Gary Korrub
Creative Director, Art Director: Terra Hambly
Executive Producer: Alec Pinkston
Agency Producer: Carolyn James
Group Management Director: Erin Clark
Senior Account Director: Brendan Riley
Director: Seth Henrickson
Production Company: Odd Machine
Editor: Steve Morrison
Director of Photography: Seth Henrickson
Sound Design: Eric Cauwels, Chicago Recording
Media: Maxus
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Wisconsin is doubling down on its Airplane! advertising strategy.
In recent years, the state has hired the classic comedy's directors, Badger state natives David and Jerry Zucker, to direct a handful of tourism ads, including one featuring Airplane! actor Robert Hays getting beat up by everything (including a large bass).
Unveiled this week, Travel Wisconsin's latest spot from Milwaukee agency Laughlin Constable is the first to explicitly reference the 1980 film. Set in a cockpit, it reunites Hays with his Airplane! co-star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar—and was directed by the Zuckers and Airplane!'s third director, Jim Abrahams.
Abdul-Jabbar, a former NBA star who began his career with the Milwaukee Bucks, is making a nice little advertising career out of his Airplane! credit—he also just appeared in Delta's super 1980s flight-safety video.
The new Travel Wisconsin spot will probably tickle you if you're a huge Airplane! fan, or already love Wisconsin and associated trivia. For the rest of you, there's always that nice shot of the lake.
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| THE ORIGINAL? Seattle weekly’s dining guide – 2012 Source : Invisible Creature Design Studio : Invisible Creature, Seattle (USA) |
LESS ORIGINAL N-Py.com (sky passes) – 2013 Source : N-Py.com Agency : Hôtel République, Toulouse (France) |
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