Commercial 5

Commercial 5- Worlds Scariest Shave

In the “Worlds Scariest Shave” commercial for Gillette Proglide, two men are put in cages hundreds of feet below water. The catch? There are sharks surrounding them. As they are being lowered into the water, the announcer reminds the audience that sharks love blood. Once the men are each in the water, they are asked to shave. While one uses the Gillette Proglide, the other uses a disposable razor. The man who uses the disposable razor immediately cuts his face, while the Gillette user shaves flawlessly. As the commercial comes to an end, the announcer asks the audience, “whose shoes would you want to be in?”

This commercial is effective, unique and enthralling. By setting up this experiment, Gillette puts its razor into perspective. Why would anyone want cuts on their face? Especially if they are going to be surrounded by sharks. Even if you are never going to be in a situation with sharks, the idea makes sense. No one likes cuts, and who wants to wear a band-aid on their face?

Razor commercials typically involve a handsome man shaving in the mirror. Occasionally, a famous celebrity is used as a spokesperson. Since Gillette chose a different approach, it makes them stand out. This is a more creative ad for a razor company!

During the commercial, I wondered if the sharks were actually in the water with them. The producers could have put the two men in tanks with sharks. Or, they could have used digital technology to add the sharks. Honestly, I am not sure which one was used. That must mean they did a good job. Overall, there is not anything that I would do to change this ad. Gillette got the point across in a unique and creative way and produced an effective ad. 

Commercial 4

Commercial 4- Axe Excite: “Even Angels Will Fall”

            In the axe excite commercial, it first shows a young boy in a crowded area. All of the sudden, angels fall. Then, we see a man getting off his motorcycle and suddenly angels are surrounding him. The last few seconds, that same man is using the new Axe Excited and the announcer says, “even angels will fall.”

            This commercial is confusing and does not relate to the product itself. However, many unique production techniques are used to help create the ad. Digital technology is used when the angels land on the street. Though the technology was used well in this scene, the overall idea does not translate to the purpose of the product. I understand that they want to associate axe with an exciting moment, such as when the gorgeous angels are surrounding the men, but the unrealistic aspect of this idea makes the ad unconvincing. If the product were called “fantasy” or something similar then it would fit with the idea.

            Though I do not love the commercial itself, the digital technology adds to the value that the ad has. For instance, if “angels” had walked onto the street instead of falling from the sky, the ad would have been less interesting. In the future, axe should consider the purpose of its product and incorporate that into the commercial. Realistically, a man’s deodorant is not going to bring angels to him, even if it is called Axe Excite. The ad would have been more effective if it related more to the purpose of the product.  I am not even sure if it was promoting axe or deodorant. The brand sells both. 

Commercial 3

Commercial 3- Head and Shoulders Troy Polamalu Commercial

In the head and shoulders commercial, the spot features Troy Polamalu, a NFL Steelers player. The commercial first shows his teammate looking at a bottle of head and shoulders, wondering why it seems lighter. He quickly realizes that his teammate, Troy Polamalu, has noticeably thicker hair. After a comical argument during which Polamlu denies using the shampoo, he finally admits he had been using it.

The spot would appeal to football fanatics who like Troy Polamalu. By using a celebrity to promote their product, the company reaches out to other football fans. However, I found the ad to be unconvincing. The ad uses digital technology to show Polamalu’s hair growing larger. But, it is obvious that Polamalu’s hair is growing because of the use of technology, not because of the shampoo. The argument that Polamalu and his teammate have also seems forced. Though they argue in a light-hearted way, it does not seem authentic. At the end of the commercial, the announcer finally states that the shampoo helps your hair grow noticeably thicker.

To make the ad more effective, I would recommend using people (or football players in this case) who actually use the product and see realistic results. Though the spot presents the shampoo in a some-what funny manner, the overall idea is not convincing. 

Commercial 2

Commercial 2- Otrivin Nasal: Shoelace

The Otrivin Nasal “shoelace” commercial is humorous and clever. It starts off by portraying a man at a bus station with his mouth wide open. He looks unintelligent, oblivious to the world around him and out of place. To make it worse, his shoelace is untied. The lady standing next to him is clearly starring at him, questioning his intelligence and confused as to why the man is not tying his shoe. Eventually, she takes charge and ties his shoe for him.

The commercial subtly implies that the lady believes the man has something mentally wrong with him. As the commercial ends, the words “you look dumber with your mouth open” appear on the screen.  Then, the Otrivin bottle finally appears.

This commercial addresses an issue many people experience with the common cold: inability to breathe through one’s nose. No one wants to walk around with his or her mouth open, but sometimes it’s the only thing you can do. But now, Otrivin can help you.

Typically, commercials for medicine involve a spokesperson explaining the benefits of a product. Otrivin sells its product to consumers by relating to a common problem: walking around with your mouth open when you have a cold.  

The production techniques used to produce this ad were simple. There is no animation or digital images. I would not change how this ad was filmed or produced. The ad gets the point across quickly through its humor. Furthermore, the ad focuses on sound. The viewer can hear the man heavily breathing as he draws negative attention from others. This simple sound evokes emotion from many people. Almost everyone has been annoyed by his or her inability to breathe or by someone else’s heavy breathing. Through these simple actions, such as the use of sound and simplicity, the consumer can identify with the brand. Overall, this ad is effective as it conveys the purpose of the product and is relatable to the average consumer. 

Commercial 1

1.    New Axe Full Control Commercial

Deodorant is something that everyone needs, but thinks effortlessly about. When I go to the grocery store, I do not focus on the brand of the deodorant, but rather the price. As a result, any deodorant company is faced with the challenge of presenting their deodorant as unique.

In the new Axe Full Control commercial, a nervous and anxious young man loses a gorgeous girl, as he is struggling to control his sweating and anxiety. Yet, when he sprays Axe Full Control under his arms, he suddenly transforms into a charming, attractive man who has the confidence to win a girl.

Overall, I thought this commercial was well executed. It was simply created. The men portrayed are your average looking men, which I believe made the ad more relatable to younger men. The music added to the overall impact of the commercial. The slow and dramatic music emphasized the extremity of the event. No man wants to experience perspiration when meeting a gorgeous woman. By focusing on a common issue that embarrasses many men, this commercial is able to relate to the average man.

Compared to many other commercials I have seen, Axe did not use any unique special effects to produce this ad. Yet, I believe that the ad was still a success. Deodorant is a simple product, so an over-the top, digitally enhanced ad was not necessary to promote this product. However, I would recommend making it clear from the beginning that it is going to be an axe deodorant ad. At first, I was not sure what it was promoting. It could have been trying to sell a pill to help control your anxiety! Nevertheless, the ad was humorous, simple and unique. 

Last Day at The Festival...Time Has Flown By!

Day 7 At The Festival…I Can’t believe it’s the last day!

Time has flown by, that is for sure. After a week full of seminars, workshops, master classes and meetings with influential people, I woke up excited to head to Cannes for the day.

I started my day off by attending the AICP Digital seminar on innovation in advertising. I did not find it to be interesting at all. The panel spoke about integrated productions and the importance of working together as a team. This idea is something we have heard many times at the festival this week.

I did find the VW campaign they showed interesting. VW wanted to showcase their new car at the super bowl, but it was not ready yet. So, they needed to find a solution. Instead, they created an insect and filmed it as if they were filming someone driving a car (they showed it going down the road etc). The beetle acted like a vehicle throughout the entire shoot. To take this campaign further, when the ad was viewed online, the beetle reacted outside of the picture frame. For example, the beetle hits the header of the YouTube video and runs over the comments. I thought it was a good way to integrate the campaign.

I then attended the B-Reel digital schmigital for 2012. During this seminar, they stressed the importance of having no set formulas when trying to create a digital idea. They emphasized being creative and thinking out of the box.  For example, they showed a campaign for IKEA where the first person to tag themselves in an IKEA showroom picture on facebook will get the product. I think this is a great way to get people involved and aware of your products. If I was one of the people who won an item, I would definitely tell my friends all about it!

The last seminar I attended was Grupo Consultores: Brazil, Revealing The Secrets. Since Brazil is the country I am following at the festival, it was worth my time to attend. But, I felt like they were promoting their country the whole time! I did not learn any useful information to apply to my studies. However, I did learn a lot for my report. Advertising in Brazil is being fueled by an increasingly stronger economy, by hosting the 2015 world cup and by hosting the 2016 Olympic games. Furthermore, the lower class is slowly moving out of poverty and into the middle class. 30% of consumption in Brazil is in the middle class. So, there are more and more consumers eager to buy goods each day in Brazil. This creates a need for more advertising.  

After the Brazil seminar, I went to lunch and headed back to JLP to get ready for the final awards ceremony. Hopefully it will be a fun night! 

Chocolate is part of a healthy diet?? Thanks, Nestle CEO

Day 6 at the Festival- Friday!

Today started off as a typical day in Cannes---at the Cookies and Coffee shop. After jump-starting my day with a latte, I headed to the first master class of the day: The HP Graphics and BBDO seminar on creative engineering. During the seminar, Marcos Medeiros spoke about Billboard Magazine’s new successful campaign. In this new digital age, various print magazines, such as Billboard, struggle to maintain their market share. When first learning that Medeiros was going to talk about a print campaign, I questioned if it was going to be interesting. I was surprised.

BBDO utilized digital technology to create an interesting, unique and engaging campaign for the magazine. They used the newest HP printing technology to take images of famous celebrities and incorporate them into the print ads. To take the campaign further, HP set up places where people could take their own pictures. I found this approach to be very innovative!

In one of the ads, BBDO made the entire alphabet out of images of pop stars. One in particular, was focused around Michael Jackson (though it never was printed because of his death). I believe that this campaign successfully integrated new digital technology into a medium that is sometimes not up to speed with the new technology.

This campaign showed that print (as a medium) can still be interactive. It can cause emotions and link to other ideas.

After the master class, we listened to the CEO of Atlanta BBDO. He was very interesting to listen to. During our session, he stated that we are in the golden age of creativity. I believe that this is true. The growth of technology in the last 5 years is astonishing. It enables creators to produce meaningful and engaging ads. He also brought up the importance of teamwork. He claims that the only way to have a successful campaign is to orchestrate the idea and collaborate. So many times, a person’s self-interest gets in the way of the final goal. Teamwork is definitely the answer to being able to create the best product.

Next was the Cannes Debate with Sir Martin Sorell, James Murdoch and Jeffery Katzenberg. I thought the debate was okay. They spoke about how ipads can be used for educational purposes in school. I thought this idea was interesting. It was also stated that in 3 ½ hours of football, the football is actually in play for under 15 minutes. I was shocked! This statistic shows how relevant ads are on TV networks.

I then attended the Publicis groupe seminar with Nestle CEO Paul Bulcke. It was not one of my favorite seminars. Though Bulcke talked about some aspects of Nestlé’s marketing plan, such as being sensitive to a customers needs, he offered no insight into their overall campaigns and did not add any meaningful information. He did state that chocolate is part of a healthy life. Apparently it has a lot of anti-oxidants on it. I want to see research on this!

Tomorrow is our last day at the festival…I can’t believe it. I’m looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings. Maybe we will figure out a way to get closing gala tickets!!