advertisingatitsbest

Not really a promotion for Christmas in July…but I figured since it’s the end of the month, we should celebrate Christmas in July with this creative Christmas promotion.

For Christmas, Mercedes Benz sent “gifts” to loyal Mercedes customers who had a purchasing history of going from one Mercedes vehicle to another.

The logo of the brand was used to create a Christmas Tree Topper, similar to the stars the average family puts on top of their tree to celebrate the holidays.  The promotion included the message: let the star shine from above.

What do you think of this promotion? Was it most effective going to loyal customers? Could anything similar have been done to reach out to perspective customers or to customers who have only purchased one Mercedes vehicle?

From Mercedes point of view, going to the loyal customers was done to show their appreciation of the purchases and also to reach out to family members of the current Mercedes owners.  Research shows that the most loyal Mercedes customers often are the sons of Mercedes owners.  Apparently good taste in vehicles runs in the family!

The promotion was a success for the brand, as according to Ads of the World, dozens of emails were received looking into purchasing another vehicle for themselves or for other family members.

Source: Ads of the World 

One attention grabbing ad for the day!

The Metro Transit of Minneapolis is turning heads and trying to get the attention of Minneapolis residents!

Apparently messages such as, “buy your bus tickets here,” “save on gas; use public transportation” and “be green…use public transportation” didn’t work for the transit company in getting people to switch to public transportation.  So they are trying a new message.

“Throw Away the Car!”

And they were quite literal in their promotion by actually putting this vehicle in a dumpster in the streets of Minneapolis.

According to their website, “Metro Transit is the transportation resource for the Twin Cities, offering an integrated network of buses, trains as well as resources for those who carpool, vanpool, walk or bike. It is working to add Bus Rapid Transit and the proposed Northstar Commuter Rail to the list of options.”  They also promote a very green and environmentally friendly environment.  Do you think campaign will get the message across?

What do you think of this campaign? Will it get people’s attention?

Source: AdWeek

Remember the Aqua Teen Hunger Force promotion that hit the streets of Boston and scared half of the population into hiding in fear of terrorist acts?

Well, it appears another promotion, this time for the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight, had similar effects.

The multi phase promotion for the movie, in its final phase, featured a cake wired to look like an explosive device; according to AdWeek, the promotion created such a stir that a San Antonio news station called in the bomb squad last week.

The cake was the finale of a three week campaign from the a chain of movie theaters aimed at the local media.

The Santikos Theater chain delivered the promo to the local television station who then proceeded to call the San Antonio police after the cake wired with a cell phone was delivered to its office.

The full campaign began on June 26, when a classified ad (presumably penned by Batman’s arch-enemy, the Joker) was placed in local papers recruiting clowns. The ad directed people to email with interest to whysoserious@santikos.com. When inquiring minds emailed, they were sent information about the new movie premiere.  All local media were alerted of the campaign via press release.

“Next up was a faux news report, created in conjunction with a local Fox affiliate, about graffiti artists tagging the local theater with the Batman symbol. It was aired on local networks and a clip was sent to San Antonio newsrooms with a release that posed the question, “What will the clowns do next?” The NBA San Antonio Spurs’ coyote mascot was then kidnapped while trying to remove the graffiti, according to another bogus new spot,” quoted the AdWeek article.

The final piece of the promotion was the cake with a ransom note that read: “If you want to see coyote again be at the Palladium [theater] at 8 p.m.” A phone number was included and when called information on receiving press badges to the premiere of the movie was announced.

Source: AdWeek

What do you think of this promotion?  Would you have been concerned had it been delivered to your place of employment?   Were these good ideas to assist in the promotion of the movie premiere?

To follow up the multicolored bottled to promote gay pride, and the already existing nine flavors of Absolut vodka including Pear, Mandrin, Cirton, Peach, Pepper, Kurrant, Rasberri, Rubi Red & Vanilla, the newest from Absolut has arrived!

Blinged out bottles!  And in many forms!

Absolut Masquerade, the Swedish premium vodka company’s  newest, gorgeous, glittery bottle with a label that reads, “In a Absolut World, Every night is a Masquerade.” The red sequined jacket zips off and reveals a 1 litre bottle of the spirit in its classic bottle, read the Trendhunter article.

Other fun, sparkly ways to celebrate with Absolut include Absolut Bling Bling and Absolut Disco.

The limited edition Absolut Bling Bling comes with a gift pack, full of sparkly goodies to accessorize your bottle of vodka.

And finally Absolut Disco which was promoted with an interactive viral contest and asked consumers to “dance like no one’s watching,” then send the video clip in the site where it would be scored. Once you remove the disco ball like covering, you will find your favorite bottle of Vodka!

My favorite about the Disco promotion?  Even in small town, rural America I was able to find this special edition bottle!

What are your thoughts on the special edition line of Vodka?  Which one is your favorite?  Would you ever purchase one of these special edition bottles?

Source: Trendhunter 

Is McDonald’s trying to break a Guinness Book World Record? Maybe!

And they may be doing it with their newest advertising message.

The current record holder for corn mazes is 40 acres and McDonald’s newest ad is 42.6 acres.

McDonald’s cut out this giant maze in a cornfield in the middle of Nebraska to advertise its line of coffee.

The maze is open to the public and as Adweek reads, “Most visitors will take 45 to 90 minutes to navigate each phase of the maze; and of course, will leave with a courtesy coupon for a free latte, mocha or cappuccino specialty coffee from McDonald’s.”

What do you think of this technique? Is it effective? Will people visit the maze?

Have you seen any other companies use this method of advertising?

Source: Adweek

 An American Favorite! An Italian Favorite! That’s right!  Pizza!

Pizza lovers and organizations are marketing all aspects of pizza these days.  Whether its the topping, the delivery services, or just the love of pizza, the following three pizza ads will really get your mouth watering!

1)  Celebrate Pizza!

In Brazil, a line of grocery stores celebrated international pizza day with these strategically placed pizza doughs! On ceilings!

2) Cheeeeesy!

In Korea, Pizza Hut used this creative outdoor technique, by utilizing two posters, to promote its extra cheesy pizza!

3) Delivered to your door!

Papa John’s Pizza used these door viewers to promote the delivery of the pizza.  They attached all of these mini ads to peoples’ doors right beneath the viewer.

What do you think?  What other good pizza ads have you seen?  Which of the three above is your favorite?

Source: Ads of the World  

Elevators have become one of the newest mediums for advertisers to take advantage of.  Whether it is in a shopping mall, doctor’s office or business building, the following three elevator ads are three of my favorites!

1.) Dunk it!

This one is brand new from Oreo!  And it doesn’t use the elevator doors to get the message across as most elevator advertisements do!

The brand takes the traditionally dunked cookie and displays the dunking capabilities  using this elevator.  With the milk glass sticker attached to the outside of the elevator shaft and the cookie on the actual elevator, you see the proper way to eat an Oreo cookie every time someone hits the first floor.

2.)  Look Inside!

To promote the Body Worlds exhibit, these elevator doors were used displaying the outside of a human body and the message, look inside!  Once the doors open, you have the opportunity to see the inside of the human body (stuck on the wall of course) just as you will see at the exhibit.

3.) Park It! 

What a better way to promote the new parking sensor feature on the Fiat then with the opening and closing of elevator doors.

What do you think?  Which one is your favorite? What other great elevator ads have you seen?

Source: Ads of the World 

It’s that time! Political advertising is at its prime.

And why use traditional advertising when you can create so called advertisements, sell them  to individuals and then have them wear your ads and promote your candidacy?

Introducing shoes as advertisements!  And not just any ads…political ads.

So, calling all Obama fans! These new advertisements, I mean shoes, are the ultimate must-have for Barack Obama fans!

The shoes include Obama’s famous “Yes We Can” slogan printed in white lettering around one side of blue shoe’s outer rim, while the other side reads “Change.”

If it isn’t enough to carry Obama’s political message around with you, then the black and white portrait of his face should help!

Along with this, one shoe has red laces and the other comes with blue laces; this will help bring together the patriotic American theme.

What do you think of these shoes?  Good promotion for Obama?  Would you wear them?

Source: Trendhunter

Not sure how many of you have seen this ad campaign from Dove, but I thought it would be a fun one to share this weekend!

This campaign from Dove was to promote their new line of products with the message: Unstick Your Style.

The new products include:

Volumizing Mousse for New Movement in Hair.  Perfect for Wilma Flinstone!

Anti Frizz Creme for New Movement in Hair; and who better to test this product on than Marge Simpson!

And of course who could forget Jane Jetson in desperate need of Hairspray!

What do you think of this fun, light hearted campaign?  Good advertising?

Last month, Expedia used this blue sky themed, painters extravaganza, guerilla marketing campaign to promote the longest day of the year.

Expedia in London celebrated the July 21 Summer Solstice by hosting a variety Blue Sky Day painting events in Edinburgh, Cornwall, Brighton, Liverpool and London, according to Adrants.

“In London, the event worked in partnership with The National Gallery and London’s Trafalgar Square and was set up with 200 easels for aspiring artists, with three pieces being selected for the organization’s gallery,” said the article.

In addition to the 200 painters in London, there were an additional 100 in Edinburgh.

What do you think of this guerilla marketing technique?  Effective for Expedia?  What about the PR and word of mouth that came from the event?

Source: Adrants