A Risky Creative Advertising Campaign

The creative advertising campaign I want to share with you this week teeters right on the edge of hilarious and risqué. I remember my reaction to viewing them for the first time in my year one copy and layout class. I instantly thought: this is what I want to do for a living. I never felt so sure of my decision to enter this program.

Mucho Burrito launched this creative advertising campaign in August 2011 and was created by the advertising agency Doug & Serge (which is now known as ds+p) which is located in Toronto (Ads of The World, 2013a). Billboards were placed in Edmonton, the greater Toronto area and Calgary (Paul, 2011).

Check out the below five billboard advertisements.



(Ads of The World, 2013d)

(Ads of The World, 2013e)

(Ads of The World, 2013a)

(Ads of The World, 2013b)



(Ads of The World, 2013c)

 

 

It’s all about the copy for these billboard advertisements. They come very close to being controversial. I like that they were willing to push the envelope, the client must have been very open minded. The headlines of these billboard advertisements really conjure up straight forward imagery. They play on stereotypes and almost obvious statements. For example the billboard with the headline that reads “As addictive as crack but with way more fibre!” is factual in a way since the drug they reference is known to be highly addictive and does not contain any fibre. I have heard many people use the reference “as addictive as crack” to describe food items they really enjoyed and consumed a large quantity of. The billboard that reads “Fresher than a newborn Chihuahua but way more tasty!” is shocking because the idea of knowing what a Chihuahua would taste like seems ridiculous. All of these billboards have a shock quality to them, it’s what makes them stand out amongst all the other billboard advertisements.

What do you think about these Mucho Burrito billboard advertisements? Do you find them humorous or controversial? Do you think they stand out?

 

 

 

References:

Ads of The World. (2013a). Mucho Burrito: Chihuahua. Retrieved from http://adsoftheworld.com/media/outdoor/mucho_burrito_chihuahua

Ads of The World. (2013b). Mucho Burrito: Clucking. Retrieved from http://adsoftheworld.com/media/outdoor/mucho_burrito_clucking

Ads of The World. (2013c). Mucho Burrito: Fibre. Retrieved from http://adsoftheworld.com/media/outdoor/mucho_burrito_fibre?size=original

Ads of The World. (2013d). Mucho Burrito: Fiestas. Retrieved from http://adsoftheworld.com/media/outdoor/mucho_burrito_fiestas

Ads of The World. (2013e). Mucho Burrito: Sins. Retrieved from http://adsoftheworld.com/media/outdoor/mucho_burrito_sins

Paul, J. (2011, August 3). Mucho Burrito launches first ad effort. Retrieved from http://strategyonline.ca/2011/08/03/mucho-burrito-launches-first-ad-effort/

The Ingenious Creative Advertising Idea of Talking Babies

Screenshot of the eTrade baby featured in their commercials (LamboEv, 2010 November 7)
 

Seeing as the Super Bowl just passed by, I thought it would be interesting to focus my blog post this week on an amazing series of advertising commercials that officially debuted during the 2008 Super Bowl (Pathak, 2013, para.1). I’m referring to the eTrade baby commercials that were created by the advertising agency Grey New York (Carr, 2012, para. 2). I was first exposed to the original commercial in one of my strategic advertising class during my first year of college. I found the advertisement to be both creative and humorous. I showed it to everyone I knew. Grey New York created a series of advertising commercials that included the eTrade baby, spanning from 2008 to 2013 (Pathak, 2013, para. 1). I have included two YouTube links below that each contain a few of the eTrade baby commercials.

Check out the below YouTube link. It was posted by LamboEv and is entitled “ETRADE Top 5 Baby Commercials” (LamboEv, 2010 November 7).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hashPaU7Dpk

 

Check out the below YouTube link. It was posted by Jakob Cunningham and is entitled “The Best of E-Trade Commercials” (Cunningham, 2012 February 29).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPzKntJo-IY

 

 

After seeing the first commercial, I showed it to everyone I knew that would listen to me. I find them very memorable and I feel they really got the main message across. After watching the first one, I was compelled to watch the rest. I would say these advertisements are incredibly unique and engaging. Each commercial is just as funny and exciting as the last. My favourite e Trader baby commercial has to be the one that ends with Lindsay the “milkoholic.”

What I admire most about these advertisements is the simple idea they are based on, which is babies talking about financial options while using various pieces of technology. The idea alone seems a bit ridiculous at first, which is why I think these advertisements stand out. The humorous ways they made the babies seem like adults, carrying out adult activities and describing the world from a baby’s point of view is in my opinion ingenious. I hope to one day come up with advertising ideas half as good as these.

What do you think of the eTrade baby advertising commercials? Do you find them creative?

 

 

References:

Carr, A. (2011, February 2). Super Bowl Ad Stories: The Etrade Baby Was A Happy Accident. Retrieved from http://www.fastcompany.com/1722458/super-bowl-ad-stories-etrade-baby-was-happy-accident

Cunningham, J. (2012, February 29). The Best of E-trade Commercials [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPzKntJo-IY

LamboEv. (2010, November 7). ETRADE Top 5 Baby Commercials [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hashPaU7Dpk

Pathak, S. (2013, December 11). It’s Official: E-Trade Is Ending Its Super Bowl Streak. Retrieved from http://adage.com/article/special-report-super-bowl/e-trade-ends-super-bowl-streak/245630/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Incredibly Creative Advertising Campaign: #TimsDark



Photo of an advertisement from Tim Hortons #TimsDark Campaign
(Great Places In Canada, 2013)



This past summer, I came across an incredibly creative advertising campaign for the launch of a new product. Tim Hortons launched its new dark roast coffee and the advertising agency JWT Canada created and released two commercials (Oster, 2014, para. 1). I found both of these commercials to be very interesting and memorable. Both commercials focused solely on the taste of Tim Hortons new dark roast coffee. I have included two YouTube links below.

Check out the below YouTube link. It contains the first commercial of the campaign entitled “#TimsDark Experiment” (Tim Hortons, 2014a August 14).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svfFvkHgeWY&list=PLEBPkS9Z0ZdopciQaxqcE0tMj            HVHvkCwL&src_vid=6Losb8VlBrY&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_249724119

 
This commercial was shot in L’Île-Perrot, Quebec and features an actual Tim Hortons restaurant (Oster, 2014, para. 2). The store and two cars in front of it were covered in black wrapping. Customers who were brave enough to enter were led in the dark to the counter by an employee and handed a cup of coffee. The lights are then turned on revealing that the cup of coffee contained Tim Hortons new dark roast.

Check out the below YouTube link. It contains the second commercial of the campaign entitled “#TimsDark Bus Commercial” (Tim Hortons, 2014b December 9).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Losb8VlBrY

This commercial features a bus which has been covered in black with the destination name “#TimsDark” picking up people at actual bus stops. When people enter the bus they are given a cup of Tim Hortons new dark roast coffee and asked what they think of the new product.

What I liked the most about Tim Hortons #TimsDark campaign, is how they added mystery and intrigue to real life everyday activities, walking into the Tim Hortons restaurant on the way to work or getting on the local bus. They made them into creative advertising “experiments.” I was interested in tasting Tim Hortons new dark roast coffee after watching these commercials.

I also like how they used the theme of darkness throughout their advertisements.  At the end of the commercial “#TimsDark Experiment” they take their normal Tim Hortons logo and give it a haunting glow as it the lights were turned off inside it.

Screenshot of Tim Hortons logo at the end of the first commercial "#TimsDark Experiment"
(Tim Hortons, 2014a August 2014)

What do you think about Tim Hortons #TimsDark campaign? Would you say their advertising campaign was incredibly creative?

   

References:

 Great Places In Canada. (2013). Past Winners [Images]. Retrieved from http://www.greatplacesincanada.ca/en/past-winners.asp

Oster, E. (2014, August 18). JWT Canada Conducts “Dark Experiment” for Tim Hortons. Retrieved from http://www.adweek.com/agencyspy/jwt-canada-conducts-dark-experiment-for-tim-hortons/71537

Tim Hortons. (2014a, August 14). #TimsDark Experiment – Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svfFvkHgeWY&list=PLEBPkS9Z0ZdopciQaxqcE0tMjHVHvkCwL&src_vid=6Losb8VlBrY&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_249724119

Tim Hortons. (2014b, December 9). #TimsDark Bus Commercial – Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Losb8VlBrY

Bringing Living Rooms To Life

In my copy and layout class we learned about using powerful imagery as the focal point for the advertisements we create. Sometimes an image alone is able to produce such a strong message, there is no need for supporting body copy. These are the advertisements I found that I liked the most. They seemed more interesting and compelling. Their strong imagery seemed to give them a louder personality than the everyday advertisement.

I came across the following four outdoor advertisements while researching examples of advertisements containing powerful imagery for a project. They were created for Ikea by the advertising agency Zig and were released in Canada during November and December 2008 (Advertolog, 2015, para.1).

 



(Advertolog, 2015a)

 

 

(Advertolog, 2015b)




(Advertolog, 2015d)

 




(Advertolog, 2015c)

 

At first glance these advertisements seem simplistic in nature, but they are very complex in the amount of thought and detail that has gone into them. The closer I looked at them, the more detail I began to see.  

The advertisements appear to be aerial views of fully decorated rooms within a household ready for the upcoming holiday season. Two of the advertisements show the top of Christmas trees and two stockings can be seen hanging from a fireplace in another. The background for each advertisement is made to appear like a hardwood floor. The focal point of each advertisement is a single word: “Hope,” “Joy,” “Love,” and “Paix.” Each letter of the word is comprised of furniture and household items that can be purchased from Ikea stores. As well, each advertisement contains people relaxing and enjoying themselves, as they would be if the room was in an actual household.

Looking at the “Joy” billboard, the 3-D aspect to them really makes them stand out. The idea of placing an actual couch, table and chairs on a billboard seems shocking and unexpected. I think they break through the clutter and stand out amongst the everyday billboard advertisements. They are memorable due to their unique design.

I really like how each advertisement provides an interior design idea based on the items available at Ikea stores. They made me envision what different rooms in my house could look like and what each room in my house would currently look like from an aerial viewpoint.

My favourite advertisement out of the above four is “Hope.” What is your favourite out of the four?

 

 

 

References:

Advertolog. (2015a). Hope. Retrieved from http://www.advertolog.com/ikea-356105/billboard/hope-12666905/

Advertolog. (2015b). Love. Retrieved from http://www.advertolog.com/ikea-356105/billboard/love-12666955/

Adertolog. (2015c). Joy. Retrieved from http://www.advertolog.com/ikea-356105/billboard/joy-12707705/

Advertolog. (2015d). Paix. Retrieved from http://www.advertolog.com/ikea-356105/billboard/paix-12666855/