FCUK for Man. FCUK for Woman.

FCUK's new “For Man” and “For Woman” parallel advertising campaigns by Fallon London are great. I especially like the Man ads which feature, in stunning photography, a 'real' man instead of a pretty boy model. The concept of manliness bodes well to improve what is a stagnating brand, combating current brand perceptions that FCUK is outdated and offers niether feminine or masciline fashion. This brand rejuvenation was long overdue but worth waiting for.

Uniqlo Lucky Counter - Everyone Wins

Super-trendy clothing retailer, Uniqlo recently unleashed the Lucky Counter: You tweet about a product and its price will come down for everybody. Its great incentive for people to shout about the brand online through social interaction. Great for Uni, great for the end consumer - everyone wins!

Tippex's Viral Triumph

This new Youtube viral campaign from Tippex has been impeccably implemented. The video features an interactive choice at the end where you decide what the hunter should do to the bear. Your choice then redirects you to their campaign microsite, and you can interact even further.

This is the most clever unique and interactive use of Youtube I have seen to date. The ‘help erase and rewrite the story’ campaign message fits well with the brand and is entertaining enough to go viral amongst kids - bearing in mind it cleverly coincides with the start of the new US school year.

Old Spice - "the fastest-growing and most popular interactive campaign in history"

The award winning campaign by W+K has now been taken to the next level through personalised video responses on the Old Spice branded Youtube channel, delivered via social networks such as Twitter and Facebook. Old Spice are churning out over 60 hilarious short clips every day, many of them directed at celebrity Twitter accounts, making it a super-interactive social media campaign which engages with fans by having a direct conversation with them on an intimate level.

This has to be the best social media campaign I have seen to date – and sure Old Spice Bodywash sales are up 107% in the last month. However, I can't help but feel the current up-turn in sales will be short-lived due to the outdated smell of the product. Ultimately this key product design flaw will prevent any long-term success

the Puma and Nike World Cup contrast

This Nike ad must be the most over-hyped ad of the year, if not century. Sure, its got amazing production value and the inclusion of so many stars has led to an incredible amount of online buzz. But my problem with it is that it talks about the consequences of activities on the pitch almost over what is happening on the pitch, adding weight to the notion that football is a sell out to commercialisation. This goes against Nike's image as the 'plucky' under dog against the official World Cup sponsor Addidas.

I think Puma (below) have done a much better of job of connecting with its audience on an emotional level with a world cup campaign which focuses on people's love for the game in a very engaging way. I prefer the Puma ad, however by the sheer number of Youtube views and media coverage for the Nike 'Write The Future' camapign, it is probably clear who the winner is.

nice idea but hard to stomach

These Pantene salt shakers have on them an image of a woman whose hair produces dandruff when used. It's a clever concept which gets the message accross well, but it is also far from appetizing- when we are about to eat a meal the last thing we want to think about is dandruff. For that reason i don't think they will be a hit with the public.

Grey: Germany

Tremors of Creative Genius

I am sure creative advertising will continue to thrive in Chile despite the earthquake devastation. Here is a sample of some brilliance coming from Santiago last month. Different brands but both use great insights aimed at busy mums and health-concious women. I find something slightly disturbing about the child crying though. Agency: Prolam Y&R (top), Lowe (bottom)

Nike gets down with the kids

This iPhone app by Nike develops a relationship between the brand and the audience by encouraging trend-setters to 'make the hidden visible.' It basically allows cool people to tell other cool people where the coolest places are in their city. The campaign targets trendy opinion formers which gives it credibility and fits with Nike's 'urban sheek' credentials. I also love the use of QR codes (my dissertation topic) to make the interaction between the app and the city seamlessly intergrated.
Agency: AKQA

Dixons get competitors to do the dirty work...

This campaign features a well thought-out insight and a very honest response to the changing nature of consumer behaiour. As Dixons shift their operations slowly from our high streets to their online store, they've come up with a great way to turn the footfall of John Lewis and Selfridges into sales on their website.

Wrigley's Extra Time

The Extra 90+ campaign caught my eye last night. It's an inspired use of creativity in media planning which taps into the drama of football by running ads on digital advertising boards during extra time with slogans such as 'added time, added tension - chew through the stress.' This campaign does well to establish credibility amongst football fans and it ties in nicely with Wrigley's Extra being the 'official chewing gum of the Premier League.

Social Work Recriutment

Its a refreshingly bold move to see a recruitment ad without any cheesy people in it (particuarly in the public sector.) From working on a few recruitment accounts myself, I know how tempting and obvious it is to humanise everything during creative development. This campaign manages a strong emotional narrative - which is essential to attract people to a job such as social work.

Best. Christmas. Present. Ever.

lovely bit of ambient work from Mini, these boxes were put out just after Christmas with the city rubbish. I think it was a really super way to highlight Mini's USP of compactness and it fits the fun, playful image of the brand.