Out to Launch
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
March Madness. Volunteer. Pimp your pre-owned Jaguar. Let's launch!
  • March Madness. Volunteer. Pimp your pre-owned Jaguar. Let's launch!

    Are you morning-impaired? I am until the caffeine kicks in. McDonald's launched MorningImpared.com as part of an English and Spanish campaign consisting of TV, outdoor and online components. There's a reflex game on the site that allows visitors to check the severity of their "Morning Impairedness." Place your hand on a pillow and see how long it takes to push the snooze button on a ringing alarm. According to the test, I am severely morning impaired. There are also profiles of fellow morning-impaired citizens, and those who sign up to become a member of the Society for Morning Impaired receive a free Sausage McGriddles sandwich. Visitors can also submit a video outlining why they're morning-impaired; makers of the top three videos will be featured on the site alongside current "society" members. Moroch Partners and iNSPIRE! created the site.

    Coke Zero tastes so much like regular Coke that illegal actions must be taking place. This campaign reminds me slightly of the Diet Dr. Pepper ads, minus the lawsuits. Two representatives for Coke question actual lawyers on hidden camera, gauging their chances of bringing a successful lawsuit against Coke Zero for taste infringement. Out of the three TV ads, there's one funny one featuring a female lawyer telling the Coke reps they'd be humiliated and fired if they pursued legal action against Coke Zero. Click here, here and here to watch the ads. Outdoor ads also play off the taste infringement theme. Click here and here to see them. Check out CokeZero.com and "Sue A Friend." Possible infringements include: joke theft, downloading the same music, biting on style and using the same pick-up lines. Crispin Porter + Bogusky created the campaign and Starcom MediaVest Group handled the media buy.

    Condoms beat AIDS. MTV's latest HIV awareness ad, launched globally on MTV channels and online, is plain, simple and a touch quirky. In other words, effective. Condom and AIDS compete against one another in three categories: falcon calling, guacamole making and billiards. Condom beats AIDS each time. Watch the ad here. The ads conclude with the Web site Staying-alive.org, where users can donate money, research information about AIDS and watch additional PSAs. Young & Rubicam created the pro bono ad.

    The NCAA is launching three PSAs that will run through March Madness using the tagline, "There are over 380,000 student athletes, and most of us go pro in something other than sports." In one spot, a doctor, judge, police officer and fireman play a game of basketball. Actions are shown in slow motion and the ad is seen predominantly in black and white. The ad concludes with the tag line and encourages students and parents to visit NCAAstudent.org, the new Web site for the NCAA. Click here to watch it. Another ad shows a fencing match taking place in a courtroom, complete with judge and jury. The lawyers are the two sparring. A voiceover from the mother of one of the lawyers says, "Eleven years of fencing and three years of law school teach you a lot. For him, it's confidence. For me, it's pride." Watch the ad here. The final ad shows a group of scouts watching a women's field hockey practice. These aren't your usual athletic scouts, however; they're scouts for medical schools. Click here to watch the ad.Y&R San Francisco created the ad.

    This makes picking teams for March Madness so much easier. Do you root for the favorite or the underdog, the dynasty or Cinderella? Strength or speed? Or someplace in the middle? Look no further than the Coke ZeroBracket-O-Matic. Adjust the dials on six different categories and before you can say Gonzaga, the brackets are filled out. Digital banners are running on AOL.com. Click here to watch an amusing description of bracketology. Crispin Porter + Bogusky created the campaign and Starcom MediaVest Group handled the media buy.

    The American Red Cross is launching a print campaign next month encouraging people to donate both time and money to those less fortunate. The ads, running in Time, People, Shape, Real Simple, Redbook, and Condé Nast Traveler pair celebrity volunteers with hometown heroes. Marcia Gay Harden, Jamie Lee Curtis, Vivica A. Fox and Aisha Tyler are some of the recognizable faces coupled with a schoolteacher, Hurricane Katrina volunteer, lifelong blood donor and ambulance drivers. Click here, here, here and here to view the ads. Hunt Adkins created the campaign and media buying was handled in-house.

    Turbulence created a campaign for The Collection in South Florida, a luxury car dealership, that promotes "PRE," a showroom that sells pre-owned luxury vehicles. The branding campaign highlights the advantages of owning a luxury car without breaking the bank. The campaign targets a young demographic, with lines such as "PreOwned. V.I.P. for the P.I.M.P" and "PreOwned. Like your Ex. Only Sexier." Click here and here to see the ads. It's like buying champagne on a Boone's budget.

    Jordan Valley Auto Body Repair launched a series of test market ads in Springfield and Nixa Missouri where accidents find drivers. One ad shows a woman leaving a parking lot trying desperately not to hit the pillars that have a mind of their own. Click here to watch the ad. Another ad features a stop sign playing peek-a-boo behind a tree, resulting in a not-so-funny crash. Click here to watch it.Ames Scullin O'Haire created the campaign and handled the media buying.

    David Barton Gym launched an "Irresistible" print ad this month featuring David Barton and his chiseled body situated between a "good" and "evil" woman. Click here to see the ad that's running in Chicago Social, Image Chicago, Time Out Chicago, Flaunt and Movmnt, to name a few. Sugartown Creative created the ad and media buying was handled in-house.