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. 

Aviation Gin The Oldest 21 Year Old

Aviation Gin, owned by actor Ryan Reynolds, recently ran a commercial campaign featuring Arlene Manko. Arlene is 21 year old who was born on a leap year on February 29th, 1936. So technically, even though she is well into her later years now, she just turned 21 in February 2020. Aviation Gin then approached her as she had waited to have her first legal drink until she turned 21 this past month. This offered a unique selling point for aviation, as they can be the drink that they give to "the world's oldest 21 year old".

Even though Arlene most likely isn't the actual oldest 21 year old in history, they can use this claim to advertise their gin as being of high enough quality to be Arlene's first drink. Also, you clearly have the star power that is Ryan Reynolds being the spokesperson for Aviation. The commercial is a brilliant mix of perfect timing, a unique selling point, and a very famous actor being the main driving force of a company. Being a brand of alcohol, they also are promoting responsible drinking by marketing their alcohol to 21 year olds specifically.

This is a relatable ad, as everyone experiences their 21st birthday. However, not many people are born on a leap year so this is a cute and kind of funny way to advertise their liquor to a wide audience of people. Not only does it apply to a young audience, it also speaks to an older audience who may ponder what it would be like to wait until you are extremely old to have your first alcoholic drink.

Big Lebowski Super Bowl Commercial

Before the 2019 Super Bowl, Jeff Bridges tweeted out a very cryptic message related to the cult classic movie The Big Lebowski. A hint of The Dude returning drove fans crazy and garnered a lot of buzz for the Super Bowl, just to see if there was a trailer for a new Big Lebowski sequel or spinoff movie. However, when the time came for the big commercial to air, many fans were disappointed to find out it was merely an advertisement for Stella Artois, a high end beer.

This was a huge letdown to the many fans of the titular character of the Coen Brothers film. However it gained a lot of attention for the Stella Artois brand. Having a large audience of people believing that The Big Lebowski was getting a sequel brought a lot of viewers in not only for Stella Artois, but potentially for the Super Bowl as well. Stella Artois used a very smart tactic by using a fairly recognizable property to piggyback their brand and advertise to a specific audience.

The Death of Mr. Peanut

One of the greatest, and most absurd advertising campaigns ever was the Mr. Peanut campaign in early 2020 during the Super Bowl. The commercial started out with two men and Mr. Peanut driving down a desert road in a peanut shaped car. In an attempt to swerve and not hit a turtle, the Mr. Peanut turns right off the road and the three men jump from the door and end up hanging from a half broken branch. Before the branch breaks, Mr. Peanut sacrifices himself for his two friends and lets go of the branch, plummeting to his death.

This was an extremely dramatic and darkly comedic commercial that was eventually used to segue into another commercial. The second commercial is Mr. Peanuts funeral which then leads to a "Baby Nut" growing from Mr. Peanuts grave. In an attempt to compete with Star Wars' Baby Yoda from their show The Mandalorian.

 These series of commercials were extremely effective, and memorable. Drama and comedy are heavily utilized in the campaign. Also, the entire premise is just ridiculous but very funny at the same time. Watching Mr. Peanut fall to his death and then explode, only to be resurrected in baby form is nothing short of incredible and was one of my personal highlights of the 2020 Super Bowl. Who do you think is cuter, Baby Yoda or Baby Nut?

Manscape's Lawnmower "Right Tool for the Job"

         On many streaming sites that feature advertisements, the new men's grooming company Manscape has been advertising their new line of products. Of the many products offered, the one that stood out was the Lawnmower 2.0 electric razor. This razor is advertised as the most effective men's grooming tool for "delicate areas,". The ad features a man aggressively trimming a hedge with a hedge-trimmer.

           Then after the man struggles to trim the hedge, the Lawnmower 2.0 Razor is used to quickly and easily trim the hedge without hurting the plant. This is of course a metaphor for how effective the razor is when manscaping. Hulu has heavily featured this ad on accounts that have the Hulu with ads membership deal. This deal is extremely popular among college students, since Spotify users are able to get Spotify premium, Hulu, and Showtime with the membership. 

            The Manscaped ad is very humorous and appeals to a young audience. Which is why the Hulu with ads partnership is a great way to appeal to college audience, who would likely be a large portion of their market. Young men are most likely the ones who would see this ad and be interested in regular upkeep of their more private areas. 

"FCK we're sorry" -KFC

        One of the most surprising things that I discovered today is that no one has written a blog post about KFC's FCK advertising strategy. Probably one of the funniest ad campaigns in the 21st century.
        In 2018 The UK experienced a chicken shortage. Jenny Packwood, head of KFC's brand engagement in Ireland and England, told PRweek "there were over 1,000 pieces of coverage globally across print, online and broadcast and 80 per cent of all UK adults were exposed to this story." 750 KFC restaurants were closed and 19,000 staff members were affected by the closings.
        With the panic and anger that this chicken shortage caused, KFC created a divisive apology by displaying FCK on their chicken buckets. While most companies may have released a formal and professional apology to calm the masses, KFC chose to stay true to its brand character. They knew the world was waiting for their response, and be not pushing blame onto the production company, they used humor in an honest, authentic, and comical way. What could have turned into a PR disaster, was turned around with the creativity of the KFC advertising team.

The Corona Virus' Impact on the Advertising Industry

Ad Week Article

Since the beginning of 2020, the advertising industry has been affected by the travel 
restrictions and public fear created by the Corona Virus. While the industry often faces
challenges, this outbreak has had a great impact on businesses. The outbreak would affect
four parts of the advertising industry. 

In the first category, ad spending, advertisers are hopeful that due to the virus, television
ads will beincrease due to the amount of people staying at home. Publicis Groupe’s Zenith
says that since the
beginning of the outbreak, television ad spending has increased 4.3%. Though it is too 
early to tell,it is predicted that ad spending will increase even more with the 2020 election
and Corona Virus coverage.

Experiential marketing has also been on the rise. Both the Facebook’s F8 developer conference 
and Mobile World Congress have been cancelled. Companies are nervous about losing the 
investments that they have made into large conferences. This happened in my hometown, 
Columbus, OH where the Arnold was cancelled. The general public was denied entry to 
the events and many small fitness businesses pulled out as the public would not be there. 

Agencies have also changed because of the Corona Virus. Travel time has been cut and in
-person conference have been replaced with online video chats. Countries with travel bans
have made it difficult to do business, but agencies use representaters from the country to 
conduct meetings. This is not the first outbreak agencies have been faced with, and they 
are taking precautions to protect their employees. 

Lastly, production companies have been affected by the outbreak. They have chosen to
follow the wait-and-see method. Insurance does not cover situations such as a natural disaster 
or a virus. They make sure they communicate effectively with their agencies if there are to be
changes in production.

IKEA Offers Travel Discount to Customers

The Swedish furniture company utilized Google Maps to be the first retailer to turn time into money with their brand new ‘Buy With Your Time” campaign. This incentive gives discounts to customers based on how long it takes to drive to an IKEA store, which are often located far from main cities. All items in the store have a price and time tag in which customers could chose to purchase using either option. The price of an hour of travel was based on the average wage in Dubai.

“We think it’s only right to reward our customers efforts by repaying them for the time spent reaching us. It’s our way of helping the Dubai community make the most of every minute”

IKEA Spokesperson 

This promotion is only operating in Dubai because of their unique economy but demonstrates future potential for brands to utilize the importance of time to boost brand engagement. Who will be the next to capitalize? 

AT&T Teams Up with LeBron James

One of the most well-known athletes across the globe, and arguably the greatest basketball player to ever step foot on the court, LeBron James, teams up with the world’s largest telecom company, AT&T. Add it to the long list of endorsements Lebron has piled up over his 17 years of domination in the NBA.

What makes this celebratory endorsement so interesting? LeBron and AT&T agreed to a multi-year marketing and brand collaboration, which will benefit both parties greatly. As partners, Lebron appears in the national advertising campaign “Famous Mouths” for AT&T TV, banking on his 150 million social media fans to attract subscribers. 

In return, AT&T will be developing a learning institute at the LeBron James Family Foundation I Promise Village, which serves transitional housing for students and families. This is a part of the AT&T Aspire initiative, which will provide training focused on technical and life skills for children and families provided by AT&T employees themselves.

“His commitment to his foundation, empowering others, and storytelling combined with AT&T’s mission to inspire human progress through the power of communication and entertainment will create endless creative opportunities” 

Fiona Carter, Chief Brand Officer at AT&T

Loser Winner Chhhhiiiiiccckkkkeeennnnnnn Dinner

When you hear the word “Popeyes,” what comes to mind? The cartoon character Popeye and his love for spinach, or the famous fast food chain?

 

In Family Feud Canada, a recent viral clip made many generations think about this particular question.

The host Gerry Dee asked the constants this $10,000 question during the sudden death round. The question was, “Name Popeye’s favorite food.”

One of the contestants, Eve Dubois immediately hits her buzzer, and answers with confidence,

“Chhhhiiiiiccckkkkeeennnnnnn” because she thought that the question was talking about the fast food chain. Sadly, the question was referring to the cartoon sailor from the 1960s and 70s.

Since this clip has been uploaded, many viewers have reacted to this viral video on social media.

While most people shook their heads at Dubois’ answers (and laughed at the same time), others felt that this question was unfair. According to the sample tweets from Today, many people thought that the question should’ve been “What is Popeye the Sailor’s (or the cartoon character’s) favorite food?”

Just when you thought that the Dubois family didn’t win any cash, Popeyes came to the rescue. The fast food chain reached out to the family on Twitter and offered them $10,000 worth of Popeye’s Chicken. Gotta love that chicken from Popeyes!

So, if you were in that situation, what would your answer be? Spinach or Chicken?

Wendy's goes for McDonald's in new breakfast campaign

Wendy's recently introduced a breakfast line and chose to go after competitors in its first set of advertisements. Wendy's went after McDonald's "mediocre" breakfast in a tweet with a picture of a tombstone with "RIP Egg Mcmuffin 1972-2020" linked here. Wendy's also featured a former McDonald's breakfast chef tasting their breakfast menu and giving it praise in an advertisement featured on it's Twitter account linked here. 

Interestingly, this is Wendy's second attempt at a breakfast menu. Their first attempt back in 2012 ended after less than a year. Considering this is their second attempt, this aggressive, competitive ad campaign is a great way to grab the attention of not only consumers, but competitors alike. Wendy's directly positioning itself as the better alternative to McDonald's will grab the attention of people that already like McDonald's breakfast and potentially set them up for success. Burger King tried a similar advertising strategy when it launched its own breakfast menu recently and it had some success, so time will tell for Wendy's.

https://twitter.com/Wendys/status/1225073107297280000?s=20

https://twitter.com/Wendys/status/1233494419925585924?s=20

https://www.inc.com/justin-bariso/wendys-just-declared-war-on-mcdonalds-breakfast-mcdonalds-response-was-brilliant.html

Apple celebrates International Women's Month

In its latest ad campaign, "Behind the Mac", Apple highlights the impact its laptop brand has had across industries around the globe. To coincide with International Women's Month, Apple has released a simple advertisement highlighting some of the most important women in the world that use MacBooks.

The ad is simply a slideshow of different women, from Malala Yousafzai to Lady Gaga to the MeToo movement founder Tarana Burke, all using MacBooks for different purposes. Beyonce sings the girl empowering song "Flawless" in the background of the simple, yet very effective advertisement. Apple has the unique ability to use its very powerful brand in simple ways to communicate a message - that all the world's most powerful, influential women use MacBooks and you should too.

https://www.cultofmac.com/689441/behind-the-mac-ad-apple-international-womens-day/

Apple takes notice of its products in anime

When brands become popular enough, their branding gets imitated in media so obviously that its clear what's being referenced. Apple is one such brand that's so popular it "appears" all over the media. Apple Japan took notice of how popular imitations of its laptops are in anime and made an advertisement out of it.

The advertisement is a part of Apple's new Behind the Mac ad campaign that showcases how popular the MacBook has become and its impact on culture. Clearly, the company's branding has firmly established itself in Japan judging by the amount of likenesses in anime.

https://www.adweek.com/creativity/apple-japan-gathered-footage-of-macbooks-across-anime-and-turned-it-into-an-ad/