There's nothing like excessive exaggeration to push a product, like the latest ad for Norway's Alta Bike demonstrates so well. It's not the type of in your face advertising that demonstrates dicing, slicing, grating and peeling all with a free set of steak knives, its smarter and more aesthetically interesting than that. The Alta Bike is a unique bicycle created by a combination of graphic Bleed, furniture Norway Says and product designers Frost produkt from Norway. The bike has only one gear and focuses on developing the leg muscles. Advertising gurus at Shnel & Mynychuck have played on this point in a deliberately misleading yet humorous way. The Herculean legs, juxtaposed with the feather weight figures on this breed of exercise hybrid freaks is a stunning image that packs a witty punch. What makes this cool is that it's just as much about the ad, as it is the bike. by Billy T Visit Alta Bikes

Nothing grabs an audience's attention more effectively than a clever optical illusion. Combine that with an ingenious ad campaign and you get this brilliant mobile billboard for The Red Cross, currently gracing the streets of San Francisco.

It's photo journalism, meets Hollywood blockbuster movie poster, and it is turning plenty of heads wherever it parks itself. Enthusiastic onlookers have been snapping up photos of the mobile billboard and posting, uploading and sharing them online with friends. This is a brilliant example of how an audience can further promote the exposure of a great advertising campaign through mobile phones, blogs and sites such as flicker. By Andy G

Leo Burnett in Sao Paulo created this simple yet clever ad for Arcor bubble gum.

To promote the line of Procter & Gamble's Wella Koleston HairCare Naturals hair colourant, H & C - Leo Burnett Beirut did thiscreative piece of outdoor where the woman's hair, die cut out of the billboard, allows the colour variations of day and night shine through.Brilliant!

To promote the exclusive thrillers and horror films on 13th Street, the toilet of a nightclub in Hamburg was specially prepared. Just after entering the room, the light suddenly goes out and the room is bathed in Black light. And now a bloody crime scene becomes visible on the floor and walls: "See what others don't see. 13TH STREET. The Action and Suspense Channel."

Ad Agency - Creative Director: Bernd Kramer

 

Thanks to Apple and its superior design, marketing, advertising and, well, anything else to do with creating and selling a product, most other global communications brands have languished in a kind of brand-image purgatory. Sony is fighting back with this great campaign created by Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney, helmed by art director Eron Broughton. The agency took Sony's earphones and literally mapped out the New York subway system, mimicking a traditional subway map. It's a simple idea but powerful in its execution, giving Sony a much-need dose of coolness. At last, other brands are thinking outside of the square. Now all Sony needs to do is apply that principle to its actual products. Innovate or die, guys. - Laura Demasi

 

Many of us have a fascination with graffiti art, and we sometimes even look over our shoulders to make sure no one’s watching when we scratch out our initials in a freshly laid slab of cement — or carve them into a wooden desk — or even scribble profanities across the stall door in a public restroom. 

The creative minds working for Sharpie, the ultimate in permanent markers, have discovered a way to satiate our desires to deface public domain.  Interactive e-cast billboards have been scattered around cities, which allow people to experience the rush of creating their own graffiti.  Choose some colours, write a message and Sharpie makes it possible for anyone to leave his permanent mark on the side of the bus stop or the public phone or anywhere else billboard adverting may be experienced. Andrew J Wiener.

Perwanal Saatchi & Saatchi in Jakarta, Indonesia, has taken interactivity and creepy-crawliness to a new, flat level with the creation of this massive 'floor sticker' in an Jakarta shopping center .
 
The ad, for Jakarta's pet emporium JAKPETZ, promotes Frontline Flea & Tick Spray  with the slogan 'Get them off your dog.'
 
Viewed from the upper levels, the people walking on the ad look disgustingly flea-like, and the scene elicits constant reactions that sound something like 'yikes!' The team behind this effective promo included Chief Creative Officer Andy Greenaway, Executive Creative Director Juhi Kalia and Art Directors Aryanto Salim and Joel Clement. - Tuija Seipell

Have fun with your pimples! That was likely the thinking of Gideon Amichay, Chief Creative Officer and partner at Shalmor Avnon Amichay/Y&R Interactive in Tel Aviv, Israel, when he created a campaign for Clearex acne treatment gel. A pimply-faced, 5-metre-tall climbing wall at Israel’s largest climbing centre exposed 8,000 teenagers per month to the brand during their summer holidays. The agency’s online take on the same predicament earned it a perch on 2009 Cannes Cyber Lions shortlist. Teenagers entered their friends’ photos online and pimpled their faces liberally. The only way for the friend to remove the pimples? Use “online” Clearex, of course. This campaign gained over 2.7 million exposures and 25,000 active surfers in under 48 hours. - Tuija Seipell

Thanks to Apple the standard of marketing undertaken by computer and tech companies has dramatically increased. Apple showed the world that tech products can be 'sexy' and marketed creatively. The latest brand in this realm to take a creative approach to advertising is Microsoft. New Zealand agency Y&R zoomed in on the idea of home entertainment for this series of ads for the software giant. Promoting Microsoft Vista, which allows you to access your phone, music and photos etc from your PC, the ads are anchored around the idea of making your home a theme park of entertainment - a bouncy castle of fun. - Lisa Evans.

Nikon took its cue from our celebrity-obsessed paparazzi culture to launch the brand's D700 model in Korea.

At a busy Seoul subway station, Nikon mounted a huge interactive, light-box billboard displaying life-like images of paparazzi. Huddled together as if at a premiere, the "paps" appear to be jostling and competing for the best celebrity snap. The celebrities in this case were the passersby, who automatically triggered a deluge of flashing camera lights as they walked past the billboard. The accidental superstars then followed the red carpet all the way out of the station and into a mall - directly into the store where they could purchase the new D700. Mission accomplished. - Lisa Evans
 

Pictures may tell a thousand words but a simple finger tells just one! This cocky ad campaign for Bentley tells it like it is, and as the visuals tell the story, we wont labor the point. Well done Bentley! by Bill T

The 3D billboard advertising challenge is alive and well as we have seen here on our ad pages. The traditional large format 2D billboard simply doesn't cut it  anymore, as consumers are beginning to expect more from advertisers in the way of 3 dimensional creative  concepts. This campaign from Heineken is yet another example of how a little idea can have a huge impact when it's presented on billboard. by Bill T

Nothing looks more tragic than a closing down sign in an empty store. It's sad, its depressing, its damn ugly. The clever folks at Ebay Belgium have turned that frown upside down, and promoted themselves along the way with their new ad campaign.

The campaign, although funny, actually has a lot of truth to it. When you can't find it in a store, you know you will find it on EBAY. Clever, short and sweet! by Bill T

To raise awareness around World First Aid Day,  ad agency Downtown Partners placed life size realistic decals of a person at the bottom stairwells in Cineplex Odeon Theatres in Toronto. At first, the decal generates the impression that someone is lying down unconscious and needs help, but as you get closer, you'll realize it's just a picture on the floor with a call to action to visit www.redcross.ca for a first aid training course. Let's hope it doesn't freak someone out and give them a heart attack first. by Bill T

Playboy billboard promoting its online services in Germany - self explanatory.

So, how do you get your message across and get people talking about your product? You do what Papa John's Pizza did. Created by Saatchi & Saatchi, Peru, this clever, yet simple idea in promoting Papa John's Pizza won gold at the recent Cannes International advertising awards. Brilliant! by Bill T

If you are currently in Germany, you may be driving under the world's biggest set of balls. Adidas have graced an overpass at Munich airport with this brilliant ad for the world cup soccer featuring goalkeeper, Oliver Kahn. The campaign needed to be as large as the current wave of soccer fever sweeping the country. That's a definite goal for the ad gurus at Adidas. What a save! by Billy T

GPS although amazingly brilliant in its technology, is not the most fascinating product to advertise. The design team from Contrapunto in Spain have taken on this challenge for client JEEP and have succeeded. Their recent advertising campaign uses the iconic arrow in a  wonderfully creative way by having it comprised by minute images of  animals herding. From birds flocking to elephants roaming, the images are as beautiful as they are inventive. This ad brings the concept of GPS back to its roots, the art of traveling. by Andy G

Lego Kitchen meets Lego fashion.

The best ideas are often the most simple. This fantastic ad to discourage drink driving is a case in point. Used by the Hotel Marriott in India for patrons of its popular nightclub Enigma, this ‘personal stamp ad’ listing the phone number of the local cab company proved to be so effective the idea is now being taken up by the Mumbai police and is being adopted by other clubs. by Bill T

Thanks to the success of US television shows like Extreme Makeover, plastic surgery is fast becoming the norm. The latest advertising campaign for Canadian surgery ‘Toronto Plastic Surgery’ takes it one step further. Ad agency DDB Canada dreamt up this clever idea - allowing consumers to test-drive a new nose shape while drinking their coffee. We love it. by Bill T

Axe's men's knicker range cleverly demonstrates the stretchiness of its brand. "A sultry pouting brunette struts down a darkened corridor and begins to size up the muscular man before her. She tantalisingly allows her hands to explore his torso, her hands reaching further and further down, until with a raise of her eyebrows, she makes a discovery... His super-stretchy pants. She suggestively pulls on the front of the underwear for an obscenely long time, only to let them snap back, leaving her muscle-man smarting. Delightfully funny." Watch the video 

Life like print ads are sweeping the world's most prominent cities. In Paris, Stringfellows strip club have put the pole into pole-dancing by cleverly designing their print campaign to work with existing lamp posts throughout the city. The ads are sharp, sexy, and almost interactive in their appearance, providing the ultimate X-factor that most advertising agencies only ever dream about. by Andy G
 

If any of you remember MAD Magazines crazy fold up covers then you will love this advert. The Wonderbra could not be better demonstrated other than on a real pair of breasts. This ad features a cute draw string which brings the boobs together in a very flattering way. It's simple in its design and its interactivity is witty whilst effective.

Wonder Bra, Wonder Ad, wonderful! by Lisa Evans


 

These gravity defying ads for DTACK - Adhesive tape, use extreme examples for the tapes use in hilarious ways. As funny as it may seem, the humor is also very relevant in today's age defying conscious society.

We think perhaps the male version of the ad may have been a little extreme! by Andy G

Like a cool epidemic, hype about the cool hunter has spread globally and we're talking literally. Bright Neon stickers emblazoned with the sting "You've been Cool Hunted" have been quietly circulating through the streets of Sydney, Melbourne, New York, Paris, Berlin, Toyko, Rome & L.A waiting to pounce on the most interesting people, things and places.

So how does it work? Our global spotters discreetly place stickers on cars, vespas, even on individuals at certain events. In the case of people, we placed stickers on their backs, their bikes or their bags.

The response to the cool hunter buzz campaign has been huge, unleashing a word of mouth phenomenon, one person is cool hunted, they tell 2 people, who tell 4 and so on and before you know the site has generated an extra 10,000 hits per day.



"I got home and discovered a cool hunter sticker on my bag", says Jacinta Belmore from Paddington in Sydney, who e-mailed us to let us know she was coolhunted. "Of course I was curious to know what it was all about, so I logged on and was quite flattered that I'd been cool hunted. It's such an awesome site. I told a few of my friends who have now also become fans of the site".�



The Cool hunter buzz campaign, the last word on word of mouth. Have you been cool hunted? Let us know.

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Baggage claims at airports get more and more interesting for advertisers. The Venice Casino uses the moving ad space to communicate with tourists. Additionally free tickets for the casino get shared to the tourist.
 

Isbank in Turkey have created this billboard ad which has passers-by literally stopping in their tracks. From a distance one sees what appears to be a cop car hiding behind a billboard, which automatically makes the passer by slow down enough to read the small text on the board. "Pay your traffic tickets on time without waiting in line - isbank.com.tr". To ad insult to injury, it then becomes apparent that the cop car is a fake cut out. Advertising bastardry at its best. By Andy G

While Italians take cars seriously, it doesn’t mean they cannot have some fun with them. The advertising campaign for the special edition of the Bologna Motor Show 2009 takes full advantage of this. With toys in a retro home playing at taking themselves seriously — including Barbie-like dolls and toy cars and bikes — the advertising campaign pokes fun at the clichés about boys and their toys, hot girls and hot cars.

The show's promo has a reputation of pushing boundaries and being provocative with Milan-based Armando Testa agency having been in charge of the advertising campaign for the past decade. The 2009 campaign — billboards, magazine and newspaper ads, online, TV and radio — was creative directed by Nicola Lampugnani and Francesco Guerrera, with Federica Saraniti Lana’s copy and Nicola Rinaldi’s art. The press campaign was edited by LSD studio. The TV ad was by The Family with Federico Brugia’s direction and music by Ferdinando Arnò. - Tuija Seipell 

PRESENTATION: Extraordinary is the New Ordinary: Marketing and Advertising in the Cool Age by The Cool Hunter

As consumers become savvier, and traditional media becomes more and more cluttered, brands are faced with unprecedented challenges: How do they stand out from the crowd?

How can they engage consumers? How can they re-invent traditional channels and create new ones? How can they incorporate creativity to refresh their brands? How can they imbue their brand with a sense of 'cool'?

Contrary to conventional thinking, the answers are simple. In fact, a single solution applies, and it can be summed up in one word:

Innovate.

Innovation isn't an option anymore. It's mandatory. And to today's hyper-informed and perennially connected consumers, it's a basic expectation.

Extraordinary is the New Ordinary takes your marketing team on an engaging journey through innovation.  From guerrilla, viral, ambient and outdoor to the latest unexpected marketing spaces, The Cool Hunter will leave your team refreshed, inspired and, most importantly, motivated to create.

WORKSHOP: The Learned Art of Innovation by The Cool Hunter, an in-house innovation workshop:

To some people innovation and the ability to think creatively come naturally, but for most of us, it's a baffling task. The good news is that, while the Steve Jobs' of this world are born with a ‘sixth innovation sense,’ the rest of us can learn it. Mastering the art of innovation is a revelatory process that involves, among other things, a lot of 'unlearning.'

The Cool Hunter will take your team through an engaging workshop that will leave the team with a fresh perspective on your brand, and armed with a toolbox full of new methods and strategies to innovate in both marketing and product development.

Contact: bill@thecoolhunter.net

Roadside billboard ads set out in consecutive order to deliver their message are nothing new. However when the message is as poignant as this campaign, drivers sit up and notice.

Using the old flick book art form of animation and motion the individual images create a fast moving clip to a driver speeding by them at high speeds. Quite literally, for a speeding driver life can flash by them in a split second. By Andy G

Retro video game iconic heroes have been making a come back for some time now. From T-shirts through to shoes, we have seen the likes of Mario, Donkey Kong and dare we say their rival, Sega's Sonic The Hedgehog plastering their  pixelated faces all over some funky wears.

Hot on the heels of this fad, gaming giant Nintendo have promoted their latest baby Wii in Italy with this interesting wall display created by a series of posted notes. Behind each not lies a message inviting the recipient to relive the 80's through some classic games available on Wii. The post it notes make a nice 3D representation of a 2D pixel. Cute. By Andy G

Print Ad for Videocon Washing machines, created by Ogilvy & Mather, Mumbai 

In a world where conservation and efficiency are becoming the standard, a greater number of companies are doing anything and everything they can to continue keeping awareness in the consciousness of the consumer. In this billboard for Philips, a consistent leader in corporate sustainability, the image of their globe is printed in ink that glows in the dark. The energy saving poster eliminates the need for artificial lighting. By Andrew J Wiener

A print campaign by NSW Police in Australia to raise awareness of the number of teenagers dying as a result of listening to iPods while they cross the road is beginning to reach epidemic proportions. Who knew!

We came across this clever print ad for Vespa scooters. Visually effective and well executed, it is playful, simple and gets the point across fast (no pun intended). Nice work team Vespa. By Brendan McKnight

HBO’s show HUNG has now made its New Zealand debut on TVNZ’s Channel One.

Auckland-based ad agency Colenso BBDO was retained to promote the show and to generate some buzz. They have definitely created a buzz with their risqué billboard, recently erected on Victoria Street in central Auckland. Whether you like the billboard or not, and whether it draws you to watch the show or not, you must admit that the old, tried-and-true subjects – well-endowed female and male bodies – never seem to fail to draw attention.

Established in 1969, Colenso BBDO is consistently one of New Zealand’s highest-ranked ad agencies. Campaign Brief has also named Colenso BBDO Agency of the Decade. - Bill Tikos