« Oct-08 | This archive, pg:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  |  11  |  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |  16  |  17  |  18  |  19  | Dec-08 »

Sean John Fragrance (Campaign) Induces Puking

iamkingseanjohn.jpg

This new Sean Combs ad appeared in the recent issue of GQ. When the page was tuned and the ad appeared, the immediate reaction was to rewrite the headline to read, "I Am Played Out" or "I Am So Full of Myself I Want to Make You All Puke." Yea, it's a new campaign for Diddy/Puff Daddy/P. Diddy/Sean John, Combs/Whatever's new fragrance.

After seeing the billboard for the campaign in New York, AgencySpy wrote, "Oh my god. Barf and barfier." Indeed. After the pages of GQ turned to reveal this ad, a little puke did, indeed, find its way up to the mouth.

Angela saw the same ad in December's Vanity Fair. Her reaction here. (Note how it also involves a barflike physical reflex.)

by Steve Hall    Nov-25-08    
Topic: Celebrity, Worst



Kristen Johnston Nude. For PETA.

kristen-johnson-horse.jpg

Here's a confusing metaphor. B-list star Kristen Johnston poses as Lady Godiva -- who rode a horse naked through Coventry to win a break on her husband's taxes -- in order to raise awareness about the hazards of horse-drawn carriages.

"Don't get taken for a ride," the ad reads. "Horse-drawn carriages are cruel."

I guess. Good fodder for the portfolio though -- a Maraschino cherry topping fine oeuvres like Austin Powers: the Spy Who Shagged Me and Strangers with Candy.

by Angela Natividad    Nov-25-08    
Topic: Campaigns, Cause, Celebrity, Magazine, Poster, Strange



GM/Ford Talk Social Media, B-52's Chime, Cunning Turns Ten

b52s_chime_nbc.jpg

- Two key players shaping Detroit's social media strategy, Ford's Scott Monty and GM's Christopher Barger, appeared on The BeanCast, this week to talk about their social media efforts for the auto industry, the proposed bailout and that private jet fiasco.

- The B-52s have lent their sound to NBC network's ongoing CHIME IN campaign recording its own version of NBC's chimes, which will air in promo form during the network's primetime lineup.

- Marketing agency Cunning is ten years old. Help them blow out the candles on their virtual birthday cake.

- On Tuesday, December 16 at the ADC Gallery on 106 West 29th Street, The Art Directors Club will host its holiday party where the Art Directors Annula 87 and the ADC Young Guns 6 Annual will be made available for purchase.

by Steve Hall    Nov-25-08    
Topic: Agencies, Industry Events, Podcast, Social, Television



Levi's Brings Us Back to the First Time

levis-first-time.jpg

Levi's is Ad Land's Lolita: perennially young, sexually voracious.

"First Time," a spot for the "Live Unbuttoned" campaign, holds that reputation up nicely. In it, two beautiful adolescents stand face to face in the open air, unbuttoning their jeans.

"You've never done this before, right?" she asks.

"No," he murmurs.

"It's my thirty-fourth time." O_O

They volley around a few more cliches: I'm scared. Don't you trust me? Then, after the long unbutton -- what's Levi's got against zippers? -- nuddified boy and girl take hands and leap off a high dock: as good a metaphor for losing your innocence as any.

Pretty work by the would-be John Hugheses at BBH/London. Good media placement, too: I saw it last night during Heroes, which is positively bursting with hormonal tension.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Nov-25-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Commercials, Television



Victoria's Secret Collegiate Collection: Hijacked for the Lulz

vs-pink-collegiate.jpg

Victoria's Secret Pink Collegiate represents everything wrong (but sellable!) about college: bright-eyed, gum-popping sorority girls that coordinate dog leashes to their shoes, non-merit-based exclusivity (unless heart-shaped hickeys count), high-pitched voices, strawberry blondes, fruity body spray, polka dots, and pink.

Victoria's Secret recently gave unrepresented schools the chance to join the Pink Collegiate Collection -- a pupil-dilating clothing line sporting Pinkified uni logos and mascots. Probably for the above-mentioned reasons, a passel of hackers decided to have their way with the system.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Nov-25-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Trends and Culture



A Crowd-Pleaser that's Fun to Sing. Nice Thinking, TAG!

lips-take-on-me.jpg

I don't think I could properly describe "Lips" even if I wanted to. It's an ad for Xbox game Lips, which is pretty much karaoke for the Guitar Hero generation. (The microphone's motion sensitive, and you can select songs from your own collection.)

Agency TAG enlisted Tom Kuntz to conceive a strolling pair of lips, singing Take on Me and going about his business. Then he walks into a house party and traipses creepily up the sleeve of a guy who, right on cue, belts out the chorus to A-HA's greatest hit.

I don't know if it's the lips' cheer that got to me, or the natural seratonin-explosion resulting from Take on Me, but this is an insanely infectious spot. We loves it.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Nov-24-08    
Topic: Best, Brands, Campaigns, Commercials, Games, Television



Once Again, Men Are the the Doghouse. Courtesy of Facebook Connect

FBC_Missed_Opportunity.png

As only Alisa Leonard-Hansen can, Razorfish's Saatchi & Saatchi NY's (we are told Razorfish's role in this was small to non-existent) use of Facebook Connect for JC Penney's Beware of the Doghouse gets roundly trashed for what she dubs a really poor use of FBC. Of JC Penney's use of a stand alone microsite with Facebook Connect, Alisa writes, " Because that is super useful and makes much more sense than say, integrating FBC into the JC Penney online shopping experience and thereby including friend data (purchases, wishlists, etc) into the product merchandising model."

Couldn't have said "missed Opportunity" better ourselves. Though some points must be given for trying.

by Steve Hall    Nov-24-08    
Topic: Bad, Social



Motorola Krave Website Not Krave-Worthy

motorola_krave_website_screenshot.jpg

Somewhat kludgy and epilepsy-inducing, DraftFCB, with help from Grow Interactive, is out with a new website for the Motorola Krave ZN4, a flip phone with a clear top that's supposed to marry the benefits of a flip phone with a touch screen phone.

The site profiles six people from various walks of life. How this relates to the phone is unclear but you'll learn about camping, bee wrangling, nocturnal mixing, sole searching, jewelry design, tennis mentoring...and the importance of a second pair of underwear. All very important stuff.

by Steve Hall    Nov-24-08    
Topic: Bad, Online



Goblet of Stella > Legacy, Glory, Pride.

stella-pour-papa.jpg

Two brothers duke it out in a tandem bike competition pour papa in Stella Artois' "The Race." Hijinks ensue when they drive over a nail and their chances of winning are dramatically decreased.

Instead of trucking on, the boys furtively decide to lift their spirits at a nearby pub. As they wrap their lovin' fingers around two glasses of Stella, they look up at the pub wall and find papa -- right where they need him to be.

"Perfection has its price," Stella smugly reminds us.

A treat to watch, and in keeping the brand's high-brow sense of humour. By Lowe/London and Lowe Roche/Toronto. MPC/London conducted post-production. Props to Brentter for bringing it to our attention.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Nov-24-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Commercials, Good, Television



Tiger Woods Out As GM Spokesman

rick_wagoner_with_tiger_woods.jpg

With GM citing the poor economy and Woods citing the need to spend more time with his family, GM and Tiger Woods have parted ways reports Advertising Age (story not up yet). GM and Woods have worked together for nine years with Woods appearing an several commercial and playing in the Buick Open.

by Steve Hall    Nov-24-08    
Topic: Brands, Celebrity, Sponsorship



« Oct-08 | This archive, pg:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  |  11  |  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |  16  |  17  |  18  |  19  | Dec-08 »