Category: Great Advertising
October 20th, 2006

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

Since I work at an advertising agency, it is kinda part and parcel with the job to be aware of ads. Being a woman, I am acutely aware of body image issues, how society views beauty, discussions on "what is beautiful?", etc. and the role they play in advertising. Add to that the fact I have a 4 year old daughter, and I have begun seeing things of that nature with new eyes… and trying to see them through my daughter’s eyes.

I just came across these Dove videos/ads that are part of their Campaign for Real Beauty which has been around for a while now. They are boldly making a direct statement on the subject of "beauty" in advertising.

The first is "Evolution" and it is an interesting comment on the reality of advertising, and how UNrealistic the final images we see truly are. It is worth watching, as it is actually pretty cool to see the transformation. Watch the "Evolution" Video (opens in new window – 1:18).

BEFORE

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AFTER (SKIN AIRBRUSHING, NECK STRETCHING, EYEBALL ENLARGING, ETC.)

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The end line of the ad is "No wonder our sense of beauty is so distorted." Hear! Hear!

This "Daughters" video is great too… it is lots of girls talking about their feelings on their weight, beauty, acceptance, etc. Made me a bit sad for the state of things. But it also made me hopeful to how I can work with my daughter to keep her self-esteem strong she grows up. Watch the "Daughters" Video (opens in new window – 2:41).

Feel free to check out the Dove website to see what the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty and the Dove Self-Esteem Fund is doing about the problem of low-esteem in young girls.

Posted by MortarMark in Great Advertising
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October 6th, 2006

C’mon it’s Friday.

Let me see now.

This was a busy week for the Blog.

We brought you erection aid ads, racy Italian hairdressers, well thought out pieces on Burger King’s move into online games (here and here), a link to Long Tail author Chris Anderson’s recent speech at GGU, proof that consumers barely tolerate our product –and that advertisers have to offer more than just product atributes if they expect to be listened to. A  description of creative development with 2X truthiness. A lengthy exposition on reconciling online and offline return on investment. News about a humorous new campaign for St. Mary’s emergency room (say it with me people, the fastest ER in the West is on the corner of Fulton and Stanyan in San Francisco)

Oh, and a scintillating shot of Lotus’s amazing abs.

So you can forgive us a little potty humor as we close out the week.

Saw this banner on a site this morning. And of course I pressed the button. (It flashes in the HTML).

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Posted by MortarMark in Great Advertising
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October 6th, 2006

Naughty but nice.

HairMilan hairdressing salon latest to go pubic. (Ouch). See on Adrants.

Posted by MortarMark in Great Advertising
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September 1st, 2006

Leave it to the Beavers

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Sleep aid Rozerum’s "Your dreams miss you" campaign features a giant talking beaver. Yes, some of us dream of beavers. (Think about it).

From a pharma company.  Check out the site.

I guess wildly cavorting geriatrics tripping through fields of pollen is not good enough anymore? 

Posted by MortarMark in Great Advertising
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August 28th, 2006

Bacardi swims upstream with new ad: and manages to upset the local blogosphere

Picture_3_3 The advertising blogosphere is up in arms over Bacardi’s new TV spot which features two guys dressed in salmon suits running the wrong way in a marathon.

It seems the rummy beverage marketers ripped off San Francisco’s famous (Ok, but I’ve never heard of them) Cacophony Society that enters the Bay to Breakers run at mid point every year to run against the flow.

Which is pretty cool. See here for more.

Click the image to see the spot.
 

Posted by MortarMark in Great Advertising
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