Yet Another 'Inventive' New Way to Ease Advertising into Everyday Use

Here's a winning notion. You know how people get their hands stamped when they walk into clubs? What if that stamp was an ad for your brand?

This patent-pending stroke of genius is the brainchild of Handvertising, USA. Impressed? Well then, hurry and get your stamps made.

Here's another genius idea: toilet paper advertising! Oh wait, that's been done. Hmm. Advertising on notebook paper? Damn, that's taken too.

Lottery Tickets in WA are Limited. Swallow Yours

This pair of new Washington lottery ads by by Publicis, Seattle highlights the power of human ingenuity when it comes to finding hiding places for important items.

Watch a woman (who looks a lot like this non-woman) retrieve her boss' ticket from down his throat. And watch this dude slam his cast into hard objects.

Come on, guys. Reality has given us plenty of better scenarios. Where's the guy shoving the ticket in his ass along with the coke rock? Where's the series of wild-eyed bandits cutting open the livers of (apparently) sleeping children?

Do it like you mean it!

Toyota Tundra: So Tough, It Evades Disaster While Hauling 10,300 LBS!

This spot, which seems to be targeted exclusively to truckers, lumberjacks and Wrangler jeans owners, was put together by Anonymous Content.

We like how at the end you can hear everyone going, "YAAARR!"

Aussie Speed Demons Get Egos Checked with Derisive Pinky Wiggles

This ad is part of an Australian road safety campaign that's become a big winner amongst citizens Down Under.

Instead of sharing cautionary tales about traumatic crashes, the message here is simple:

Men who speed have small dicks.

And to bring boisterous tire-burners down to size, the ad introduces a useful new gesture: nonplussed women and put-off buddies wiggling pinkies to illustrate speeders' "insecurities."

It's perfect.

more »

Evian Gives Second Life Users a New Lease on Skin

We took issue with Evian's use of language in the last ad of theirs we covered, but the words on its virtual vending machine are just too weird not to pick at.

The machine reads, "Bring your skin to life." and "Get FREE skins!"

Not sure how it's possible, but before Evian, we haven't seen anybody talk of human skin and online skins so closely together.

Strange. And somehow very uncomfortable. (We're thinking Silence of the Lambs, except without the moths.)

Anyway, Evian actually is giving Second Life residents new skin when they buy a bottle of Evian water. According to the pressie, "the bodily presentation of the character then becomes more defined, having a better texture and is lit in a more flattering manner."

Get Results. Initiate Employees into the Cult of Apple.

This is part of a mailer we received for Apple's corporate gift and rewards program, which, with lots of other catchy slogans, admonishes execs to "get results. Give Apple."

Few companies can ride unconditional youth acceptance of costly lifestyle products while simultaneously suggesting that enterprises also buy the same products en masse. And engraved!

But Apple will be the first to tell you it's the exception to many rules.

Anne Hathaway, Jennifer Connelly Join Parade of Celebrity Endorsers

The parade of celebrity endorsers continues with Anne Hathaway in talks with Lancome to follow Kate Wnslet and Clive Owen. Jennifer Connelly is said to be next in line for Balenciaga and Victoria Beckham is rumored to become the face of Marc Jacobs. We'll look at anything with Anne Hathaway in it. Jennifer Connelly, not so much. After her fully endowed turns in The Rocketeer and Career Opportunities, we lost interest a bit. OK, Requiem for a Dream wasn't bad. And Posh? Well, she hasn't been posh since she was Posh (and we mean the first time around).

Six Packed Hotties Herald Breast Cancer Cause

It's about time. Most every campaign that calls attention to breast cancer features some colored ribbon or some celebrity lamely attempting to soften you up so you'll make a donation. Why? Why? Why? It's boring. Why not offer women (the ones affected by this disease) what they really want; stunningly hot, six packed guys in near nude poses offering themselves up as fantasy fodder. It might even be enough to make that next chemo session pass a little quicker.

Well, that's what The McGratch Foundation's Naked for a Cause did for its 2008 calendar. It enlisted the help of 26 NRL and AFL Australian footballers to strip down and offer up their chiseled bodies for all to admire. Who can complain with that? We have our Double Standard-equipped saber to debate anyone who does.

Adrants Gets Cozy With Watershed Publishing

So yes it's true, Adrants has sold a percentage of its soul to Watershed Publishing, the company behind MarketingVOX (which, back in the day, I had a hand in founding), MediaBuyerPlanner and Marketing Charts. But, not a majority of it's sole so things will remain as they have always been around here and under my control.

In terms of the deal, Adrants will benefit from having an actual company with actual people behind it who will improve Adrants' infrastructure, sales and growth. Adrants isn't just a little ad blog any more - and hasn't been for quite some time. Now, in partnership with Watershed, all four publications reach an audience twice the size of Advertising Age's online properties and 15 percent larger than the sum of those from Nielsen Business Media's advertising properties which includes AdWeek, BrandWeek and MediaWeek. Hey, we're just saying. We still love all of you.

more »

American Airlines Really Does Know Why You Fly

Apparently, American Airlines was on to something when it launched its "We Know Why You Fly" campaign a few years ago. We're told the campaign has increased awareness of the airline from 50 percent to 85 percent "in some key markets and among business travelers." Of course, "some key markets" could be Ketchikan, Alaska and Bangor, Maine but let's not rain of their celebratory parade.

more »