It’s always refreshing to see an advertising campaign that takes a completely fresh approach to the given topic for communication. Usually road safety campaigns employ fear and shock tactics in order to draw on the heart strings of viewers, and this method does work effectively as these types of commercials portray situations that viewers can easily identify themselves with, if they don’t act responsibly. However, in this case the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership wanted to bring a more positive yet educational message to the masses. The ‘Embrace Life’ campaign was directed by Daniel Cox of Rockutainment, who mused that the “Key to the film's creation was to focus on a message that didn't take a conventional route to shock and scare the audience; rather it was my intention to bring the audience in on the conversation of road safety, specifically seat belts, and the best way to do this was to make a film that could engage the viewer purely visually and could be seen and understood by all, whoever they are and wherever they lived." This campaign is already having large success with over 9 million views on Youtube, a rant on Australia’s ‘The Gruen Transfer’, top viewing scores for many online mediums and many other communications mediums.
Oh and if you're in the 1% to 2% of morons who don't wear a seat belt you really should!... Don't worry I'm now slowly stepping away from the soapbox / blog.
Google Inc.’s video sharing website Youtube has teamed up with the iconic Guggenheim Museum to sponsor a competition to find the world most creative videographers. The competition aptly named “YouTube Play. A Biennial of Creative Video” is calling on people from all over the world to enter their video’s to a specified YouTube channel where a jury of industry professionals, experts, musicians, artists, and designers will shortlist 20 entries and the winner will be announced at the Guggenheim Museum New York on October 21. The aim of this project is to create an outlet of creative expression for you and me. Guggenheim Foundation Director Richard Armstrong stated that "'YouTube Play' demonstrates this is within the reach of anyone who uses a computer and has access to the Internet." YouTube Play is another great example of how a company can increase their brand identity, whilst at the same time, in this case, giving something back to the community in the form art and culture.
In 2008 surfwear company Kustom decided that it wanted to isolate itself as the world leader of inspiring and innovative surfing. The Company has done this with much success by launching a mega-campaign/competition to bring ground breaking surfing to the world, the Kustom Aistrike competition is fast becoming one of the most anticipated events in the extreme sports arena. This year’s competition platform has increasingly utilized Facebook, Twitter and Vimeo to communicate the brand, news, surfer videos and other information to thousands of people all over the world. Kai Neville the brain child behind Modern Collective, has directed a four piece entry for the competition named Landscape Altered, which has some amazing footage. This ongoing campaign has successfully created mass brand awareness for Kustom, has given cross promotional opportunities for other brands, is giving something back to the community, and it has also introduced a large community of non-surfers to the brand and the sport through the clever use of digital marketing. If your business is thinking of creating a new campaign, let us design the platform to bring your product or service effectively to the market.
I came across this picture on Coolhunter using Madonna in a fake beauty care ad. Amazing what we can do with Photoshop...creating these unrealistic images of celebrities. Although I found this fake ad amusing, the message underlying this is serious. People just cant look as good as they do once the airbrush comes out and turns them into genetically gifted gods or goddesses.
A few months ago I was happy to see that Britney Spears, one of the world's most famous pop stars allowed all of her imperfections to be highlighted. She allowed the pre-airbrushed images from a shoot she took part in for fashion firm Candie's to be used alongside the digitally-altered ones, so people can see the difference. Britney may not always be the perfect role model for our children however this is a great step in the right direction. And I personally think she looked beautiful in the before shot!
We were recently presented the latest paper campaign by Arjowiggins from K.W Doggett fine papers and I must say it is beyond what I thought could be achieved with paper. The new campaign was developed to introduce the companies new Metallics, Translucents and Cosmic ranges.
The aim of the “Curious Story” campaign was to introduce designer people to the brand whilst at the same time reinforcing the innovative culture of the brand to current Arjowiggins customers. The “Curious Story” collection follows a girl going on a journey through many worlds, which are depicted by an explosion of different colours, stuctures, forms, textures and sculptures, all of paper origin.
The campaign was awarded two prizes including best commercial website and best printed edition from the French Media and Advertising Magazine. Award winning photographer Gregoire Alexandre has perfectly executed the brief and has breathed a new life into the brand, the campaign could easily work into the pages of Vogue or GQ.
In a stunt to increase Starbuck’s brand identity and to communicate to the public, the companies sustainably responsible business practices, they sponsored a Betacup competition to gather ideas for reducing non-recyclable paper cup usage. The winning idea was the Karma Cup, which utilizes a small chalkboard at the register of each store, people who use reusable cups make a mark on the board and every 10th reusable cup user receives a free coffee. The $20,000 competition was run was run digitally through jovoto.com.
Other notable ideas included:
Band of Honor: a rubber band with a barcode on it, that gets scanned with each usage, discounts increase as usage increases.
Champion Cup: Similar concept whereby reusable cups are tagged, registered online and discounts are given for ongoing usage and monitoring.
Biodegradable Cup: made from rice husks, which is strong and can be continually reused.Starbuck’s marketing and communications strategy is increasingly leading toward environmental issues.
Starbuck’s marketing and communications strategy is increasingly leading toward environmental issues. This latest stunt has had many positive effects including promoting innovation, increasing consumer awareness for the environment and the starbuck’s brand, whilst adding pressure to make the entire supply chain more green. If your in the process of introducing a green product or service, let us be the team to create a tailored campaign for your company using our design and digital expertise.
Advertisers commonly use humour across all mediums to create laughter, a smile, captivation, and entertainment for viewers. Humourous ads often leave a lasting impact on consumers, resulting in the ad being re-visited consistently when it comes time to buying a product or service from the brands genre.
Some other advantages of humour in advertising include:
People pay more attention
People are more likely to share funny advertisements with friends and family then other forms.
Are easier to remember
Creates a good mood and comfortable atmosphere
Makes product/service more approachable
If you would like Tusk to create a funny advertising campaign for your business, contact me on sam@tuskagency.com for more information.
What do you do when your a global company who is famous for quality and precision of products but then it all falls apart? I’m talking about Toyota, who over recent months have been battling quality issues in some of their product line whilst at the same time have been criticized by the media and consumers. It’s always a difficult time when companies make large scale mistakes, and it’s the level of contingency planning which will always determine how quickly a company will bounce back. Some important aspects of crisis management include ensuring that you are continually communicating to the public on all matters either positive or negative during the incident, as this blocks the media from spinning too many stories, top management must also make a public stance and not hide themselves from the problem, it is also necessary to ensure the public that you are committed to fixing the problem and rehabilitating the people who are effected. A great example of this is BP who on the backside of the oil drilling mega crisis, have today offered a 20 billion dollar fund to manage the costs of the disaster and also added funds to compensate oil workers and other effected areas. I’m getting off the topic now so back to Toyota. The company have recently completed an advertising campaign which aims to bring back the goodwill for the company, reinforce their commitment to the quality control of production, and also to promote that each worker treats every vehicle they pass on as if it was their own. The slogan for the campaign is “Your Toyota is my Toyota”. The ads have worked effectively on me personally, the pictures taken by Ewen Spencer have really made me believe that Toyota have sorted out their quality issues and they are committed to a defect free future.
Talk about consistency of brand image! To launch the new range of Paul Smith children’s wear, the label built an entire classroom in their Paris showroom. The junior collection isn’t available until september, yet the buzz this campaign has created in the media, throughout the fashion industry and with consumers will ensure that the clothes are hotly anticipated and contested for once available.
It looks as though my age category is particularly prone to "extracurricular" content from brands... Should I be worried?
A recent study has found that if you login to Facebook before checking your emails of a morning, then you are at a higher risk of brand engagement. Meaning that content and promotions directed toward us from brands are not only received by us, but welcomed. However if you are one of the studious folk who sit down at your desk, turn on your computer and filter through your emails before your Facebook notifications, you qualify as being more task-orientated.
I'm not here to pass judgement, but perhaps if you fall into the former category, you should keep this information well and truly hidden from your boss.
To read more on the study performed by ExactTarget, head to Mashable for a summary of the findings.
The coordinated red and white colours featured in this image simply scream at you. It's undeniable that colours play a large role in shaping the brands around us. Colours are well known as signifiers for many of the worlds most reputable brands, for example;
What brands come to mind when I say 'red'?....
Perhaps:
Coke
Marlboro
Triple J
Red Bull
Not only can colour signify or spark brand associations, but they can also be representative of industries, for example;
What industries come to mind when I say?...
BLUE - Finance
GREEN - New Technology & Environment
PINK - Children's & Cosmetics
BROWN - Food & Beverage
The simple use of colour can make or break a brand and it can significantly impact upon the consumer and their perception of your brand offering. At Tusk we look at branding on all levels and colour use plays a large role in our branding process. To find out more about how we can improve, review or execute strong branding for your business, contact Sam Martin to arrange a meeting today.
If you would like to check out some more interesting photography, head to JAK & JIL!
Product packaging is a section of business which has multi-faceted possibilities. Packaging can be used as an extra form of advertising, for displaying a companies innovative & creative side, to inform consumers of product attributes & features, to reinforce brand identity, and obviously for functional/storage capabilities. Truly effective packaging will conjure positive emotions when placed in contact with consumers and furthermore will prolong, even stop the buyer from disposing of the packaging because they like it so much. If your packaging is looking tired or dull, it may be time to start thinking about updating your look. Contact me at sam@tuskagency.com for strategic advice.
At this time of year, practically the whole world is captivated and engaged with the Soccer World Cup. TV stations who don’t broadcast the event usually fall victim to decreasing viewer numbers and usually just live with it, and move on. However, MTV went against the grain this year presenting an anti-ad campaign to its viewers. The campaign includes a number of random TV ads for different countries, prize draws, related print ads and other communication strategies. This ironic campaign was based on the ideology, “we understand why you aren’t watching MTV”. As MTV targets primarily a market between the ages of 18-24, it was important for the company to acknowledge that the Soccer World Cup was going on and associate their brand with the event. It’s funny that MTV have nothing what so ever to do with the World Cup, yet they have taken on the event from a different angle, highlighted the obsession of soccer lovers, and have a created buzz for both soccer and MTV at the same time. Very Impressive.
Another year, Another Parklife Festival and this time around is sure not to disappoint. The major artists include Groove Armada, The Dandy Warhols, Cut Copy, The Wombats Darwin Deez, Ou Est Le Swimming Pool, Wolf Gang, Washington, Missy Elliott, Kele, Midnight Juggernauts, Dan Black, Chiddy Bang, Mix Master Mike, Sinden, Bag Raiders, Soulwax, Busy P, Uffie, Jack Beats, The Glitch Mob, Brodinski, DJ Mehdi, AC Slater, Holy Ghost!, Memory Tapes, Classixx, Delorean, New Young Pony Club, The Swiss, Jesse Rose and Grum. Tickets go on sale July 1st. Yeeewww!
“Vision is the most advanced of our senses. We understand the world through our eyes and images play an exceptional role in human perception-we evolved to make fast decisions based in what we see, determining friend from foe at a glance (Michael Fleischner)”. More and more lately, I have been coming across companies of all sizes, whose websites do not properly portray who they are trying to be, and most of all it can be blamed on the use of ineffective and dated images, colour schemes, formatting, and patterns.
When a person visits a companies website for the first time, they will immediately form an impression of the company based on the images and colours which they absorb. This imagery will then assist the person in making evaluations about the companies personality, professionalism, attention to detail, and the overall company in general. Therefore, it is important to ensure that your website is visually appealing by keeping up with trends and technological advancements.
At Tusk we continually succeed with our clients visual website requirements by focusing on:
Incorporating images, colours, and patterns which create a unique visual offering for viewers
Using the most innovative design techniques
A website with amazing imagery will stand out from competitors and will properly communicate what your brand stands for. It’s a bad idea to let your businesses website fall behind. Let us reinvigorate your existing website or create an entirely new design for you today.
Browsing through the cleans lines and simple layout of The Future Laboratory’s website, it would be easy to fool them for a small company of some sort. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The Future Laboratory is a large scale, global, multi-faceted organization who specialize in trend forecasting, consumer insight and brand strategy. The companies primary focus is in creating successful future outcomes for businesses using tools such as: quant analyses, PR reports, insight reports, consumer typologies, brand strategy, insight programs and presentations. The future Laboratory's clients include Vogue, American Express, Woolworths, Nokia, Gap, Olay, kodak and many more. Their biannual magazine ‘Viewpoint’ is also definitely worth having a look at.
Are the current primary forms of advertising like TV, radio and Billboards going to become, well, tired? It’s difficult to determine because there are a number of companies who are successfully reinventing what can be done with these mature mediums. Yet, it is important to look at where we are headed. I would usually use the term ‘the sky’s the limit’ to explain the possibilities for advertising but companies have been successful pasting their ads on the side of planes for years now. Is it possible that the next trend may be to advertise on banana peels? on manhole covers (re-think of these for advertising purposes)? on trees? This may sound silly but for a long time, successful companies are the ones who are using out of the norm methods like these to effectively reach their target markets. Currently, the technology arena continues to be a popular interface for companies to advertise their products and services, some of the more well known of these options include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Second Life. The primary positives of these options are price factors (sometimes no costs) and the sheer volume of traffic which is sustained on a 24HR, 7 day a week basis. The one thing which is certain, is that advertising trends are never going to be stagnant and thus the future looks very exciting for companies who want their products and services to succeed. For more information on what we can achieve for your advertising and promotional requirements, contact me on sam@tuskagency.com.
Last month, Danny Silver agreed to literally put himself up on a billboard. The reason he agreed to do this was to raise funds for Mobile Loaves & Fishes a Texas-based mission and in the hope of securing a home for him and his wheel-chair bound wife. With a combination of PR, traditional advertising plus social and mobile media - the campaign was a success. Within 48 hours enouh funds had been raised to get Danny and his wife off the streets and for Mobile Loaves and Fishes to launch an awareness campaign. Donations were made via a text message platform that easily allowed people to make contributions via their mobile phone.
The key drivers to this campaigns success were accessibility, a wise selection of integrated media and at the heart of it all, was an amazing concept. The campaign allowed for a real-time response, whereby people could text in their donations immediately after coming in contact with the media. Additionally to cater for the buzz this campaign sparked online, a payment method was also set up to allow for online donations. The diverse array of above and below the line media combined with smart PR allowed for this campaign to go global and experience real results. And ofcourse, without the campaign concept behind it all, Danny would not have been on that billboard and he would not be HERE in this blog today.
To read more about this campaign, head to AdAge for all the details.
Amatoya is a concept vehicle design which was created to revolutionise the way in which fire-fighting is conducted. Amatoya is the brain child of Liam Ferguson, who has witnessed the devastation of bush fires firsthand in Victoria. He recognised the need for a more agile and flexible reconnaissance and suppression vehicle for fire fighting purposes. Presently, four wheel drives such as Toyota Landcruisers are bring utilised, which can only carry a limited amount of water and will not withstand a burnover. Fergusons vehicle concept has addressed these issues by employing the most innovative of materials and construction styles including a 1800 litre water supply, 400 litre auxiliary tank for in cabin cooling, lear aerogel insulation in the windows and bodywork, military-grade fire-resistant paint and army-issue run-flat tyres to ensure maximum efficiency and vehicle survivability. Amatoya is perfectly suited for fire disasters, the concept is a blend of design, functional, practical, and construction excellence.
The first question we often get asked about a website is "How much does it cost". This question is almost impossible to answer. Alot goes into building a site and it really depends on what business problem you are trying to solve?
So many factors affect the initial cost of a website. Here is just a few:
How much information needs to be presented? Will the content require constant updating, if so you may require a content management system which will take time for your staff to utlise. Is it more cost effective to have your agency perform updates?
Do you require your website to collect information from users and if so what will you do with that information e.g. send newsletters.
Are there business processes e.g. sales functions, that your require the website to do.
Would you like to sell products online, if so, do you want to sell in Australia or internationally? Do you want to sell wholesale and retail?
Who builds your site also impacts the cost. Friends or family may do it for you as a favor, but you may not end up with the professional quality you're looking for. Working with a proven team reduces the risk of failure.
So looking at just these few considerations you can easily see that it is impossible to answer this question without us taking a brief and analysing what you require your site to do for you. So first consider what you require from your site then make an appointment with your chosen developer to ensure you are provided with an accurate price and no hidden costs pop up during or after development.
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