Hogwarts Wizardry on Twitter

Transform your Muggle follower's Twitter pages

Porsche I Can

The impossible becomes possible



To support its brand promise of impeccable craftsmanship and rich heritage in the racing and luxury car sector, Porsche is helping potential buyers feel what it's like to own and drive their cars. The company has released a fantastic digital experience that literally puts their lineup in your world. The site is complete with beautiful videos and engaging copy. And, there is a 'Picture It' tool that can drop in one of their cars into any photo you upload.



The entire site is well done and the 'Picture It' tool is a very simple and fun way for users to contextualize their decision in a personal way. However, the sharing of this seems to be a little outdated with email-only capabilities. Maybe this was intentional as the research could have shown their audience only shares via email attachments (just seems out of sync with no incorporation to share via social networks). Regardless, take a poke around. This one is pretty fun.

Frenzied Waters

Discovery Channel released this site and it honestly freaks me out (as was their intention I assume). It's not entirely clear as to what this is promoting (though it's obvious to me because I've watched Shark Week a few times). Check out this launch and see for yourself what it's like to be attacked by a shark!

Summer Micro-site bummer

Pointer Footwear's Summer campaign not cutting it



The brand launched a digital campaign taking the form of a kaleidoscope (I guess to show the fun flair this brand portrays). I'll quickly say that this left me scratching my head a little. The micro-site isn't tied to any e-commerce platform and is purely visual fluff. Not only was I passively looking at this, but had I been interested in a pair of shoes–I couldn't even purchase there and then.

Directionally speaking I love the kaleidoscope style idea. However, the whole thing just feels a little too dry to me and left me wanting more. I really feel the brand here has done more harm than good. Pointer Footwear is known to have a passionate fashion following in their niche and I simply think this does nothing for it's fans (except maybe tick them off).

Uniqlo: Tokyo Fashion Map Online

Really strong visuals for the flavor du jour of this retail brand.

Check out this site. It's a really fun idea that exudes the Uniqlo brand well.

VITAMINWATER10

Popup brand experience in NYC

I came across this awesome new retail experience for Glacéau's Vitaminwater brand and their new campaign touting 10 calories per serving. Beautiful stuff! Love the site and experience they are creating online as well.







(via brandon blog)

Apple: One Billion

Fun online ad celebrates success

This great. Check it out.

H&M Lets You Swap Styles

Microsite helps sell new Spring collection



The retailer as just launched a great new experience to preview its Spring fashion collection. Not only is the site visually intriguing (reminiscent of a catwalk which is fun), it's also strategically smart too! The mircrosite integrates with the growing brand's Facebook page (with an impressive 1,000,000 + fans) and allows every outfit to be commented on by its passionate followers. Even the animation that occurs when you swap outfits on the models is great (the clothes sort of disintegrate.) And, the slick feature to try on the clothing to a virtual YOU is very cool too (complete with the ability to upload a photo of your face to make it more accurate.)



Check out the site here!

(via adverblog)

Ogilvy Moto Work

Hong Kong Airport

This work is awesome and a fantastic example of how Mobile brings powerful contextual relevance unlike anything else.



(via Scott Seaborn)

Skittles Taps The OPEN Web

Candy has flavorful social network tie-ins with new Website



I just saw this new site for Skittles brand candy. It's an interesting concept and a great example of true embrace of the OPEN Web. I love how the brand has taken part of what others have been/are saying about the product and tied that into a small branded model here. It's apparent that the company really understands what 'brand' means and they have done a wonderful job at putting those dialogues together to help market their story.

ADDED: @bmorrissey has posted some great thoughts on the deeper strategies possibly at play here. I suggest you check it out! His comments on what this means for CPGs is spot on – brands pay attention!

NOLAF

Fun is dangerous and it must stop

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.

Samsung Gives Many Reasons

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.

So Much China, But So Little Choice.

Brides.com & Bloomingdale's Help Set the Table



Brides.com released a new tool for brides to-be on it's website. The utility helps couples select from a collection of dinnerware to add to their registry with Bloomingdale's.

The concept is strong and it's certainly a smart partnership that will probably do well. Speaking from my personal experience; when I was planning my wedding a few years ago with my wife, this was a tough challenge for us to put together, and visualizing everything as a unit was difficult to achieve (without laying out our picks across the floor at Bed Bath & Beyond.)

However, It seems to me that further opportunities to sell congruent products are missed here. What if instead it became an entire kitchen and entertainment idea-generator? You gotta serve up food to place on that china, right? Then lets suggest some beautiful cookware to make that meal. Desert and coffee after the main course? You bet! Recommend an awesome baking set or new mixer. And, bring the context of these objects into the couples environments. Help them to picture these things in their life. Start up their imaginations a little more. Sherwin-Williams did something along the same lines with their 'Color Visualizer.'

I think this genuinely fulfills a need, don't get me wrong. I'm simply saying that some or all the things mentioned above could make this effort even more appealing to brides. Anyone else have thoughts on this?

W+K Reinvent Movie Marketing

I was really impressed with this work by top shop W+K Portland for promotion of the new film Coraline. Watch this film for a quick run-though. Awesome!



(via @markhillman & agencyspy)

Plug Into The Smart Grid

GE's New Campaign is a Beaut



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!

(via digitalBuzz)

Super Bowl Ads - Live Discussion on Twitter

Please join me in discussing the Super Bowl ads with Adfreak @ http://adweek.blogs.com/adfreak/

Miller Believes in Brevity

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!

(via contaigious)

Creativity is Center Stage

Promoters should take note of Red Bull's Competition

The ladies at Yabia put a great post out on Red Bull's Get it on record competition. They point out perfectly how the brand promoted itself and its participants righteously. I won't go into reiterating their spot-on analysis, but I do want to acknowledge the critical matter of Red Bull being the gateway for creativity vs. the scheming hero of the show. Well done.

Standardizing Mobile Barcodes

As Wild As The West Once Was



I've been dabbling more and more in mobile recently and the marketing possibilities this powerful medium possess. Whether it's through a pitch for a campaign or through research in refining approach to branded content on smartphones – I'm certainly hooked on the opportunities that could-be with mobile as it is now and in the future. I'm obviously not the only one jazzed about all of this. Look around and your sure to see mobile media consumption in the US strengthening (it has been very quickly over the last few years.) Old news you say? Indeed. But the associated technologies that empower the medium of mobile is what is lacking corralling in my opinion, and it's as cowboy as the carrier and device control currently blurring mobile harmony (for content creators and consumers alike.)



One specific thing I have begun to scratch my head about is around contextual interactions with a user's device. When this topic comes up, many digital marketers begin to think about social technologies and in particular, mobile barcoding. There is no doubt that creative abundance exists with mobile devices and public usage of barcodes (especially within the retail and event sectors.) However, I've noticed that the technologies that currently exist are independent and require way too much thinking for consumers to adopt. Peter Evers feels my frustration with this as well. Many choices exist for barcode usage and some have even been successfully implemented by several brands already. Whether it's semacode, QR or Shotcodes it's got to get standardized if it's going to make it. Manufacturers are beginning to take responsibility for this so it puts less work in the hands of consumers and becomes native to the device itself. This is key and it's requiring that brands and mobile consumers not rely on proprietary readers. Some companies have even written applications to make contextual interactions easier for consumers. While this is great, it still puts the solution at the application level instead of at the native handset.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is this: Let's adopt one of these barcodes and move on. There is money to be made with the possibilities here and until we pick a providing standard, we'll continue to lose out on richer connections with consumers and the relevant engagement they could be having with brands – this very moment. I'm happy to see manufacturers like Samsung making strides here and SnapTell developing device specific apps. As well as CamClic utilizing existing product barcodes. However, the company that quickly dominates what I feel will be an incredible necessity for mobile marketing's future, will surely take the cake (not to mention revolutionize how mobile interaction is defined.)

Know the Signs

Heineken Helps you Spot 'Em

This fun experience is a familiar point that there are those who simply can't handle themselves socially when booze is involved.



Read more about it here. And/or check it out for yourself!

(via adverblog)