The average individual comes in contact with hundreds of advertisements on a daily basis. From drives to work and commercials on television to received emails and posts on social media, there’s no limit to the constant bombardment of marketing material. However, only a handful of these advertisements deliver and leave a lasting impact on the viewer. While there are dozens of possible interesting advertisements to select from, these are four breakthrough advertising campaigns to come up so far in 2018.
Uber “#BeyondFiveStars”
Uber has run into a few problems over the last several years. It changed the game of public transportation with its rideshare services, yet with legal actions taken against the company throughout 2017, an Uber driving going on a shooting spree in Michigan and an assortment of other major public relations nightmares, Uber finds itself in need of a boost in 2018. In order to help its public image, the company created an advertising campaign titled “Beyond Five Stars.”
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The campaign is designed specifically for social media purposes, such as Twitter and Instagram. The short documentary videos focus on excellent Uber drivers. One making the rounds focuses on an 82-year-old Seattle man who is known throughout the greater Seattle area thanks to his upbeat and friendly personality.
In the advertisements, Uber not only focuses on the driver, but it urges other riders to share stories about other drivers using the hashtag #BeyondFiveStars. In order words, stories about drivers who went the extra mile to help out or who went above and beyond what a rider expected from them.
The entire purpose of this particular advertising campaign is to connect a human face to the corporate ideology Uber has struggled with in recent years. The company has focused on other marketing campaigns to help with its public image, but this is the first real ad by the company designed to promote a social media aspect.
The advertisement itself is still in its infancy, so exact numbers may not come out until the company announces its performance over the previous financial quarter. With that said though, the drive to connect people with the company while connecting others with the hashtag is unique for the industry.
DJ Khaled and Weight Watchers
In the age of social media, brand ambassadors play a major role in promoting products and services on their social media accounts. Celebrities such as the Kardashians are paid considerable sums to showcase fashion products and makeup lines. YouTube personalities often connect with food and beverage companies to highlight their enjoyment of a particular snack. Weight Watchers decided to team up with recording artist and producer DJ Khaled.
Weight Watchers using DJ Khaled as a brand ambassador isn’t anything or out of the ordinary. However, it’s how the two are working together is what makes the advertisement unique. Weight Watchers uses a point system to help members drop weight. DJ Khaled is an individual who has struggled with his weight for most of his life, and so he will document his potential progress for the combined 20 million followers he has on Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram.
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One of the most intriguing elements of this partnership is there’s no guarantee DJ Khaled will succeed in dropping weight. As anyone who has ever dieted knows, dropping weight isn’t always as easy as it seems. So there’s a chance this weight brand partnership actually backfires for Weight Watchers.
With that said, the brand ambassador partnership provides an intimate look into the world of using Weight Watchers for those who have not been part of the program. It also has the potential to demonstrate to 20 million accounts the power of the weight loss program.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018), around 40 percent of Americans are obese. Over half of Americans are overweight. This means there’s a good chance at least eight million of DJ Khaled’s subscribers and followers are obese, while over 10 million are considered overweight. Should the campaign prove successful, Weight Watchers has the potential to generate more exposure than advertising on nearly any other television show outside of major events (such as the Super Bowl). Plus, the marketing will take place over several months as the two continue their partnership together.
Few companies use extended brand ambassador collaborations such as this. Most may pay for a day or two and then move on from there. For anyone interested in the high risk-high reward potential of this collaboration, it’s worth following DJ Khaled.
MOO
Moo.com is a website that specializes in the production of business cards and other business print material. Business cards, for many industries, have become a dying industry. With the continued influx of social media and Internet utilization, the vast majority of companies now pass off website information or search for a business on LinkedIn. However, for those industries where face-to-face meetings and cold-call meetings are necessary, having an attention-grabbing business card is necessary.
So beyond the problem of fewer clients, MOO has an uphill battle in generating attention for something as simple as a business card. The company uses premium materials and designs, so these cards often cost more than the competition (such as Vista Print), so it needs another way to generate interest. This is where the company’s most recent social media marketing campaign comes in.
As demonstrated by the illustration below, the company uses a vibrant, eye-catching illustration. The candy apple red helps instantly grab the attention of anyone scrolling down his or her Facebook news feed. The lines within the ad are also specifically crafted. The peppers all point to the business cards, while the diagonal line running under the cards creates an almost “X” visual under the card. The image itself is relatively simple, which is part of the brilliance of the image. It’s impossible not to notice the ad (regardless of if a user sees it on their mobile device or on a desktop) and the ad instantly makes the content pop. So without knowing the company name, it’s immediately apparent the ad is selling business cards.
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In a world of constant advertisement bombardments, it’s crucial for an ad to stand out from the pack. This ad makes something as mundane and simple as a business card stand out while grabbing a viewer’s attention. It’s a prime example of what any business can do, regardless of the products or services offered. It all comes down to the presentation when creating marketing material for social media platforms such as Facebook. And the beauty of this ad is it works not only on Facebook, but visual platforms like Instagram, or even on more traditional Internet marketing, such as through Google.
Macy’s “Deeper Beauty”
Retail outlets have suffered in recent years. As more and more customers turn to the Internet for purchases, larger, physical locations have struggled to maintain a client base. Macy’s has long stood as an anchor store for malls around the world, yet with customers turning to the Internet, sales in these locations continue to falter.
In order to help promote the brand and to bring customers into, at the very least, the digital storefront, Macy’s has set out to produce marketing material on par with other high performing social media marketing. The recent campaign of “Deeper Beauty” is one such advertising method taking advantage of social media ad specifics.
The advertisements, which feature a spoken poem by Pavana Reedy, showcases a wide range of women from varying demographics and backgrounds. While this tactic alone doesn’t stand out, it’s the production value of the content.
The ads are done to highlight new smart kiosks found within physical Macy’s stores. These kiosks allow shoppers to pop into the kiosk and virtually test out the beauty products in order to see what they might look like with a specific color tone or makeup type.
Macy’s understands the importance of bringing customers back into the fold of a physical storefront, so it offers potential customers something they are not able to access on their smartphones or computers.
Like other attention-grabbing advertisements on Facebook and Instagram, the background consists of a single color. In the visual below, it’s a duller orange. The orange instantly stands out from any white space found on a social media page. However, it works well in not only standing out but by complimenting the skin tones of the women within the advertisements.
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It’s difficult to use a color attention background without causing models in front to wash out. Overly vibrant colors in these instances may take over as the focal point, which in a beauty advertisement is the last thing a marketing department wants to happen.
The drive of these advertisements is to connect with a wide range of women, not just a single background. Additionally, the production of the advertisements allows Macy’s to use the short video spots not only on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram but in print ads (such as beauty magazines) and on television broadcasts.
One of the biggest issues major retailers run into with regards to marketing is maintaining a universal appearance across all marketing spectrums. In order to expand brand awareness, a company needs to maintain this universal look. Thanks to the production quality and visual attributes of these advertisements, it’s possible for Macy’s to do exactly that, all without producing a wide range of commercial and Internet spots.
In Conclusion
The best performing advertisements revolve around both using trending attributes while combining it with a company’s knowledge of its target demographic. This way, a business has the ability to boost visibility while showcasing the products and services it offers in eye-catching ways. Any business can take advantage of the visual tips and tricks used in these four interesting advertisements while bringing in similar taglines and CTAs. However, it’s still crucial for a business to stay focused on its target audience and to always craft marketing material designed specifically for what interests this core audience.
The post The 4 Most Interesting Ad Campaigns of 2018 appeared first on Digital Media News & Training.
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