Sketch Loves... Festive Advert Blockbusters

A good Christmas advert is a truly magical thing; it can turn a sour grape into a sobbing mess, i.e. John Lewis’ instalment last year, or simply let you know that it’s time to start feeling festive (although personally I feel no Christmas adverts are allowed until after bonfire night, at least).

But let’s not forget the aim of these such adverts: if they pull on our heart strings in some way, we may build an emotional connection with the brand and remember them next time we’re looking to buy that special something for that special someone.

Setting that cynicism to one side, (just for now) let’s take a look at a few festive blockbuster that spring to Sketch’s mind.

One that most females in the office may be able to relate to is this year’s ’12 Days of Christmas’ by Warehouse. If you haven’t seen it yet, I would recommend watching it before your work Christmas party as watching it after may result in unnecessary cringing.

And whilst we anticipate the arrival of ‘The Snowman and The Snowdog’, do you remember the Irn Bru remake?!

Moving away from traditional advertising, Homebase must have seen our post on 'A Good Bus Stop', as they've added a 3D interactive Christmas Tree to a bus stop in Ruislip to promote one of its stores. A combination of twinkly lights and QR codes entice passers-by with the opportunity to win through its innovative display.

But they’re not the only ones trying something new. If you watched the X-Factor final you may have seen an invitation by Intel to Shazam their advert and upload a Christmas message that may have been broadcast at the end of the show. You can read more about the technicalities of this ingenious partnership here.

And back to one of our feel good favourites, one from Christmas powerhouse Marks and Spencer, all the way back in 2009 with plenty of household celebrities and double-entredes to keep us suitably smiley.

And from the good, straight over to the damn right ugly. What is this atrocity?

Why ‘fix’ something that isn’t broken? #BRINGBACKGEOFFRY!

Sketch Loves... Pinterest

Wow. Having discovered Pinterest in recent months, we are now officially hooked.

It’s a visual catalogue of everything you've ever wanted on the web, neatly organised into boards; your boards, and others’ boards – sharing and discovering with others that have similar interests.

For anyone who doesn’t know, here’s a nice little breakdown of how it works – credit goes to thelinkbuilders.com for this one:

1) When someone likes an image on a website they can pin it back to a board they’ve created on the Pinterest site. These boards can be named anything but fall under categories designated by the Pinterest team, like weddings/events, home décor, travel, etc.

2) Individuals can see pins by people whose boards they are following, or by searching through the most popular pins (most repinned), by category, by search term, or by price. If a user has typed in the price of the object in the comment area it will also appear on the top left corner of the image (this only happens when the dollar sign is typed into the comment area. No other money symbol – like € or £ – makes the price appear on the pin).

3) Every image has a comment area, link, and options to like or repin. Viewers can visit the site that housed the original image by clicking on the image or on the URL in the top right corner of the image.

On our Pinterest account we’ve currently got 8 boards. As expected, they are mostly events and design led, but the opportunities for inspiration are endless:

But who else is using Pinterest? Back in February, US agency Modena put some stats together that help create a picture of who’s pinning:

As the infographic illustrates, there are plenty of brand using Pinterest. But what are they doing there? There’s obvious SEO potential, and an opportunity to display more ‘stuff’ from your site, but users aren’t always going to want to engage with that kind of content. So clever brands make boards that are insightful and reflect the interests of their audience.

ASOS, for example, has 23 boards ranging from Christmas, beauty, current trends and competitions.

But not all brands fit the Pinterest format, forcing them to think outside the box. Take Coca Cola, who ask users to help them discover ‘moments of happiness ’ by sharing photos. A little soppy perhaps, but all in all, Pinterest...we like you.

Sketch Loves... Believe in your Smellf

So back in September we heralded the brand your brand could smell like, aka Old Spice; who had hit advertising gold with their ingenious attempt at not taking themselves too seriously.

Even though Old Spice seemed to be on to a winning formula, they have dared to try something different: introducing their new campaign, ‘Believe in your Smellf’. And no, that wasn’t a typo.

These sensitive, empowering new adverts promote their new ‘Champion’ scent and their first instalment broadcasts a man quite the opposite of Terry Crews. Enter the sensitive man:

But Old Spice have stayed true to their interactivity element, (did you make sweet muscle music last time?) and this time it’s in form of ‘Dikembe Mutombo’s 4 ½ weeks to save the world'. This ridiculous yet strangely engrossing game is based on the idea that the world is set to end on 21st December when the Mayan calendar ends; Dikembe Mutombo (ex-NBA star) graces our screens with a scarily long waging finger and we control him as he tries to solve his first task, ‘The Great 2012 Dance Crisis’, by throwing bottles of Old Spice at people dancing a popular South Korean dance...

The great thing about this (other than the 80s style game animation, repetitive soundtrack and brilliant story telling) is that a new game level is released each week in lead up to the end of the world. Thus encouraging people to come back again and again for another dose of Old Spice silliness.

I for one am now craving to return to a simpler time, when game playing involved pointing, clicking and occasionally button bashing. Thank you Old Spice.

Sketch Loves... Pop Ups!

What’s not to love? There one minute, gone the next; leaving a trail of freebies and interesting experiences in its path. So let’s have a look at some of our favourites in days gone by.

Most recently, (last weekend in fact) The Bar of Aero popped up at the Truman Brewery on Brick Lane, touting itself as the ultimate ‘bubble playground’. The peppermint infused space, there for three days only, was filled with an array of Aero based activities including levitating, prize containing bubbles and a state of the art hot chocolate dispensers.

This bubbly bliss was actually experienced first-hand by Sketch’s Senior Account Manager Lucy. She was drawn there on the promise of orange and green waterfalls and although they couldn't be found, she fully enjoyed drinking hot chocolate and playing with levitating bubbles. Check out her pictures below:

A more gruesome example was Resident Evil 6's human butchery and morgue at Smithfields Meat Market.

This creatively gory experiential event invited fans to immerse themselves in a scene from the game; purchasing and sampling edible human limbs (really a sausage meat and prosciutto mix, if you weren’t sure) – with proceeds being donated to the Limbless Association.

Quickly moving on to a little bit of luxury, Ainhoa the Spanish skincare brand often found in 5* hotels around the world, can currently be found in St. Pancras International train station.

The spa, which is open until the end of January, is offering free express treatments to customers – giving us plenty of time to fully concentrate on a little experiential research...

And at Sketch we know all about making cool pop ups too; we were tasked to create a slice of summer in the heart of London in mid December for Corona last year.

To create an indoor outdoor space we built an 11m geodesic dome on London’s Southbank and installed real grass, tall palms, lime trees, a huge white up-lit bar and luxury beach furniture.

The tropical temperatures inside the dome meant that bar staff were serving Corona in their shorts in December, creating the sense of leaving winter behind and stepping into summer in a luxury beach resort somewhere far, far away...

 

Sketch Loves... Nokia's Interactive Display

Nokia have created their own take on the Oxford Street Christmas lights, with a premium spot in one of the windows of Selfridges’ flagship store.

Selfridges' theme for this year is ‘enchantment’ and so Nokia have produced an interactive, enchanted forest window display to promote their own latest Window’s phone; the new Nokia Lumia 820.

In another example of brands using social media to turn consumers into advocates, passersby are encourages to tweet #switch @nokia_UK to start a mini light show sequence in the window.

Of course #switch is an apt command for turning on the lights, but are Nokia also perhaps trying to make a point about switching from an iPhone?

Most smartphones really have to push to stand out from iPhones, as well as other phones in the market. Those that pre-order the Nokia Lumia 820 will get a matching Nokia Purity Pro headset – a bit of kit worth £199. But are the freebies are the interactive window enough to make people #switch?

Sketch Loves... Movember

Here it is again, the time when significant others either start to enjoy the more ‘dapper’ side of their man, or simply cringe in disgust. It is ‘Movember’.

Whether you’re a fan of facial hair or not, Movember is a fantastic cause based around an ingenious concept; ‘Mo Bros’ around the world are encouraged to sprout a ‘tache to raise awareness of prostate and testicular cancer research. The other 50% of the world, ‘Mo Sistas’ are asked to help support them.

Over $299M has been raised since the Movember charity began in 2003 and a growing number of big brands are showing their support this mo growing season.

HP Sauce has launched a new, limited edition label that includes a moustache and an encouraging message. Their Facebook fan page features weekly competitions to win Movember donations and a special Kent Brushes ‘Mo Comb’. In addition, HP has planned experiential activity at special ‘Mo Running’ events around the country.

Gillette is another official ‘Mo Friend’ of Movember, and they’ve teamed up with OutKast’s André 3000 to find the best moustache within New York, Hudson and Boston during their ‘eMO’gency Styler Tour’. The winning mo will be displayed on a massive billboard in Times Square and Gillette will also be donating $1 for every photo uploaded to their Facebook app.

Their UK activity includes free tache touch-ups at their London based pop up shop ‘The Best a Mo Can Get’.

In Canada, Harley-Davidson are giving away one of their motorcycles to the country’s best fundraiser, whilst the Sony Movie Channel will be asking fans to vote for their favourite movie moustaches, (Burt Reynolds instantly springs to mind).

And even Big Ben joined in with the Movember fun, sporting a bright blue moustache on November the 1st.

But what about our very own boys at Sketch? Unfortunately, we think they might need a little mo-tivating...

And don't forget that once Movember has passed, you can start preparing for Fanuary!

Sketch Loves...Windows 8: The Live Tile Experiment

Windows 8 have really been stepping up their game recently and this PR Stunt / Experiential activity is no exception.

When unsuspecting Oslo (Norway) residents passed by a 'fake' building which appeared to have a lively party inside, they were given an exclusive preview of the windows live experience... with an interactive "Live Tile" in the middle of the street.

When participants pressed on the tile the music from the party could be heard.

When they took the plunge and fully stood on the tile, to their shock the wall falls down around them with a dance floor pattern revealing popular Norwegian band Datarock and  floods of party goers in a sea of dry ice who swamp the dance floor.

There is even a man in disco ball floating above them!

As quickly as it has appeared, the wall is raised back up by the party going volunteers, the band pulled back inside, and the smoke disappears as if it was never there just leaving the stunned resident to process what just happened.

Some amazing reactions from the public, especially the guy with the hot dog. We hope he's real and if not hats off to his 'genuine' surprise face.

This is a great example of how much of an impact experiential activities can really have. Even though people have been questioning if the video is genuine or not, as with the James Bond 007 "Unlock the 007 in You" Coke Zero campaign,  if it is more PR stunt than experiential it still gets people talking, tweeting and blogging about it.

Sketch Loves... a Marmite Christmas

It may be a little too soon to post about Christmas, but bear with us, we’re actually talking about Christmas lights. Festive decorations start well before December the 25th, and so by that logic we can start talking about them sooner.

When you think of Christmas lights, what kind of images does it conjure up? How about...marmite? No? Well, love it or hate it, the delicious/disgusting spread is sponsoring the Oxford Street Christmas lights this year, in a clever experiential event that calls for the public to upload pictures of their marmite induced expressions. The photos will be displayed on an interactive banner over Selfridges along with pictures of people taken at a Bond Street bus stop.

And if that isn’t enough yeast for you just yet, characters made out of lights will line the designated streets, flashing in a sequence that will show them loving or hating their marmite.

The lights were turned on by the one and only Robbie Williams this Monday, and given that around 18.49 million shoppers visit Oxford Street each month, it can only mean big business for the brand – who have launched a limited edition golden jar just for the occasion.

Carling Winter Zest 'Bonfire Ball'

Carling's PR Team asked us to create a Bonfire Ball to remember (remember) on the 5th of November to celebrate the launch of their new limited edition Carling Winter Zest. So on this chilly but beautiful bonfire night we took to the roof of One New Change and invited guests to embrace their ‘zest’ for winter and experience London’s fireworks across the stunning St. Paul’s skyline.

The scene was set with a scattering of autumn leaves, our very own hand-made, flame-free bonfire and plenty of sparklers. As guests arrived they were greeted with a bottle of Carling Winter Zest and encouraged to wrap up warm with an assortment of on-hand woolly accessories.

 A hot chestnut vendor with bags of banter (“these are hot, and they may contain nuts”) gave out the warming treats throughout the night, whilst chorizo hotdogs were served on silver platters.

An LED poi and hoop dancer spun a whirl of colour across the rooftop before desert arrived in the form of the critically-acclaimed group Rudimental, who treated revellers to a live performance and DJ set which concluding with their number one single, ‘Feel the Love’.

 
Rudimental commented: “We were excited about performing at the Carling Zest Bonfire Ball to celebrate a fantastic 2012, after a busy year of playing festivals across Europe. We played an intimate show in our home city, at a unique venue which existed for one night only."

Post-party, the positive response on Twitter was immediate, with even Rudimental themselves announcing their love for Carling Zest as well as guests tweeting pictures of the evening under the hashtag #carlingzest.

The Bonfire Ball truly went down with a bang and is sure to leave a lasting memory with guests and all of the Sketch team.

The Christmas Creep

Christmas advertising seems to find its way on to every possible platform earlier and earlier each year. The process even has its own name in the US; ‘Christmas creep’ refers to retailers exploiting the commercialisation of Christmas by bringing forward their festive sales tactics, but is this premature activity beneficial to brands or do consumers just get bored?

For some, starting Christmas early is the key to avoid over-spending. In what would seems like a contradiction, companies like ‘Park’ have cottoned on to the money making opportunities that thrifty savers can bring them. These companies encourage consumers to start ‘saving’ early by placing orders for items that they can make monthly payments for in the run up to Christmas.

But consumers wishing to save money are most probably not the reason behind festive promotions starting so soon. The Guardian puts last year’s Christmas creep down to economy issues:
 

“A decade ago, retailers would not start their festive promotions until late October, but this year – with dozens of retail chains on the brink of bankruptcy – selection boxes, mince pies and even advent calendars and Christmas puddings are already on the shelves of supermarkets across the country.” 

But will consumers get bored of Christmas starting early and hold on to their pounds until they truly feel the time is right? Perhaps not. Retailers are fully aware of this looming possibility and so whilst they continue to persuade consumers that they’ll be missing out if they don’t spend early, it’s going to be a tough trend to break.

To that end, we leave you with some interesting facts from Asda’s 4000 strong ‘Mumdex’ panel who were questioned in July about this coming Christmas:

• 46% are worried about the cost of Christmas
• 41% have already bought Christmas cards
• 13% have already bought decorations
• 22% have already stored away food for December
• 93% of women suveyed are already stockpiling presents

 
(statistics source: http://www.eauk.org/culture/statistics/christmas-facts-and-quotes.cfm)

Sketch Loves...Halloween Creativity

Halloween is the perfect time for brands to be a little more daring and unleash their experimental and creative sides.

Tesco has stepped up to the mark, using augmented reality for its latest Halloween campaign by bringing AR to Sun readers and their families whilst creating an exciting opportunity for children and adults to play with a technology they may not have had much experience with in the past.

By holding the Tesco costume page up to their chest, readers can turn themselves in to a zombie when someone scans the advert on the page.

Engine Creative, who produced the advert, also crafted 3D AR bats, coffins, and pumpkins to help build a Tesco ‘Trick or Treat’ Halloween scene.

Next up, Giffgaff has a commitment not to spend big on advertising and so kept costs low and profile high by taking to the streets of London this Halloween in a trick or treat procession. A whole host of zombies and other dark creatures visited London landmarks and look-a-likes in an attempt to raise awareness about their mobile network

And Topshop has launched a ‘Trick or Tweet’ social media competition, in a bid that will surely increase their online engagement.

Twitter users that post their Halloween outfits or share Halloween styling tips with @Topshop, will be in with a daily chance to win a £100 gift card.

But more impressively, customers can spend their tweets (yes, you read that right) at in-store ‘Topshop Tweet Shops’ by tweeting in return for Halloween inspired make-up

“We love the idea of using Halloween to connect our digital and physical worlds." says Justin Cooke, Chief Marketing Officer, Topshop. "We know our customer moves seamlessly between the two and we want to make that experience even more fun for them and drive conversation in our community around a moment that everyone wants to be a part of.”