In late January, Burger King released an ad that revolved around the issue of net neutrality. The repeal of net neutrality within America states that internet providers can slow down the loading times of websites that use big amounts of data.

Burger King wanted to explain to the American public how this issue can impact their lives, using the famous Whopper in replace of a streaming service such as Netflix. With this advertisement, Burger King is declaring that they are for net neutrality and believe that like their Whopper, the Internet should be the same price for everyone.

Many of the recent Burger King ads have been directed at targeting social issues within American society. Conducting social experiments with real customers in order to demonstrate a greater problem that needs to be addressed is a great way for Burger King to promote themselves. Dealing with topics such as bullying and net neutrality are good issues for Burger King to advocate change for because Burger King is assuming most people will agree with the stance that the company is taking, and therefore build a positive connection with their restaurants. This ad is a comical way to approach a serious topic. Burger King's desired intention for positive social change is a good way for people who may not visit Burger King to change their opinion of the brand be a reinforcement of the people who frequently eat their food.

Earth - Shot on iPhone : Apple's Commercial Regarding Climate Change

Climate change is a prominent topic in today's society. With many people joining organizations that advocate for environmental safety and the expansion of scientific research regarding the change in our climate, many companies utilize the subject in their advertisements. Apple, for example, published a video commercial in June of last year showcasing different videos taken by iPhone users. The caption underneath the ad on Youtube states, "Our only home. Shot on iPhone through the lens of everyday users. Written and narrated by Carl Sagan, from the book, Pale Blue Dot — A Vision of the Human Future in Space. #OurOnlyHome #ShotoniPhone."

Carl Sagan was an American astronomer, author, and scientist who provided a substantial amount of research regarding extraterrestrial life. His book, Pale Blue Dot - A Vision of the Human Future in Space, Sagan implies that we have gained humility as human beings over many years because we are not the actual center of the universe and argues that organizations like NASA must focus on preserving Earth because it is the only home planet for the human species to exist on. 

In the commercial, Sagan states, "The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is no where else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Like or not, the Earth is where we make our stand. It underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the only home we've ever known." 

Websites like AdWeek and Entrepreneur mentioned Apples' thought provoking ad in various articles and applauded the companies portrayal of the natural beauty of the planet. The commercial gained attention from environmental organizations as its message increased social awareness of the issue to its viewers. The whole commercial can be seen below:

The Classic Moe's and Chipotle Rivalry

The Queso Awaits?

Is this a display of local advertisers battling it out with their clients? My close friend and I were driving to Duquesne after a shopping trip and she pointed out these two, hysterically similar, queso advertisements on Fifth Street. Historically these two have been major competitors since Moe's debuted in 2000 (Chipotle opened its doors in 1993). In Pittsburgh, Market Square is home to both. Even the students here on Duquesne's campus are divided, "Moe's or Chipotle," when it comes to their local downtown hotspot eats.

The one on the right is for Chipotle. The one on the left, however, seems to be poking fun at the idea of a "queso" product at Chipotle. Whether or not this is a direct callout, it has been clear that there are some things people would change about the newly added Chipotle queso. Moe's seems to agree on this too. They took a this opportunity to highlight they are queso experts and quite literally mock the idea that Chipotle has released their own version. Moe's has some ground to stand on with this claim since Moe's has been making their queso since 2001 (based on what the advertising image above).  It's almost as if Moe's doesn't believe Chipotle can call their new product to be the recognizable, cheesy dip, but it is done in a clever and subtle way.

The Moe's ad is very clever, it took into consideration both its audience and audience proximity, media buying, and message when creating their advertisement. I wonder if more dueling billboards are out there in the city for these two companies, or if any will appear in the future.

Instagram "Stories are Everywhere"

Creativity is bursting in today's world and social media helps users share their innovative material. In spring of 2017, Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam launched, "Stories are Everywhere"  a massive Instagram Stories campaign.

The campaign was released in the United States, Germany and Italy during the month of April. Producers say the campaign was inspired by the amazing creativity users possess with simple tools such as stickers, brushes and some live video.

"Instagram is one of the most loved brands in the world, and it's their first global campaign," said Thierry Albert, creative director at W+K Amsterdam. "In a world full of hyperstylized communication, it felt fresh to shoot the campaign on iPhones, using only the stories features. No cheats. No tricks. Anyone can do what we did. All you need is the Instagram app."

The campaign included 26 stories unveiled at an Insta Stories Festival in Cologne, Germany, on June 24th. Before the grand reveal at the Festival, W+K employed over 270 billboards and guerrilla out-of-home efforts. 

Instagram executive creative director Bekah Sirrine attributed, "We intentionally mirrored the experience of Instagram Stories, so all the executions were short, fun and surprising. We didn't take ourselves too seriously, because that's what connecting with friends on Instagram is all about."

Check out the creative innovations of Insta Stories below.

"Whether you love pineapples, dancing horses, inspirational quotes, ramen hair or Fashion Week, you can find it on Instagram, and you can find someone else who loves it too. Unearthing these insights through the platform and delivering them in entertaining way, coupled with the fast pace of the work, challenged us to think about how we create content and embrace an exciting new journey with Instagram," added Clare Pickens, group account director at W+K Amsterdam. 

Gold Medal Worthy Advertising by P.F. Changs

Stop into your local P.F. Chang's for your favorite Chinese dish, and you might even get to watch an Olympic event. According to a Chicago TV broadcast graphic blunder, the 2018 Winter Olympics are being held at P.F. Chang's rather than Pyeongchang, South Korea. Scottsdale, Ariz- based P.F. Chang's used the error to the company's advantage. The company tweeted Sunday afternoon, "Contrary to this broadcast, we're not hosting the games."

P.F. Chang's handled the social media in house. Darryl Carr, P.F. Chang's spokesperson attributed, "We saw this on Sunday, and after seeing the reaction it was getting, we decided we had to respond and have some fun with it."

The Chicago Tribune reported Jayme Nicholas, WLS spokesperson, apologized for the graphic mix up. WLS stated the graphic was created to be used by a weekend anchor in a satirical sports-news segment for his Saturday report.

A blunder for WLS formed a prime advertising opportunity for P.F. Chang's. The response tweet has been liked more then 5,700 times, and the tweets did not stop there. Instead, in addition, the company tweeted, "The P. F Chang's Games 2018 have officially begun. What event would you dominate?"

The company even tweeted a video reading, "#PFChangs2018 Games Idea: Cocktail Curling" The playing space is lined with chopsticks, and customers wet the surface with limes, while a teammate slides a cocktail down the bar. Check out the game below on P.F. Chang's twitter account.

https://twitter.com/PFChangs/status/963557065967964181?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Ffood-drink%2F2018%2F02%2F15%2Fp-f-chang-s-offering-pyeongchang-lettuce-wraps-following-on-air-flub-by-chicago-news-station.html

The company also renamed their famous P.F. Chang's lettuce wraps to Pyeongchang Lettuce wraps. The restaurant informed customers they could score a free wrap with the purchase of an entree February 15th, dine in only.

P.F. Chang's has had a good sense of humor about the entire situation, and utilized the mess up as an amazing advertising opportunity for their company.

Samsung "Do What You Can't" Commercial

As I've been watching the Olympics for the past few days, I have seen this Samsung commercial multiple times. The entire concept of this commercial is to keep practicing doing what you can't do, until you eventually are able to do it. A girl who doesn't think she can walk with a prosthetic leg, a little boy who thinks he can't swim, etc.

The song "All These Things That I've Done" by the Killers is used in this commercial, and about half way through you begin to hear the lyrics "I've got soul but I'm not a soldier" slowly building up to a climax, where the people in the commercial are shown accomplishing the things that they thought they might not be able to do.

I really just find this commercial inspiring and unique in comparison to many other commercials for electronic and tech companies. It does not focus so much on the product, instead it tells a sort of story that brings the audience in and gives you a good feeling when you watch the commercial, and the use of the song helps to bring the whole commercial together. I actually get chills every time I see it.

Dove Campaign for Real Beauty Ad

Most of us are familiar with Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. It has been around since 2004 and has been growing and evolving in popularity ever since.

The entire goal of this ongoing ad campaign has been to show people that they are beautiful no matter who they are or what they look like. This campaign is all about embracing your own uniqueness and feeling beautiful in your own skin.

I quite like the design of this ad, and the others that Dove has released that have this layout.

It is a very simplistic design, but it spreads a very important message to the people that see the ads. With the top boxes that point out a so called "flaw" and the bottom boxes showing positive, complimentary words, people can see that the things that are unique and different about us, that many people could consider to be flaws of themselves, can actually be beautiful, positive things. Dove really wants people to embrace these things about themselves rather than seeing them as a negative. 

The fact that there is a link to the campaign for real beauty site on two of these ads will likely entice people to visit the website to learn more about Dove and this campaign. 

The women pictured in these ads also have very happy, positive expressions on their faces, conveying the fact that they embrace their unique flaws and realize that these things are part of what makes them unique and beautiful. 

Worldwide Breast Cancer: Know Your Lemons

Worldwide Breast Cancer created a campaign in 2017 titled #KnowYourLemons.  They are a nonprofit and their goal was solely to educate.  Personal health is a very private topic for many people and does not always get talked about openly.  Worldwide Breast Cancer's campaign uses the metaphor of lemons to talk about breast cancer.  This way, they are able to get to the point, show visuals, and educate women in a simplified way.  Their campaign site is very user friendly and does not feel like a cancer themed conversation.  This again creates a lighter feel to a heavy topic.  The metaphor is not the only thing they have done well.  They have also kept the information minimal.  Everything you need to know is on the home page, however, if you would like more information, they have made it clear where to find it.  It is quick to read and easy to skim. As stated, the visuals help with this immensely.  They've created charts and images to portray exactly what needs to be seen to help understand the dangers of breast cancer.


Overall, the best aspect of this campaign is the fact that it is not scary.  What I mean by this is that a woman researching breast cancer may not always be ready to grip what she is learning.  This may be a woman who is concerned about her own, or a loved ones health.   When visiting this site over others, such as www.breastcancer.org, one is likely to feel a little better about the content.  Worldwide Breast Cancer's content was portrayed in such a way that just might keep someone, at least, a little less scared.  To the left is a screenshot from www.breastcancer.org.  Though they also have a wonderful site with all the information needed, it is not as colorful or as light-hearted as The Worldwide Breast Cancers campaign.  While both sites have the same accurate information on the science of breast cancer, their approaches to raising awareness are vastly different.

Cancer is a serious topic, but does the research have to be?

https://www.worldwidebreastcancer.org

Opinion | Nivea Needs to Do Better

Advertising departments and agencies have to be very aware of what type of message they are sending to their audience when creating a campaign, advertisement, or commercial for a business or client. The copy and visual portions of an advertisement go through several different sub-departments before they are finalized and approved to make sure there are no errors. But sometimes, a mistake can be overlooked, creating a whirlwind of bad publicity that can ultimately tarnish a company's character and customer relationships. In March of 2017, Nivea faced severe backlash when they posted a deodorant advertisement for their customer base in the Middle East. As shown below, the phrase "WHITE IS PURITY", is boldly centered underneath the back of a woman who is sitting on the side of a bed while facing towards a window. 

Soon after the ad was posted on Nivea's Facebook page, it became viral on various social media platforms, with many viewers flooding news feeds and timelines with criticism and personal opinions on the advertisement. A majority of people were baffled by Nivea's oblivion to how the ad could be perceived as promoting white supremacy. Twitter was especially used to voice attitudes about the ad, as it became the topic of discussion throughout the day and night.

                                 

But this was not the first time Nivea had been under scrutiny. Back in 2011, the company was accused of racial insensitivity after posting an ad stating, "Re-civilize yourself" and "Look Like You Give A Damn". The ad depicted an African-American man who looks as if he is about to throw away his own dismembered head with an afro-styled hairdo in exchange for his newly trimmed hairstyle and clean-shaven face. The ad was widely criticized for its comparison to having naturally styled hair as equivocating to someone being lazy or uncivilized. 

                                          

The ad was quickly pulled after receiving such negative feedback, but resurfaced after the launch of the "WHITE IS PURITY" campaign, serving as a reminder to viewers that this was not the first time Nivea had come up with a seemingly racist advertisement. With people now realizing that Nivea had a history of ads with racially insensitive themes, there was now speculation that the company in its entirety supported white power. 

                                           

Although Nivea removed both of these advertisements and issued individual statements explaining how diversity is something they value and discrimination is not tolerated, that does not ultimately make up for what occurred; that both of these ads were deemed acceptable for publication by the company. Nivea allowed this to happen twice, with a six year span between the advertisements. How dis they have that much time to process and reflect on where they went wrong, only to make the same mistake again? 

 Nowadays, people are not so forgiving of a company when it is at fault. Misunderstanding and improper direction are poor excuses as to why copywriting, marketing, creative, and advertising teams allow ads like these to be finalized and approved. It's especially important for companies to remember that social media acts as an archive system, storing anything and everything they do, good or bad, whether they like it or not. So, if Nivea wants to create a better brand image and gain back its diverse, international customer base, it is going to have to do more than send out apology letters.

Alexa Lost Her Voice

The Super Bowl commercials always provide their audience with a laugh or two, while also making them memorable for the remainder of the year. This particular ad I saw before the Super Bowl, during some YouTube browsing, and I was intrigued by the potential loss of an, up-and-coming, iconic voice of our generation.

The following advertisement is for Alexa, the Amazon equivalent of Apple's Siri or Microsoft's Cortana.


With familiar pop culture names such as Gordon Ramsey and Cardi B, the advertisement had enough content to reach to all kinds of audiences enjoying the Super Bowl. It was fun, relatable, and most importantly memorable. Was the clever "loss of voice" just a goofy ploy to gain attention or increase sales of the Dot or Echo? Brian Heater, a blogger from TechCruch.com, thinks otherwise. He speculates this commercial might be a lead into something else in this article. In short, his article ponders the familiar blue-ringed headsets used by the celebrity cast of the commercial and the potential for new versions of Alexa's voice. Unfortunately, he clears up that the company had denied these claims.
Based on the money spent on Super Bowl ads, it is surprising to see this commercial released just for a goofy reminder that Amazon Alexa exists. Yet, Amazon is large enough to spend a pretty penny on a fun commercial and they couldn't have picked a better outlet to send their reminder. It will be interesting to see what happens to Amazon's Alexa, Dot, and Echo interest trends, and sales, change over the course of the year; hopefully to get that positive payoff Amazon was looking for with their expensive investment.
What was your favorite Super Bowl ad of this year?