Selling with Selfies!

This print campaign, which was awarded a silver at this year's Cannes Lions is one of my most recent favorites. Created by Lowe Cape Town, the campaign uses doctored photographs to prove that "you can't get any closer to the news". It has been dubbed the "selfies" campaign, because of the obvious nature of the photograph - whereby some of history's most famous appear to be taking "self portraits". The ads feature Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge, Jackie and John F Kennedy, Winston Churchill, Beyers Naude, Desmond Tutu and the iconic Times Square kiss. 

People magazine in the US described the campaign as a "new take on iconic photos" and "if history took a selfie". 

The agency had this to say about the campaign, "Every journalist knows the key to a great story is getting it, as they say, straight from the horse's mouth. A first hand account. Not from bystanders or passersby, but from the person, or people, who are at the heart of the story. In this way journalists are able to provide much more detailed, in-depth and insightful accounts, which consequently means readers are better informed. every story deserves a first-hand account."

Later on this year, Lowe Cape Town released a radio extension of the 'selfies' campaign. What it aimed to do put the newsmaker at the centre of each story, and had them deliver the report themselves. The two ads below feature Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille and former ANC Youth League president, Julius Malema. 

Brand mashups!

MINI - NOT NOR MAL

Iris Worldwide came up with this brilliant activation that served as an extension of Mini's already famous "Not Normal" campaign. If you don't know anything about it, the campaign celebrated the 'not normal' relationship that Mini drivers have with their cars. It started with a range of big billboards situated around the UK that illustrated the passion of Mini drivers when it comes to their cars. This was taken a step further however recently when Mini decided that even the billboards had to be 'not normalized'. 

In this new activation, Mini drivers cruising through London were targeted individually via certain billboards and treated to a number of thrilling brand experiences; from free car washes to complimentary gourmet meals - all in an attempt to be 'saluted' by the brand. How did it work? The company relied on trained human spotters that were positioned close to certain billboards. These spotters identified specific Minis that drove past and relayed signs to their drivers on the billboard that they were approaching. A sample of the individual messages includes, "Hello Blue Mini Driver, How Would You Like a Free Coffee?".

Mini UK international communications manager, Anna Inglese, explains; "Our Not Normal campaign is all about celebrating the unique and inventive spirit of Mini drivers and saluting them". 

Vision Mission

Vission Mission is a CSI initiative that was started by Ster Kinekor, one of South Africa's biggest and most popular cinema chains, which actively and continuously aims to contribute towards the elimination of degenerative eyesight amongst the country's youth. The initiative was launched in 2005 during Eye Care Awareness Month to highlight the issue of low vision as a major public health concern in South Africa. It is currently estimated that, of the three million learners in Grade 1, 2, and 3, one tenth have eye problems which, if left uncorrected, could lead to severe vision impairment in adulthood. 

Since its inception, Vision Mission has screened over 249 000 learners from disadvantaged backgrounds across the country. They have provided glasses to over 10 000 students. This has been made possible by some of the initiative's partnerships and contributions by Spec Savers, the National Department of Health, Edcuation and Social Development, the Nthulisa Foundation, Bonteheuwel Organisation for Youth Development and Pareto Limited. Ster Kinekor has also made consumer donations possible and easy by giving consumers the options of adding R2.50 to their movie ticket at the self-service terminals if they want to contribute. 

Here are three of the brilliant ads that were created by South African film school, AFDA, for Vision Mission. They are a big favorite of mine. 

Nike's "Possibilities"

As part of its 25th anniversary of 'Just Do It', Nike has released this kick ass commercial, "Possibilities" which seeks to inspire viewers to push their limits and strive to reach new goals. The commercial, which was created by Wieden + Kennedy in Portland, Oregon, features basketball star and reigning NBA MVP, LeBron James; world No. 1 tennis icon Serena Williams; Gerard Pique of FC Barcelona and Spain; and boxing sensation Andre Ward. Actor Bradley Cooper narrates the commercial which was directed by the acclaimed Nicolai Fuglsig, and features a guest appearance by actor Chris Pine. These characters expose different challenges that encourage viewers to push themselves to new limits, and explore their own "possibilities". The challenges include everything from running a marathon, to riding an electric bull and taking part in one of the Nike+ Running and NikeFuel challenges. 

I think it sends out a brilliant message - We are all capable of a little more.

HOPE SOAP

I am loving local campaigns at the moment! I think our country is producing amazing work that is not only incredibly creative and cool, but resourcefully effective too. 

Dubbed the "Hope Soap" campaign, this one was produced by Y&R in partnership with Safety Lab. It was born out of a need to help combat the hygiene crisis in the small township of Blikkiesdorp in the Western Cape. The idea was quite simple. Get children to improve the state of their hygiene by inspiring them to wash their hands more frequently. Put a small toy inside a see-through bar of soap and make them want to keep washing to get to the toy! It was an ingenious way to make hand-washing a fun activity that children looked forward to, creating a positive connotation of the action. 

The campaign was loved around the world and was awarded the only two Silver Lions for South Africa in 2013. It won the awards for the Best Use of Guerrilla Marketing in a Promotional Campaign, and for the Public Health & Safety, Public Awareness Messages-category. Graham Lang, Chief Executive Officer of Y&R South Africa comments on the agency's achievements saying "it is great to see South African work feature at Cannes, we are very proud of our work and we want to share it internationally".

Work like this brings important issues to light and aids in bettering the way people live. It is inspiring and moving to see how effective campaigns can be in stimulating change, especially in a country where the simple action of washing hands can save lives. As an industry we strive to add value to people's lives, and the "Hope Soap" campaign is a brilliant example of how a small change can make a big difference. Lang comments saying "it goes to show that South Africans can find a solution to any problem".

Beneful's "Dog Goldberg Machine"

This one has to be my favorite of the week! Brought to you by Purina's Beneful dog food, the carefully created "Dog Goldberg Machine" sees more than half a dozen dogs manipulate toys, food tins and tennis balls in an playful attempt to delight themselves in a nutritious Beneful treat. Developed by New York agency Deep Focus the ad, which garnered nearly 1.5 million YouTube views in less than a week, celebrates the idea of 'play' as a way of creatively pitching their product. 

As you may have imagined, creating the ad was no small feat. Deep Focus CEO and creator of the ad, Ian Schafer, couldn't recall exactly how many takes were required but joked that it was more than expected. "I'll put it this way," he said, "it wasn't easy". 

Countless brands have tried their hand at a Rube Goldberg machine, but in my opinion, never before has it worked this well. Who doesn't cry "awww" at the cute choreographed canines?!

The Corporate States of America

Well known writer, artist and photographer, Steve Lovelace, recently created what was called the "Corporate States of America"; a map which sets out the brand that best represent each of the fifty states of North America. He was prompted to create the map after fueling debate around the idea of corporate feudalism in an article he wrote a few months back. What he attempts to illustrate is the enormous power corporations are having on our lives, and how slowly but surely, we will be controlled almost solely by them - not by government force or political influence. He says:

 "As corporations and non-governmental orgnaizations grow in power, the power of nation states will become increasingly irrelevant. We're already seeing this on a small scale, as people turn to the Internet to make friends, instead of befriending their neighbors. I think that, as corporations become the dominant organizations on Earth, people will start thinking of themselves as citizens of Apple or partisans of Starbucks."

To create the map, Lovelace selected a certain corporation or brand that best represented each state. In each case he picked a brand that 1) has ties to that state and 2) is still in business (as of 2013). Obviously, there were some difficulties, as major corporations are not evenly distributed across the country. Some states, such as New Mexico, Alaska, Montana and West Virginia do not host many big corporations. Others host so many, it was hard for Lovelace to choose which one to include. In these cases, he went with the corporation/brand that he though best represented the state, rather than the biggest or most notorious. "Hence, I used Dr Pepper for Texas instead of ExxonMobil. I used Apple for Calfornia instead of Google or Facebook."

To make it easier to understand why each corporation/brand was allocated to each state, Lovelace set out this list:

Alabama	Saks	The modern Saks descends from a company called Proffitt’s, founded in Birmhingham in 1919.
Alaska	Carrs	Now part of Safeway, Carr’s was founded in Anchorage in 1950.
Arizona	Best Western	Best Western is headquarted in Phoenix.
Arkansas	Walmart	Walmart is based out of Bentonville.
California	Apple	Apple is headquartered in Cupertino, in the heart of Silicon Valley.
Colorado	Coors	Now part of Molson Coors, Coors was founded in Golden in 1873.
Connecticut	GE	Founded in Schenectady, New York, GE is now headquarted in Fairfield.
Delaware	DuPont	E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company was founded in Eleutherian Mills in 1802.
District of Columbia	C-SPAN	C-SPAN is based out of Washington, DC.
Florida	Hooters	Hooters started in Clearwater in 1983.
Georgia	Coca-Cola	Coca-Cola is based out of Atlanta.
Hawaii	Hawaiian Airlines	Founded as Inter-Island Airways in 1929, Hawaiian Airlines is based out of Honolulu.
Idaho	Albertsons	Albertson’s started in Boise in 1939. The modern company, started in 2006, is still based there.
Illinois	CAT	Caterpillar has been based out of Peoria since 1910.
Indiana	Cummins	The Cummins Engine Company started in Columbus in 1919.
Iowa	Maytag	Now part of Whirlpool, Maytag was founded in Newton in 1893.
Kansas	Garmin	Garmin started in Lenexa in 1989.
Kentucky	Lexmark	Spun off from IBM in 1991, Lexmark is based out of Lexington.
Louisiana	Tabasco	The McIlhenny Company, maker of Tabasco Sauce, is based out of Avery Island.
Maine	L.L.Bean	L.L.Bean was started in Freeport in 1912. It is still based there.
Maryland	GEICO	The Government Employees Insurance Company is based out of Chevy Chase.
Massachusetts	Gillette	Now part of Proctor and Gamble, Gillette was founded in Boston in 1901.
Michigan	GM	General Motors is based out of Detroit.
Minnesota	Pillsbury	Today owned by General Mills, Pillsbury was founded in Minneapolis in 1872.
Mississippi	Peavey	Peavey Electronics is based out of Meridian.
Missouri	Anheuser-Busch	Now part of AB InBev, Anheuser-Busch was founded in Saint Louis in 1852.
Montana	Great Harvest Bread Company	Great Harvest Bread Company was founded in Great fallas in 1976.
Nebraska	Cabela’s	Cabela’s is based out of Sidney.
Nevada	Zappos	Today part of Amazon.com, Zappos is based out of Henderson.
New Hampshire	Timberland	The Timberland Company is headquartered in Stratham.
New Jersey	Campbell’s	Campbell’s is based out of Camden.
New Mexico	Allsup’s	Allsup’s was founded in Roswell in 1956.
New York	Verizon	Today based out of Manhattan, Verizon is the descendent of several Baby Bells.
North Carolina	Bank of America	Bank of America is currently based out of Charlotte.
North Dakota	Bobcat	Now part of the Doosan Group, Bobcat is based out of West Fargo.
Ohio	Wendy’s	Wendy’s was founded in Columbus in 1969.
Oklahoma	Sonic	Sonic is based out of Oklahoma City.
Oregon	Nike	Nike is headquarted in Beaverton.
Pennsylvania	Hershey’s	The Hershey Company is based out of Pennsylvania, in a town called Hershey.
Rhode Island	Hasbro	Hassenfeld Brothers was founded in Providence in 1923. Today, Hasbro is based in Pawtucket.
South Carolina	Denny’s	Denny’s is based out of Spartanburg.
South Dakota	Super 8	Super 8 opened its first motel in Aberdeen in 1974.
Tennessee	FedEx	FedEx is headquartered in Memphis.
Texas	Dr Pepper	Now part of Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Dr Pepper was invented in Waco in 1885.
Utah	Sinclair	Sinclair Oil Corporation is based out of Salt Lake City.
Vermont	Ben & Jerry’s	Now part of Unilever, Ben & Jerry’s was started in Burlington in 1978.
Virginia	AOL	AOL was founded in Vienna in 1991.
Washington	Starbucks	The first Starbucks opened in Seattle in 1971.
West Virginia	Gino’s	Gino’s Pizza and Spaghetti is based out of Nitro.
Wisconsin	Harley-Davidson	Harley-Davidson was founded in Milwaukee in 1903.
Wyoming	Taco John’s	Taco John’s is based out of Cheyenne.