Whether it’s a childhood jingle that you can still sing word for word, or a campaign that influences the way you work today, everyone has an ad that has really stuck with them.
Mediaweek has been asking the industry to take a trip down memory lane, to find out all about the ads that made us.
Larissa Ozard – director marketing: brand, product and trade, Seven Network
Telstra BigPond Great Wall of China
“Back in 2005, I was in my early 20s and Telstra and Telecom before it had always been such a prominent brand in my life. I still remember when this ad first aired and how it was so quickly embedded into Australian culture. The saying ‘there were too many rabbits in China’ was used for many years after it first aired.
“The creative was simple but powerful, baked in a human truth that all parents could resonate with and delivered using humour to engage a nation. The look on the dad’s face when asked the question is priceless and unforgettable.”
Josh Gurgiel – head of POLY, oOh!media‘s creative and innovation hub
GEICO – Dikembe Mutombo Not In My House
“The sight of Dikembe Mutombo smashing a box of cereal out of a kid’s hands in the supermarket and then running off in sheer glee is quite possibly the funniest moment ever captured on film.
“It is often tempting to overcomplicate creative strategy in the pursuit of a basic human truth to inform an idea. But sometimes, it can be as simple as the fact that NBA defensive superstar, Dikembe Mutombo, just really loves blocking shots. In 2012, American insurance company, GEICO, based an entire advertising campaign around this fun fact. The ad showed Mutumbo joyously ‘blocking’ people in a range of everyday situations, and then references that customers who save money when switching to GEICO are ‘happier than Dikembe Mutombo blocking a shot.’
“Sure, the link to GEICO was tenuous (at best), but this ad was a perfect example of a brand trusting the imagination of their audience and the strength of their brand. They understood that advertising, for the most part, should be fun, frivolous and simple if it is going to cut through the chaos of common life and connect with consumers. They didn’t need to over-explain their service or over-emphasise an offer, they simply relied on the fact that the surreal image of Dikembe Mutombo smacking the ‘G’ out of the GEICO logo before sprinting off camera would be enough to capture their audience’s attention and create a memorable moment.
“And it was. At least in ‘my house.'”
Lucinda Boden – talent manager, Born Bred Talent
Dove Evolution
“As a 9-year-old, watching the Evolution ad by Dove absolutely blew my mind. With no prior knowledge of how the beauty industry works, it provided a clear insight into the manipulation of images to create unrealistic beauty standards. From bare-faced to heavily photoshopped, the model was unrecognisable from the woman who entered the frame.
“Even 18 years later, the impact of the ad remains significant, resonating with audiences and challenging perceptions about beauty in the media.”
See also: The Ads That Made Us: A big ad, Doing things #Likeagirl, How many Weet-Bix?
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Top image: Larissa Ozard, Josh Gurgiel, Lucinda Boden