LG - Smart Thief

LG launched this on Youtube on 28th December to promote their new OLED Ultra Slim LED television, which they claim is the world’s slimmest TV screen.

Check out the number of views already...

Samsung Central Station

Loving this brand new video to promote Samsung's new Central Station range of USB hub monitors. It's a stop motion film featuring the perils of messy cables.

The monitors themselves include a wireless USB 2.0 dongle that you connect to your laptop. The monitor then ‘comes alive’ when your computer is within 3 feet of the ‘Central Station’. In addition you can plug all your desktop peripherals into it to be ready to go when you need them.

Credits
Client: Samsung Electronics
Director / Animator: Jey Mal
Production: The Viral Factory

Galaxy Ace ‘Slowdance’

This is the latest video from The Viral Factory for Samsung. The brief was to delivery a contemporary and trendy video for Samsung's latest model. This phone in question, the Galaxy Ace, is the latest smartphone powered by Android which is aimed at being one of the most competitive mid-range smartphones in the business today.

Personally I think it's a cool video and definitely an interesting way of showing off the phone's features in an unusual and compelling way.


Video Details
Agency: The Viral Factory
Creative: The Viral Factory
Production Company: The Viral Factory
Spanish Production Co: Icon International
Director: Jake Lunt with The Viral Factory
Producer: Jon Stopp
Spanish Producer: Nick Bolger
Editor: Owen Oppenheimer / The Viral Factory
Edit House: The Quarry London
Grade: Ricky Gausis
Online: Frasier Celland
Post Production: MPC London
Audio Design & Mix: Tristin Norwell

The World Is Full Of Interesting Things...

I spotted this over on Neil Perkin's blog Only Dead Fish. It got a lot of Twitter love last Friday but just in case you missed it, and because I think it's pretty special, here it is for you.

This is the updated 119 slide version of the Google Creative Labs presentation all about recent creative ideas and web campaigns covering everything from advertising to art, and politics to literature. This was put together by Tom Uglow and while it is viewable right here, just as Neil suggested, you should have a look at it on Google Docs for the full effect. This is simply brilliant.

Samsung Galaxy

I was sent on this really cool video by The Viral Factory. It's their latest creation for Samsung, to promote their new Galaxy mobile phone.

What I like most about this video is that it's not a Flash Mob. That might sound odd but it'd be very easy to take something like the Galaxy, which has a serious good camera, and to do a Flash Mob. Instead the guys have gone in a different direction. Plus, let's face it, that's one very adorable little kid.

Golden Pages iPhone App Viral

Following on from my post about the Golden Pages event on Wednesday to promote the company's 40th Birthday and the launch of their new iPhone App, the Golden Pages have released the following video. Fairly slick and awesome imho. Check it out...

Old Spice

Every now and again a marketing campaign comes around that manages to cross an imaginary boundary that exists between ‘the industry’ and ‘the outside world’.

What I mean is, we (members of ‘the industry’) will often comment and discuss the brilliant merits of a particular marketing campaign from the point of view of creativity, technical merit or results. However, everyone else (‘the outside world’) can often be oblivious to these things. Brilliant metrics and results simply don’t affect their individual, everyday lives. Then along comes a campaign that taps into something special and hits all the right notes. A previous example was Compare The Meerkat, which I have posted about several times, but what has happen here is even better.

Top notch admen Wieden + Kennedy have taken a brand that many perceived as old and dated, and not only won a Cannes Film Grand Prix but created a Social Media frenzy. Their campaign for Old Spice launched in February during the Super Bowl and has gone from strength to strength to strength. Featuring former American Football star Isaiah Mustafa, the campaign is all about just how awesomely manly he is, and how ‘your man’ could smell like him.

The campaign saw immediate success with millions of video views of the ads on YouTube but the real success, imho, has been the personalised responses that have been created for everyone from celebrities to renowned bloggers to ordinary folk who published questions or comments to the campaigns various touchpoints (YouTube, Twitter, Facebook etc.). These personalised video messages are all viewable on the Old Spice YouTube channel and are absolutely hilarious. The campaign has been so successful in fact that the Old Spice YouTube channel is now the most viewed sponsored channel on the video platform.

The question of course that still remains is weather this online goodwill translates into sales. I can’t imagine it won’t but for now that’s just my opinion. Stay tuned and I’ll update with news as it comes out.

Samsung: Redneck Hunter

Check out this video created and produced by Cheil Worldwide to promote Samsung bluetooth headsets.

Augmented Reality: “I am Iron Man 2″

As far as Augmented Reality experiences go, this is one of my favourite to date. Based on Total Immersion’s technology, the AR uses a number of functions like Face Tracking and Movement Detection to let you experience the Iron Man HUD (Heads Up Display) used by the Marvel hero. You can also capture the video stream of your experience and share it out through your Social Media channels.

Nike Free Run+ & DJ Daito Manabe and co.

It seems that I've posted a lot of videos etc. all stemming from shoe and clothing companies. The truth is though, that's simply because it seems to be fashion labels that are pushing digital. It's fashion brands that are using digital as their primary and key communications channel. And so here we have yet another genius piece of marketing from a fashion label, this time Nike.

This is the new Japanese campaign for Nike's Free Run+ shoes. This is a smart and stunning collaboration with DJ Daito Manabe and co., and sees the crew pumping out the 'chunes' in the oddest of ways. Using specially outfitted runners equipped with the newest flex sensors (the new sensors change resistance when bent), the pair achieve awesome effects controls. Check this out, and try not to be imptressed!

(via Gav via Engadget)

Earth Hour 2010

Last year I wrote about Earth Hour and the campaign's goal to present the leaders of the world our feeling on glogal warming at the Global Climate Change Conference that took place in Copenhagen. Earth Hour called on all citizens of the world to switch off their lights as a sign to our leaders to do something to combat global warming.

This year Earth Hour takes place on Saturday 27 March at 8.30pm. The campaign again calls to action every individual, every business and every community throughout the world to stand up, take responsibility and get involved towards a sustainable future. Around the world Iconic buildings and landmarks will stand in darkness. People across the world will turn off their lights and join together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet. Show your support and sign up now to make 2010 the biggest Earth Hour yet!.

Earth Hour Channels

Earth Hour website
Earth Hour Facebook Page
Earth Hour Twitter
Earth Hour YouTube
Earth Hour MySpace
Earth Hour Blog


About Earth Hour

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make their stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating. Global landmarks such as the, Sydney Harbour Bridge, The CN Tower in Toronto, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Colosseum, all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour.
Earth Hour - Chile

In March 2009, hundreds of millions of people took part in the third Earth Hour. Over 4000 cities in 88 countries officially switched off to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative.

Earth Hour is organized by WWF. With almost 5 million supporters and a global network in over 100 countries, it’s one of the world's largest and most respected independent conservation organizations. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the Earth's natural environment and build a future where people live in harmony with nature.

adidas Originals - Star Wars Collection

Back at Christmas I posted about adidas's new range of clothes and shoes inspired and featuring Star Wars. Taking the most iconic moments and favourite characters from the Star Wars story, adidas have translated them for the streets. To do this, the sports brand launched a virtual 3-D world that is accessed through the new line's men’s shoes through three Augmented Reality games. Basically, each shoe design gives the user access to the virtual world and acts as the controller for interacting with it. Chris Barbour, head of digital marketing for adidas Originals, described the new initiative as, “[taking] a real world item and adding a fantastic virtual world on top of that." He added, "We are not trying to mimic a real-world look, we have a more stylized, pop-up book creative approach.”

For the next stage in the new Originals 'The Street where Originality Lives' ad campaign, adidas is kicking off 2010 with three fantastic developments in the campaign. Not only is the adidas Originals site packed with a whole heap of exciting (and exclusive) videos from Estelle, the Ting Tings and Method man & Redman (just to mention a few), not only will the Star Wars range of clothes and shoes be launching in the Irish market through Champion Sports, but there is also a new addition to the online campaign in the form of a seriously cool, Facebook Connect enabled, online app that lets you take control of the Death Star and blow up the homes of your closest friends.

For all the information you'll need, just go to the official adidas Originals Facebook Page and check out this video of the Imperial March remix; featuring Snoop Dogg, David Beckham, Calle 13, DJ Neil Armstrong and Daft Punk...

Facebook & YouTube - Instant Fads & Overnight Hits

In the last week there have been three Social Media phenomenon that have really grabbed my attention. Three "campaigns" that have, by all accounts, sprung up completely organically and engaged the public in a way that no one could have predicted.

Paul Cunningham's Winter Hat
The first is the Irish internet sensation that is Paul Cunningham's hat. For those who don't know who Paul is; Paul is RTÉ's Environment Correspondent. While doing a report as part of the Nine O'Clock News on RTE1 on 7th January, Paul wore a rather..... noticeable hat. What no one could have predicted was just how much the public would latch onto this little fashion misadventure.

The 'We love Paul Cunningham's winter hat' already has 3,420 fans. Just one of several YouTube videos of the news feature has 3,082 views. Admittedly these aren't huge figures but at the same time, it's a Christmas hat.

Facebook Status My Bra Colour
Finally we have this, non-video related, entry to my little list of three stand-out internet phenomenons of the last week. You may have noticed female friends or acquaintances updating their Facebook statuses recently with colours or patterns. These updates usually carried no information or explanation, and there didn't seem to be anyone offering any, anywhere. The trend or meme, which I haven't actually been able to verify, was seemingly started by a group of women in Chicago to help raise awareness of Breast Cancer. The campaign had a small level of uptake but then a girl named Kimberley Griffiths created a Facebook Page for the campaign.

The Page was founded on the 7th January and has exploded in activity with 60,196 fans already joined up. I think the number speaks for itself. That's just 4 days!


So what's next? What video or tv moment or charity activity will grab us and capture our attention? Who knows! (That's not a question!) The truth is, there's a 'little something' about each of these "campaigns" that can't be planned and can't be predicted. They're also three examples from an otherwise very short list when you consider exactly how many Facebook Pages and YouTube videos get uploaded and created every week. So is there a point? There is, and it's fairly simple. While I believe it's not massively difficult to create real campaigns that engage with your audience and create a greater public resonance beyond simple awareness, planning them is another matter. Budgets aside, there are various techniques to drive engagement. Competitions, free samples/trials/products or any number of other ways to get the public to hand over personal details. However, while it's easy to engage, or to at least create an appearance of engagement, it's not easy to create that public resonance.

My conclusion: the "viral effect" (a horrible term and one I don't really use) of a campaign can certainly be manipulated or augmented, but at the heart of it all you need something that simply can't be thought up. I can't tell you exactly what it is, because no one can. It's that thing that will drive people to pass it on to their friends. That thing that will make people become a fan or friend for no logical reason whatsoever. Most importantly, it's not something you can buy. Not every product or brand is even capable of it. Sometimes it requires huge amounts of money, and other times it's achieved by someone with a camera phone for nothing. Either way, beware of anyone that says they can get it for you through a planned approach. It just happens for you or it doesn't.

The Best Agency Christmas Card Ever?

Just watch this...

Specsavers: Christmas Viral

Following on from Specsavers highly popular Postman Pat viral, this is there Christmas offering for 2009.




Agency: Specsavers Creative
Advertiser: Specsavers

Project name: Xmas Viral 2009
Client: Richard Holmes, Marketing Director
Brief: Seasonal fun
Copywriter: Simon Bougourd / Neil Brush
Art director: Simon Bougourd / Neil Brush
Planner: In-House
Production company: In-House
Director: Chris Denton
Post-production company: In-House
Editor: Chris Denton
Audio post-production company: In-House

Friskies: 'Free Running' Cat

Pet food brand Friskies, who are part of the Purina group, will be launching there latest ad tomorrow (Tuesday 1 December). The ad will be used for TV, cinema and online, and was created by DDB London. The documentary-style ad follows Bobo and his 'crew' as the ‘world's best free-runners'. Of course this mighty accolade is all thanks to them eating Friskies.

Unfortunately the Englishe version isn't up on YouTube just yet but you can watch it here.





'Have You Seen This Cat?' Viral

You may feel a slight bit of déjà vu over this ad, which wouldn't be surprising. Back in August Friskies launched this viral:

Russell Athletic: 80s-izer

This week saw the launch of Russell Athletics "80s-izer" campaign in the UK. The campaign sees Russell Athletic thrusting itself back into the market with a pretty cool online advertising suite; including a campaign microsite and online advertising, all done in a retro 80's theme. The campaign aims to deliver a 'viral' effect by allowing users to 80's-ize themselves into a movie, through the campaign microsite. The movie can then be pushed out to Facebook and Twitter directly through the microsite.

The site ultimately aims too recapture the popularity that Russell Athletic once had within the college / university 'pep' crowd. The campaign draws on the return of the 80s in popular culture and plays up Russell Athletic's roots as a classic American college brand. This campaign marks a strategic return to the UK market for the Sportswear brand, following a fairly quiet time since the mid-90's.

The site was created by Frank PR and also hosts a company timeline and a selection of products, although users cannot purchase them from the site.

Budweiser Lyrics... Sorta

Back in August I wrote about the new Budweiser Lyrics TV ad and the competition running with it. I'm a Beatles fan and I loved the use of an otherwise somewhat unknown Beatles track in an extremely fun and memorable way. In short I really liked the campaign execution and thought that the creative perfectly matched the intended reaction.

When it comes down to it though, for any brand that produces a new ad or runs a new campaign, the real sign of success comes from the engagement that it generates. All in all this campaign was a huge success and I have seen the ad referenced in numerous places, by many people. Then you stumble upon something that really highlights the engagement that the ad has generated. This is a video created by ijbellehy1981 as a spoof / tribute to the original ad:



And for those that may have missed it, this is the original ad:


Many thanks to Darragh for the heads up on this :)

Everybody's Doing It

In Europe each year, 130,000 women die from Breast Cancer. This year Samsung Electronics Europe have pledged to help reduce that number.



Samsung has launched the 'Everybody's Doing It' campaign, an online campaign encouraging women in Europe to check for breast cancer and prevent the disease from spreading. The campaign microsite is a place where women can find an instant community of support and a place to view or forward the above viral movie called 'Everybody's Doing It'. The campaign is aiming to reach over 400,000 women, which is more than the total number that are diagnosed with breast cancer in Europe every year.

The video utilises simple yet stark imagery of each woman holding their arms across her chest, their gaze fixed on the camera as it pans around. The video ends with the message 'Everybody's Doing It: Join us on October 15th 2009'. October 15th is the date that has been chosen for women to be breast aware and to pledge to raise awareness for breast cancer.

Jaesun Yeon, a 30 year old woman featured in the video, is a Samsung employee. She said, "I took part because a good friend is going through chemotherapy. I met some amazing women on the shoot, including Simone Francis who had a breast cancer scare when she was only 17. Social media and blogging has been a hugely important way for these women to talk about breast cancer and to tell others to check themselves, no matter what age they are. What Samsung has done, is to create a powerful online platform to spread this message across Europe."

Ines Van Gennip, head of CSR at Samsung Electronics Europe added: "It's so important that global brands such as Samsung use their influence to give women who advocate breast cancer awareness an even louder voice. This isn't a disease that only affects older women, it can touch women of all ages and as many people as possible need to know."

The campaign also utilises Facebook, YouTube, Flickr and Twitter. For more information visit http://www.morethantalk.eu.

--- Up Date ---

As part of the campaign, Samsung has donated its famous Piccadilly Circus Screen to aid the promotion of the campaign.


The 60inch LED screen located in the heart of Piccadilly Circus will run the campaign viral video, reinforcing the campaign call to action, ‘tell all the women you know to visit www.morethantalk.eu'. This will be the first time it has ever been used to promoted a non-product campaign.

Swedish Fish: A Friend You Can Eat

Advertising may be strange, even a little odd, but every now and again you come across something that is just so far out there, you wonder who and how on earth anyone ever sold the concept in.

In 2008 when Swedish Fish went looking for an advertising campaign to market its line of chewy winegums, JWT New York developed a campaign so wacky it was brilliant. The integrated campaign was intended to revamp the sweet's image and connect with the 18 to 24 year old market.

The campaign was simple overall, and asked just a single question with two possible answers, “Nej” and “Ja”. Their tag line: “A Friend You Can Eat”.

The campaign utilised print, outdoor, TV, radio and online, to show customers which of their friends they could eat, and which they could not. The above print ad and below TV commercial show the campaign's Kitten Burger execution (my favourite). Overall the look and feel of both are designed to be reminiscent of 1970s Swedish art direction, as a homage to the cultural history of the brand.

In JWT's Titanium entry at the Cannes International Advertising Festival, it was pointed out that not only was the campaign a success, driving huge awareness and sales within the 18 to 24 year old market, but the campaign ultimately went viral on a number of levels. People began trading plates and T-shirts on craigslist and other sites, and the words ‘Nej” and ‘Ja’ entered into the online chatter vernacular as part of a subversive pop culture movement. The TV commercials were so well received that people began imitating on YouTube with their own versions.