Recently Steffan Postaer, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of Euro RSCG Chicago, sent me a copy of his latest book. His new tome is titled the Happy Soul Industry and until it arrived in the mail, I was not sure what to expect (knowing only the title and not having time to do any prior research). Sure, I could have quickly dreamt of several themes the title might possibly support. However, I was cautious to hypothesize so quickly. After all, Postaer is a creative-type and well known for his fantastic work (among many other brands) on those "Curiously Strong Mints" of Altoids. I've been a fan of his work for some time now and I always enjoy the veracious posts he shares on his blog and elsewhere online. I couldn't wait to dig in to the pages of this book now. It's been a while since I have read anything good lately and I was hoping this might just change that.
After reading only a few chapters I found myself entrenched! I quickly identified this novel to be something unlike anything else I have ever come across (especially pertaining to the ad business). The reason being? Well, because it's readily apparent that faith and a higher power drive the story line here. That's right, I'm talking about the Lord. Rarely (and sadly) is reference to God brought up in the context of advertising unless it's the denouncing of His name in profanity of some sort. "Excellent!" I thought to myself as I began the book. I'm an ad man by trade myself, and also a faithful believer in God. Not only was it cool to be reading another book around advertising, but this novel was peppered with a greater message–one of faith. I regularly discuss religion with friends and family and how it all relates in the context of my profession. Was God putting this book into my hands for a reason? Was their a new perspective on faith that He was trying to communicate with me? Whoops! I said "He" and in this book–heaven and other beliefs are not portrayed as we typically expect them to be. God in this story is a woman (beautiful of course and magnificently luminesce). The author perches the reader gently into the intro where we're faced with the sorrow God sees in our loss of faith. She informs an angel of this sad reality in the Garden of Eden. It's made clear that earthly obsessions and sin have pushed aside Her magnificent love and she wishes to regain peace and relationships with her children again. What's more is the proposition she exclaims to the angel to rectify the Church's connection to Her message and enduring care. God commands the angel to take to earth and select an advertising agency to enliven hope, encourage faith in Her, and promote all that is good.
The book is filled with twists and stimulating drama each and every chapter. Although it's certainly not biblically accurate, it does an amazing job of inspiring parallel thoughts around God, the devil, and the morals that we live by. I think I even began to hear this song play out in my head when God's angel meets an intriguing women he can't somehow deny. You'll experience heady CEO's of the largest ad agencies vying for the business of an angel (disguised as an unruffled and mysterious executive), God's most vexing topic with the devil, and perhaps why even the greatest slogan of all doesn't suffice in advocation.
I just came across this. It may be old (i'm not sure), but dam is it good! Another one for Tostitos. The National Organization for Legislation against Fun, aka NOLAF, wants you to stop smiling–seriously.
This is just the laugh I needed to end the week. Fun stuff for Friday. Check it out! Thanks to @Going Jason for pointing me to this.
New Ultra Touch phone can be used for lots of things
I just came across this and while the microsite isn't really that engaging, I did thoroughly enjoy the hilarious promo video the brand created. The concept of alternative uses for the phone is very fun and certainly had me laughing. I'd like to see how far they continue these short videos or if it's a one-time sort of thing.
Not sure where to begin with this – it's so well done. GE released this new campaign and it's chock-full of beauty. The art direction of the website is especially gorgeous and its got rich VO talent, beautiful 3D rendering, and the AWESOME Augmented reality feature integration.
The entire production is tied in well to the 'eco-tech' theme this brand exudes. Check this one out folks!
High Life does it honestly and concisely this upcoming Super Bowl.
Last year around this time we saw Miller run their timely ad following the permeated Bud Light commercial broadcast during Super Bowl breaks. This year, we can probably expect further efforts from Bud Light during game time, but it appears we can also bank on Miller to lead things in a new direction. That direction being a shorter and wittier punch to competitors like Budweiser with truth and good old common sense.
Miller High Life will continue its humorous campaign from years past with one simple premise in mind: keep it brief and keep it sensible. The spots are available online at 1secondad.com and they will soon air during game day. I have personally been a fan of this wonderful campaign since the debut and it will always be one of my personal favs. Here's to common sense – cheers!
I can easily say that this is one of the most brilliant digital campaigns I've come across lately. JCPenny has released their Beware of the Doghouse campaign and man is it good!
The concept here is a phrase all men are familiar with and that most women have applied to their male counterparts (I know I've been in there a time or two.) However, everyone has their own idea of what "The Doghouse" really is. To some it's sleeping on the couch for an entire week. To others it may be not receiving a home cooked meal usually prepared for them by their spouse or partner. Regardless, it's not good and no man wants to be in it.
What's really fun with this idea is that it's symbolic of the feeling of it and that's what is leverage in this holiday campaign. Penny's has empowered women this holiday to remind their men of the repercussions with bad gifting and ensured that attentive men realize the hope in their release is only a gift away. Well done!
This microsite for Stella Artois is really well done. Apparently, the beer was originally brewed as a seasonal selection and this site is an exceptional illustration of this story. The story unveils how the beer became named and the contrast it's inception brought to the darker beers typical hundreds of years ago.
Paying homage to its meaning, the brand allows visitors to craft their own paper ornaments by downloading templates they can print-off. In addition, you can also send friends a star greeting for getting together to enjoy this choice draft at a destination of your choosing.
Here is a recent and fun microsite just launched for the Levi's 501 brand. A great viral concept and a fantastic execution. Thanks to Brad Griffin for bringing to my attention – my hat goes off to you and your team at EVB for this great work.
A great read by VideoEgg's CMO on the missing pieces of online advertising today.
Great points are made within the article pertaining to open-ended conversation, measurement beyond clicks, and the fact that entertainment (regardless of what your selling) always wins.
Interesting article on FDA's recent crack-down for Viagra online advert and the non-existent policies specifically addressing online marketing for pharma brands.
In celebration of Jamaican Olympics champion Usain Bolt, Puma released this advergame which allows you to try and beat this athlete in race. Nicely designed with simple controls – this is a fantastic and fun experience for fans.
Remember those old Choose Your Own Adventure books you read as a kid? We'll, the same idea is here but in a modern-day context. Introducing SMP Films "Choose Your Path." It's an interactive version of the YouTube platform that allows the viewer to choose the movie ending.
The brand possibilities are endless for leveraging this platform for commercial applications. This is a great idea and a familiar scenario for users. Bringing together common interaction one might experience with a DVD menu and empowering viewership through the social Web can only suggest this model will sky rocket in popularity. Keep an eye on this one!
This brilliant campaign was just released by Tribal DDB, Toronto for Mott’s Clamato brand. What I love about this most is the parody on our social Web as it stands today. Although I'm obviously a huge believer of our social existence on the internet, this work really resonates with me (and I'm sure a lot of other people) because it brings the human-side of things back into focus. The one gripe you hear about the social Web (mainly from the 30 something audience) is the lack of actual interaction with people in real life.
LAMATO Network captures this thought with funny and relevant spots that drive viewers to the website for more information and encouragement to get out there. and truly be social. Coodos!
As most people know, anything worth doing isn't easy. Otherwise, everyone would be doing it. That's exactly the point Honda is driving with the campaign philosophy "Difficult Is Worth Doing."
As part of this initiative, Honda successfully attempted to do a formation jump live during the last ad break in Come Dine With Mein the UK. The ad was to hero and highlight Honda's ingenuity and passion for doing extraordinary things. All documented on the campaign blog here. The parachutists successfully spelled out Honda as they fell toward the earth in a magnificent display
All work built up to produce the final ad dubbed "Jump" and is superbly crafted. Check out the videos to see it all in action. WOW! Well done guys.
I'm Craig, an obsessive consumer of media, technology, pop-culture, and all things related to advertising. This is where I occasionally write short thoughts on things that catch my eye or I otherwise feel merit a little discussion.
