Fine Under: Not All Advertising Sucks

Even though I'm generally disgusted by the increasing intrusion of large scale commercial advertising onto every imaginable surface, I was pleasently surprised on my brief trip to Washington DC yesterday to discover some in the tunnels between the stations that was actually quite delightful. A series of lighted stills move by at just the right pace to create a short animation. The ghostly images appear with no warning and are rather eerie in their silence (perhaps not the best effect for every product), but also brought on a childlike sense of glee in seeing the classic zoetrope effect at that scale. I'd love to see what an NGO or artist could do with this medium.

I found this video of it on YouTube, though it's really much more dramatic in person...

Smells Clean

The Reality campaign continues its series of entertaining "Clean" Coal commercials...

Amnesty : You Are Powerful

Here is Amnesty International U.K.'s latest film called "you Are Powerful". It was created for the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Agency : Mother. Music : R.E.M - Until the Day is Done
From Dailymotion.


Here is another video of the Declaration of Human Rights re-interpreted in this nice motion film created by Seth Brau. A very nice mix of illustrations and typography. Produced by Amy Poncher. Music from Rumspringa.



Source : Human Rights Action Center.

Frosty The Coalman

You missed your chance to see this catchy holiday ditty on the oxymoronic American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCE) website, but thankfully YouTube has kept it alive in all its greenwashing glory...






For an alternative view on "clean" coal take a visit to Reality...

Stop Pain

Check out the campaign from the French non-governmental humanitarian organization, supported by the World Health Organization and state-approved, Douleurs Sans Frontières (Pain Without Borders). Like Doctors Without Borders they try to help people with medical and social care in areas where suffering caused by wars, disasters or hunger never ends.
In their campaign they used the treadmill to show the endless suffering of people in places like Cambodia, Indonesia or Africa.
This campaign was made in March of 2008 by TBWA/MAP Paris and is meant for raising funds.

"To put an end to endless pain, Make a donation"
War : Cambodia


















Tsunami : Indonesia


















Fires and War : Africa


















They also have a video :


Source.

Unicef Campaign in China

This is the new campaign of the UNİCEF association concerning China.
A strong baseline "Don't ignore me" and a touching creation by the Ogilvy & Mather Shanghai Agency.

The sign says : Don’t ignore me.
China has over 1.5 million underprivileged children.
To help, call 020 82266673.












































via commercial-archive.com

I Melt For No One?

Am I the only one that finds this deeply disturbing on many levels?

Spotted in NYC: Something's Missing

On a most recent trip to NYC I noticed these friendly large red signs on several bodegas in the upper West Side neighborhood where I was staying.
Something about them seemed odd, and then I realized that the frames they were in typically hold cigarette advertising. Indeed there were no cigarette ads to be found anywhere on the facades (though alcohol ads were still plentiful). I'm not sure if this was a recent change or if this is a remnant of a previous ban on cigarette ads near schools that I've never encountered before. Anyone know the story?

The Power of Signatures

Beautiful animation from Amnesty International...



Thanks Diego!

Did you eat your Raisin Brhams today?

Love this commercial parody promoting arts education from Americans for the Arts...



via Osocio

Cancer Isn't Cool

Apparently it is possible for cancer to be funny after all. The massive Stand Up To Cancer research campaign, which has coordinated an awareness event with all three major US television networks on September 5th, has enlisted some familiar faces to help get the word out in surprisingly amusing ways...






via Micawaves

Fashion Subvertsing

In honor of German fashion week street artist XOOOOX recently adjusted this H&M billboard in Berlin.

Bollywood Style Safe Sex Video

The "Condom Song" in Telugu from the Nrityanjali Academy, Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India...



Thanks John!

Why Bad Ads Happen To Good Causes

Why Bad Ads Happen To Good Causes, the classic work on how to best utilize print advertising for social causes (with plenty of examples of the good and the bad) is now a free downloadable PDF from communications consulting firm A Goodman. This is an invaluable resource for designers and clients alike!

Also available is Why Bad Presentations Happen To Good Causes.

News Roundup

Here are a bunch of news stories I've been meaning to post about for a while...

From the New York Times (thanks Kris):

Wal-Mart's social manifesto?

"Rethinking The Meat-Guzzler." [graphic left]

From the Wall Street Journal (thanks Mica):

Greewashing ads scrutinized by world.

From the Christian Science Monitor:

"Legless artist documents the world in 32,000 stares"

From Ode Magazine:

Solar cooking in Bhutan

Green Travel Special Report

The Sins of Greenwashing

If you're not familiar with the term Greenwashing, the environmental marketing firm TerraChoice has a great primer on this dastardly practice just for you: The Six Sins of Greenwashing.


Thanks Kara!

Take The Reaper Bowling

A great classic PSA from Australia...

The best social advertising blog returns!

After a long wait the excellent Houtlust blog has returned as Osocio. As in the past the site collects the best of advertising/marketing for social issues/non-profits from across the globe, but the new incarnation includes extra features like news feeds, non-profit profiles, and a dictionary of terminology. Probably the biggest change is that Marc van Gurp, who ran Houtlust solo has added several new editors to the site from around the world (including yours truly!).

Osocio is a truly indispensable resource for anyone interested in the intersection of marketing and social good.

Illegal Signs

The goal of IllagalSigns.Ca is to "destroying illegal billboards with the rule of law" and they seem to be having an effect, at least in Toronto, Canada. Here they explain their raison d'etre:

Our Streets are where civic capital is created. Illegal billboards monetize our civic capital, under no colour of right, by treating citizens as consumers first. Illegal billboards commodify what is unique about our neighbourhoods by turning our Streets into pages of a mass-market magazine, without regard to the law. Join us as we fight to legalize and democratize Toronto’s visual environment. Join us as we fight to Reclaim the Streets.

See a map of illegal billboards, and find out what's being done about them on their site HERE.

via Anti-Advertising Agency

How Much Advertisers Pay For Your Attention

Good Magazine has put together this nice little video showing the actual costs of some of the myriad ads you can encounter in NYC everyday. Of course their own magazine is filled with ads, so perhaps this isn't meant to be a critique after all...




Thanks Mica! Via 5min

Spotted in NYC: Corporate Anti-Graffiti

Graffiti is illegal, even when corporations do it, though that never seems to stop them. But maybe Spike TV is trying to avoid trouble by creating their new guerrilla marketing ads by removing dirt on the sidewalks on New York City. I think folks living in the city would actually appreciate the ads more if they finished the job of cleaning the sidewalk, but the ads will probably stay there until someone else decides to clean them. [On the same trip that I spotted this I actually saw an old adhesive plastic street ad that the city just painted crosswalk lines on top of!]

Out of The Closet

Like every good New Yorker, I store. That is, I rent a closet where I keep all the things that don't fit into my studio apartment. And, although I was intrigued to discover that Nigerian gentlemen store their Not-Quite-Gucci bags right next to my roller skates and sewing machine, I really hadn't thought much about my rented closet. Until recently..

For the past few years, Manhattan Mini-Storage has been using a series of bold statements in their print ads which mostly came off as bad stand-up jokes. But their newest installment has taken an unusual turn and become blatantly political in an ugly yet eye-catching ad campaign. Take a look:

They are a bit sloppy for my own design sense but certainly have created something worth blogging about. Now that they are getting flak from those who disagree with the statements - they have launched a poll on their site where anyone can weigh in or even submit suggestions for new ads. What do you think, should politics be kept in the closet?

Stop The Bullets. Kill The Gun

A simple, striking commercial from the UK based Choice FM...



via ID United

Corporate Vandals

Corporate Vandals Not Welcome has a clear agenda: treat advertisers who use the guerrilla style advertising that mimics graffiti as the vandals that they really are. Their site gives a concise overview of the reasons behind the campaign and images of their work.

via Anti-Advertising Agency

11 US Food Companies agree to limit advertising to kids

In an ongoing shift in the way corporations market to kids, 11 major US food and drink companies have agreed to adopt new rules restricting the use of cartoon/TV/movie characters to sell their products to children. The businesses, which represent 2/3rds of kids TV food advertising will only use popular characters on their "healthier options". This change comes just ahead of a Federal Trade Commission hearing, which was to focus on increased pressure on corporations to address growing obesity problems among children.

Get more details in the AP article here.

How To Make Giant Billboard Covering Stencils

The folks behind the Anti Advertising Agency have posted instructions for making giant stencils to blot out outdoor advertising on Indestructables:

This instructable will show you how to cover 640 Square feet of advertising with giant block letters in less than 3 hours in high traffic areas - all during the day.

Get the full details here.

What can €6.50 buy?

Striking ads from the Dutch aid agency Cordaid. Small irony that they were created by advertising giant Saatchi & Saatchi, who helps market similar consumer products similar to the ones used here to exemplify the disparity of our world.

via Houtlust

A billboard I don't hate?

This billboard for South African Nedbank actually has solar panels on it that generate electricity for the kitchens of a neighboring elementary school.

Full details and more pix at Houtlust.

Whose Fault?

I just spotted this ad on an environmental website and had to laugh at the audacity. Gee, thanks for letting us take care of your waste problem.

Cereal Killer

According to a recent New York Times article Kellogg will begin phasing out marketing unhealthy cereals to children under 12 over the next year and a half. Having tie-ins with licensed characters will be limited to healthier cereals as well. The self-imposed changes follow the threat of a lawsuit from the Center for Science in The Public Interest and the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. The plans for a lawsuit have now been dropped. From the article:

Susan Linn, the co-founder of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, said Kellogg’s decision to stop using licensed characters on sugary food was particularly significant. “Until now the industry has absolutely dug in their heels,” Ms. Linn said.

In the last several years, health officials have repeatedly warned that the steady stream of food ads aimed at children is contributing to the number of overweight or obese children, which has soared over the last four decades.

Some countries have banned advertising of nutritionally questionable food to children altogether, and some members of Congress have suggested that federal regulation may be needed in the United States, too. The food industry has promised to bolster its own self-regulation.

Read the entire article here.

via Consumerist

Propaganda Critic

Aaron Delwiche's site Propaganda Critic, was created to continue the pioneering work of the Institute for Propaganda Analysis, which promoted critical propaganda analysis from 1937-1942. The site, which has been online since 1994, provides an overview of propaganda techniques and gives historical and recent examples. There's also a page of links to classic propaganda films hosted on the Internet Archive.

via Social Design Notes

Those Pesky Trees

Stay Free! Daily points out the latest trend in outdoor advertising: cutting down trees to increase ad visibility...

The latest rash of tree deaths is in North Carolina, where about 50 trees have been killed in the past seven months.

To make matters worse, a bill proposed to combat the practice sets fines at $2,000, even though replacing 50 trees would cost the state over $607,100—over $12,000 per tree!

Get the details from Scenic America via their downloadable factsheet(PDF).

Bill Hicks on Marketing

As usual a comedian has to say for us, what many of us just think about the field of marketing. Ah Bill Hicks, we miss you...



via Word Soup

The problem with advertsing...

This disturbing bit of poorly planned advertising showed up in the Richmond Times-Dispatch this past Sunday. It's the front page of a "4-page pull-away tribute" to the victims of the Virginia Tech massacre subtitled "Remembering the victims". But thanks to the additional sticker ad, they're apparently remembering to get Toasted Cheesesteaks at Wawa afterwards. Yeah, that'll make a nice keepsake for the friends and families of the victims.

Fast Food Reality

We all know that ads lie, still it's fun to have such a dramatic illustration as the Fast Food: Ads vs. Reality page.

My favorite image has to be the Filet-O-Fish that defies styling and looks just as bad in ads as it does in real life!

Thanks Mica!

São Paulo goes Ad Free.

As of January 1st a law banning all outdoor advertising went into effect in São Paulo, Brazil.
The results have been documented in this eerily beautiful Flickr set.

For more on the details of the law, which was passed the city council by a vote of 45 to 1 in September of last year, check out this International Heral Tribune article.

via Boing Boing

David Lynch on Product Placement [NSFW]

A lovely succinct response by master filmmaker David Lynch on the practice of Product Placement (definitely not work or kid safe)...




via Stay Free! > via WOW

War is a Game

These striking ads from the International Rescue Committee show how your donations can allow them to continue to help, but the other message (whether intended or unintended I don't know) that war is a stupid game, that you rarely come out of as a winner, seems even more appropriate to me.

via Houtlust

Uncle Ben's Makeover

The New York Times has an article on the rebranding of Uncle Ben, the black stereotype mascot of the eponymous rice:

Uncle Ben, who first appeared in ads in 1946, is being reborn as Ben, an accomplished businessman with an opulent office, a busy schedule, an extensive travel itinerary and a penchant for sharing what the company calls his “grains of wisdom” about rice and life. A crucial aspect of his biography remains the same, though: He has no last name.
...

Despite the character’s impressive new credentials, some advertising executives expressed skepticism that the campaign could avoid negative overtones.

The ads are “asking us to make the leap from Uncle Ben being someone who looks like a butler to overnight being a chairman of the board,” Ms. Kern Foxworth said. “It does not work for me.”

“I applaud them for the effort and trying to move forward,” she added, but the decision to keep the same portrait of Uncle Ben, bow tie and all, also dismayed her because “they’re trying so hard to hold onto something I’m trying so hard to get rid of.”

The updated product website even allows visitors to tour his office. Read the entire article here.

Thanks Zeev!