Audi Q5 Goes Anywhere Your Bicycle Can. Well, Not Really.

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Here's a cute little Audi Q5 spot called "Bicycle." It's shot from the perspective of a bike-rider exploring the city on a beautiful day; later, you discover it's not the bike doing the work but a teeny little Audi, upon whose roof the bike is resting.

"Agility that conquers the city," the tagline reads.

Trendy and chic material brought to us by Ogilvy & Mather/Tokyo. Guess it would be too much to ask for the car to do wheelies, or leap off little wooden ramps resting on barrels, but it's cool that it goes down public stairs and invades pedestrian walkways and whatnot.

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 5-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Commercials, Television



Because Who Needs Hands...

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...when you've got a bra that turns your mammaries into superclamps? And consider this: if women had more paws for shopping bags, they'd probably be a lot less depressed. For the next eight minutes, anyway.

Just another support-illustrating gem by Wonderbra (via y via).

Previous efforts to break the mold with basoomas have included the glass-breaking bus shelter ad, the extra caution line at metros, and the, uh, "we hold big boulders" approach.

by Angela Natividad    Jun- 5-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Magazine, Poster



Bud Lite Puts Tongue in Cheek

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Ever walk into a store and buy something you'd rather no one see you buy? And then your prom date shows up? And the store clerk has to shout to the other store clerk at the top of her lungs about what you're buying? And then some freak exacerbates the issue? And then the store gets held up? And then you're on the news?

Thank God for the internet no one is at risk of going through this scenario any more. Which begs the question. What was Bud Light thinking when they made this ad? Are these things still sold in convenience stores? And why would anyone risk embarrassment when they can obtain an endless supply of the stuff in the privacy of their own home?

by Steve Hall    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Video



'Can't' Has No Place in Ladies Lacrosse, Gentlemen.

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Longtime coach Barry Switzer invades the locker room of the St. Anne's Ladies Lacrosse team, which is more interested in campfires than in kicking some padded ass. Fast discouraged by the ladies' refusal to be pep-talked (which is something we practice in the mirror every morning while primping), he wanders off on a quest for a donut.

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Celebrity, Online



Dissecting GM, Facebook Poetry, Playing God with Sims 3

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- The Big Money conspiracy theorizes around GM's post-bankruptcy ad.

- Self-affirming Facebook poetry. Face it though, no pun intended: if you're among the 50% of users spending over 20 minutes on average per day distributing pokes and Liking other people's surveys, you require no sagacious back-patting. You're all up in a self-made echo chamber, untouchable by prickly realities and ugly strangers.

- iPhone Apps need to be buttressed by other forms of marketing. Also, they need to be useful. Seriously though, did you need AdAge to tell you that? (Say it with us: "Nooooo.")

- 3D pop-up book music video. Can't imagine it? Just watch.

- "We really felt like the ability to create human beings, to give them a soul, if you will, was really exciting," says an EA rep about The Sims 3. See the encapsulation of that vision.

- Pop online SMB philosophy.

by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Video



Chiquita Smoothie Bejeweled Effectively Tanks Our Thursday

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Few things entice us as readily as a Bejeweled knockoff. We've lost whole days to this game; now, on account of Chiquita, we've lost our whole afternoon.

This promotion for Chiquita Smoothies is a good way to not work -- plus, if you can fill the blender with aligned fruit well before time's up, you get entered (and re-entered!) into a sweepstakes to win a trip to Jamaica. (Where you can play iPhone Bejeweled, beachside, to tropical music.)

Work by matrixx, which knows the secret to a good advergame: keep it simple, incentivize gamers; tap into something they're already obsessed with and know how to play.

UPDATE: What the hell kind of advergame doesn't have a pause button. Are you trying to get us fired?

by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Games, Good, Online, Promotions



Michael Jordan Had a Guru. And that Guru's Cashing Out.

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"Michael Jordan was the greatest player EVAR! But even he needed inspiration."

For MJ, inspiration apparently came in the form of Leroy Smith, who smushes basketballs with his bare hands and make man-on-man domination puns without breaking a sweat. Also, Get Your Basketball On RIGHT NOW and get his free motivational cookbook.

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Video



Tissue Tree Bears Silky Relief to Spontaneous Sneezers

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In time for allergy season -- which not only stimulates sneezes but generates impromptu tear-duct leakage -- Kleenex erected a Tissue Tree, swathed in silk, no less, beside Sydney's Museum of Contemporary Art.

The tree was inspired by the work of "wrapping" artist Christo and is wrapped in over a kilometer of silk. (See metric conversion here.) More importantly, it sports 700 generous tissue blossoms, which passersby can tug out at leisure.

Clever way to promote Kleenex Silk Touch, whose wares are supposed to be even softer than the average snot receptacle. Greenpeace is gonna have a helluva good time tearing the lovely idea a new one, though. We can already hear the siren song: Turning your gauche synthetic wares into fake spins on the noble arbors that fell for your cause? You sick bastards!

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Brands, Good, Guerilla, Outdoor, Promotions



Whopper Freakout Wins BK, CP+B a Grand Effie

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Last night at the Effies, Crispin Porter + Bogusky was recognized for "Whopper Freakout," the incendiary stunt work it did for Burger King in '07.

"Burger King won the Grand Effie convincingly due to their boldness and creativity across multiple media platforms, delivering real cultural relevance and above all, outstanding business results," gushed Chairman Carl Johnson of the Effie Worldwide Board of Directors/Co-Founder, Anomaly.

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 4-09    
Topic: Agencies, Brands, Campaigns, Industry Events



Doritos Unleashes Sweet Chili Lovers on Willing Webcammers

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To promote its Sweet Chili packs, Doritos Brazil adds a touch of the surreal to your day.

Click on "Liberte seu Doritos Lover" ("liberate your Doritos lover") in the upper left-hand corner of the Doritos Sweet Chili website, then enable it to access your webcam. Your presence on-screen is supposed to stimulate the release of a "Doritos lover" -- a friendly cartoon monster, of which over 18 trillion unique variants are possible, says Contagious Mag.

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by Angela Natividad    Jun- 3-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Good, Online, Social