In the spirt of this class living up to it's name of "not bashing the media"...
...I thought I'd make my first post to celebrate things that I've found, mostly online, that show the media using advertising in highly positive and creative ways. (I personally don't consider advertising to be inherently bad, for the record. In fact, in my eyes, it rarely is. I just think this is better than a "HEY GUYS CHECK OUT SOME ADS I LIKE LOL" kind of post...)
1. Water Conservation Campaign -- City of Denver, CO
The billboard is a very common medium for advertisers in an urban area, as is the city bus bench. Here we see Denver Water using the objects to convey something more important of a message than how much a double whopper with fries and a drink costs. Plus, it's just damn clever, you have to admit.
2. "Don't Let Your Life Flash By" -- Unknown
In somewhat the same vein as the last one, this interesting project uses a series of billboards along the road, angled so that they give a "flip-book" effect as drivers go by. It ends with the message "Don't let your life flash by" and "Slow Down". Another great application of the billboard that deviates from it's usual use.
3. "94% say they washed... 34% are lying..." -- JWT Toronto
Apparently 94% of men will tell you they washed after leaving the restroom. And apparently 34% will be lying. Now, regardless of the truth behind these statistics, you have to admit, this is a brilliant hand washing promotion campaign. The strategic placement of the doorknob drives the point home wonderfully. I don't think anyone could see that, and then not wash their hands.
4. "Atmospheric Pollution effects everyone" -- Singapore environment Council
These print ads put out by the Singapore environment Council are fantastically creative ads to drive the point home on greenhouse gasses and global warming. If it's not clear, the first one shows a witch on her broom, fallen out of the sky into a playground. The second shows an angel fallen on the roof of an SUV. And the third, shows a falling alien interrupting some poor man's outdoor meal.
So see? All of these definitely count as advertisements, and they're all well-intended as well! And brilliantly done, at that. Advertisers are not ALWAYS out to take advantage of you!
All of this found thanks to what is probably one of my favorite blogs evaaar, The Cool Hunter. WARNING: There are some image posts on that blog that are not exactly safe for work/school/etc.. Not pornographic, but still not something you'd want your boss to see you looking at at work. Regardless, it is a fascinating and cool blog that reports on all things awesome and aesthetically pleasing and interesting. I RECOMMEND IT FOR MORE THINGS LIKE ABOVE!
3 AM is a wonderful time. I think I'll go to bed now...
Labels: blogs, city of denver, denver, denver colorado, denver water, global warming, good ads, interesting ads, public health campaigns, slow down, the cool hunter, water conservation
posted by Brian Garrison at 3:08 AM
4 Comments:
This is a great post, Brian. I especially like the ad about slowing down (though it'd be ironic if someone crashed while contemplating all those billboards). I look forward to your insights when we do a unit on advertising during next semester.
January 20, 2008 at 10:53 AM
Thanks. I'm really excited for that unit. Advertising is something I find really interesting.
January 20, 2008 at 12:07 PM
The billboard ads about slowing down made me think of Fahrenheit 451.
In F451, billboards are actually stretched out on highways so that people can still see them when they drive by them at 110 mph, aiming to hit rabbits and dogs with their cars.
January 20, 2008 at 12:35 PM
Oh yeah!
I had forgotten that detail (it's been too long since I read the book). But that's a great connection.
January 20, 2008 at 1:39 PM
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