advergirl

Favorite new multimedia sites

With every new location comes a new pipe to deal with... and this one is... slim. Checking out Flash sites lately has been a little circa-1997-56k-modem-enter-a-URL-and-go-make-dinner-while-it-loads. Nonetheless there have been a few delightful ones this month that were absolutely worth the wait:

Best B2B
Motorola City's show-and-tell of their commitment to public safety. Wait, stop yawning at the title, this site is slick:

Best I-don't-even-begin-to-get-it but somehow admire what you're doing:
Modernista's site relaunch that basically leverages DHTML and some open sourceness to dynamically assemble content from around the Web. I think the point is: we fundamentally get how the Web works in ways that other agency's don't. I think the visual experience is, in a word: painful.

 

Best basic landing page:
Haagen Dazs Help the Honeybees issue site. For its beautiful illustration and actually worthwhile soundtrack.

Best for kids:
Nintendo's Professor Layton and the Curious Village game promotional page. It brings the game to life and (at least seems) very fun and interactive for kids.

Why we do this: Sony foam city

Making a movie seems hard. But, you still want to shutter a downtown and create a cinematic mess. Sound familiar? Then advertising is definitely the career for you.

Check out these early shots from the "set" of the upcoming Sony spot dubbed foam city. Apparently millions of gallons of foam were dumped on the city to create the base scenes.

Now, come on, that looks like fun. And a much better way to spend the day than, say, pitching hot dogs.

The social media spinners are already buzzing about the coming spots - so, here's hoping they'll be as delightful as the original Bravia bouncing balls.

 

Hey U. U R A QT.

Two great opportunities to relive a little well-spent youth out this week. First up, local ad-guy Dave O reported the splendid news that the Fraggles are coming to iTunes.

And, Marti Post sent over this grown-up cootie catcher of a site from Sprint: The TXT Romantifier. Lots of salacious little abbreviations to txt to your sweetie this valentines season.

What I really think: A delightful idea. And, come on, the addition of Isaac Hayes? He practically owns romance. But the execution is a little wonky. Either the server is overwhelmed (unlikely I think) or the app is really heavy and slow to move. Plus, the browse nav isn't super intuitive. B-

No one reads copy

Before America's ad writers go on strike from this Web site, I should probably say that I'm kidding about no one reading copy, but, check out this game changing stat of the moment:

8 in 10 Internet users also do some offline activity while online

They shift focus, blur focus, multitask.

Their attention is widely divided from Ugly Betty to the latest Jodi Picoult pageturner to your client's Web site.

Seeing the big numbers is great reminder of just how important the experience is online. Of how important it is to concept the visit upfront, long before copy is written or a pixel is placed.

Check out the details on eMarketer:

easyTXTR.com: Converse in the streets

Remember last year's 'Share your Secret' promotion in Times Square? P&G's Deodorant PR mavens took to the sidewalks, encouraging passersby to share their secrets on the giant NASDAQ and Reuters billboards nearby. A few thousand brave souls told their previously-closely-guarded tales via text messages, kiosks and the ShareYourSecret.com Web site (now defunct). The secrets ranged from "I’m afraid he’s falling out of love with me” to “I ate the last pudding!”  and effectively opened the brand to consumers & created a solid bit of buzz.

Fast forward to last weekend.

easyTXTR brought the same level of pop-up interactivity to Columbus' Short North with a projected display that enabled gallery hoppers to tell all - or nothing at all - on a real time outdoor conversation wall. On its first unveil, ~800 people sent funny moments, sports updates, and even a proposal.

I see this technology as a great opportunity to create real dialog around a brand without the usual fears associated with a long-term conversation online - complete with righteous admin tool and devastating stomach ulcers. This pop up tech lives in a real community (there's much less anonymity than online) and is point-in-time specific (meaning less opportunity to plot against the tech).

I'm seeing this on malls the day after Thanksgiving, at Festivals (captured on cell phones), at grand openings, etc ... anywhere a conversation builds the community & customer experience.

Experience it virtually here.

See video, pics, etc. here.

Bravia: Here comes the "play doh" buzz...

UPDATE:
Here are a few pics from the set:

Play doh BUNNIES? I'm as excited as one of those costumed Potter muggles camped outside a theater at midnight on a Tuesday waiting to see a movie about a book she already read...

Original post:

The buzz-masters behind the original glorious Bravia 'balls' spot and the follow-up-you-probably-had-to-be-there 'paint' spot, are teamed up with Immediate Future for early spinning as the boxes are unpacked for the New York 'play doh' spot.

Play doh!!??

Can't wait.

Watch them Twitter on set. And, keep an eye on the ad site for more...

HP: The Computer Is Personal Again

Hmmm, several blogs are calling out the new HP series today. I'm a little undecided on the campaign:

• Big plus: The look is very cool. The celebs are intriguing. It's definitely a watch-multiple-times, really-pay-attention-to creative approach.
• Big minus: The spots are like brand ads for a product ... all soft and fuzzy; there are no benies, no new bells & whistles. Worse, all the "cool" factor is the software (not included!). My guess is that they're taking on MACMac's differentiator headon - the PC can be cool, too.

Lovely to watch. See more.

Update: Check out much smarter post over at The Ranch.

Agency: Goodby, Silverstein Partners

Nokia Tattoo

Check out this branding ad for Nokia's new Tattoo phone. The graphics are really intriguing - you quickly get the sense of connection and spreading something beautiful and affective. Still, it's subtle. If you're not looking at the television, you'd miss the entire thing. The music isn't captivating. There is no VO. And, if you're half watching, the slithery tattoos are still subtle, elusive.

Here's the counter to my counter - Nokia is looking for early adopters, people looking for the next hot thing. I think maybe they'd watch. Or, better, seek it out. And the tag and close are pretty strong.

Great product name. We walk around with these phones glued to our faces, talking about what model we're addicted to and why we love our special carrier. Portable, disposable, pricey tattoos. Nice.

Agency: Hasan & Partners

Amp'd: Entertain Yourself

Have you heard that Dennis Miller routine where he claims to have written his joke about hotel laundry back from the word squatter?  This is one of those spots where you know it was written backwards from the women kissing, past the junk shaking ... and, what, what can we add that will make this seem like the phone delivers something other than porn??

No surprise that the every creative listed in the credits is a man ... desperately trying to mine that 15% of consumer purchases actually made by men.

Nonetheless, great idea. Fun approach. Just bored with the whole women are hot kissing cliche ... but, I am clearly not the target.

Submitted by: Mr Mike Swainey

Agency: Taxi

Cheetah chucks the hare (or why art directors should go to sleep before 3AM)

A little advertising news from our neighbors to the north - Rogers Communications, Inc. has sued BCE, Inc. over a spot that pits the Bell Mobility Cheetah against the Rogers Wireless Hare.

The animals - who look like characters from an old video game - are supposed to race to prove which wireless network is the fastest.

But, the Cheetah eats the Hare - then gagging and throwing up the losing bunny.

John Boynton, chief marketing officer at Rogers Wireless, said the spot disparages his brand. "The cheetah did not beat the rabbit in a race showing speed, the cheetah swallowed the rabbit and barfed it up."

If only I had a link to the creative.

Globe and Mail story