All posts in Alternative advertising

Go Big or Go Home

by DOmedia on March 23, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Branding campaigns, Events, News, Technology, Trends with No comments

Carnival Cruise Line has done it again. In the most recent phase of their newest marketing campaign–taglined “Fun for All, and All for Fun”–the company has introduced six massive, interactive aquariums around the country. The computer-animated aquariums will appear in vacant storefronts in Baltimore, Dallas, L.A., New York, Washington D.C., and Houston through the end of April.

Designed to interact with passersby, the fish and plant life react to motion as people walk past. Using their cell phones, pedestrians can go a step further by creating personalized fish by making various sounds into their phones and using the keypad to swim the fish around the aquarium. The fish even change in size and shape when consumers lead them to food! And don’t worry about having to leave your newly-made friend. Pedestrians can retrieve their fish by coming back later and using the same cell phone.

The interactive aquariums are only one part of Carnival’s impressive marketing campaign the past six months. They kicked it off in a huge way when they broke their first Guinness World Record. In downtown Dallas in late October, they dropped the world’s largest volleyballs, measuring 36 feet in diameter, into a crowd of 2,500+ people! Then in November, they broke yet another record in Philadelphia with the world’s largest pinata. The pinata, which rose over three stories, was filled with 2 tons of candy! Talk about a sweet tooth . . .

4A’s Media Conference & Tradeshow Recap

by DOmedia on March 10, 2009 in Alternative advertising, DOmedia, Events, News, People, Sponsorships with No comments

Last week, DOmedia had the opportunity to attend the AAAA Media Conference and Tradeshow in New Orleans (tough break, we know). And while attendance may have been down from previous years, creativity and morale were still very high over at the DOmedia booth!

Between the many compliments on the overall visual presentation and the overwhelmingly positive feedback on the website capabilities, the 4A’s tradeshow was an official success! Making its world debut on Wednesday morning, the new DO booth (A.K.A. DO erector set) attracted attendees to take a test drive of the site using our two 22″ monitors. Of course, the infamous orange DOmedia yo-yo’s may have helped drive traffic just a bit, too. Everywhere you looked, orange dots could be seen flying through the air, attendees rekindling their childhood yo-yo skills. (And a personal thanks to everyone who trained me in the art of yo-yo over the three days–I can finally walk the dog!)

On Tuesday night, we had the great pleasure of sponsoring the Director’s Dinner at the Hilton where conversation consisted of trends in out-of-home and alternative media as well as an update on how DOmedia has grown since it was last introduced to the 4A’s. Thank you again to everyone who attended!

And congratulations once again to all the DOmedia contest winners and a huge thanks for your support! Participants received entry tickets by coming by the booth, wearing a DOmedia button, or following us on Twitter to name a few. Several exciting prizes were given out such as iPod Touches, iPod Shuffles, and numerous iTunes gift cards!

Check out the rest of our pics from the tradeshow on our Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/10211400@N08/sets/72157615079096686/

Most Recent Mobile Billboard Comes in a Much Smaller, Furrier Package

by DOmedia on February 19, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, Branding campaigns, Events, Trends with No comments

For many, last weekend marked the most romantic day of the year’€”Valentine’s Day. For others, however, the weekend of Friday the 13th held a day surrounded by superstition and fear’€”F.E.A.R. 2 to be exact.

‘€œF.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin,’€ the newest computer game from Warner Bros. with a horror theme, launched its new London promotion on Friday the 13th using the very symbol for bad luck’€”black cats. While most people avoid black cats crossing their paths, it was nearly impossible in the streets of London on the day known for its superstition. The little feline billboards were dressed in miniature clothing adorned with advertising for the game and then set loose to wreak havoc through the city. And according to Charlene Allen, a Warner Bros. spokesperson, Brits actually seek out signs of bad luck on Friday the 13th, making the promotion that much more effective.

The ‘€œF.E.A.R.’€ kitty clothes were being sold through Warner Bros. for fashionable cats across the country, but have unfortunately sold out.

Creative Outdoor Ad Contest Announced Using Creative Outdoor Ads

by DOmedia on February 13, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, News with No comments

Australia’s Outdoor Media Association has launched a creative outdoor campaign–for a contest rewarding creative outdoor campaigns. The newly created contest, called The Outdoor Awards, will judge the year’s best outdoor advertisements across 11 categories.

Every year, the best creative work will win a prize valued at $10,000. This year, however, the association is striving to show the effectiveness of outdoor advertising by producing the prize in the form of a billboard’€”covered in 10,000 $1 scratch-off lottery tickets! The billboard, which is heavily guarded 24 hours a day (so don’t even think about it!), is located on the side of a Sydney road where 100,000 cars pass every day.

The launch of The Outdoor Awards campaign actually began in October when OMA utilized yet another OOH medium. For 40 days, a mobile billboard truck was driven over 10,000 km in Australia. The message displayed on the truck was simple and to the point: ‘€œTHE OUTDOOR AWARDS ARE COMING’€.

With their lone billboard, OMA is raising national awareness of the contest, showing the effectiveness of a creative outdoor ad, and presenting the actual prize to a large-scale audience. Talk about killing two birds with one stone . . .

Oh, and good luck to the winner. May your incredible, award-winning creativity aid you in scratching off 10,000 individual lottery tickets before reaching insanity. I hope you have a lot of pennies . . .

T-Mobile Takes Over Train Station With Spontaneous Dance

by DOmedia on January 28, 2009 in Advertising, Agencies, Alternative advertising, Branding campaigns, Events, People, Technology, Trends with No comments

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.

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.