• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer @MediaPostOTL, September 27, 2006

Travelers Insurance demonstrates a snowball effect. Old Navy hangs on by a wire. Intel multiplies. Let's launch!

New York City's Office of Emergency Management launched an outdoor campaign this week encouraging city dwellers to have a game plan and be prepared in case of an emergency. Roughly 3,000 subway car ads launched on Monday, along with those in bus shelters and on billboards and buses. A TV spot will launch in October. The campaign has a gritty, aged look to it; even the copy has some bite. "In case of a blackout, log on. Just not in that order." Click here to see the ad. "Why should you worry about a hurricane? It's not like you live on an island," says another ad. Click here to see it.DeVito/Verdi created the campaign, its first work for the client. Media buying was handled in-house.

Travelers Insurance has launched its third campaign under the new tag line: "Insurance. In-synch." You may recall the first two ads featured an unprepared boxer and an inventor with a great idea but bad execution. "Snowball" shows a man walking the streets of San Francisco. He trips, falls down, and anything he runs into--another couple, a table, a bride and groom, a car--gets swept up with him, creating a massive snowball effect. The spot ends with the ball breaking apart after hitting a building--presumably signifying Travelers Insurance--along with a voiceover saying, "When you have insurance that stays in-synch, you can roll with anything." Click here to watch "Snowball." The ad launched on Sept. 22 and will appear on network prime-time, early morning and network sports and Major League Baseball post-season games. On cable, the ad will run during entertainment, news and sports programs. Fallon Minneapolis created the campaign and Starlink handled the media buying.

Mountain bike front and rear suspension manufacturer Fox Racing Shox launched a toned-down print campaign this month in an effort to stand out in an action-packed category. Three full page ads, running in publications including Dirt Rag, Mountain Bike, Mountain Bike Action, Decline, and Twentysix, feature bureaucratic certificates such as a Trail Deed, a Flight Log, and a Building Permit. What does this have to do with mountain bikes? Allow me to explain. You'll need the trail deed because you'll own the trail you're riding on; the flight plan because you will be doing just that and the building permit for building a room to house your trophies. The campaigns target upper-income riders and an upper-age bracket. TDA Advertising & Design created the campaign and media buying was handled in-house.

Intel launched a massive branding campaign this week called "Multiply," which focuses on the Intel Core 2 Duo processor-based desktop and mobile PCs. Print and TV ads feature dancers and artists jamming out multi-dimensionally. Click here to watch the ad. Print ads launched earlier this month, TV and online ads launched this week and outdoor ads bow in October. TV ads are running on ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, MTV, VH1, TBS, USA, Comedy, Bravo, Discovery and the History channel. Print ads are running in Blender, Esquire, ESPN magazine, Rolling Stone, Wired, PC World, Electronic Gamer and PC Gamer. Online ads can be found on Amazon.com, CNN.com, Gotfrag, nytimes.com, and BoingBoing. McCann Worldgroup New York created the campaign, running through the end of the year. Universal McCann handled the media planning and buying.

IKEA launched a great family spot entitled "Living Room" this month focusing on the fact that living rooms should actually be lived in and not gently viewed from afar. The ad highlights the brand's variety of sofas, pillows and bookcases, comparing it to the different types of families in the world. Click here to watch "Living Room." The ad is running through the end of the year on national cable and spot market. Deutsch created the campaign and HMI handled the media buy.

I love sites that test your response to certain stimuli. There's never a wrong answer and you can see how others scored. Martin Williams launched the Response Project for NewPage, a paper manufacturer. The site provides designers with an insight into what stimuli people respond to the most. A series of games help garner stats on what graphics, colors and patterns are popular. The Learn section let visitors view popular stimuli divided by gender, colors, age and geography, among others. The end goal of the site is to provide direct mail professionals insights for executing future campaigns.

Old Navy launched "Wire" earlier this month, following the conclusion of "Bubble." More on that in a few. Wire promotes Old Navy cargo pants and the ad shows the lengths guys will go to all in the name of love... and fashion. Click here to watch "Wire." The ad will air through the beginning of October on cable, syndication and network TV. Deutsch created the campaign and Old Navy handled the media buying.

The bubble has not burst in Old Navy's ad promoting its inexpensive jeans. Teens stop traffic and latch on to a bubble that's taking them... to get their "fash' on." Click here to watch "Bubble." The ad ran on network, cable and syndication through the beginning of September. Deutsch created the campaign and media buying was handled in house.