A Lot More Than Just Promos

Krusty Burger and Duff Beer: Springfield Comes to Life!

2013-06-17T13:03:00.003-04:00

If you're a fan of "The Simpsons," you're going to want to book a trip to Orlando, Florida very soon. In celebration of the TV show's 25th birthday, Universal Studios Florida is set to open a Springfield-themed area of its park this fall.

According to Fast CoCreate, the television program's famous burger joint, Krusty Burger, is already open for business. Moe's Tavern is also up and running.

Foods from the iconic TV show -- including the Krusty Burger and the Heat Lamp Dog -- are available for purchase. Perhaps best of all, Duff Beer is on tap! At Moe's Tavern, it's even served in a Simpsons-themed printed pint glass:

I think the new addition to Universal will be a huge success. After all, who doesn't love Homer, Marge and the rest of the gang?

"Handvertising" Your Brand

2013-06-14T12:32:00.005-04:00

This is what I call an extraordinary promotion. Antiseptica-Home, a German hand sanitizer, took its brand where "one million people willingly exchange germs" -- the Hamburg Marathon.

As racers cross the finish line, their adoring fans are waiting and ready to give a high-five. Brand representatives for Antiseptica-Home joined in on the fun.

Here's how they promoted their product: Antiseptica-Home staff members wore gloves that doubled as stamps. When they offered a high-five after completing the marathon, spectators' hands were imprinted with a surprise message: "That's exactly how nasty germs spread. Antiseptica-Home. For sanitary clean hands."

And that's not all! Afterward, they even offered free promotional antibacterial wipes. This way, people could clean off the stamp while sampling the product at the same time.

The company reports that after the stunt, traffic to its website doubled. Impressive! What do you think about the campaign?

Kit Kat's 'Pillow Book' Gives Students a Break

2013-06-12T12:08:00.000-04:00

It's finals season, and students across the world are pulling way too many all-nighters. That's why Kit Kat -- the chocolate brand that knows how important it is to "Have a break" -- created the pillow book. Take a look:

According to advertiser JWT in Brazil, "Students get up early, go to bed late, and always have a notebook" in-hand. So why not incorporate a pillow for when they need a break?

The team developed promotional notebook that features an inflatable cover. This way, when tiredness strikes, recipients can take it easy (while showing off Kit Kat's name and logo, of course).

Not only is the fantastic giveaway timely, but it also perfectly fits the Kit Kat brand: "Have a break, have a Kit Kat." Love it!

Hi-Tech Pizza: Meet the 'DomiCopter'

2013-06-11T12:30:00.004-04:00

One day soon, your Domino's might arrive via helicopter.

The global pizza company has begun testing the 'DomiCopter' -- a remote-controlled helicopter that can carry orders high above the ground.

According to the Huffington Post, the unique delivery device was developed and tested by creative agency T + Biscuits. How's testing going so far? "If anything it went quicker than a pizza boy," said T + Biscuits founder Tom Hatton. "We were amazed at how easy it was going to be."

However, Domino's will likely have a hard time introducing the DomiCopter in the U.S., as FAA regulations block unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Still, I love this innovative and high-tech promotional idea.

Smart Summer Giveaway: Picnic-Blanket-Bag

2013-06-10T12:22:00.003-04:00

I've seen lots of great promotional bags in my day, but this one caught my eye because it's totally unique. Tibits, a European vegetarian restaurant, created the "picnic-blanket-bag" to promote its take-away services.

Customers who order take-out from Tibits receive this free bag, which makes picnicking easier than ever:

I love Tibits' "mobile picnic area." Not only does it bring the brand to parks and other picnic areas, but it also makes the consumer's life a little happier. More advertising should work like this!

What If a Can of Coke Could Smile Back?

2013-06-05T12:00:00.001-04:00

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Coca-Cola's "Open Happiness" campaign. I can't help it; I'm a sucker for good vibes.

To further its message, the global beverage brand made a slight but noticeable alteration to its drinkware. Check out the new "Happy Can":

Obviously I'm obsessed with the idea. Just look at that gorgeous smile! Plus, I love the subtle imprint on the can: "Open Happiness."

Coca-Cola and agency McCann Erickson even erected a billboard in Milan, Italy featuring the redesigned can. There isn't even any copy, just a lot of Coke's signature red and that grinning can. Take a look:

Do you think the new Coca-Cola can will help spread happiness?

Clever Axe Ad: In Case of Emergency

2013-06-03T11:20:00.002-04:00

Fire alarms and extinguishers are often kept behind a thin piece of glass. "In case of fire," the casing reads, "break glass."

Axe has put a clever twist on the common emergency box. See it for yourself below:

The creative ad was placed in men's bathrooms in several popular clubs and bars. If she said "no" (to a date, a dance, a drink -- whatever), break the glass and give yourself a spray. The irresistible nature of "the Axe effect" will take care of the rest.

I'm a little concerned about all the shattered glass this piece will produce, but I still have respect for the smart promotional idea. What are your thoughts?

Has Corona Created the Best Promotional Product Ever?

2013-05-30T11:30:00.000-04:00

It's a calendar, coaster set and an assortment of fun facts, all wrapped into one amazing promotional product. To promote its message, "Let the World Wait," Corona created "The Corona Calendar."

The stunning direct marketing piece is a collection of 365 unique coasters that describe a different event or anniversary that's "worth raising a beer to." Check out some of the beautiful promotional coasters below. (Click to enlarge.)

While I don't recommend drinking a beer daily (sorry, Corona), I still love this ad's underlying message: It's important to take some time out of your busy day to unwind. Hear, hear!

Carnival Ad Speaks to Sun-Deprived City Dwellers

2013-05-28T12:31:00.004-04:00

If you've ever lived in or visited New York City in the heart of winter, you know just how brutally cold it can be. That's why this understated billboard for Carnival is actually pretty brilliant. Check it out:

It might look like a simple digital thermometer, but it's actually got a strong call to action. How so? The outdoor ad was up in New York between the months of January and March, when temperatures rarely break freezing. The billboard invites sun-deprived city dwellers to escape to summer without saying anything at all.

I love the simplistic nature of this ad, as well as its insight into a cold New Yorker's state of mind.

Microsoft Turns Siri Against its Creator

2013-05-23T11:01:00.004-04:00

Some of the biggest names in tech -- Apple, Samsung and Microsoft -- have been big on negative advertisements in recent years. These attack ads often mock rival companies while making their fans look like idiots.

In a new 30-second video promoting Windows 8, Microsoft turns Siri against its creator.

According to Mashable, "The ad shows the iPad and a Windows 8 tablet side-by-side with Siri repeatedly apologizing for not being able to do what Microsoft's tablet can." Watch the commercial for yourself below:

I'm not usually a fan of ads that are founded on negativity, but I must admit this one gave me a good laugh. I've had an iPhone for the longest time, and can certainly understand some of the frustrations. (Is Siri ever helpful?)

How do you feel about Microsoft's promotional idea? Are negative ads like this one effective?

Coke Charms UK Consumers with Personalized Bottles

2013-05-20T15:40:00.002-04:00

This is one of those moments when I wish I lived in the UK.

Coca-Cola has launched its brand new "Share a Coke" campaign across Europe, which seems to be riding on the coattails of "Open Happiness." For promotional product junkies, what's most exciting about Coke's new ad effort is that it's providing customers with truly customized drinkware! Look below for a photo:

According to Marketing Week UK, Coke has replaced its familiar branding with "150 of the UK’s most popular names across 100 million packs." And for those whose names didn't make the cut, the soda company has created a "Share a Coke" website and a Facebook app that allow consumers to "create virtual cans with their names on." Nice touch.

A spokesperson for Coke said the campaign will be a success because "it’s quite unusual and arresting to see your name replace a brand as iconic as Coke." Agreed. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if people hold onto their bottles as collectors' items.

To our UK readers (do we have any UK readers?) -- if you come across a bottle for Brandon, send it this way!

Would This Can of Tuna Make You Think Twice?

2013-05-16T11:05:00.006-04:00

Did you know that due to destructive tuna fishing practices, sea turtles, sting-rays and dolphins are often inadvertently killed? In fact, John West Australia slaughters enough of these animals through by-catch to fill 10 million tuna cans. Yikes.

To increase awareness about John West Australia's unsustainable fishing practices, Greenpeace created this uniquely-shaped can and sent it to journalists, public figures and other social influencers. Check it out:

According to Greenpeace, the campaign was a success. John West Australia promised to enforce environmentally-friendly fishing methods. "This was a direct result of the campaign and while it will cost John West millions of dollars, it will save millions of tonnes of marine life."

What do you think? Would Greenpeace's awareness product make you think twice about sustainable fishing?

Smart Car in Your Mailbox Proves "It Can Park Anywhere"

2013-05-14T13:39:00.000-04:00

A major benefit of owning a Smart car is that it's really, really small. That means parking is a lot easier, especially if you live in a crowded city.

To demonstrate that a Smart car "can park anywhere," the brand and Spanish ad agency RMG Connect built an adorable direct marketing product. Take a look:

The 3D direct mail piece was placed in mailboxes of people who live in city centers. When residents checked their mail, they found a perfectly-parked Smart car. It communicates the brand's message without saying anything at all, making for an awesome ad.

What do you think of the advertisement?

Mariah Carey Jumps on the #Hashtag Bandwagon with '#Beautiful'

2013-05-10T10:45:00.002-04:00

Last week, Mariah Carey released the first single off her forthcoming album. If you've been following her career, you know that she's struggled to make a hit in recent years. And if anything can bring an artist back to the top of the charts, it's a solid hashtag.

Carey's new song, "#Beautiful," is already performing considerably well. In fact, it's being hailed as the "song of summer 2013."

But perhaps more importantly, following its release, the social media-ready song immediately began trending on Twitter worldwide. If that's not smart marketing, I don't know what is.

Watch the music video for "#Beautiful" featuring Miguel below:

What do you think? Is incorporating a hashtag into your campaign a good promotional idea?

Massive, Floating Rubber Duck: A Symbol of Friendliness

2013-05-02T12:28:00.001-04:00

We already know about the healing properties of a good, old fashioned rubber duck, thanks to The Ducks of Sandy Hook Elementary campaign. Now, artist Florentijin Hofman has taken the idea to a whole new level by building a one-of-a-kind, giant, traveling rubber duck. Take a look:

According to Hofman's website, his rubber duck project represents friendliness without boundaries: "The Rubber Duck knows no frontiers, it doesn't discriminate people and doesn't have a political connotation. The friendly, floating Rubber Duck has healing properties: it can relieve mondial tensions as well as define them. The rubber duck is soft, friendly and suitable for all ages!"

And this rubber duck has certainly brought joy to a lot of people. It recently traveled all the way from Sydney's Darling Harbour to Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong.

I love this over-the-top work of art.

Experimental Dove Ad Proves ‘You Are More Beautiful Than You Think’

2013-04-24T10:52:00.003-04:00

I'm a huge fan of Dove's "Real Beauty" campaign. Its message goes against everything we've been taught about beauty products and advertising. Today, the personal care brand promotes a positive body image, setting itself apart from competitors.

In its most recent ad, Dove invited seven women of different ages and ethnicities to get sketched. FBI-trained artist Gil Zamora drew two sketches of each woman, one based on their own descriptions of themselves and another based on the way they were described by a group of strangers.

And guess what? A whole lot of ladies are kind of self-deprecating!

According to PR Newser, "When the portraits are finished, without fail, those created from the observations of others are more flattering than those based on self-descriptions."

Take a look at a few of the sketches below, courtesy of bath and body brand Dove:

The campaign effectively proved to participating women that "you are more beautiful than you think." How do you feel about the newest bath and body brand's advertisement?

Restaurant Ad Turns Car Antennas Into Skewers

2013-04-17T12:53:00.001-04:00

If you can create an ad this good, I won't even be mad that you touched my car.

A new advertisement for FATZ Restaurants -- a chain that's known for its kabobs -- is totally unique and appealing. Check out the guerrilla-marketing piece that The Zimmerman Agency placed on cars parked at local stores and markets:

Come on, you've got to admit this is pretty clever. Car antennas look exactly like skewers! And the images look so real I'm actually getting kind of hungry.

Even better, the piece includes a promotional premium: 5% off your next meal over $20.

Fantastic job; here's hoping the food is as good as the advertising.

Rubber Ducks Help Bring Joy Back to Newtown, Conn.

2013-04-15T13:07:00.001-04:00

You've got to love when a positive meme takes the world by storm.

Soon after the kids and staff of Sandy Hook Elementary were relocated to Chalk Hill School, Officer Todd Keeping, who was assigned to the school, received an unusual delivery: 500 rubber ducks. According to Yahoo! News, Keeping "spread dozens of the ducks around the school—in hallways, on window sills—for the children (and some adults) to take." After just a few days, the box was empty.

"The ducks bring joy to them—and that's exactly what they need," Keeping said.

To keep the positive vibes flowing, Keeping launched a Facebook page, dubbed "The Ducks of Sandy Hook Elementary," to raise the money for another shipment. Keeping then began adding photos of the rubber duckies from around the world to his page, helping to generate more than 5,000 likes and lots of love. See some of them below:

Keeping continues to give away ducks to students and teachers, noting that "some kids ... will only come to school and get on the bus because I promise them they'll get a duck."

To get involved, send your own custom rubber ducks to:
The Ducks of Sandy Hook Elementary
261 S. Main Street #312
Newtown, Conn. 06470
USA

'Made in America Festival' Announces Lineup via Spotify

2013-04-11T11:08:00.001-04:00

What better way to promote a music festival than by creating a killer Spotify playlist? (I seriously can't think of a better way.)

If you haven't heard yet, the 2013 Made in America Festival, which is scheduled to take place in Philadelphia, Pa. Aug. 31 - Sept. 1 features a diverse array of musicians, from Beyoncé to Deadmau5. To get the news out there, promoters built a one-of-a-kind Spotify playlist featuring songs from participating artists. Awesome!

In fact, I'm tuning in right now, and I'm pretty intrigued. I might have to make it down to Philly for the festival!

Kudos to all those involved in this fantastic promotional idea!

New Season, New Tic Tacs

2013-04-10T13:52:00.003-04:00

Spring fever is a strong motivator, and Tic Tac's hoping it'll get you to try out its new "Festival" pack, which includes a mix of lime, orange, cherry and passion fruit flavors. Check it out:

According to Branding Magazine, "The general idea behind this is to promote fresh flavors for the summertime." Just in time for the Kiss Summer Beach Festival, where Tic Tac's new flavor will be available for sampling. (Ah, now the name makes sense.)

What do you think -- do Tic Tac's new flavor and packaging scream spring?

Ad Urges Lotto Winners to Fix LA's Football Problem

2013-04-09T12:32:00.000-04:00

"LA doesn't have a football team. Fix that."

Sometimes just a few persuasive words can evoke the desired response. Take a look at this billboard for the California Lottery, for example:

The ad copy shows great insight into the minds of LA residents. (It must be pretty frustrating to have travel to Oakland, San Diego or San Francisco for a football game.)

If nothing else, the California Lottery's ad makes you laugh. And they're betting that's enough to make you buy a ticket.

Do you think the billboard is effective?

Tusk-Topped Taxis Promote Mammoth Exhibit

2013-04-01T13:39:00.002-04:00

If you're into science, I'd be willing to bet that this awesome ad for the Denver Museum of Nature & Science would win you over.

To promote its new "Mammoths and Mastodons: Titans of the Ice Age" exhibit, the museum added life-sized tusks to a fleet of Colorado taxis. Pretty wild, huh?

The toppers were designed by Carmichael Lymch to raise awareness about the exhibition, which allows museum visitors to interact with models of the animals' tusks and trunks.

Space Center Draws in Kids with 'Angry Birds' Exhibit

2013-03-27T13:30:00.000-04:00

Kennedy Space Center, which is located in Orlando, Florida, has long been an attraction for tourists in the area. And now it's opened a new exhibit that caters specifically to youngsters.

The freshly built "Angry Birds Space Encounter" brings the popular game to life, boasting "seven unique interactive exhibits for guests to experience, including a 'Danger Zone' mirror maze and 'Red Planet Laser Challenge,'" reports Mashable.

Perhaps most importantly, Kennedy Space Center has included a real-life Angry Birds game, in which kids fling stuffed animal ammunition from a slingshot aimed at those pesky pigs.

According to the Huffington Post, the interactive exhibit is expected to help lure kids "to the cosmic wonders of math and science." Not a bad promotional idea if you ask me!

For a closer look, watch Mashable's video below:

Axe's Brilliant Emergency Exit Ads

2013-03-26T12:55:00.002-04:00

Everybody's familiar with emergency exit signs. They usually feature a stick figure that appears to be running for its life. (Comforting, I know.)

To reiterate its brand message -- that its products are irresistible to women -- Axe added a little something to exit signs around Belgium. Take a look:

Axe's decals give the illusion that women are chasing after the man in the exit sign. It's consistent with the brand's other ads, in which attractive girls are constantly trying to get near good-smelling men. But the best part is that it uses no words, just simple images and the Axe logo.

Do you like this guerilla piece?

Star Trek Logo Lights up London Sky

2013-03-25T13:25:00.003-04:00

Imagine turning the night sky into your own promotional product? That's exactly what Paramount Pictures did in London over the weekend, as it lit up the heavens with the Star Trek logo to promote the franchise's next film, "Into Darkness."

According to Yahoo! News, Paramount and Ars Electronica Futurelab launched minidrones into the sky to form the Star Trek badge over Potters Fields Park. That's right, 30 robots sat in formation near London's Tower Bridge. Pretty crazy!

The stunt coincided with Earth Hour, an event that encourages homes and businesses across the world to turn off lights for one hour to raise awareness about energy conservation and climate change. "To mark Earth Hour, the LEDs went dim along with the lights on Tower Bridge, the Houses of Parliament, and the London Eye, then winked on 60 minutes later," CNET reports.

Watch the official promo video below, and let us know what you think!