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Google recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Rubik’s cube with a special doodle that allowed users to a play with a digital version of the popular toy. And now, following on from the success of this initiative, the website has launched a video that uses the Rubik’s code as a premise to inspire innovation among the youth.
Back in 2005, Cyber Monday kicked off the US and has become the biggest single online shopping day in the country (and possibly helped reduce the numbers of tramplings, brawls and taserings on Black Friday); in China, Singles Day is now the biggest online shopping day of the year worldwide; and a number of other countries have replicated these events. New Zealand has been a little late to this e-commerce party, but, following on from the success of its inaugural Click Madness event last year, The Warehouse Group is set to kick off another one on Friday 13 June.
Former Wall Street security analyst, venture capitalist and all-round data genius Mary Meeker recently published her 2014 internet trends presentation on the KPCB website. Comprising 164 slides of dense data, the voluminous analysis of the industry provides an interesting cross-section of the major trends taking shape this year.
Coca-Cola-owned Powerade has introduced a new app and updated its website in an effort to encourage Kiwis to lead healthier lifestyles. Rather than focusing on the Powerade product range, the new website instead provides users with a performance hub where they can set fitness goals, receive training programmes, track their performance and map runs. These digital upgrades coincide with the release of the sports drink’s ‘Performance is everything’ campaign, which was recently activated via an Ogilvy-created TVC that features All Blacks Liam Messam, Beauden Barrett and Julian Savea battling on a rugby field through a heavy downpour.
For better or for worse, the world has gone social and as the number of normal humans using social platforms increases, brands have invited themselves to their party. Social Media Club Auckland’s growth shows there’s plenty of interest in the scene from a commercial point of view and now it’s calling for nominations for the inaugural #SMCAKL Awards, with categories including Meteoric Rise on Social Media, Most Epic Tweet, Social Media Whoopsie, Best Display of Social Conscience and Best use of Social Media By a Brand or Company.
Coca-Cola has been on something of a self-flagellation mission of late in its advertising campaigns. In what can be seen as an effort to undo some of the environmental harm it has done due to the sheer number of empty plastic bottles strewn all over the world, the company has been focused on relaying a strong recycling message in many of its recent campaigns.
Fewer than two months after pinning rabbit skins to billboards, the sadistic team at Hell Pizza has now decided to turn its sadistic streak toward consumers by creating what it is being dubbed as the “hottest pizza in Australasia”. Topped with a generous helping of ghost peppers (which measure one million Scoville heat units), the Angry Dragon Pizza is largely a follow-on from the 2012 ‘Pizza Roulette’ campaign that had various unfortunate Kiwis reaching for the milk.
The marcomms industry continues to develop new ways of getting consumers’ attention—and, some would argue, new ways of getting awards judges’ attention. And with the current cacophony of commercial messages, it takes a lot to stand out. But Aussie agency Cummins & Partners has found a way to draw attention to the Creative Fuel conference—and poke fun at the persuasive arts in the process: combine everything the industry salivates over into one ridiculous idea.
To those of inferior palate, the world of taste-testing seems wildly pretentious and filled with descriptors that have little to do with food or drink. So, in an effort to expose how laughable this tends to be, Scotch whisky company Laphroaig recently launched a campaign, via UK agency White Label, that invites common folk to share their opinions—however scathing—on its spirit.
The University of Canterbury Futures communications team has reigned supreme in its campaign to reinvent itself after the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, taking home the supreme honour at the 40th annual Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) Awards.
Newcastle Brown Ale’s ‘No Bollocks’ campaign is a true gem and shows that there is some truth left in advertising (“now we handcraft the same delicious beer using huge, giant machines”). And it’s continued to give traditional marketing practices a ribbing (and stock footage companies a boost) with its latest promotion, which offers punters a cheque for $1 when they sign up to its Twitter account.
If Sharp Suits was the visual representation of the difficulties faced by those in agency land, this piece by Mike Larcher that’s based around giving God client feedback on the creation of the Earth, is the textual.
The growing popularity of facial coverings among certain sections of the male populous has led some to predict we have now reached ‘peak beard’, where the more beards there are, the less appealing they become. If so, that’s good news for the razor makers who sell the tools required for proper beard maintenance. And Schick and Y&R have attempted to push that anti-beard agenda by showing a series of men who have quite literally gone feral as part of a campaign for its new Hydro Groomer.
Once again, the latest readership and circulation figures didn’t make for particularly good reading for any of the major newspaper publishers, but online portals are still a shining light, at least in terms of audience numbers, so Fairfax is aiming to shine more light upon stuff.co.nz with a new campaign via Shine and Open that shows how it gives its audience the full spectrum.
After picking up agency of the year in the inaugural Asia Pacific Effie Awards earlier in the year, Colenso BBDO has followed it up with a good haul at the Asian Marketing Effectiveness and Strategy Awards (AMES) in Singapore. And Saatchi & Saatchi was hot on its heels.
Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.
In recent years, Fly Buys has been on a mission to expand the range of things card holders can use their points for, whether it’s music, flights or toasters. And BNZ has been promoting some fairly innovative products lately as part of its ‘Be Good With Money’ brand strategy. Last year, the two collided, with BNZ announcing its KiwiSaver scheme members would be able to redeem Fly Buys points to make contributions to their or another person’s BNZ KiwiSaver schemes. And it’s released an ad via Colenso BBDO to trumpet that point of difference and show that its customers can be good with your money, even when they’re spending it.
Earlier this week, TVNZ caught 12 staff members off guard by announcing that the current affairs show 20/20 would no longer be airing local content from the end of June this year—giving those working on the show just over a month’s notice of the change in direction. PLUS: see what TVNZ had to say about the NZ Herald article by John Drinnan.
Changes at Assignment Group, Sovereign, the MPA, Bauer, Shine, Sky, Icebreaker, More FM and PRINZ.
In the past few years, the innovative marking teams behind Coca-Cola’s campaigns throughout the world have put our names on cans, created bottle-powered arcade games and taken a cheer-collecting bus across Argentina. And this inventive trend now continues with Bogota-based Leo Burnett’s introduction of the friendly twist bottle, which features a unique lid that can only be opened when paired with another.
Numbers can be spun to prove almost anything, something this industry often seems to be guilty of (thanks, percentage change!). And, in an effort to show that correlation is not causation, ‘statistical provocateur’ Tyler Vigen has created a brilliant data-rich, graph-heavy website.
Did you know that since 2011, traffic accidents have increased by 300% in China? A big reason for this is that pedestrians listening to music are drowning out ambient noise and getting run over. Thankfully Saatchi & Saatchi and VICE have come up with a clever little solution.
Having dominated the digital scene and helped to organise a big chunk of the world’s information, Google is now attempting to connect the dots with the tangible (and then possibly sell relevant ads around that, as evidenced by its recent filing with the SEC that shows its desire to show ads in cars or in the home). Its self-driving car project is among the most impressive uses of Google’s innovative collective brain (and massive warchest) and it’s launched a clip showing volunteers in a prototype vehicle.
A recent article in Fast Company documented the transition of Domino’s from a struggling pizza chain to a technology company. And transparency, data and utility played a major role in that evolution. As such, online ordering has become increasingly important for the company, as evidenced by the likes of the pizza tracker and various mobile apps (its iPad app even features a 3-D pizza builder). And the same focus on digital customer service obviously exists in New Zealand, because it’s walking its ‘people powered pizza’ talk and investing in 24/7 resource to monitor customers across all social media platforms. Plus: Domino’s domain name stoush.
The online realm offers some innovative ways to raise money and Boosted.org.nz, which claims to be only tailor-made philanthropic crowd-funding platform for arts projects in the world, is among them. And the site recently took home the Innovative Technology for Good Citizenship gong at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Awards.
Apple has aimed to position its products as essential creative companions through its ‘Your Verse’ campaign, with the last major ad featuring a voiceover from The Dead Poet’s Society. But for the next instalment, it’s ditched the words and focused on the actions of famed conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen and deaf travel writer Cherie King to show just how useful the iPad is.
There have been plenty of social experiments/hidden camera stunts recently, some that just scare the bejesus out of innocent bystanders, others that show the inherent goodness in humanity. And UK domestic violence charity ManKind is also using that technique to draw attention to what it feels is a double standard when it comes to domestic violence suffered by men.
Moves and shakes at the Herald on Sunday, Hunch, Union Digital, DDB, Contrafed Publishing, Lily & Louis and EstarOnline.
As many a North Shore expat will tell you, South Africa has limitless expanses of natural beauty, friendly people and an intriguing history. But relaying this story through advertising without making it seem clichéd, contrived and uninspiring isn’t easy. So rather than compiling yet another montage of wildlife shots, beach scenes and smiling faces, Tourism South Africa has instead to combine all these elements into a story that comes with a goosebump-causing twist ending.
