Doritos Anti-Ad: Another Level

In 2019, Doritos developed an advertising campaign that would hopefully appeal to the Generation Z.  This was the year that Doritos decided to get rid of its famous tagline ‘For the Bold’.  In this ad, Doritos focused on making this commercial all about the product itself and not a promotional video only highlighting the brand name. Throughout the whole video, the company’s name is not even shown anywhere. This makes the audience really focus on the actual product and what the company is trying to get across in their message.

The purpose of this campaign was to ignite consumer to take what they love to ‘Another Level’.  This tagline is shown at the end of the video.  I think that this advertisement was very effective in getting the target audience’s attention and not bored of just another “Doritos advertisement”.  

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2019/05/03/creative-works-10-the-most-viewed-ads-2019-so-far

Ikea: Buy with Your Time

Ikea’s “Buy with Your Time” campaign was conceived as a way to reward people for traveling to Ikea stores that may be a far distance from their home.  Many of Ikea’s stores are located on the outskirts of major cities, thus, making it a long trip for many consumers to actually visit one of the company’s stores. Therefore, Ikea came up with the idea to reward customers with money toward their Ikea purchase based on how long of a trip it takes them to get to an Ikea store.  This new initiative only took place in Dubai.  

The company was able to track consumers’ travel habits through Google Maps Timeline, which is a feature that tracks and records all the routes someone takes everyday. I think that thid advertising campaign is very interactive and makes the customers even more likely to visit an Ikea store.  Many customers value Ikea’s low prices and are willing to travel to the store, but I believe that through this campaign, Ikea was able to capture a whole new customer base and bring them into the store. 

Domino’s Pie Pass

Domino’s “Pie Pass” campaign was an idea that the company created to allow customers to bypass the line when picking up their pizzas from the restaurant.  The mobile application allows Domino customers to “check-in” when they arrive at the restaurant.  This allow Domino’s employees to prepare the carryout order and give the customer a speedy pick-up process.  As shown in the video, it also created a more personalized experience as the Domino’s employees should know your name upon entering the restaurant. 

This video features Norm Peterson from Cheers (as played by George Wendt) and used him as an example of how someone can feel “famous” just by using the Pie Pass app before entering a Domino’s restaurant.  I think that this advertisement is very fun and engaging and definitely caught the attention of anyone who came across this advertisement. 

https://digitalagencynetwork.com/cheers-to-dominos-for-their-new-pie-pass-technology/

Behind the Mac: International Women's Day

On March 8, 2020, Apple came out with an advertisement for International Women’s Day.  This ad came in the form of a short video showing scenes of influential and successful women at their computers. The song used in the background of the video is “Flawless” by Beyoncé.  Apple used all black and white photos of the women to create a more dramatic effect.  

In the video, the voiceover says, “we say to girls, ‘You can have ambition, but not too much. You can aim to be successful, but not too successful otherwise you will threaten the man.”  The purpose of Apple creating this advertisement was to empower women and remind them that they can accomplish anything and everything if they have a goal.  The video shows women of different backgrounds using their Mac laptops in a variety of different settings which shows that women are capable of doing a anything.  It shows women from a young girl to a public speaker to a soldier all using the same laptop.  Apple definitely wanted to appeal to the target audience of women who want to feel empowered and I feel that they were very successful in doing so. 

https://digitalagencynetwork.com/apple-went-behind-the-mac-for-international-womens-day/

BBC's Shadowy "Dracula" Billboard Ad

BBC's television series "Dracula", based on the classic Bram Stoker novel and its iconic night-dwelling monster, was advertised in an interesting way during a campaign for the series' premiere in January 2020. The television network recently took a unique and haunting approach to the traditional billboard ad with two of its own unconventional billboards, one in London and the other in Birmingham, which display a bunch of bloody stakes at day, but reveal the menacing and unmistakable expression of Dracula himself at night with the use of a clever shadow effect.

If onlookers drive past the striking billboards at the right time, they might just get an eerie yet fascinating vision of modern horror marketing that is sure to leave a lasting impression.

BBC's creative approach to advertising their "Dracula" TV series asserts itself as staying true to the mythology of Stoker's classic vampire tale by having its spooky visual appear, just as Dracula, only at night time. For those that get to observe the transforming ad on their walk past the site, there is even a vampire-stopping stake sealed in an emergency glass case which reads: "In Case of Vampires, Break."

New Era Advertising on Social Media

As the number of active users continues to grow on social networking sites like Instagram and Pinterest, advertisers are increasingly persuaded to channel their advertising efforts into reaching their consumers online. Because of this, many companies have taken initiative to insert the ability to shop from their stores without ever requiring users to disrupt their normal social media browsing habits.

After Instagram's seller-friendly changes to its platform, popular influencers and brands can be seen sharing lifestyle-inspired and aesthetically pleasant photo posts which are now injected with interactive tools that allow their followers to directly purchase products on display without ever leaving their app. This way, a brand can extend its campaign's reach across a large online audience of a wide range of ages and demographics that is also constantly becoming more and more involved with technology.

In this innovative approach to new media advertising, brands rely on customer convenience rather than their own branded online shopping sites via new shoppable social media experiences curated by platforms like Instagram. This gives advertisers participating in visually driven industries like clothing, makeup, and accessories a new way to showcase their products and build and maintain relationships with consumers across fast-growing online channels. Shoppable social media posts also allow brands to successfully cut down on the steps required for customers to take to buy a product as well as stimulate a greater amount of interactions with their products and campaigns. This community-driven advertising technique is just one of many online marketing trends that can be expected to rise in popularity as online marketing pushes forward in becoming increasingly accessible and intertwined with our typical, every day Internet experiences. 

Doritos "Anti-Ad"

Towards the end of 2019, Doritos launched a campaign that addressed its consumers with a new campaign called "Another Level", inspired by a generation of consumers that has largely gone stale on the blatant and overt approaches to advertising that we're used to seeing every day. In its 60 second "Anti-Ad" TV commercial, Doritos shows audiences anything but the product itself, or the classic Doritos logo. Instead, Doritos relies entirely on consumers' familiarity with its triangle-shaped snack and bold packaging, as the narrator says, "For a chip so iconic, we don't need to name it cause this is an ad with no logos, no jingles, no gimmicks, just those red and blue bags with the stuff you love in it."

Doritos also temporarily renamed its website, from Doritos.com to LogoGoesHere.com, in the spirit of going totally brandless. As well, the company removed all of its traditional branding from social media, outdoor advertisements, and online website.

Although the brand takes a peculiar and risky approach to advertising, it's unlikely that anyone see the "Anti-Ads" and not recognize Doritos in its symbolism.

Advertising Effects on Culture

Ads have more of an effect on us whether you notice it or not. It’s as simple as asking for a Kleenex instead of a tissue or hearing “Just do it” and automatically thinking of Nike. Brands have created ads that have changed the culture of society. Most people might not know this, but the common saying “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride” comes from an ad that was created for Listerine in 1924, except the headline is “often a bridesmaid, but never a bride.” Another common saying that people always have seen is “Keep calm and carry on.” This saying has been created into multiple different types of “keep calm and…”, but many people have no idea that it was originally created by the British government in 1939 to be distributed in the event that the Nazi’s would attack England and become popular again during the 2008 recession. 

Even though people today don’t know where those saying came from, they still have stayed relevant for years and years after they were popular. That’s why it is important for brands and their ads to have impactful messages. An ad can have a lasting stamp on people’s minds forever. I have seen many brands starting to understating this and using their platforms to not only promote their products, but spread positive messages. Apple’s most recent ad about women does just this. Apple already has the biggest following in the world. They don’t need to advertise their products, so they used their name to spread positive messages. Dove also had a very impactful campaign for Real Beauty that focused on women viewing themselves negatively and it is still used today. It doesn’t have to be about women. Brands can use their platforms to talk about mental health, the environment, or any other societal issue. 

I hope to see more brands using their messaging to have positive impacts on culture. You never know what ad is going to become the next “Just do it.” 

Packaging Trends for 2020

When people think of advertising they mostly think of commercials, posters, or social media ads, but a lot of people don’t think of one of the most critical parts of brands: packaging. I can’t count how many times I picked a brand because I love their packaging or seen people on social media talking about how cute a brands packaging is. Changing packaging is important for brands to stay relevant in changing trends. Here are some packaging trends for 2020:

1.    Packaging that tells a story

Expect to see brands use their packaging to tell the story of their brands and communicate key messaging to make a connection with their customers. This example for Causebox shows customized packaging that tells the brands story and connects to what’s inside the box. 

2.    Metamorphoses

Artists are pushing the boundaries on brands packaging designs. Metamorphoses will be a popular design that shows one design element going through a transformation into another. This company created packaging that matched their name to their product.

3.    Ecologically aware packaging

With consumers becoming more environmentally conscious, brands are creating eco-friendly packaging by reducing the amount of packaging needed and becoming recyclable. A perfume company took this trend to the extreme by reusing ocean plastic to create perfume bottles that look like sea glass. 

4.    Neatly structured layouts

Structure design is becoming more popular because it adds a sense of balance and order to packaging. Since it’s so minimal, it is important to have unique typography combinations and balance in spacing and lines. This beauty brand uses feminine colors and fonts to show beauty in minimal packaging. 

5.    New constructive forms for traditional products

Brands are going to forgo the traditional constructive forms for unique packaging that is more interactive and can really show the brands story. This food brand uses package that looks like paint palette to hold their different jams. 

With so many different brands on the market, you will surely see some of these trends being implemented in the newest, hottest products. If you are interested in seeing the rest of the packaging trends, click here!

Burger King Showing Off It's New Anti-Preservative Pledge With Moldy Bread

A  Burger King poster for the campaign.

How many times have you had a health class in high school where you talk about how bad fast food is for you? How about a video, like the one USA Today did, that shows fast food taking months to decompose? Well Burger King wants to show you that their fast food isn’t as bad as you’d think.

Burger Kings new campaign, The Moldy Whopper, features a moldy whopper sitting in front of the camera being taken over by mold. The campaign shows that they pledged to dropped all artificial preservatives from their food. Along with a video, posters show close-ups of the moldy sandwich with the tag line “the beauty of no artificial preservatives.” While this may seem disturbing to some, the goal is to show that their ingredients are natural and because its natural, it goes bad like food that you’d make at your house would. The campaign started in Scandinavia where they have already stripped their food of artificial preservatives after it was linked to negative effects in children. Most of locations in Europe and 400 locations in the U.S. have changed to follow the pledge and plans to have it in affect for all of the U.S. locations by the end of the year. 

This campaign seems that it was created to combat negative press about the fast food being linked to negative effects in children, but it is also a smart way to follow the new clean movement. Many companies are now working hard to show or create new clean products so consumers feel better about buying that brand. This also effects food which is why it is smart for Burger King to start marketing that they have, in fact, become a better fast food company. It will be interesting to see how other fast food brands will compete with this new campaign.