Volkswagen ‘Sheets’, Sipsmith gin for Wimbledon and more: top creative ads of the week

July 22, 2021 admin 0 Comments

Every week, I attempt to share a compilation of clutter-breaking creative ads and occasionally some commentary on the business of advertising. As many have noted, a majority of the ads out there go un-noticed, so managing to break the clutter is actually a big deal. This week’s compilation includes a spot for Volkswagen with a visual hook and a tongue in cheek ad for Sipsmith gin which turns sponsorship announcers on their head.

Volkswagen: Sheets

After the first few seconds of the ad I thought it was about visually cueing the ‘boring’ design of competing. But it turns out this is an ad to announce electronic charging points set up at TESCOs by Volkswagen and they can be used by all cars – even ‘the ones we can’t show’. Cars covered in white sheets while the lone Volkswagen drives on makes it memorable. Noticed the stuttering car with an an ‘L-board’ sheet?

Agency: adam&eveDDB

Sipsmith Gin: Wimbledon – the official tennis

We’ve all seen announcer ads from brands when they sponsor big sports tournaments. Most of them are straight forward ‘proud sponsors of’ kind of communication with some rare exceptions. Here’s one for Sipsmith Gin which cleverly reverses the roles as it were, by suggesting that ‘Wimbledon is the official tennis of Sipsmith’.

Agency: Ogilvy

Axe: get Axeinated

I wasn’t sure if this was cringe or clever when I first saw it. Since vaccination is the hot topic of discussion, a spot sets it up like an official health ministry announcement with a spokesperson saying that ‘axeinated’ is important as people get closer. It does bring a smile, despite the reference to ‘vacc-pics’, which was a bit juvenile.

Agency: LOLA MullenLowe

Ogilvy: Happy 110th

When I came across this ad on my LinkedIn timeline, it jumped out of the clutter and reminded me immediately of the classic ‘Ogilvy on Advertising’ book. Mission accomplished I guess as the intent was to recount the timeless advice of David Ogilvy in his 110th anniversary. The sheer novelty of a well-written and thoughtfully crafted print ad from India makes it clutter breaking.

Creative: Nikhil Narayanan

Unacademy: believe

Sometimes, just the choice of a background track makes all the difference (as we’ve seen with the ads from Adobe recently). I have noticed that ‘Believer’ by Imagine Dragons is popular among students and it fits in right with an ‘anthem’ song for Unacademy and helps brighten its halo among the target audience.

Agency: Lowe Lintas

ACKO Insurance: Father’s Day

However much we crib about brands seeing every occasion and news of the day to release social media posts or web-only films, we have to accept that this practice is here to stay. As with regular advertising most will go unnoticed and the handful which will be noticed (and remembered, hopefully) have common elements: an engaging plot, good execution and some link back to the brand and the occasion, even if tenuous.

Agency: Lowe Lintas

Health OK: express the tough love

Carrying on with the practice of topical ads for Women’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, heres’a hit from Health OK tablets which aces it based on a common insight and great acting. Every relationship (mother & daughter, siblings) has some unique characteristics. A muted expression of love is felt to be common among fathers & sons. Brilliant performance by actor Zakir Hussain lifts the film and strikes a chord. The brand makes an appearance but its role in the plot or the relationship is secondary – but am sure viewers are Ok with it.

Agency: SG Dream Media

Coca-Cola: turn up your break

A fallout of the Ronaldo-Coke controversy could be that celebrities may be wary of associating themselves with carbonated fizzy drinks for endorsement. They are under the microscope anyway and hence could stay away from any activity which trigger a controversy. The option left for such brands is now to rely on interesting plots or quirky takes which aid memorability. Here’s one such from Australia for Coke.

Agency: Ogilvy

Wimbledon: It’s a Wimbledon thing

For a tennis fan, the Wimbledon holds a special place. A new ad is anchored on the fandom the event evokes with a montage of ‘just fan things’ across the world. The montage format is not new but the quirks and the diverse ways in which people enjoy the game makes it highly relatable.