Does The Dove Evolution Success Mean Agency Evolution As Well?

I just want to say a few words about the fact that the Dove Evolution viral video has won both the Cyber and Film Grand Prix awards in Cannes this year (that's the advertising awards, not the film festival awards). I know this was a few weeks ago now, but I was on an unconnected holiday when the news broke.

I think this marks a significant turning point for the industry, and not just because it's a viral video that has achieved acceptance and success at Cannes. After all, Droga5 won the Grand Prix in the Cyber category last year with their Still Free viral campaign, so two years in a row could be considered to be a trend.

Much of the discussion, even in new marketing circles, seems to have been centered around the fact that this is a breakthrough piece mostly because it is not a traditional 30 sec tv spot. True to form, author of Life After the 30 Second Spot Joseph Jaffe provocatively commented on his blog:

"Dove's Evolution wins both Cyber and Film Grand Prix. Consider this the first day of the new era of creativity. Ding Dong traditional creatives, you are well and truly dead."

However, what is just as significant (if not more so) is the concept itself, which is so markedly different from anything else out there in the beauty products category. When have you ever seen an ad in this category actually attempt to make women feel good about their own body image by acknowledging the constructed nature of images in popular media?

Now let me illustrate the clear impact of this success story within the industry by sharing an experience with you. I have been in a number of group situations in which this video has been shown to agency professionals as part of a general showcase of new work, and also informally in day-to-day agency situations.

The fact that this video has been shown and discussed is a good thing, but from the various comments and discussions it became clear that many of the men in the room just did not 'get it'. This includes many of the creatives who deal with pop cultural ideas on a daily basis. Many of the men just didn't understand why this campaign has been so popular with women, and just didn't think it was a great campaign, or didn't want to acknowledge that it was. Most of the women in the room had a very different view. It is telling that in this country at least, in many agencies (both traditional and digital) around 80%-90% of creatives are still men. It's hard to believe in this day and age I know, but there it is.

Although both the writer and art directors for the Evolution campaign were men (UPDATE: please see the comments for a correction to this), there was clearly a healthy new approach at play here, and a very successful one. It's great that the Cannes jury has been quick to acknowledge and reward this different approach. There is nothing that starts to change old school, boys' club agency thinking faster than the lure of big awards - sad but true.

Since the awards, a few questions have been asked about the quality of digital work in this country, as there was only one bronze award given out in the Cyber category this year. Many reasons have been cited for this turn of events, from the current digital skills shortage, to inadequate broadband infrastructure, to conservative clients still thinking interactive is just an 'add on' to more traditional work. While there may be truth to these assertions, could it be that old school attitudes and conceptual thinking are also playing a major role in the lack of recent success as well?

What are your thoughts?

Breaking Up Is Easy To Do

The Break Up

This is a refreshing (and somewhat surprising) approach from Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions, which focuses on the relationship between the traditional advertiser and the consumer. There's also a blog that goes with it, Bring the love back.

"We don't talk anymore. You do all the talking...It's not exactly a dialogue."

"You're saying you love me, but you're not behaving like you love me, it's not genuine."

"I've changed, and you haven't. We don't hang out in the same places anymore. You're not even listening are you?"

All great stuff and great to see a brand like Microsoft saying it at last.

What do you think of this ad? Like it?

via Logic + Emotion

Using Twitter For Marketing Part 4: Campaigns

Part 3: The Public Eye
Part 2: Events
Part 1: Intro

Okay, I'm going to wrap up this series with this post. I think I've said more than enough about Twitter for the time being. There's no doubt in my mind that services such as Twitter can be used successfully for marketing purposes in a number of different ways. There's also no doubt in my mind that Twitter can be highly addictive!

I think Twitter could be used in campaigns to add a new level of engagement. I'm not talking about just sending out one way tweets (many followers but no friends) trying to spruik products. I'm talking about integrating it with other content to form a closer connection between audience and brand. Such a campaign could involve working with Twitter and Second Life, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr, a blog, a microsite, an event, long form content, an existing reality tv program, you name it.

This kind of approach is already beginning to be used, but not with Twitter yet (as far as I'm aware). Coca-Cola and new marketing company Crayon a have recently launched the Virtual Thirst promotion within Second Life. They are taking entries for a competition involving ideas for a virtual vending machine. Entries can be submitted via Second Life, Youtube, MySpace or email. I've noticed that Coca-Cola (no doubt on the advice of Crayon), have responded well to some initial criticism about the competition prize with a YouTube video from one of the Coca-Cola marketers, and in turn, a video response has been submitted back. My point here is that Twitter could just as easily be a part of the marketing mix in this kind of new marketing campaign, as it offers another avenue for engagement, and a new means of interaction and communication.

On another note, I've seen numerous mentions of brands on Twitter. Even as I write this I can see a Tweet from one of my Twitter friends that simply states "Crimes against humanity part 5: Sony Ericsson Phones" and the next tweet, "care to elaborate?". I've seen mentions of everything from iPods to pizza odered on the web. People seem to like talking about the products and services they use (and don't like to use), especially mobile phones and related services. It seems to me that there is an opportunity for certain brands to engage and respond in an unintrusive way by Twittering.

I'm not talking about having a brand presence that screams "we're here so love us", and I'm not suggesting that brands go chasing down potential followers in order to attract as much attention as possible. Some brands (and their agencies) seem to have taken this approach to both MySpace and Second Life and at best it can be annoying, at worst it can seriously backfire. What I'm talking about is having a presence, but listening, learning, responding and engaging with each community in an appropriate way.

If you have any other ideas for how twitter could be used for marketing, or would just like to comment on what has been said, please do leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you about Twitter.

Coke Launches Second Life Promo

With the help of new marketing company Crayon and design shop Millions of us, Coke has launched a Second Life promotion, Virtual Thirst.

They are running a competition to design a Second Life vending machine that dispenses "not Coca-Cola, but the ESSENCE of Coca-Cola: refreshment, joy, unity, experience". The winning concept will be built by SL developers from Millions of Us. Entries will be accepted through Second Life, YouTube and MySpace.

It'll be interesting to see how this new promotion is received by Second Life inhabitants, and the YouTube and MySpace communities. I'm sure many people will be watching this one closely.

Nike Wake-Up Call

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Nike is searching for a new agency to handle its interactive work, and that this is a wake-up call for traditional advertising agencies not altogether comfortable with working in the digital realm.

Highly respected agency Weiden + Kennedy has been Nike's lead agency since 1982, but the article suggests that even though the agency has created top-quality work in all other areas, it has been slow to adapt to the web. As the article also maintains, this will certainly not go unnoticed across the advertising industry.

Many traditional (but supposedly integrated) agencies with backgrounds firmly in tv and print have been slow to adapt to the new media environment. It seems that some clients are starting to look at other options.

No doubt Joseph Jaffe will be pleased, as more of the predictions in his book Life after the 30 Second Spot appear to be coming to fruition.

Get the Glass

Get the Glass is a new site from agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and Swedish interactive design shop North Kingdom. This 3D advergame for the latest Got Milk? campaign has a pretty heavy download, but there's plenty to keep users engaged for quite some time.

Good luck getting to that glass of milk. Hmm, I'm thirsty. Think I'll head to the fridge for a nice cool one before I have another go at the digital version. The campaign must be working.

The House of Horror

The House of Horror is a scary microsite for Amnesty International, created by JWT, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The site is treated like a site for a new horror film. It does get the point across. There could be a danger with this kind of approach that by aestheticising the people it aims to help, it actually begins to exploit them in the process.

Human Skateboarding

PES has created this Human Skateboarding video for Sneaux Shoes.

New marketing agency Crayon was tasked with helping to seed the video, and seems to have done a good job at it. According to Vidmeter, as of today it has had a total of 769,997 views.

The Number 23 Viral

Sydney Agency Host has launched a new viral campaign for the film The Number 23.

The idea is that you input details about a friend and then send them. The site poses as a professor's personal site, and the email you receive looks authentic as well.

If you don't want to scare a friend, just view the demo instead, which is based on a girl called Sarah.

Saatchi & Saatchi Interactive Approach

Saatchi & Saatchi Interactive have a new Flash movie on their site that explains their approach. Click on approach to view the animated explanation, and on about to see their stated beliefs in bullet points.

The new process tips its hat to Bill Bernbach's groundbreaking (and now standard) method, but Saatchi & Saatchi asserts that they are now taking this approach a step further in the pursuit of creative excellence.

If you work at an agency involved in creating digital work (and what agency isn't now), it's well worth a look and listen.

Thanks to DigitalAgency for the heads-up about this.

Aussie Drumstick

A new and unmistakably Australian Nestle Drumstick ad created by agency Publicis Mojo in Melbourne. It's been having a good run during some of those long, hot Australian Tennis Open days here.

Thanks to Ashadi over at Bannerblog for this one.

Hot with the Chance of a Late Storm

It's been a real scorcher in Sydney today. The temperature nudged 40 degrees this afternoon (that's over 100 for those using the other measurement), so this sculpture by the creative sniffers at The Glue Society has been on my mind.

"Hot with the chance of a late storm" was created for the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition back in November. There is obviously an environmental message in this work, although I do wonder how environmentally friendly the production process was, not to mention the materials used. Let's just say this paradox adds to the power of this work for now.

This piece won the People's Choice prize for the year. The show is staged along Sydney's short Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk, and attracts over 400,000 visitors.