I was sitting in front of
my PC while thinking what my blog post for this week would be. I started eating
a banana but all I really want was a toasted chicken mayo Panini. It was terrible;
I could hardly concentrate on my daily Facebook stalking. I was starving! Then
my mind travelled back to an ad for the Peninsula School Feeding Association
that I saw a few weeks ago. The foolish feeling that it invoked swallowed the
hunger. Damn first world problems. It seems guilt may be an affective diet
choice for me.
The Peninsula School Feeding Association was
founded 55 years ago in order to provide meals to children in primary,
secondary and special needs schools in the Western Cape who can't afford it.
Their adverts ask for donations to help insure that school children don't have
to think about their next meal, but about the schoolwork they are supposed to
be doing so that they can better their lives for the future
Peninsula School Feeding
Association: Pear, Drumstick and Banana by Draft FCB Cape Town
The Peninsula School
Feeding Association ad campaign touches upon a pressing problem in South
African schools: hungry children. This ad series shows an almost blank exam pad
page, the lines are curved in order to look like an outline of a pear, a banana
and a chicken drumstick respectively. Below the drawings is a line of hand-written
text saying "It's all they can think about". The body copy reads: Concentrating
on schoolwork is impossible when the only thing on your mind is your next meal.
You can help! Your donation will feed hungry children, allowing them to reach
their full potential. Visit www.psfa.org.za
to find out more.
The creatives who came up
with this ad were trying to put us in the position of the hungry school child
by featuring a very well-known sight from all of our school days, a blank exam
pad. We have all faced this terrifying blue-lined expanse of whiteness more
than once in our lives. The reason for ours being blank however was probably
not because we didn't have enough money to feed ourselves but because we had
stayed up too late the night before or we were suffering from a sugar crash
from our Nutella slathered croissant breakfast. Never the less we can all
relate to the blank page on a superficial level.
The curved blue lines
that make up the food outlines almost look like a mirage. I know when I am
craving something I see it everywhere; in tree bark, clouds, freckle
formations, everywhere. Cravings are distracting and consuming and can get in
the way of a great manner of things. Unfortunately for these children the distraction
isn't going to disappear after they tuck into the hearty lunch mommy packed for
them. I think the words written below work very well in cursive as it helps
with the school vibe that they are trying to create.
The ad is pretty emotive
and makes my problems seem pretty trivial. I think that the way they have
executed this ad is eye catching because it is uncluttered and simple while
still interesting enough to keep reading on to the body copy.
I am proud to see that
these ads were created by Cape Town based agency Draft FCB. One day I hope to
contribute my brain matter to important campaigns like this one.
On another note, I definitely have a new-found
respect for my banana
Remember the milk mustache trend of the 90's from the most iconic campaign of that decade: "Got Milk?" ? The ad campaign started in 1993 and was made by Goodby Silverstein and Partners for the California Milk Processor Board to increase milk sales. Must be because all the Cali' hippies started drinking soy.
Over the years they have featured a ton of print ads featuring celebrities with ultra sexy milk mustaches coupled with reasons why they drink milk. This lazy, yet somehow ingenious campaign is supposed to make you get a sudden lactose craving, drop your healthy milk equivalent and stock up on mucous-inducing bovine mammary discharge (in other words, milk).Don't get me wrong, it was incredibly successful campaign and helped milk sales reach an all time high.
These days they have changed their strategy somewhat and have introduced ads that use more than two words to sell their product. Their brave new campaign lovingly dubbed Everything I Do is Wrong is based around the delicate topic of pre-menstural tension (there's a reason sanitary product ads are evasively euphemistic). It describes how studies have shown that the calcium in milk can reduce PMS symptoms. They try to make it humorous by addressing the ad to the men in women's lives, on the grounds that men are not the only ones affected by the unfortunate reality that is PMS. Bold move guys.
The ads feature on billboards, posters and banner ads. They show men with nervous, sheepish almost concerned looks on their faces, clutching boxes of milk as a peace offering. The headlines include:
"I'm sorry I listened to what you said and not what you meant."
"We can both blame myself."
"I'm sorry for the thing or things I did or didn't do."
"I apologize for not reading between the right lines.
"Let's both agree to disagree with me."
Here are a few examples:
And my personal favorite:
Groups of women, sometimes called feminatzis, have loudly protested against these ads citing them as hugely sexist and unfair. They go on to emphasise that females are the ones who have to experience cramps, shitty mood swings and childbirth in order for anyone to even exist and do not deserve to be mocked for it. Thanks to these ladies and their caterwauling the campaign had to be pulled, which in my opinion may have been a bit of a radical move.
I had to sift through my own conflicting thoughts before I came to a conclusion about how I actually felt about these ads. On the one hand I find the actual ads quite attractive. They are shot with nice lighting, have complementary colour schemes and their typography isn't half bad either. At first glance I found them mildly humorous and the truth is- human bio-chemistry can be funny, shouldn't we learn to laugh at it?
Women and men that have lived with women can attest to the fact that there is a modicum of truth in the campaigns insight. I can admit that for a few days every 28days I am slightly irrational, I feel uncomfortable and unfortunately it is all out of my control. However I am not the raging gun slingin' psychopath that some men make PMSing women out to be. The last thing I want when I am feeling like regurgitated death is to be teased about it.
The worst part about these ads is the weak science behind them. Dairy is
not the worlds worst food group but it is not good for you either,
especially if you are an adult. In fact lots of women feel that it makes
them feel worse during their period, this is because we are all lactose
intolerant, just in varying degrees.For diet conscious woman it is
interesting to note that milk contains a lot of calories (even skim milk
has a high carb count)and the vitamins are added during processing. Ok
yes, it has calcium, but so do leafy greens and they have WAY less
hormones in them. Anyway if I am going to ingest milk during my time of
the month, it will be in chocolate slab form.
I then got to thinking about the target market. Guess who does most of the household shopping? That's right- women, in fact 80% of the consumer market is made up of women. Now do you really think that a woman is going to feel compelled to buy more milk to quell her PMS symptoms because of a slightly offensive ad campaign so blatantly aimed at men? No! Wake up and smell the coffee that your mother just made you and figure out a way to move beyond gender stereotypes.
Offensive or not it is just an example of lazy humour reminiscent of Two and a Half Men. It mocks popular stereotypes instead of coming up with new witty material. Granted it does it quite well but that does not shadow the fact that many women will not find this funny and may go to extensive lengths NOT to buy milk just to stick it to the milk industry. Especially if it's their time of the month. Come on advertisers, we can do better as an industry.
Hell, maybe I am over thinking. A lot of people find some blatantly offensive jokes funny, think Family Guy and mildly racist jokes. People do in fact have a sense of humour about things that are meant to be a bit insulting. I just don't think it really spoke to the primary milk consumers which happen to be women and instead alienated them. So yes it was funny, but did it accomplish its goal of making more people buy milk? Besides men teasing their vulnerable PMSing women? Probably not.
Example of mildly racist Family Guy humour that people find funny.
A message for boyfriends everywhere (including my own): If you offer me carton of milk when I am PMSing I am likely to shove it where the sun don't shine. Milk won't help your situation. However if you came home with a few tubs of ice-cream, that might work.
"So Larry, What do you think is the best way to get people emotionally invested in our new product? Well Sam, suicide certainly provokes emotion. Why don't we give that a bash? It can't hurt, lets try it out".
This is the type of ignorant and tactless conversations that I can see Innocean (Hyundai's ad agency) having when trying to come up with an ad for the new Hyundai ix35. This new car emits water vapor as opposed to harmful carbon monoxide gas making it a "greener" option for consumers. Now why, pray tell couldn't they have gone with a more "save the trees" instead of a "slit my wrists" sort of a theme? Are they trying to be edgy? Become more popular? Well done Hyundai! You have successfully grabbed the attention of millions of YouTube viewers around the world. Unfortunately most of those viewers are outraged and pledge to never buy a Hyundai- but hey, all publicity is good publicity right?
Their crude attempt at dark humour starts off with a shot of the front of a very ordinary house in the day time. It switches to a garage scene where a middle aged man, an easily identified father figure, is on his knees. We hear him duct taping something and the camera follows a pipe until it becomes clear that he is about to attempt suicide by gassing himself in his car. We see the man looking into the camera which is shooting from the position of the pipe, he seems fearful yet resolute in his decision. The camera then switches to the point of view of the man and we see gas starting to come out of the hose attached to the window. We then see a front on shot of the man who is preparing himself for his last moments. He takes a deep breath in, closes his eyes and then opens them, emotion twinkling in his eyes. The camera focuses on the view in front of the windscreen, the last things he will ever see. He closes his eyes, welcoming inevitable death from asphyxiation. And here's the funny part guys....he doesn't die! The next shot shows the same front of house scene at night, the garage lights switch on and the doors open showing the man defeatedly walking out as the steam disappears into the night. Queue Hyundai's tagline which pops up boasting about it's new vehicle's "100% water emissions"
The point? Hyundai ix35 doesn't emit Carbon monoxide, only water so he can't kill himself. HILARIOUS!
The Korean car giant was forced to pull the ad only a week after it went viral, mostly due to an incredibly powerful blog post by Holly Brockwell, a London based blogger and ad exec. Her blog read in the form of an open letter to our ingenious friends at Innocean and Hyundai. The letter includes describes her experience of her fathers suicide and how the ad effected her. She even includes her fathers suicide letter which drives her point home further.
"As an advertising creative, I would like to congratulate you on
achieving the visceral reaction we all hope for. On prompting me to
share it on my Twitter page and my blog. I would not like to
congratulate you on making me cry for my dad … When your ad started to
play, and I saw the beautifully-shot scenes of taped-up car windows with
exhaust feeding in, I began to shake. I shook so hard that I had to put
down my drink before I spilt it. And then I started to cry. I remembered looking out of the window to see the police
and ambulance, wondering what was happening. I remember mum sitting me
down to explain that daddy had gone to sleep and would not be waking up,
and no, he wouldn't be able to take me to my friend’s birthday party
next week. No, he couldn’t come back from heaven just for that day, but
he would like to if he could. I remember finding out that he had died
holding my sister’s soft toy rabbit in his lap. "
Hyundai responded by pulling the ad, sacking the creators of the ad and giving an apology.
"Hyundai Motor deeply and sincerely apologizes for the offensive viral ad.
The ad was created by an affiliate advertising agency,
Innocean Europe, without Hyundai’s request or approval. It runs counter
to our values as a company and as members of the community. We are very
sorry for any offense or distress the video caused.
More to the point, Hyundai apologizes to those who have been personally impacted by tragedy."
Too little too late perhaps? The actual humour lies in the fact that they were very excited about this ad and the fact that it was named Ad of the Week by The Drum - a well-thought-of U.K marketing magazine. The Guardian even highlighted the ad as one to watch out for. Even FUNNIER is the fact that this is not even an original ad concept, VW, Audi, Citroen and General Motors have also made extremely similar ads that were banned almost immediately after they went public.
I have had a couple of people I know and love kill themselves and it is a hell of a thing to get over. The man in the ad acts incredibly well which makes it so much worse to to watch. I watched the advert over and over and all I could see was Ryk and Dane during their last moments, struggling to come to terms with what they were about to do. This ad makes light of suicide and completely disregards the family and friends of suicide victims, not to mention people contemplating suicide themselves.
Robert Gebbia, the executive director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention explains has said: "We know from research that graphic depictions of suicide in the media can inadvertently lead to further suicides, a phenomenon known as cantagion. This advertisement was particularly graphic and potentially dangerous." He goes on to say that he hopes that advertisers and companies realise that suicide is a worldwide health problem that claims more than 1 million lives each year which takes an enormous toll on friends, family, co workers and entire communities and it should not be a topic used to sell products.
When I first started thinking about this ad I found it not only disturbing but counter-productive on two levels.
Firstly they have just informed a bunch of depressed people that if they ever want to successfully kill themselves they shouldn't buy a Hyundai. They have also associated Hyundai with depression and suicide attempts which will also turn off potential buyers. By creating this ad they have successfully alienated two groups of buyers- those who are likely to commit suicide and those who aren't. Millions of dollars on advertising wasted.
Or is it? To be fair we all now know about the fuel tech of their new SUV, I am even writing a blog about it. Eventually the hubbub will die down and people will forget why they were offended as they did with the other car ads with the same theme. Everyone will move on to the next issue, but Hyundai will still stick in the back of their minds.
Mission accomplished, but at what moral cost?
If you or someone you know are in a bad place and need someone to talk to, don't hesitate to call Lifeline. Hotline: 0861 322 322
My teacher told us to "do something (we) have never done before and
blog about it". She told us about last year’s students who spent a day
with a drug dealer in a township, attended a mosque and other such out-of-the-box endeavors. It made me
contemplate my bucket list and I realised that all of my options, such as
finding my biological father, mastering a martial art, shaking George Lucas's
hand or adopting a child would require more money and time than I could
afford to spare. I had recently made a life changing decision to do a master
cleanse that resulted in me not eating for 12 days. I realised that I could blog
about that and my decision to change my lifestyle for the better.
In 2012 I suffered from kidney stones and temporary kidney failure
that forced me to stay in hospital for two and a half weeks. I was
attempting a career in yachting in Spain at
the time which meant that the kidney stone could not rear its god-awful,
painfully-ugly head
at a worse time. In the end I had to come back to South Africa because
my
hospital stay had got in the way of my job opportunities and my visa had
expired.
Kidney-stones unfortunately run in my family. My over-zealous love for salt on
everything, including watermelon, does not help my predisposition to this awful ailment. My uncle, another kidney stone
sufferer, had done a cleanse that had changed his life and outlook on food.
He explained how the cleanse could loosen and eradicate any stones in my
kidneys as well as helping every single health issue that I had every
experienced. He also told me how his cravings of sugar, dairy and meat
naturally dissipated. He got back in touch with his bodies needs and began
craving (and enjoying) healthy food. This is what really got me excited because
at that point I had never eaten a single salad in my life.
I bought the Mastercleanse kit and promised myself that myself that I would
start my journey to health on January the first (what a joke). Fast forward 5 months to the point
that I actually got off my ass and took my health back into my own hands. A
contributing factor could be the fact that my boyfriend is a photographer and I
was sick of asking him to delete pictures that I thought made me look a little
Jabba-the-Hut-esque. In the words of Bridgette Jones: "Sometimes you need
to sink into a toxic fat envelopment in order to emerge, phoenix-like, from the
chemical wasteland as a purged and beautiful Michelle Pfeiffer figure".
Please don't get me wrong, I didn't choose to do the Mastercleanse
in order to starve myself down
to a size zero. I simply wanted to embark on a journey of health and
when one
is healthy and has a few kilo's to lose then weight-loss is
inevitable.In fact the Mastercleanse only lets you lose weight until you
are at a healthy weight, if you are underweight you will find that you
gain weight on the cleanse. In the past I have had weight issues and I
have worked really hard to overcome them. I no longer want to be
reminiscent of a stick but rather a toned and trim pole.
It can
be hard for a woman to think that she is beautiful. Sometimes the fact
that you were maybe the "fat kid" in class has created scars that have
never really left you. Maybe all the women in your family are obsessed
with dieting and don't have one good thing to say about how they look.
Maybe someone you once loved had a nasty habit of pointing out your
imperfections or didn't really pay much attention
when you did make an effort. Maybe you had an eating disorder at some
stage and while you were in your own personal hell people commented on
how healthy and skinny you were. Maybe you just think that all the
models and actresses looks are actually attainable and you beat yourself
up when you can't make yourself look like they do.
All I know is
that when I have children I want to show them that I love my body for
what it does for me and teach them to love their bodies too. I want to
work up to the point where I will believe it for myself and help other
beautiful people believe it about themselves too and that is why I chose my new-found journey to health.But I digress.
On the last day before my cleanse I ate a light chicken and rice dish and savored every single bite,
knowing that this was my last supper- for the next 12 days at least! I ended
off my evening with my laxative tea (unfortunately TMI is inevitable in this
particular blog post) dreaming of the days post cleanse where I would have
boundless energy, a reduced waistline and clear radiant skin.
The fact that I chose to start on the Easter weekend was both a blessing and
a curse. The fact that I wouldn't be able to eat myself into early onset
diabetes was awesome. However, being alone and (although I am not religious) not
eating over such a festive family, friends and food holiday period was quite
emotionally taxing at times. This was hard because I usually eat my feelings...with a side of ice cream. I missed going out to braai's and going to gigs but I knew my temporary isolation was for the greater good.
50
years ago,Stanley Burroughs came up with the Mastercleanse. It was
originally made to eliminate stomach ulcers but over the years it became
apparent that it was an incredible cleanse that helped to promote
overall health. Stanley once said in his book 'The Master Cleanser':
"The basic cause [of disease] is the habits of improper diet,
inadequate exercise [and] negative mental attitudes...which combine to
produce toxic conditions and malfunction of our bodies. The elimination
of the cause of illness is the obvious and only way to healing and
health."
The basic
concept behind the cleanse is that all illnesses, from colds to cancer,
are caused by toxins that form because of improper diet, inadequate
exercise and negative mental attitudes. The elimination of these toxins
is the obvious and most effective way to health and healing. When you
eat three meals a day your body uses all it's energy to digest the food.
This means that it can't address other issues that may be more
important to your long term health thus creating a backlog of ailments
and ignoring long standing health issues
During
the cleanse you can't eat any solids and you can only drink laxative
tea, spring water, your daily salt water flush (gag) and the famous
"lemonade" concoction. The body's main function is to break down and
liquify food for assimilation. The reason that the cleanse calls for no
solids is so that the digestive system is almost completely shut down.
This is crucial for the cleanse as it gives our bodies a chance to shift
it's focus to internal 'housekeeping'. Energy is now diverted from the
digestive system and is put to better use detoxifying and cleaning out
the body. Enzymes that usually spend nearly all of their time digesting
can now be put to work on cleansing and rebuilding your body at a
cellular level.
The "lemonade" is made up
of 30mls fresh lemon juice (half a lemon, preferably organic), 30mls
Grade B maple syrup, one tenth of a teaspoon cayenne pepper and 240mls
spring water.
The ingredients
that make up the lemonade are very specific and each play a very
important part of the cleanse. The grade B maple syrup acts as your
bodies fuel and is very different from the maple syrup that we slather
over our waffles. Grade B it is rich with vitamins and minerals and
ensures that you have enough energy throughout the cleanse. The lemon
juice and cayenne pepper alkalise your body and help to break up and
loosen waste and mucous in the colon and other areas of the body. All
the dead and diseased tissue is broken down and either reused or removed
as mucous is cleared from the lungs and sinuses. Impacted wasted is
loosened and cleared from the colon, toxins are mobilised for
elimination and (my personal favorite process:) fat is recycled into
energy. Damaged organs are repaired during this healing process and the
immune system is invigorated.
Now
you might be wondering how your body can eliminate anything without
fiber. Well kids, that's the 'fun' part of Mr Burrough's Mastercleanse!-
said no cleanser ever. Your body must now flush the loosened waste out
of your system in order to clear the colon so that your body does not
sink into toxic shock. The daily salt water flush is made up of two
teaspoons salt to one liter water that has to be consumed in under 20
minutes. This concoction is not registered as either food or water
because it has the same consistency as blood and as such, goes straight
through your system. This results in having to set up camp in the
bathroom for about 30 minutes. The salt water flush was hands-down the
hardest part of my cleanse but became easier as the days went by. As the
cleanse progresses the internal organs are rejuvenated and a myriad of
long standing health issues begin resolving themselves. This results in
effective and efficiently running organs.
Before
the cleanse I was terrified at the thought of being constantly hungry
but to my astonishment this was not such an issue. Sure, I was
psychologically hungry especially since I was spending all my free time
writing an article on fast food brands for school. Never the less I
found these cravings passed quite quickly. I will admit to being
obsessed with smells. My boyfriend got quite freaked out when I insisted
on taking long languorous nosefulls of his food. I will attribute this
to the cleanse which is notorious for re-awakening the senses, I noticed
a marked improvement in my eyesight too.
It got to the
point where I enjoyed not having to make food and in truth, I had more
energy during my cleanse than I can ever remember. A lot of cleansers
complain about aches and pains returning to old injury sites but that is
just the body re-addressing its old problems. For some the cleanse can
be hellish due to detox symptoms which vary from person to person.
Coffee drinkers can get an unbearable headache on the first and second
days because of caffiene withdrawals, other people experience nausea and
stomach cramps. I only experienced my skin breaking out in my body's
attempt to force out all the toxic gunk. Oh yes, and a lovely little
kidney stone on the last day which hurt like all hell but thankfully
only lasted 45 minutes.
I decided to stop on day
twelve but there is nothing stopping you from continuing the cleanse for
20 or even 40 days if your ailments are more severe than just a
not-so-healthy lifestyle. The longest recorded cleanse was 385 days with
no ill effects.
Besides a couple of uncomfortable detox symptoms I
thoroughly enjoyed the process and I now actively enjoy foods hat I had
never even heard of before like Bok choy and Canellini beans! My energy
levels are higher and although I am not yet a 'tight, trim pole', I
have lost centimeters all over my body. Most importantly I have
eradicated a kidney stone that could have kept growing and caused more
havoc. I will definitely do this cleanse again and recommend it for
anyone seeking health and freedom from their ailments.
Today we are leaving the world of traditional print ads and exploring the great outdoors! These are ads that reaches consumers on the go so they need to be short, sweet and interesting.
Sprite Shower by Ogilvy Sao Paulo
This simple yet ingenious ad has been providing 1500 sweaty Brazilian beach goers with refreshing cold showers every day. How can brand that boasts refreshment demonstrate it better than making us feel it all over our bodies? It can't.
It works on the whole mirage concept, on a sweaty 40 degree day you see a HUGE sprite dispenser in the distance. You think it's just your douchebag brain making cruel jokes until you get a bit closer and realise it is real! You stand under it and experience ultimate relief from the heat. Your mind becomes clear and you are ready to dedicate another hour or two to sunbathing and people watching.
Sprite was very clever with this ad. Not only did they increase Sprite sales on the beach but they also attracted world wide attention with tourists flocking to the beach to get a picture that they can Tweet/Instagram/Facebook to all their friendsexpanding the ads reach.
If we are going to think about it literally then it's a bit of a sticky idea but conceptually it's pretty damn awesome.
Casino di Venezia lugguage belt
You have arrived at your destination and have to navigate an enormous maze of tired and frantic people scrambling to get out of the airport. After hours in a cramped flying tin can, breathing recycled air and eating sub-standard food there are still customs queues to wait in and bags to wait for. How can we make this tragically UN-funny sequence of events a little more bearable and dare I suggest...a little fun?
Make the luggage conveyer belt into a giant roulette wheel so that you can bet where your bags will land! You could even make a couple of Euros betting against the fat Croc-wearing woman who kept you awake with her snoring and blocked your way to the bathroom. Fun-ctional interactive adverts like this really stick in our minds and Casino di Venezia has seen a 60% increase in customers thanks to this ad.
Halifax Municipality MetroTransit's Do it on the Bus Campaign by Acart Communications Canada
Sleeping, texting and reading- all no-no's when you are driving in a car. Other peoples lives are in your hands! Sadly this doesn't stop some people and more of the population are becoming tragic statistics. Metro Transit has found a way to use these facts in a humorous way to promote their bus service.
I think this is a great billboard ad that can be viewed to or from work and in heavy traffic because it reminds us that those things should NOT be done in the car and also makes us want to do those things thus making us think that we should consider using the bus instead. The copy "Do more while you get around" makes me think. How much time could I be saving? How much more productive could my mornings/afternoons be? If only I had used the bus! Simple, witty, informative.
I think that outdoor ads will be the most fun to come up with and I can't wait until I get a crack at doing them later on in my career!
I may come across as a sex crazed blogger having already recently written a post about sex and advertising but I am not... Well not really. I just had a lot of awesome sex ads left over and I thought they deserved the spotlight too. Although this time they are much more humorous and a little less macabre.
OK so it's not an ad, but I wish it was. Lets just say it is an ad for the sake of discussion. This simple red and white depiction of what happens when you shake a coke bottle could be construed as innocent, until you see the headline. Men are like Coke. What? So they are bad for your health? They are a significant cause for obesity, diabetes, and weakening bone structures? Full of gas? If you shove a Mentos down their throats do they explode??
No my dear, innocent reader, they mean something a little more PG 16. If you shake a Coke bottle, like you may shake a mans penis (although I strongly suggest a smoother less violent action), they will explode and both will get your hands sticky. Similarly both can go in your mouth. If you are thinking "Thank god I am not the only guy with one that shape" then I am sorry but you are wrong, you are a freak and will die a lonely crazy cat man.
I agree that its a bit low rent for mainstream media but I can definitely see it being used in a Cosmo's annual (read monthly) sex issue or something to that effect. It is clever, simple and not overtly perverted and it made me laugh during a week of hell.
Lifestyles condoms by Mortierbrigade, Brussels, Belgium
I have a large collection of condom ads, you could call me a connoisseur of sorts. There is a wealth of great condom ads out there that encompass wit and innuendo without being blatantly perverse (or maybe a bit perverse if your imagination is one that leads you to the proverbial gutter- as long as its not the proverbial drain).
This one is for Lifestyles range of ribbed condoms. The insight for this ad is that condoms are a bit of a let down compared to the feeling of an "unsheathed sword". For this reason condom companies come out with lines of textured "third leg stockings" to stimulate their customers female counterparts to the point of undeniable pleasure which would result in juice obviously implying lady juice ( I don't know a "nice" way to put that). This ad implies that without the textured ribs on their condoms, women will fail to be satisfied and thus won't achieve orgasm. The visual used is a juicer without the grooves or "ribs" that would usually squeeze the juice out. It is a perfectly innocent way to show a not so innocent topic and that's why (and how) I like it.
Give longer. Take longer Love machine condoms Jung von Matt/Alster, Hamburg, Germany
Men want to be known as having the stamina of a carthorse (carthorses do in fact have incredible stamina) and to be well-hung stallions with penises reminiscent of battering rams. To help them along, Love Machine Condoms have produced a line of love gloves that can delay orgasm in order to prolong the act of baby making practice in order to achieve maximum pleasure levels for both parties involved. They use a very titillating image of a woman's arched back obviously receiving some backdoor pleasure, which according to all the men I have asked, is one of the best views ever. This coupled with a tattooed crossword that implies that the act at hand is going to take a while makes this a very interesting ad to contemplate
However, while it is a clever and interesting visual it makes me think that, like standing in line at the traffic department, it may take too long and in fact become boring enough to actually DO a crossword puzzle. Good ad until I thought about it for long enough. Thankfully for Love Machine- most people don't.
Condomi ultra thin condoms by DRAFTFCB KOBZA, Vienna, Austria
I don't mean to burst your bubble but... Anyone else see a fatal flaw in this ad for Condomi? Yes men like to feel like they aren't actually wearing a condom but at the same time I don't think that using a visual metaphor in the form of something that bursts into thin air at the slightest touch is going to instill any sort of trust in them. GREAT visual, bad ad.
Before I end off I would like say 400 views, 4 weeks, 4posts. Without readers I would not be as inspired as I have been lately. So from the bottom of derriere, which is bigger than my heart, I thank you for reading my whimsical ramblings and I hope you will keep coming back.
Before I begin I would like to thank all the people who have taken the time to read my blog. Three weeks, three blog posts and three HUNDRED (and forty four) views, needless to say I feel inspired.
After a discussion with my lecturer last week about my last blog post she displayed her disdain for people who keep saying we should look to Europe for all our solutions.This got the cogs turning and I thought about looking on the other side of the world for this weeks topic and challenging myself a bit. Well Self, challenge accepted.
Japan has gotten a lot of things right. They have the highest life expectancy from birth, a rich and thriving cultural heritage, awesome anime, really ahem..interesting adult cinema, blah blah blah basically they are quite cool. I decided to see what they were doing in terms of advertising and how it differed from the Western way we are so familiar with. After days of searching for suitable ads I realised that the reason they made little (read no) sense to me is because I lacked the INSIGHT into Japanese culture that would serve as the key to this very discombobulating subject (this could have something to do with my disgust toward sushi). That set me off on a mission to try and understand the culture and then showcase an ad that reflected what I had learnt.
Traditional western marketing does not generally translate well to the Japanese market and vice versa. This is because Japanese consumers are the most demanding in the world forcing international brands to change their ways of advertising specifically for their Japanese audiences.
The Japanese are a nation that communicate a lot with symbols. The idea that a product is being advertised for its functionality is not really as popular as it is in the west. It is all about creating an emotional connection with the consumer. This can be done with using Japanese and western celebrities that embody what the product is trying to put forward. There was a big trend of using international celebrities such as Tommy Lee Jones in the BOSS campaign and Softbank TV advert . The Japanese know him for his role in Alien and use the role he played and his celebrity status to sell a product.It is a visual shortcut and a very lame cop out if you ask me. For a "smart" nation they are too easily pleased.
There is one thing that everybody desperately craves in Japan. No, it's not money nor power. Not even fame. All those things are just means to an end and that end is kawaii. Being "kawaii" (cute and beautiful) is a highly valued
aesthetic quality in Japanese society and mostly Japanese pop culture
which means it features a lot in advertising
Another use of symbols in Japan comes in the form of mascots. Large corporations will use kawaii mascots in order to show a sense of humanity to consumers who would otherwise be intimidated by them. One example of this is the Tokyo Metropolitan Police department who came up with a mascot lovingly dubbed Pipo-Kun who is an orange mouse-like creature with big ears to listen to people and an antennae to stay "in tune" with what is happening out on the street. This is a huge public relations tool and I doubt they will stop using it in advertising as it is deeply ingrained in Japanese culture.
Pipo-Kun the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department mascot
Hello Kitty, the epitome of kawaii, actually started out as a mascot for the silk bedding company Sanrio. Kitty was used in ads until her popularity snowballed and an empire was formed around her image. Sanrio ditched the silk and became 100% kitty orientated which made them more successful than the silk ever could have. These days Kitty adorns thousands of products from aeroplanes and diet pills to red wine! In fact the only products that Sanrio has rejected are sharp objects, hard alcohol, guns and cigarettes. I hope the guy who came up with that concept got a FAT raise.
After a week of searching through ads that made less sense to me than buying a pair of Jimmy Choo's to clean a chicken coop, I finally found a print ad from an extremely successful ad campaign that I will attempt to explain.
I can only imagine how this concept came about and the best I can come up with is that the creators were either very stoned and/or drunk or I guess just Japanese.
Meet the White family, a strange name for an Asian family. At first I thought it had to do with the Easts fascination with the West but I was wrong (damn). It is in reference to the service that they are advertising.
Some background on the product: The White mobile plan is Japans cheapest and simplest (white symbolising simple) service plan provided by the mobile service provider Softbank and it has been rated the most successful ad campaign in recent years. The plan allows you to speak to your family members for free (is anyone else thinking "NO THANKS"?) and thus is marketed as a family brand by using, you guessed it, a family as their symbolism.
The White family is no normal family. There are five family members spanning three generations (another translucent advertising ploy used to target different age groups).There is a grandmother, a mother and a daughter, an older brother and a father. The first two are both famous actresses and the daughter Aya, is the most famous of all being a teen pop sensation. They all stand for specific values that Softbank wanted to cash in on.
The most controversial, OK maybe controversial is not the right word, the strangest character of the family is the older brother Dante Carver who plays Aya's older brother. He is an African American actor in Japan who has become very popular as a result of his role in the ads. Can anyone say token black guy? If you thought your dear old dad was strange then you haven't met Mr White...who is a dog. A cute dog, but a dog none the less. This is the point where I realise that lost in translation is not just referring to a movie title.
The White Family series of commercials have been so popular
that many famous Japanese celebrities have begged to be in the
commercials. They have become so large that they
are nearly their own entity within Softbank itself, even having a softball team named after them. Ootosan (Japanese word for father) has become a national icon and has made a lot of money through merchandise featuring his image. This reminds me of the Hello Kitty story I told you earlier.
Statistics show that television and print is actually the most effective forms of advertising and most Japanese clients are looking for a combination. They use more traditional media to grab consumers’ attention based
around some social media platform or television campaign. In this case they use print ads that remind you of the message conveyed in their TV adverts.
The TV ads are like short sitcoms that use a VERY different brand of humour than I am used to. I have included two with English subtitles for your own viewing pleasure and to give you an idea of what the print ad is about. Click "view on You Tube" and then "turn on captions" to get the subtitles.
Shoto Matsuda Softbank part 1
Shoto Matsuda Softbank part 2
(I love the use of the potato as a romantic gesture!)
Back to my print ad review. It is a very simple family portrait showing all he family members on their cellphones the first shows the women in kimonos except and the grandmother is holding a dog shaped device used to talk to the father while he is out on one of his adventures. The second just shows them in normal dress, very simple. In short this ad uses symbolism, visual shortcuts and emotional attachment to characters that work well in Japanese culture. Without the TV ad this would mean very little. The brand relies heavily on the actors past career successes and how the world view them in order to sell the brand. This coupled with their use of the father as their mascot is what makes this one of the most successful ad campaigns in Japan today.
Thanks for reading, I leave you with: Ootosan in a bowler hat and bowtie on a billboard
and a couple of facts that I found while researching this topic that prove that Japan is a very very different place.
In Japan, trains are so punctual that any delay over 5 minutes usually incurs an apology over the tanoy and a "delay certificate" for passengers on their way to work. When trains are delayed for an hour it may even make the news (Metro Fail could learn a thing or two from the East).
There are blowjob bars in Japan (if my boyfriend is reading this- no).
In japan, "Jersey Shore" is aired under the name "Macaroni Rascals"(waaaay more accurate).
It is a common prank in Japan to shove your fingers into someones ass, it is called Kancho (I TOLD you their sense of humour is different!).
When Space Invaders was released in Japan it caused a nation wide coin shortage because people just couldn't stop (obsessive much?).
A baseball team in Japan is said to be cursed by KFC founder Colonel Saunders (yum).
