social media

Gun Violence PSA

Loss of Innocence Gun Control PSA

By Delphine Hirasuna |
via SandyHookPromise.org

At the start of the school year, kids used to worry about fitting in, looking and acting cool, becoming one of the “popular” kids, and, oh yes, their grades.  But with the increasing number of shootings on school campuses, those worries are overshadowed by larger fears.  Just since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School seven years ago, which took the lives of 20 children as young as six and seven, more than 400 people have been shot on U.S. school campuses, and many more at public venues like concerts, shopping malls and local fairs.  

So along with the usual back-to-school product pitches, this public service ad was timed for release at the start of the school year.  Sponsored by the gun-safety group, Sandy Hook Promise, and produced by BBDO ad agency, the PSA has no voiceovers on gun control or violence, but leaves a powerful message on why something must be done NOW. 

Looking back, the days when school kids practiced getting under their desks and covering their heads in the event of a nuclear bomb attack seem so innocent.  All we had to worry about was the bomb, not an active shooter on campus.

Advertising Strategy

Double-Take Guerrilla Marketing

By Delphine Hirasuna |
via SprialMedia.co

Experiential street ads are the “sneak” attacks of advertising.  They invariably occur in unexpected places and times, and they usually cause viewers to do a double-take and chuckle. Relative to major ad campaigns, guerrilla marketing is much less expensive, but its reach is also narrower, mostly limited to people in that proximity.  But such targeted sight gags and visual puns enliven passersby experiences and generate goodwill toward the business, although it also disallows lengthy sales messages. You either get it or you don’t.

 Still, guerrilla advertising is catching on with major brands who are discovering that you don’t have to be there to enjoy it.  Really clever spots are being captured on smart phones and spread virally on social media, and some brand marketers are starting the buzz themselves by posting a photo of the “street art” on social media.

via Marketopedia (Top) + via LoveCreativeMarketing (Bottom)

Humorous Advertising

Believe It or Not – April Fools’ Day Ads

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Is it brand advertising?  Yes.  Is the product offering real?  No way.

April Fools’ Day is an excuse for ad people worldwide to take a break from practicing “truth in marketing” and spin fanciful selling points that stretch credulity to the breaking point, and make even gullible people go “Huh??”

April Fools’ Day spoofs are an advertising tradition and lately they have become more elaborate and expensively produced to capture the interest of social media and go viral. Some ad pitches told with a straight face (wink wink) include Rent-a-Runway wardrobes for dogs, Virgin Australia offering inflight spin classes, Seiko making watches for ninjas, Heinz selling chocolate mayonnaise in the U.K.   Funny and in good fun, April Fools’ Day advertising is becoming something that consumers look forward to seeing like Super Bowl commercials. It’s feel-good advertising that make consumers like a brand that enjoys having fun.  Here are a few April Fools Day ads from 2018.

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Advertising

Day of the Dead – Canadian Style, eh!

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Corona Canada is going all out to celebrate the Day of the Dead (Dias de los Muertos), an annual Mexican holiday (November 1 and 2) commemorating the lives of loved ones who have passed away. It has just issued special limited edition designs for its tall-boy cans, further extending its “Live Mas Fina” (Live the good life) campaign launched in March. Toronto-based design agency, Zulu Alpha Kilo, created the concept and design for the marketing promotion, which features artwork inspired by Day of the Dead sugar skull candy treats. Illustrated by Jenny Luong, the decorative skull artwork integrates a line of text that urges people to live life to the fullest.

The Canadian Day of the Dead campaign encompasses more than special packaging. Zulu is promoting the Day of the Dead design in out-of-home and print ads, magazine inserts and on social media. In addition to giving out tear-away posters at select locations across Canada, Corona is staging a social media contest that offers fans the chance to win a numbered, limited edition silkscreened print of the sugar skull posters. The Day of the Dead Corona cans are available in stores across Canada for one month only.

Publishing

Ten Years Told Through 92 Covers

By Delphine Hirasuna |

From the Magazine Publishers Association and American Society of Magazine Editors comes this two-minute video “Covering the Decade in Magazine Covers.” This edited America-centric view of the Aughts glaringly omits world-altering stories such as the disputed “hanging chad” Presidential election that started the decade and the rise of social media and focus on climate change that ended it. Overall, however, the video is a fascinating glimpse at the visual devices that publishers use to grab consumer attention at the newsstand. Faces, especially of celebrities, dominate most covers. Pop culture and sensational headlines trump the promise of substantive, thoughtful reporting. Obviously, the magazine reading public is more interested in being entertained than informed.