Image: Creative Review
Advertising is a big part of our lives especially if you are a business that is looking to scale and build a brand. Gone are the days when a basic advertisement can capture the attention of your audience.
We are in the age of information overload, so how can you establish yourself at the top of your customer's minds? In this article, we will showcase creative advertising ideas you can draw inspiration from. Who knows? One day, it might be you on this list.
Yes, print is still relevant. When you are dealing with algorithms and high competition, it’s always good to go back to basics and the path less taken. Here are some ideas on how brands make the most out of this simple yet effective advertising channel.
In Ikea’s “Tomorrow starts tonight” campaign, the brand playfully and creatively spoofs fad products like energy drinks, sleeping supplements, and anti-aging serums to showcase that nothing beats a good night’s rest. This ad campaign was an ingenious way for the brand to cement its position as the sleep expert in home-goods retail.
Ikea’s advertisement on its sleep products. Images: 1, 2, 3 from Muse
Heinz Beanz focuses on creative copywriting in their print ad to attract a wider customer base as opposed to the niche vegan community. In the ad, they address a pain point for non-vegan customers which is the inconvenience of a vegan lifestyle, and utilises veganism satire.
Heinz Beanz’s ad during Veganuary. Image: Newsworks
Are T-shirt designs or merchandising still a thing? If there is anything Starbucks tumblers and all the tumblers you probably own can tell us, the answer is yes, absolutely.
Local Malaysian cinema, Golden Screen Cinemas (GSC) shows us the power of merchandising with ots KEEPSAKE store – the brand leveraged its social media popularity and created a range of merchandise to feature the well-loved comments from its infamous social media admin.
The “HELLO.CANNOT” shirt was sold out several times when it was launched during the Movement Control Order (MCO). The tagline was made famous by the GSC social media admin who used the tagline to reply to customer inquiries on social distancing in the cinema during the MCO.
GSC’s famous “Hello. Cannot.” shirt. Image: Hype
Leading cognac maker, Martell breathes new life into their packaging with a season edition. The campaign features a packaging design with contemporary styles paired with travel, the international dimension of the house, and the founding voyage of Jean Martell.
Martell’s 2020 packaging design. Image: Martell
Fast-casual burrito chain launched a sustainable apparel brand using upcycled avocado pits to create clothing and accessories. The brand features a thoughtful feature where customers can print their customised Chipotle orders on the brand’s T-shirt.
Customised Chipotle shirts. Image: Screenshot from Cleveland.com
Another good example of great merchandise ads by McDonald’s.
Image: Digital Agency Network
There is a good reason to incorporate digital advertising in your advertising campaign. While there is high competition, the technology for digital advertising is improving day by day. This will allow a wider and more immersive global reach without actually needing to cross borders in person.
Here, we see Burger King engage their French customer base during lockdowns by creating a helpful social media post for customers to make their own sandwiches at home. This minimalist yet brilliantly contrasted design is able to stand out among all the social media clutter. This is the power of good design.
The Quarantine Whopper, courtesy of Burger King. Image: Forbes
Nike’s ‘You Can’t Stop Us’ ad made waves on social media for its message of inclusiveness and perseverance. The digital commercial showcased the juxtaposition of disabled and able-bodied athletes as well as male and female competitors in different sports.
Here are some examples, along with more from other brands.
An excerpt from Nike’s ‘You Can’t Stop Us’ ad. Image: CNN
An ad on Pepsi’s Apple Pie. Image: Adweek
Ikea’s ad that highlights its simplicity. Image: The Drum
Maxis’ ad showcases community support during the pandemic and lockdowns. Image: VernonChan
Burberry partners with China Tech Giant Tencent to launch luxury concept store using social media interactions. Image: BBC
The beauty of 3D and AR ads is the geological focus that allows a more comprehensive point-of-sale. This is evident in the Jagermeister Darke Spirit campaign where the AR experience allows uses to see “Darke Spirits” in augmented reality. Depending on the user’s whereabouts, the ads will communicate the following:
A screenshot from Jagermeister’s #darkespirit ad. Source: consumergoods.com
Samsung takes on the “Invasion of the Galaxy” in collaboration with Disney. The app provided an immersive experience for app users see a virtual invasion of Star Wars spaceships. Image: ibbonline.com
You are probably wondering, what is the difference between AR and VR (virtual reality)? In short, AR stands for augmented reality which means elements of virtual reality appear in our reality while Virtual Reality means full immersion into the digital reality space. With the adoption of the Metaverse, virtual reality is becoming more of a future than a fantasy.
Further proving this point is the participation of powerhouse brands such as Nike, Burberry, and more. If you would like to know more about designing on the Metaverse, you can read this article.
Sporting goods brand Nike developed Nikeland on Roblox. The notable feature in Nikeland is the connection to the real world where players can use the accelerometers to perform in-game moves through movements in the real world such as speed runs or long jumps.
Nikeland on Roblox still image. Image: Beyondgames.biz
The Queen’s Gambit and The Crown’s virtual costume exhibition. Image: Deadline
Traffic is still very much part of our day-to-day culture. Make the most out of it for your brand by placing an attractive billboard ad that can start conversations in the dreary traffic jams.
Here are some good examples:
Uber Eats’ cheeky ad that takes a jab at Kendall Jenner. Image: The Drum
Another hilarious ad by Spotify, highlighting the popularity of “WAP”. Image: Awario.com
Recently, 3D billboards have been on the rise in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. The first to make waves is Pavillion with the introduction of the Golden Bull.
Pavilion’s famous bull advertisement. Image: Pavillion-KL
Another 3D ad by “Subweh” at Pavilion. Image: Marketing Magazine
Fast food brands Carls Jr and Hardee take a multisensory approach to promote their Monster Angus Thickburger. The brands took to creating a Spotify playlist, engaging a YouTube hypnotist to entrance the audience for their tastebuds to taste the bacon, and even introduced a bacon and beef scented diffuser.
Carls Jr’s and Hardee’s scent-sational product. Image: Comicbook.com
All that we’ve shown you here is but a fraction compared to the number of creative advertising projects our Brandripe creators have worked on.
The thing about creative advertising, it doesn’t just happen. It requires time for the inspiration to manifest and be brought to life. Let us help you with the execution, to prove we are the right team for the job, you can look through some of our work here.
You probably would also really want to know about our process and how we work, in that case, set up a 15-minute VIP Demo call with us and we will give you full access to see how we work.
Here are other reasons why over 100 SMEs, marketing teams, agencies and startups work with us for their design needs:
If all these sound good to you, there is no time to waste – talk to us today, or schedule a call with us whenever you please (here’s the link again)!
