Closed for Christmas

Not much happening in adland over Xmas so BrandDNA is taking a break for a couple of weeks. See you in early Jan 2020!

How he feels...

The beauty of post

How beautiful are these old Xmas posters from the Royal Mail?

They really don't make 'em like this any more.

1958 above. 1963 below. And the bottom one is from 1965.

A bananas idea

This ad was just waiting to happen following all the hype around the Basel Banana.

Sadly I don't think it's real. Note the placement of the dollar sign.

Still fun though. 

The idea

The idea. Or to be more precise the frustration of cracking an idea. Brought to life by BAFTA award winning animation studio Blue Zoo. Lovely work. 

People don't give a...

Saw this on Twitter the other day. Annoyingly I can't remember who posted it. Sorry.

It really struck a chord with me as I've experienced the opposite approach on both agency and clientside.

Far too many people in the world of marketing seem to operate under the illusion that the ordinary punter actually gives a shit about their brand or product.

The sooner people start coming to terms with this the better the entire industry will be.

Why?

Because advertising and marketing is about getting people's attention then making an impression on them.

You can't do this effectively if you think that people are waiting for your message. 

Hafod Hardware

I have no idea how a small local hardware store in Wales can afford the rights to a Bob Dylan song but geez this homemade homespun little ad is an absolute gem. 

Agency Babel Fish

I've always said that the strategy planner is essentially the Babel Fish of the agency.

Here's a great example of what I mean courtesy of super smart planner and ex-colleague Praveen. 

Attn Parka Monkeys

Even his un-loved brother Noel says that nobody rocks a parka like Liam Gallagher.

So how good to see Liam putting his sacred parka up as an idea to help people in the UK sleeping rough.

In a nutshell Liam wants "Parka Monkeys' to donate a parka (or warm coat) to win concert tix and the chance of a Gallagher meet 'n greet.

Who knew the parka would one day be seen as a force for good!

Oh dear

In the immortal words of tennis brat John McEnroe... You Cannot Be Serious!!! 

What a Whopper

We really don't see a lot of great topical advertising these days.

Is it because clients are overly risk averse or because young creatives aren't consuming news like my generation did back in the day?

I do not have the answer. But I do know this a a cracker from BBH London. 

Cardi B Christmas

A Christmas ad that's not all sugary 'n nice. A Pepsi ad that's not half bad. Plus some Cardi B attitude for extra cheer. Enjoy! 

Poor man's Daniel Craig

I must've driven past this whisky ad on a local bus stop at least a dozen times in the last week and it never caught my eye.

Hardly surprising as it really doesn't have a lot going for it. Anyway...

The bald guy in the ad is celebrity chef Matt Moran. Super talent in the kitchen but not exactly the best head for advertising.

Last week a photo of the ad was shared on Twitter by Steve Pell with a cheeky caption I am supremely jealous of.

"Something about this ad screams; we wanted Daniel Craig, but got Matt Moran"

Now I smile every time I drive past the bus stop.

What he said...

It's not pizza!

I admit it. I am a pizza traditionalist. But that doesn't mean I don't love love love this FU to tradition spot for Crust Pizza by 303-MullenLowe in Sydney. Bellissimo! 

Putting the T in team

There is nothing new in brands using people in stadia to create brandmarks.

Hell the idea actually originated from groups of fans doing it to honour player numbers etc.

A friend sent me a Reddit link the other day to a T-Mobile sponsorship 'moment' in a German football game.

I did a bit of digging and discovered that T-Mobile sponsor Bayern Munich. And that the white T you see in the pic above is a pretty regular occurrence at home games.

Which has me wondering how much the fans get paid for participating? 

Mi Bigotillo

This new Gillette spot out of Spain by Proximity really struck a chord with me.

Sure it's kinda corny. But that's what makes it so charming.

Every teen boy dreams of facial hair. Then one day the wake up and find they need to have a shave every day.

And from that day on facial hair is no longer the great male accessory we once dreamt it would be. 

Marc Jacobs vs Kurt & Co

Influence can come from anywhere. It often happens unconsciously.

We think we have an exciting new idea. Then find out someone has done something similar before.

Shit happens as they say.

The Marc Jacobs t-shirt above is very clearly borrowing from the classic Nirvana t-shirt below.

Rip off? Most probably.

But where it gets really interesting is Marc Jacobs is currently countersuing Nirvana after they set their lawyers on him.

Those lawyers cost money. A lot of money.

So why don't both brands agree that pretty much everything is a remix and donate to a charity all the money they were going to give to their collective lawyers simply to prove a point?

I mean seriously. It's a goddamn smiley face for goodness sake!