Top of the Ads

Last week Campaign magazine included a feature called “The Ten Ads That Changed Advertising” as voted by senior figures in the industry.

Whilst these ads may not necessarily be the best ever created, the've certainly changed the way that industry works and thinks... In chronological order, they are:


1. Gibbs SR Toothpaste, 1955 – the first ad to ever air on British TV

2. Volkswagen - Think Small ,1962 – because it went against all the prior rules of how to sell

3. Coca-Cola - Hilltop, 1971 – for the breathtaking appropriation of love and tolerance by a brand

4. Benson & Hedges - Iguana, 1978 – enigmantic, utterly compelling … opened up a new (and surreal) palette to advertisers

5. The Conservative Party - Labour Isn’t Working, 1979 – changed the way agencies (and political parties) thought about and used advertising

6. British Airways - Manhattan, 1983 – the first ad to straddle the corporate/consumer divide

7. Apple - 1984, 1984 – demonstrated that impact can be more effective than exposure

8. Levi’s - Launderette, 1986 – changed the way advertising thought about music

9. Playtex -Hello Boys, 1994 – the moment when advertising realised what PR could do for a campaign

10. BMW USA - BMWfilms.com, 2001 – demonstrated that the internet was a viable alternative to television and, that if the content is good enough, viewers will seek it out.

Posted By: Davey

Now Wash Your Hair!

Check out this ambient media ad for the new CLEAR brand of anti-dandruff shampoo in Thailand.

The concept uses a giant print of someone’s head, with long flowing black hair. Upon the print, they’ve attached hundreds of little sticky white tabs, which of course resemble dandruff from a distance.

The tabs feature copy that reads: ‘Remove to get 10% off CLEAR anti-dandruff Shampoo’.

What a great way of engaging the audience with the benefit of the product – whilst also providing them with an incentive to buy.

Posted By: Davey

Monkey On The Roof!

Check out the Arctic Monkey's music promo for 'Leave Before The Lights Come On', which just happens to be filmed on the rooftop of DKPM North!

A lot of shoes fell past the office windows that day!

Posted By: Davey

Infomercial Insects

How do you promote a sugar free sweetener in a new and interesting way? The Ad agency Rediffusion DYR based in Bangalore, India has come up with an unusual but impressive answer…

They placed plane white ad space on trees and coated outlines of sweet foods - including cupcakes and lollypops using the sweetener itself. Real live ants, known for their love of sweet sugars gathered from all around onto the outlines, making them visible for all to see.

Click on the image below, it'll link to the video so you can see the full effect…

Posted By: Davey

Arctic Monkeys outsell the entire chart!

On its first day of release, the Artic Monkey’s ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’ sold more copies than the rest of the UK's Top 20 added together!

The Sheffield band are outselling last week’s No1, Avril Lavigne’s 'The Best Damn Thing', by ten copies to one.

This is a real testament to the popularity of their music. The band do their talking though their lyrics, rather than the typical promotional trail of TV and radio that hype new album launches...

Posted By: Davey

Mini Yo-Yo

As a Mini driver, I have a fond spot for the Mini. The ground breaking ‘Mini Adventure’ campaign introduced the new Mini to the world and successfully re-launched the brand… I’ve been hooked ever since.

Current marketing activity has seen no decline in innovative new ideas or spectacle; check out the image below, seen in Milan…

This massive billboard shows a hand with a long string attached to it and full size Mini dangling at bottom! What makes this ad really special is that the car moves vertically up and down the string on invisible rails, as if it were a yo-yo!

This ad truly conveys the ‘small and fun’ brand values on a gigantic scale!

Posted By: Davey

Mint Advertising

Spotted these clever ads for Mentos, they feature a series of Mentos blister packs with the missing mints punched out to create images. Apparently the street level ads are actually made out of ‘real’ Mentos gum packages!

They complement a fantastic micro-site where visitors can create, save and display their own designs, create yours here.

Posted By: Davey

Map of Realities

Saw these posters a while ago for the launch of BBC World News in America. Love them because like all the best advertising, you need to take a second look before you get it… once you do, you’re bound to remember them!

On first impressions, the ads look like geographical territories on a map; take a look closer, you see what they really are!

The tagline is ‘News beyond your borders’. They certainly drive that point across…

Posted By: Davey