Out to Launch
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
  • My milkshake brings all the boys to Instagram? Kelis might have to tweak her lyrics for this Sonic campaign. The brand created a food just for Instagram... and that's also the only way it can be bought. Sonic #SquareShakes were developed along with Instagram personality @ChefJacquesLaMerde. The Sonic Square Shake comes with a square straw and will be entirely square, ideal for photographing. The shakes will be available via "Shop Now" sponsored ads on Instagram to Coachella attendees at the Base Camp festival grounds on April 16. Through the geo-targeted ads, festival-goers can order the shakes and sample them on the spot. Check out an intro video here and a site that explains the concept and curates photos. Goodby Silverstein & Partners created the campaign.

  • Apparently, people tend to mix-up the Zumba workout brand and the Roomba vacuum cleaning robot. Both brands have a great sense of humor and teamed up to create a quirky April Fool's Day campaign that combines both brands into one product. The #ZumbaRoomba combines housework and exercise. It has a docking station where users can play Zumba music, so as the Roomba vacuums, the homeowner can stay close by and exercise the pounds away. Check out videos of the combined products here, here and here. Consumers who follow Zumba on Facebook and Instagram are eligible to win prizes from the company. That part of the campaign is real!

  • An ideal way to help me train when I'm at home. Tough Mudder celebrated April Fool's Day with the launch of Tough Mudder Toys, a series of portable obstacles for on-the-go Tough Mudder training. The first toy launched is an Electroshock Therapy gadget, equipped with 20,000 volts of electricity, that allows users to relive their time on the obstacle course. A video created in-house promoting the toy offers consumers multiple options to get their bang for their buck. The toy can separate two bickering siblings in the back seat of a car -- or it can punish an employee who didn't make his deadline. See it here. Additional toys will launch on the first of each month. They include: Kiss of Mud, where homeowners can crawl under barbed wire in their yard; Arctic Enema 2.0, an ice cold dip to awaken the senses; and Warrior Carry, a life-sized, portable dummy to help you train. Get moving!

  • Dentyne gum is so strong and minty that it will mask any food you've consumed for lunch. The brand's latest campaign, "Flaunt Your Breath," encourages breath-sharing with strangers in an elevator. A series of ads are running in Canada and the U.S. on TV, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Each ad takes place in an elevator, with one rider sharing his or her minty-fresh breath with someone they don't know. One woman breathes into a jar and gives it to the man beside her; another woman fakes labor to breathe in a guy's face; and a man wearing a harness emphasizes the word harness when speaking to his elevator mates. See the ads here, created by McCann NY.

  • EnOcean, a product that uses self-harvesting technology to allow household switches and sensors to work without wires or batteries, wants consumers to gain time. The switches take 10 minutes to install, as opposed to three hours for a traditional upgrade, when you factor in opening walls, running wires and repainting. To illustrate this massive time gain, the company created a "Slow Ad" that's a whopping three hours and 20 minutes. What does one man do in this span of time? He does yoga, plays cards, listens to music, talks to his girlfriend, naps, answers emails, brushes his teeth and opens a bottle of champagne. See it here. Two additional videos, seen here and here, showcase the product's self-harvesting technology and how it improves comfort in the workplace. Alfred created the campaign.

  • Brooke Burke-Charvet is the latest actress poised to make light bladder-leakage (LBL) a household topic. She stars in the latest TV spot for Poise pads, making light of what can be an uncomfortable topic. The ad starts out with Burke-Charvet starring in an over-the-top production of what's supposed to be an ad for Poise. The actress puts a halt to the hype and gets down to the basics of LBL instead, describing how Poise differs from period pads in helping women who might pee when they laugh. No biggie. See the ad here, created by Organic.

  • Erwin Penland launched its first work for Califia Farms, a brand of non-dairy almond milk. A 30-second online video, "Califia Farms ♥'s You Back," emphasizes the brand's all natural, plant-based ingredients that are healthy for both people and the environment. The video uses stop-motion animation to illustrate the brand's dedication to flavorful products that are tested and retested before hitting the market. As the video says, the product is as natural as nuts on a tree. See it here.

  • Is it April 1 yet? Toronto-based creative agency Blackjet added a new employee perk, just in time for April Fool's Day. Aside from offering free coffee, free beer, a ping pong table, office music sharing and summer hours, the agency will now offer free pot and install a snack machine. Once it's legal in Ontario, the agency will start dispensing cannabis right next to its beer fridge. Talk about a dope agency. However will they weed out bad resumes? A video introducing the "new perk" was posted on the agency's homepage. Check it out here.

  • Random iPhone App of the week: Mobile messaging company, Snaps teamed up with Vodafone and Monica Lewinsky to launch a #BeStrong anti-bullying emoji keyboard. The emojis feature encouraging pictures to show that the sender is against cyberbullying and offers support and friendship to those going through a rough time. The emojis were chosen by close to 5,000 young people worldwide, who related to the emojis as symbols of compassion and solidarity. The keyboard is available for free in the App Store. Download it here.