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The Week In Advertising

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McVities - Sweet Friends

The image of two tough-nut window cleaners going all soppy over some soft toys is undeniably amusing, and that's what we find in the latest execution of McVities 'Sweet' campaign. Clearly a lot of time and money have been spent crafting this work, and there have been plenty of iterations, but it just leaves me wondering whether client and agnecy aren't trying too hard. As I've mentioned repeatedly in this column, far too many brands are chasing the 'meerkat bonus' by aligning themselves with a mascot which the consumer is then invited to buy or win. Obviously McVities fancy a bite of that cookie too, which is a bit boring. But my real objection is the weak proposition: 'biscuits are sweet and so are teddy bears'. That isn't really setting the world alight. At least, not my world.
 

Money Supermarket - Dave

And here's another campaign that's been with us for a while now. The original 'You're so Money Supermarket' spots were a bit flat, but now they've hit their stride, they're certainly getting ambitious. I didn't like the preceding effort, with the fist-bumping elephant - but this is so audacious and absurd, I'm enjoying it. Does a man in impossibly tight shorts and giant heels, wiggling through a city, make us want to use a particular financial website? It seems unlikely, but this spot does bring attention to the brand - and keeps Sharon Osbourne in botox (boy, does she look odd these days). So it's clearly succeeding on at least a couple of levels.


Cesar - Night Shift

If you're flogging dog food, you can be sure of one thing: your target audience loves dogs. So, all you need do is convince them your meaty treats are the best way to let little Fido know how much you adore him, and you're winning. What's more, you'll look far and wide for an ad that does the trick better than this one. It's a fantastic idea - lonely security guard only makes it through his shift, thanks to his little pal and the fun and games they have together - and the reward is a bowl of Cesar. You can almost hear a million dog owners going 'Ahhhhhh!!' as the clip rolls. However, this particularly succeeds by staying the right side of cute, while remaining wonderfully heart-warming. I'd buy the product. But first I need to buy a dog.
 

Age UK - Love Later Life

I'm really not keen on ads which use a poem as a script, they're usually so poorly written. I'm also averse to the idea that older people can only find stimulation and dignity if they're paragliding or Skyping all their family. This spot falls into both categories, and yet it just about saves itself from curling my toes backwards. Firstly, the poem isn't too bad - not great, but not too bad. Secondly, I love seeing all those faces. They're beautifully shot, and form genuinely positive representations of senior folk. But most importantly, the voiceover is by one of my great heroes, Christopher Lee. That voice! That history! Superb casting everyone.


Vitality - Jonny Wilkinson

Another dog in this clip for insurance outfit, Vitality. This time he talks, or more accurately he does the voiceover (via Roland Rivron, unless I'm mistaken). Just in case that unoriginal concept doesn't prompt us into action, a celebrity's been thrown in for good measure. A celebrity in pink trainers, no less. All very camp and twee, but it's so lightweight, the message floats away somewhat. And the notion that a dog would complain about going for a run, suggests the work was produced by a team that knows little about dogs. I hope Jonny Wilkinson added a few quid to his fee when he saw those shoes.

Magnus Shaw is a blogger and copywriter.

 

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