Despite being back in Bournemouth for 3 weeks, working on assignments and sitting exams (all the fun stuff), today was AMC Level 3′s first day back in Uni. For the final term alongside our dissertation we’re working on a Campaign Planning unit, which is a tad different from your typical University modules. The unit is a chance to set up our own ad agency, and put into practice all of our knowledge and experience to date.
Thursday brings our first assignment, a 24 hour challenge (actually, a 25 hour challenge but that doesn’t quite have the same ring to it). We will be given a client brief and will have a day to come up with a strategy, creative solution and a persuasive pitch.
Another interesting aspect is the chance to win and lose marks during workshops, and to win points via bonus tasks. Currently 1% is up for grabs for anyone who posts an insightful and thought-provoking review of an advert on AdReview, resulting in a comment from an industry professional. 1% may not sound like a lot, but this is a great way to gain recognition for dedication to the course, and engagement with activity outside the Unit.
I have just written a review of the UK ‘Open Happiness’ Machine by Coca-Cola so if any industry professionals out there fancy getting me an extra percentage point towards my mark feel free to comment and offer your opinion:
Uni. It’s all about the grades right? The First at the end of the tunnel?
That was my perspective when I first started Uni in 2008, and I’m sure this rings a bell for a lot of students. But, looking back in retrospect at my University life as I approach my final term I thought I’d share some of the insights I’ve gained from my 3 years of study.
Slightly controversial but my advice is: don’t worry about grades. There’s a tendency for Uni students to learn tactically, learning just enough to get them the grade they want, but by doing this they are missing the point of higher education. Worry about learning, immersing yourself in the topic and expanding you’re knowledge. Approach things from a different angle, challenge existing knowledge and add to it and don’t be embarrassed to be a geek! Enjoy the experience, you probably won’t get another chance to dedicate three years or more to learning about a subject you love so make the most of it whilst you can! Plus, if you’re truly interested in learning about your subject the grades will come naturally.
Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions. You’re lecturers are all experts in your area of study and this may be one of the few opportunities you’ll have to pick the brains of some of the leading academics in your area of interest. If you show a real interest and arrive with insightful questions your lecturers will be happy to chat to you, and I always found that I learnt more this way than I ever did by sitting in a lecture theatre.
You’re paying a lot of money for higher education so make sure you leave it a wiser, more rounded and more interesting person than when you entered, as this your skills and experiences are far more valuable to you and to future employers than a number on a piece of paper.
Particularly within the advertising industry, agencies are looking for people who can offer them a new perspective, who can bring new ideas and fresh insight. Most importantly, they’re looking for something who gets things done, isn’t afraid to jump in at the deep end and get their hands dirty and, most importantly, is the type of person you’d be happy to work with everyday. If you’re hoping to go into advertising, learning to work in a team and get on with a range of people will be hugely beneficial, and your ‘likeability’ may well be the deciding factor in offering you that first agency job.
So in conclusion, I’d like to share some words of wisdom that the Director of Strategy at an integrated agency in London once offered me:
“Your CV will get you an interview, but your personality will get you the job”
In case you missed any of these fantastic campaigns, here is a recap of some of the most innovative and memorable campaigns of the past year. Enjoy!
Digital Death
In 2010, in a campaign by TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, celebrities including Kim Kardashian, Alicia Keys and Lady Gaga ‘killed’ all of their social networking platforms including Twitter and Facebook in support of World Aids Day. The celebrities would only be ‘brought back to life’ when $1 million was raised for the charity. Of course, the celebrities could quite easily have donated $1 million of their own fortunes, but then we wouldn’t have been able to look at this campaign and think ‘I wish I’d thought of that’.
Volkswagen Fast Lane
Following on from its Fun Theory campaign, the Fast Lane seemed more relevant to the brand and gave viewers the same feel good feeling which they immediately wanted to share with their friends. Would love to see them try this in the UK, I’m sure it would be a ‘Health and Safety’ risk.
Coca Cola Happiness Machine
One of my personal favourites. This viral is best the first time you watch it, another feel good viral and its the ‘unexpectedness’ that makes this a great campaign. Completely in keeping with the brand’s ‘good times’ philosophy, and had students everywhere wishing the Happiness Machine would visit their college.
Salvation Army Within Reach
Repetitive, guilt-provoking TV ads are losing their effect as we become ever more skilled at tuning out their messages, so I thought this US campaign was a great way of getting the message heard, and making people stop and take notice.
Old Spice Responses
And of course, one ‘ridiculously handsome man’ that needs no introduction. This man showed us the power of social media, and had thousands of Twitter followers clamouring for an Old Spice response video.
Jimmy Choo Foursquare
Jimmy Choo organized a treasure hunt in London via Foursquare- apparently its Jimmy Choo trainers were the first object to check into Foursquare. A great way to get people involved offline aswell as online, and although probably only a small minority took part in the treasure hunt the campaign got people talking about the brand.
The Year of the Flashmob
Love it or hate it, T-Mobile’s ‘Life’s for Sharing’ campaign got us talking, and has shifted perceptions of the brand. One thing’s for sure: no-one’s safe from T-Mobile’s Flashmobs
The Year of the John Lewis ads
I’ve made no secret of the fact that for me, music can make or break an ad. When I think back to my favourite adverts, the one thing they have in common is emotive music. For me, John Lewis stole the show this year when it came to TV ads. After seeing the ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ ad I applied for work experience at Adam and Eve London, where I was lucky enough to have a chance to intern whilst the team were working on ‘John Lewis Christmas 2010′. Adam and Eve have a fantastic knack for A) Basing campaigns on an emotive insight and B) picking fantastic songs for their ads. If you haven’t already, watch the ads below to see what I mean.
I’m doing ‘Creativity in Communications’ this year, which involves learning more about lateral thinking and to use the dreaded cliche ‘thinking outside the box’. We’ve been set a few short projects, where we’re briefed and have one week to come up with a creative solution. The time constraints are pretty intense seeing as we have a lot of other work on at the same time, but its a great chance to get used to generating ideas under pressure. Last week we presented a ‘pecha kucha’ presentation (20 slides, 20 seconds per slide) proposing a ambient marketing campaign. We chose Drench, and were really happy with our final idea. I love how its a really static campaign but can provoke so much interactivity, and we decided to leave it up to the target audience to decide how they wanted to interact with the stunt making it more fun as the consumer is in control. Let me know what you think
I haven’t been posting on Confessions of an Advertising Student that much lately and this is partly due to a social media strategy we are running for a small online jewellery retailer Forever Belle. I set up a blog for the company and have been contributing to this and to our Facebook page trying to drive traffic to the Forever Belle website (www.foreverbelle.co.uk) so this has been taking up a lot of my time! Our objectives are to drive traffic to the website and also to provide more opportunity for consumers to interact with the brand, and through developing an online social media presence we aim to become a popular resource for fashion advice among our target audience. Have a look at the website and blog, I would love some feedback and any suggestions you have for improving either would be fantastic!
Also, I went down to London last week for grad interviews. I actually really enjoyed them- I tried not to get nervous and see the interview more as a chat to see if the agency is right for me and to let them see whether I’m right for them. It was great to speak to some industry professionals at the top of their game and talk about their views as to the future of the industry. I was really surprised at how friendly and chatty the interviews were, especially AMV BBDO which I had expected to be quite formal but my interviewers and this years grads who were making sure everything ran smoothly were so lovely and really down to earth! Waiting on tender-hooks now to see if I get through to the next rounds. Fingers crossed!
I thought I’d take a look at the most significant campaigns of the month, before we become overrun by festive Christmas campaigns. October was a pretty significant month for adland, with a lot of interesting and buzz generating campaigns. It was a difficult choice, but these are what I feel to be the 5 most noteworthy campaigns of the month:
1. T-Mobile ‘Welcome Home’
Saatchi & Saatchi’s latest ad for the T-Mobile’s ‘Life’s for Sharing’ campaign saw passengers returning to Heathrow’s Terminal 5 recieving a welcome home they’ll never forget! Unsuspecting passengers were greeted by hundreds of people, including T-Mobile staff and customers, bursting into travel-related song. Impressively, no musical instruments were used- the ad was shot using a ‘vocal orchestra’ performing songs chosen specifically to welcome passengers returning home, including ‘At Last’ by Etta James and ‘Comin’ Home Baby’ by Mel Torme. Saatchi & Saatchi shot the film on the 27th October 2010 and the ad was edited and broadcast in less than 48 hours- an impressive feat.
The ad had my house-mate welling up, and within minutes my Facebooks newsfeed was inundated with ‘Love the T-Mobile ad!’ statuses, so in terms of continuing to build emotional associations between the brand and its customer the ad is spot on. I think the main talking point for this campaign is its media planning – on Friday 29th October the ad was broadcast in the first ad break of all programming between 10pm and 10.30pm, on over 80 digital and terrestrial channels, and was launched on all major social networking sites, making it difficult to miss!
For me the ad didn’t top the brand’s ‘Dance’ advert set in Liverpool Street Station in January this year. Although, saying that they did set the bar pretty high. Perhaps they’ve lost the shock factor – viewers have seen it all before and agencies need to start thinking of new ways to get people talking about their ads.
2. Cadbury ‘Spots V Stripes’
It pains me to say this about a Fallon London campaign, but this feels like a good idea poorly followed through. The concept has the makings of a fantastic campaign - associating the brand with the excitement surrounding the 2012 Olympics and getting people involved with the brand. The TV ad is well executed in typical Fallon style, the Spots and Stripes Facebook pages are great (although I feel that they haven’t utilized them to their full effect), the website is fantastic and many of the games are worth a play. However, despite its use of digital media the campaign seems overly traditional – Cadburys wants to maintain control ensuring that all consumers play their games, in the way they want them to be played. I can’t help but feel that by running this campaign Fallon is ignoring the trend which sees the power shift back into the power of the consumer, who is no longer willing to be a passive participant in the communications process but wants to be able to interact with branded content in a way that suits them.
Would it perhaps have been better to allow consumers to support a team and win points for them playing the games that they like to play? Perhaps even to win games for local rugby tournaments, even Angry Birds high scores? I think the main problem with the campaign is that it expects consumers to go out of their way to interact with the campaign, rather than the campaign understanding the consumer and moulding itself to meet their needs. I’d really like to see Fallon run something more interactive in the future, and show us that it still has its sparkle.
Update: Spots V Stripes has informed me that consumers are indeed able to win points for winning any game as long as they defeat a stripe and register their points online. However, this raises the issue of whether this fact has been successfully communicated to the target audience- there seems to be a lot of confusion about how the games work. Consumers must visit the Spots V Stripes website to find out more about how the games run, and I wonder whether consumers would have been quicker to catch on if the TV ad had been more informative, perhaps sacrificing some style for a bit of substance?
Either way, with two years until the end of the campaign, Fallon has plenty of time to correct this and I’m interested to see how they plan to keep excitement levels up until 2012.
3. Yeo Valley Rap by BBH
This Yeo Valley (or Yo! Valley) ad by BBH ran a two minute spot during the first X Factor live show. The ad is undeniably cheesy but begins to cross the boundary to ‘so bad its good’. The song is memorable and again the campaign’s good media planning was vital to its success. Love it or hate it the ad definitely generated word of mouth, the next day at Uni the ad was a key topic of discussion and my Twitter feed was instantly bombarded with tweets about ‘the Yeo Valley ad’.
4. GHD ‘Cinderella’
I was a bit disappointed by this latest ad by RKCR/Y&R. When I heard that RKCR was launching a record label and that their record label’s first signing was to be featured in the new GHD ad I thought this was pretty exciting stuff. However, after seeing the ad I can’t help but feel a little let down – yes, the ad is beautiful and well shot and is very on brand but lacks the wit of past ads from the GHD ‘Twisted Fairytales’ campaign. Saying that, this is by no means a bad ad, it’s simply missing the ‘wow factor’ that I was expecting.
5. Skoda
Last but by no means least is the Skoda ‘Made of Meaner Stuff’ campaign, also by Fallon. I’m not sure about the music and the ad doesn’t appeal to me but then again I’m not exactly in the target audience. I like the way Fallon have taken the original concept and turned it around to create a fresh proposition whilst drawing upon the success of the previous campaign. Again, this ad doesn’t top the original for me, but the slogan ‘Made of Meaner Stuff’ is fantastic and shows a real understanding of the target audience and what they want from a car.
As I was lucky enough to spend my Summer interning at a number of fantastic agencies, I thought I’d share some tips on bagging yourself your dream internship.
Firstly, I would like to say to anyone who is considering applying for an advertising internship: go for it! I have been lucky enough to intern at a variety of amazing agencies this Summer, including Adam and Eve London and McCann Erickson Bristol, and it has been a fantastic experience. Although my internships were short, I met a lot of interesting people who I will be keeping in contact with, and have had some brilliant experiences. Most importantly I’ve learnt an incredible amount over a really short space of time, and now feel like I’m ready to hit the ground running when I graduate.
For anybody looking to gain some work experience in advertising, I advise you to consider these 5 tips.
1. Think Outside The Box
Don’t just go for the obvious. Applying for advertised internship schemes is great but try to do your own research. Find agencies whose work you really love, and make the first move. This can take longer but trust me it will be worth it. The fact that you have used your initiative gives a great first impression and you will come across as genuinely interested in the agency, which counts for a lot!
2. Persistence is Key
Advertising is a competitive industry, so try not to get disheartened if you don’t get replies straight away. Staff are often very busy, and your application is unlikely to be at the top of their priority list so it’s up to you to ensure that your application gets read by the correct person. A good tip is always to follow up an application letter or email with a phone call, as this shows your keen.
3. Go Regional
For those who can’t afford to live in/commute to London, don’t despair as there are a lot of regional ad agencies which produce some fantastic work! McCann Erickson, Golley Slater and TBWA all have offices outside London, as do many other agencies, so its worth seeing if there are any agencies in your local area.
4. Think Small
It’s worth spending time at both large and small agencies to get a feel for what suits you best. I know classmates who have interned at both large and small agencies, and had a much more hands on experience at the smaller agencies, learning much more as a result.
5. Milk It!
If you are lucky enough to get an internship my last piece of advice would be to make sure you learn as much as possible from the experience. Jump at every opportunity, learn as much as possible from your peers and ask for advice on getting into the industry. They’ve given you the chance to learn firsthand about the industry, but how much you learn from the experience is entirely up to you!
I hope these tips are helpful! If anyone has any tips to add please comment below.
Following the phenomenal success of the ‘Happiness Machine’ in the US, Coca-Cola decided it was time to spread some happiness across Britain, and today unveiled a UK version of its ‘Happiness Machine’ viral.
I was a big fan of the original viral, created by Coca-Cola’s in house team, and I challenge anyone to watch it without a little smile! Coca-Cola created the viral in an attempt to engage with teens in their natural habitat (online) and tie into its recently launched global ‘Open Happiness’ campaign. Coca-Cola surprised college students at a US college by inserting the Coca-Cola ‘Happiness Machine’ which gave students much more than they bargained for (armfuls of free cokes, pizzas and finally a twenty foot sub)!
One of my career ambitions is to one day work on a Coca-Cola campaign. Not merely because Coca-Cola is one of the world’s most prestigious brands, the holy grail of our branded world (although I would be lying if I said this wasn’t a contributing factor) but because it presents a challenge to the advertiser. Not only are you faced with years of successful and influential campaigns to live up to but you have a fantastically large budget with which you are expected you to do great things. The ‘Happiness Machine’ is one of these great things – fresh, quirky and creative way to connect with their young target audience whilst all the time reinforcing Coca-Cola’s ‘Open Happiness’ ethos.
As for the UK version, I feel that it doesn’t quite live up to its American predecessor. The ‘Happiness Machine’ surprised students at London’s Imperial College with popcorn, cakes and a game of Twister, among many other gifts designed to spread happiness throughout the student body. I love the British twist of strawberries and cream, but the viral seems less genuine- the students don’t seem as surprised as in the US version, and if you have seen the US version, the novelty factor has also worn off for the viewer.
Conclusion? Still buzz-worthy for ‘Happiness Machine’ novices but a slightly disappointing sequel. Having said that I wouldn’t complain if Coca-Cola wanted to spread some happiness around my Uni! Watch the videos below and decide for yourself…
Yet another parody of the Sony ‘Balls’ campaign by Fallon London, this time replacing the balls with bowling balls and adding rock music, all in aid of promoting the Nissan Qashqai. The Sony Bravia ‘Colour Like No Other’ campaign has been parodied one too many times- its becoming a tired concept and without the amazing track from the original ad it completely loses it’s appeal for me.
It seems Fallon can do no wrong! Another quirky campaign which had me laughing (albeit a tad confused at first!). The ad refreshes what I believe had become a tired brand and whilst I have a feeling this will be a ‘marmite’ ad all publicity is good publicity. My favourite ad of the moment… let me know what you think!
