Archive for January, 2009

T-Mobile Takes Over Train Station With Spontaneous Dance

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Nothing else can put a smile on your face quite like a mob flash dance made of several hundred strangers when you’re least expecting it.  On January 15th, London’s Liverpool Street Station was transformed into a massive dance floor thanks to T-Mobile.

The tagline, ‘€œLife’s for Sharing,’€ is exactly how you feel after watching the YouTube video that was shot with hidden cameras.  What begins with a handful of people quickly molds into an entire train station gettin’ down (grandmas and mohawk rockers alike) to the upbeat music blaring overhead.  Intrigued onlookers’€”no doubt questioning their sanity’€”filmed the whole event via cell phones to later share with family and friends.

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Kudos to T-Mobile, and agency Saatchi & Saatchi, for giving us something to laugh at and talk about . . . which was probably the point.  I also love that they thought outside the silos (is it online . . . guerrilla . . . out of home?) and instead focused on building a connection between the experience and the brand, using all the relevant tools at their disposal.

Although many people are criticizing T-Mobile and Saatchi & Saatchi for using regurgitated material, I say anything that brings huge numbers of people together in a way that makes us all feel good just by watching it is a success.  After all, the very message here is that T-Mobile makes it possible for you to share any meaningful moment with the people that matter most.


Milk: A Great Source of Protein, Calcium, & . . . Trips to Italy?

view_thumbnail_cream.jpgNo use crying over spilt milk . . . except when it can cut you a deal on flights to Italy!  Expedia, the online travel provider, has come up with a unique and somewhat subtle way to advertise its flight deals to Italy from Germany.  By teaming up with coffee shop Deli Star, Expedia is targeting German travelers by utilizing cappuccino’€”which is, after all, Italian at its core. By holding stencils over the cappuccino milk foam and sprinkling chocolate powder, Deli Star workers created surprisingly legible’€”and effective’€”travel offers.  Paper coasters placed under the cups gave further details on the travel deals and provided additional branding exposure for Expedia.  Talk about ordering a coffee to go. . .view_thumbnail_cream-1.jpg


Out-of-Home Joins Inauguration Festivities with Messages of Optimism & Change

January 20 marks the historical inauguration of our 44th president, making it the perfect environment for companies to reach millions of Americans with their own messages of change.  GM has made this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity into a road trip, beginning in Detroit and ending in Washington, D.C. just in time for the inauguration.  A caravan of Saturn Vue 2-Mode Hybrids, carrying the theme ‘€œThe Road to Change Starts in Your Driveway,’€ will stop at Ohio State University, Penn State University, and Howard University.

Mirroring Obama’s own message of hope and optimism, Pepsi plans to have a large presence at the inauguration with messages such as ‘€œYes You Can’€ and ‘€œAll for One’€ residing on the city’s billboards, buses, etc.  In another out-of-home tactic, street teams will hand out commemorative buttons, hats, and scarves that flaunt those same messages of hope.  To see what else Pepsi has planned, go to www.RefreshEverything.com.

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American companies aren’t the only ones welcoming in the new President at our nation’s capital.  As part of its ‘€œEmbrace Change 09’€ out-of-home campaign, Swedish-born Ikea has recreated the Oval Office (using their own Ikea ikea-white-house.jpgfurniture) in Washington, D.C.’s Union Station, one of the nation’s busiest train stations.   According to a company release, ‘€œPresident-elect Obama’s notion of change and his commitment to fiscal responsibility match the Ikea philosophy of practical and affordable home furnishings for all.’€  For this reason, Ikea has offered to furnish any room in the White House the First Family wishes to redesign’€”for free!  Go to www.embracechange09.com to learn more.


Coke leaves its mark by decreasing its (carbon) footprint

Coca-Cola LogoSince 2007, Coca-Cola has made it a company goal to turn around the image (and carbon footprint) of its corporation.  Once an eco-offender, producing tons of waste and run by gas-guzzling trucks, Coke is now one of the ‘€œgreenest’€ brands in the U.S.

Coca-Cola’s billboard has overlooked New York City’s Times Square for decades now, a continuous resident since 1932.  This year, however, the brand rang in the new year by reinventing their memorable advertisement by using wind power to light the digital screen. According to Coke, this commendable move will reduce 376 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually – the equivalent of converting 38 houses to clean energy for one year or planting 471.5 acres of trees.  But even better yet: this transformation has started a trend among 30 neighboring billboards, preventing a combined total of 1,866 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually!

The billboard’s energy source isn’t the only thing that’s new this year.  ‘€œRefresh.  Recycle.  Repeat.’€ is the billboard’s most recent message, declaring its commitment to going ‘€œgreen.’€  This display, along with its goal to recycle all of the plastic bottles and aluminum cans it sells in the U.S., is part of Coke’s new philosophy to ‘€œLive Positively.’€

Coke has also hit the fashion scene in past years with its eco-friendly fashion line of clothing and accessories, all of which are made from recycled products.  Trendy t-shirts, which display sayings like, ‘€œRock your rubbish’€ and ‘€œRehash your trash,’€ can be found at www.cokestore.com.

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 LEFT: “Drink Me.  Wear Me.” (front)  “Love Me.” (back), CENTER: “Rehash Your Trash”, RIGHT: “RPET Red Hobo Bag” made from plastic (PET) bottles

Learn more about the company’s recycling programs and how you can help in your own community by visiting www.livepositively.com.