Nike, Again...I know, I know

I am not sponsored or endorsed by Nike but they always get it so right. I am a big Nike fan as previous readers may know. It's so right it's wrong, right? If you are not sure what I mean take a look at the viral below.



Well thats the end of the post, it looks easy but it's hard work I am sure the account handlers, the creatives, the tv producers, the planners, the client and the production company all worked extremly hard to ensure this ad come out so well. Thats how it's done guys!

Sampling a good idea..

Check out this very cool sampling vending machine...

I saw this interesting idea online in new business and entrepreneurial ideas hot spot Springwise and I think it's actually amazing. The concept is a simple one, passers by send a sms to a vending machine to receive a code to allow them to get free samples from a vending machine. It does sound a little crazy but I think it's an excellent way to get people to actively engage in the sampling process. Secretly, I wish I had thought of this concept but we all know I haven't! Anyway I think it's a great way to improve and enhance the sampling process I can see this catching on big time.

Game Changer

I stumbled upon this interesting site today and it caused me to react in two ways firs excitement then wonder. Take a look and check it out!



I was excited to think the future of gaming had arrived but I wondered if broadband was at a powerful enough level to pull it off. Research via YouTube shows me that I am no early adopter to OnLive as this game changer has been around for over a year but it's a pretty exciting concept if it does work as well as it's creators believe it does. Here is a quick demo below but won't this cause the industry bigwigs to loose sleep? Probably not as the Xbox 360, PS3 and the Wii are all pretty awesome and with the convergence these consoles have with social media, TV and the Internet I think OnLive has a long way to go before it really starts to make waves but the idea of gaming through your PC/Mac is an intriguing one with a lot of opportunities.

Best of Superbowl 2010

The smorgasbord of American advertising agencies all clamour up once a year for a spectacular event....Superbowl. More specifically the Superbowl ad break. A very humorous ad for Volkswagen is my personal favourite because it's simple, funny and because it features Stevie Wonder, who I have never seen in an advert ever! As he is a living musical legend this is the best ad of Superbowl 2010 without a shadow of a doubt! It's something which I can see catching on over in the UK.



I was going to do a top 3 but this can't be topped Stevie is a legend! I for one can't wait till next year.

Finally....Best of The Decade

After weeks of deliberation, laziness and procastination I have decided. The top 3 ads of the decade are as follows (in no particular order)....



Brilliant ad for Sony that will be in my top 10 forever! A strong statement I know but it simply cuts out all the crap and the term 'colour like no other' is spot on. No need for fancy 3D graphics this was done for real in San Francisco. The Sony Bravia brand is amazingly communicated and it's brand values are highlighted by the tone of the ad, the song used and the really colourful bouncy balls!



I really like this ad for two reasons. Firstly, it was done for real and secondly, I could watch it at least 34 times without getting bored. It's another well thought out ad that communicates itself very well. Additionally, the voice over has the great line "isn't it nice when things just work"...yes Honda, yes it is!



Well it was close between the Cadbury Gorilla with Phil Collins but this was just a great ad that had a good prescence on Youtube, a nice tagline 'Life's for sharing' and it was really well executed it looked almost random. I think it's definetly a top 3 of the decade because it's a live brand experience that was filmed and has hopefully opened the door for more really creative ads in the next decade.

Brand Diversification...Perfect Xmas gifts?

I know what you are thinking....Alex? Why lower the tone of this blog by posting a well lit and perfeectly taken photo of a lady in her underwear. Well it is not just any old underwear from Primark. It is infact quality lingerie from Real Madrid FC. They spent over £200 million pounds on new players this summer and insted of going on money-spinning tours to Asia or creating personalised Xmas cards or introducing a third/fourth kit they instead decide to bring out this range of hilaroius Real Madrid underwear. There is a mens range but I couldn't find that picture by couldn't find I mean I didnt look.

This form of brand diversification is interesting and all jokes aside it's actually not a terrible idea. The world's biggest club having a huge range of merchandise which now includes lingerie, this is not the greatest of ideas but I can see this working. Real Madrid have a 90,000 seater stadium, a huge fanbase across the world and are huge in the lucrative Asian market. The team plays Champions League football every season, buys the best players and is very succesful. The Real Madrid brand is healthy so it just goes to show some brands will work in many different markets while others will not. Check out the West Ham lingerie below as worn by pop sensation Katy Perry. It is also going on sale at a West Ham shop near you for a limited time for a whopping £300. I know the East End of London is not as glamourous as Madrid but who cares its Christmas!

Nearly as good as a flying skate board

I like technology and I was hoping to have a flying car or by the very least a flying skateboard by the time I was grown up, the idea came from the hit film Back To The Future but alas in December 2009 there is no such invention. At least AR (Augmented Reality) is here to entertain me. AR is described by the fountain of knowledge that is Wikipedia as- a term for a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are merged with (or augmented by) virtual computer-generated imagery - creating a mixed reality. Artificial information about the environment and the objects in it can be stored and retrieved as an information layer on top of the real world view.

This form of technology has been on my radar for sometime and although Youtube has plenty of AR videos (some involve huge fast food restaurants and others involve funky ways of finding the nearest tube station) I have the feel that 2010 is the year when AR will get all grown up and mainstream. I can see a plethora of marketing uses for AR and I am sure some smart digital agencies already have cunning plans for AR in 2010!