Got Milk...Mario???

The "GOT MILK" campaign was a very successful one. Adverts such as those listed above made it into glossy fashion magazines... There were so many celebrities featured, Models- Tyra Banks for example, Athletes, Actors, You name it, they had them. I guess at least one of the celebrities would be someONE'S hero. Copycat syndrome:my hero drinks milk, maybe i should do the same = More Mlk Sold. The target audience depends on the celebrity i guess. for example, STAR WARS fans have Master Yoda, Lord Of The Rings fans have dear old Gollum...The ad with Liz Hurley claims that drinking skimmed or non fat milk can help lose weight as part of a healthy diet. The ad with Jessica Alba informs people that growth occurs during teenage years and milk is partly responsible for this. There were more controversial ones, but these will have do..In my opinion, when it comes to print ads like the ones above, the ad MUST have an edge,it's the one shot, no motion, no voice..BUT.. Watch Mario below..




I had a Nintendo growing up and must say i was an avid Mario and Luigi fan. My worst villain was "Latiku the cloud". Then in later editions, there was the beast(i forget his name) with a castle and seven children. I can only remember Iggy his son. Anyway, any child who sees Mario as a hero, or even just likes Mario would identify with the ad. Quite simply, Mario becomes weak and can't perform as usual and therefore needs a boost. So he endures a mini- adventure to get to milk, and after drinking, he grows- in strength and size. Message for the children... Follow Mario's footsteps, drink milk and grow. Very wise. Celebrity endorsement. Hopefully, copycat behaviour will stimulate an urge to drink milk and boost sales of milk, from the sponsors...DAIRY FARMERS!! Now, we know milk is good for us, but is the purpose of the ad to boost sales or get us to drink milk for our own health?? Your guess is as good as mine.
And what about Nintendo? The presence of their character in this "good for the kids ad"? Very wise product placement??

Coke with Bill Gates

There are two elements to this ad, the use of a celebrity, Bill Gates, and the use of an ironic kind of humour. First of all, Bill Gates without money, no, without ENOUGH money to buy a coke?? How unlikely is that? Perhaps he just didn't have change... Secondly,Bill Gates getting disappointed by a MACHINE?? The man is synonymous with the word!! Anyway, it goes to show that everyone gets the the thirst for Coca- Cola, EVEN Mr Bill Gates.
I wonder what sort of emotions Coke hoped to stir with this ad, should it appeal to the wannabe billionaire, if you want to make billions, Bill Gates as a role model drinks Coke, or to the ordinary person, that well, yes, Bill Gates IS human AND likes his Coke. All i know is if i were in that office that building, i'd have been first in line to give him all the change he needed. WHAT?!?! He did say he would pay it back...

Samsung

This is the phone all of us ladies have been waiting for. Our own personal beautifier... Finishes off the image. The target for this phone is crystal clear, unless there are guys out there who like to paint their nails pink???? Anyway, it's a mobile phone that the manufacturers are trying to use to connect to vanity. For some, the phone could just serve a practical purpose, while for others, it would be seen more as a fashion accessory... Vanity.

Calvin Klein fragrances

Calvin Klein is known for his rather suggestive ad campaigns. Any one remember the Calvin Klein boxer shorts? Mark Wahlberg? Till today, i guarantee CK Boxer shorts are the boxer shorts to be seen in, if you have a hope of channelling sexuality. Ladies?? Anyway, that theme carries on into his ad campaigns for his fragrances. Why fix it if it isn't broken? Man, Woman, Nudity, Sexual tension, all these spell SEX. And quite honestly, sex sells.

Budweiser- True

Apparently, this particular ad spawned the rest of the Budweiser "whassup" commercials. Now if you don't know of these, then i certainly do not know what planet you are from. :-) These ads gained something of a cult following. Everything was "WHASSUP" with tongues sticking out, a lot mad! Anyway, the Japanese word "wasabe" (just visit a sushi restaurant) sounds very much like "whassup", and the guy on the date let go and "kept it real". I guess this brought out the "realness" in the sushi chefs as well. Till his date had simply had enough. She just can't understand "The Bud Effect", but boys will be boys. The expression on his face when she kills his joy does it for me. So sad. So funny. Shame.

Trocaire Lenten Campaign

The cause for female equality is very close to my heart. In a lot of cultures, the male child is valued far far above the female child. Different cultures have different reason for this belief. In the Western world, such things have become to a large extent a thing of the past. But the reality is it's still out there, it still exists majorly as a result of ignorance. This ad is a simple reminder of that fact. I think the use of babies appeals to our sensitive side. No one wants to see a baby in pain or suffering or grow up to be abused...so, good call for using the innocent bouncing baby GIRLS. P.S-This is an ad by the Irish Catholic Charity Trocaire. Their mission is to work with partners to overcome poverty and work for a just world. www.trocaire.org.

Vaseline

The functions of the skin, brought to you by.... Skins!!! Every imaginable colour and texture. The message is the need to take care of your skin, so it can perform its functions properly. This can be achieved with the use of Vaseline Intensive Care. Period. The message is brought to you by other "skins" who happen to agree and demonsrate how the skin fuctions. I wonder if any sexual thoughts can be associated with this ad because of the nude actors...?.

GUINNESS...The art of waiting

This is pure art, one of the most visually stimulatng ads i have ever seen. It is an ad of epic proportions. The horses remind you of the Greek god Poseidon riding his white horses (the waves)- Apparently, that was part inspiration for the creators of this ad. The surfer waits for the perfect wave, and to him, once he catches it, in his mind's eye, he becomes Poseidon. The greatest high ever! The point of this ad, in my opinion is that patience is a virtue. To fully experience the euphoria that comes from a pint (in some cases two) of GUINNESS, anticipation is key... Good things come to those who wait.
p.s- note the way the music builds up..

OYSTER

The definition of promotion... From the creators of the TFL Oyster Card.. This is an added incentive to go for an oyster card for your travels within the city of London. Think of all the 2 for 1 meals you could eat!! Further research needs to be carried out on the quality of the restaurants participating in this promo.

THINK!!!

This is a social awareness advertisement on responsible, careful driving. It is endorsed or sponsored by a collaboration of The Mayor of London, THINK! and Transport For London. The ad shows a young graceful teen, destined for great things in the most serene light possible, beautiful photography...till you read the message. The message is to drivers to drive responsibly as a very high number of teenagers with potentally bright futures, are being cut down in the prime of their youth. If you appreciate beauty and all things sacred, then hopefully you'll be moved by this ad not to take the most beautiful, mysterious thing of all, LIFE and destroying it, out of sheer carelessness. THE message?? THINK!! while you are behind the wheel.

RAC Car Rescue Service (Vinnie Jones)

This is such a brilliant ad. The use of "tough guy" actor Vinnie Jones trying to be a Knight at Night or Superman shows that what they say about brains being more useful than brawn is very correct. The lady quite simply calls the rescue company and they being efficient come hell or high water, fix the problem while he's still trying to be a superhero!! Inevitably he (Vinnie) looks dumb, the rescue driver looks apologetic for his (Vinnie's) obvious mistake by not having enough faith in this Oh So reliable company. Next time, when our cars break down, let's do the sensible thing and call RAC...

PEPSI- The "Girlfather"

Once again, a brilliant Pepsi ad trying to express the fact that a true PEPSI fan will never settle for less. Would even go "gangster" on you if you tried to pass off something else as the ULTIMATE- Pepsi. Even better, the would be "gangster" is the cutest ever dimple cheeked little girl.... Notice their use of children?? But in very straight to the point ads?? Very well executed.

PEPSI- The joy of pepsi

Picture this...Extremely hot day in Guadalupe(or elsewhere.), soft music coming from the mariachi...cue young boy with ALL his saved pocket money walks up to a drinks dispenser, obviously thirsty and with one goal in mind. GET THE PEPSI!!!! The clincher is the method used to get to the Pepsi. FANTASTIC. I never knew you could place your number one adversary (or ANY adversary for that matter) in an ad like that. Could they get sued for that?? This ad is saying that the competition is not even worth the trouble. I mean, the boy just leaves the cans of Coke there on the floor, like dirt. Low Blow. SIMPLE BUT POIGNANT. Well done.

Burger King "Texas Double Whopper"

. Where is the "lady" burger???




Need i say more??? Very simply put, They Are Men!! Quick!!! Give them the double whopper when they are hungry to avoid dire consequences!! Target audience, signed, sealed, delivered. Makes more sense than the old McDonald's DLT posted earlier i suppose and at least these MEN have a purpose... the need to re- assert their masculinity...SAD, BUT TRUE

McDonald's McDLT

All i can say is thank goodness for the evolution of advertising. Really cheesy and pointless. The tuneless song, over- zealous people running amok on the streets... Worrisome. I LOVE McDonalds, but i guess then they didn't have so much environmental presure, the packaging of the burger looked really big, hard to dispose of. I still see similarities between this and the "I AM MAN"- Burger King Double Whopper ad. So maybe one way forward may be to go back in time? You decide.
P.S- See the now famous Hollywood star???

Vicks First Defence

This ad exhibits humour and wit. The idea is to nip a cold in the bud before it becomes full blown. I guess i can say the mother featured in the ad resolved to use an "emergent " marketing strategy concept by dealing with the situation immediately it cropped up. This, in relation to the tagline "ATTACK IS THE BEST FORM OF DEFENCE" seems very appropriate to me. BUT, should we assume that according to this ad, the only users of Vicks First Defence should or will be young mothers with ingenious ways of reacting to their childrens temper tantrums?? Either way, i still love the ad. Message comes across crystal clear.