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.
Fiona Mullen, head of PR and integration lead – Communicado
McCain Super Juicy Corn
As a city kid in the 80s and 90s, where drought was ever present across Australia, I thought this summed up the outback to a tee.
The dry, dusty landscape and then that iconic line, “Marge! The rains are ‘ere!”
Years later, I’m still eating corn…though apparently the corn on set was made of plastic.
Haran Ramachandran, head of creative strategy, APAC – Snap Inc.
Audi R8 spot (2013, BBH London)
This was an easy choice. Only once has an ad captivated me so completely that I stopped everything to watch. Over a decade later, I still covet what I saw: a car I could never afford.
Selling a $250K sports car usually follows a formula: sweeping shots of open roads, close-ups of sculpted lines, and a stirring soundtrack. However, Audi and BBH broke every convention with their 2013 R8 ad.
It’s a pure product demonstration, yet utterly visceral. There is no soundtrack—just the car’s roaring engine as music. It doesn’t even move, yet it exudes the speed to leave Lewis Hamilton in the dust.
The back is exposed, and the engine is displayed like a Swiss watch with an exhibition case back, revealing engineering excellence and raw performance. We can see both a technical marvel and incredible speed, all while the car goes precisely nowhere. It’s brave, different and incredibly magnetic. I might take out a loan or two right now.
Eliza Albie, head of art – Communicado
Central Beheer (DDB Amsterdam)
Growing up in Holland in the 90s there was this insurance company, Central Beheer, whose TVCs had practically reached cult status. They’d been going since the 80s and thanks to the universally relatable silent comedy formula, adults and kids would excitedly talk about the new ad. Often arguing over what their favourite one was. The punchline was always “Just Call Us”.
After resurfacing from the rabbit hole researching these ads, turns out DDB Amsterdam is still creating them. They’re on their 61st ad and counting, having raked in Cannes Lions and even a cease-and-desist letter from the White House over the years.
My childhood favourites have generally stood the test of time (notwithstanding the Lewinski scandal):
Hedgehog:
Voodoo (made while Bill Clinton was in office):
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Top image: Fiona Mullen, Haran Ramachandran and Eliza Albie
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To take part in future editions of The Ads That Made Us, please email: [email protected]
Past editions of The Ads That Made Us.
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