Out to Launch
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Rainvertising promotes music festival in Seattle. Meow Mix jingle gets remixed. Let's launch!
  • benjaminmooreBenjamin Moore is the official paint of the infamous Green Monster at Fenway Park. Now, Boston Red Sox fans can give their own homes a Green Monster flair with the Fenway Collection, made and sold locally in Milford, Mass. Fans can purchase colors in Green Monster, Boston Red, Boston Blue, Baseline White and Foul Pole Yellow. Supporting the paint line is a TV spot, online video and microsite, MonsterEverywhere.com. The TV spot illustrates the numerous creative ways homes, play houses, offices, outdoor satellites and fire hydrants can be transformed into a branded love fest for the Boston Red Sox. "We paint the Monster green. Now you can, too," closes the ad, seen here. For every gallon sold of the Fenway Collection, Benjamin Moore will help renovate youth league ballparks in the Boston area, as seen in this online video. Benjamin Moore surprised a group of kids from West Roxbury, Mass. by painting their baseball field and adding a Green Monster of their own. The Martin Agency created the campaign.

  • monopolyRemember the crazy adorable Holderness family, who became YouTube sensations with their 2013 "Xmas Jammies" video? The family is back, singing a new tune about family game night at the Holderness home. This month, Hasbro is launching the first Monopoly game that families can customize with family photos from Facebook, Instagram, Flickr, Shutterfly or personal devices. My Monopoly lets players print photos via the My Monopoly site or a new app to personalize tokens, chance and community cards, and properties. Promoting the game are the still-adorable Holderness family, singing about family game night and showing off their customized Monopoly game in a 2:30 video. The family turns off all electronic devices, puts on their pajamas and plays the beloved 80-year-old board game receiving a smart, up-to-date, makeover. Park Place has been replaced with a photo of dad with bed head and a goofy facial expression. Or how about landing on "Daddy has ugly feet?" The Holderness family has no problem poking fun at themselves. The video ends with board game mayhem -- but who cares when the family is all together, having fun. Check out the video here, created by Uproar.

  • sourtherncomfortThe latest spot for Southern Comfort's "Whatever's Comfortable" campaign coincides perfectly with Shark Week. In "Shark," a lounge singer croons "Little Red Riding Hood" as a woman with pointy fingernails, painted as great white sharks, searches for her prey: the maraschino cherry at the bottom of her drink. She finally strikes paydirt and pierces the cherry with her shark nail. The guy at the next table is way more interested in watching this woman than the live musical entertainment. See it here. Southern Comfort also created a deep sea bartending experience on southerncomfort.com, complete with a shark bartender... or Sharktender. Starting Wednesday, users can track the Sharktender's location and receive drink recommendations based on the visitor's location. Use the hashtag #sharktender to join the sharkversation. Wieden+Kennedy New York created the campaign.

  • meowmixEveryone familiar with the classic Meow Mix jingle of yesteryear better sit down. The beloved theme is making a comeback, with an electric dance music twist. And that's just the first Meow Mix remix. The brand launched a 1:30 video featuring a jingle remix by Ashworth, a cat DJ, strobe lights and a club full of cats with their paws in the air like they just don't care. See it here. The next theme will be country. Viewers can join the fun by visiting ItsMeowTime.com and recording their own Meow Mix mix. Those in New York on Aug. 13 can join Kellie Pickler in Columbus Circle making remixed jingles for a good cause. For every jingle recorded, Meow Mix will donate 100 meals to the Food Bank of New York for cats in need. FCB Chicago created the campaign and creative music agency Jingle Punks helped to source the talent.

  • footlockerThe best advice that retired NBA star Charles Barkley can give current NBA player James Harden in Foot Locker's back-to-school campaign is to have a short-term memory... and wear Foot Locker gear. The advantage of having a "Short Memory," according to Barkley, is you never had a bad game. Even when Harden reminds Barkley of his epic fails, he remains clueless, with no recollection of such instances. Barkley defers to Scottie Pippen for further conformation of the benefits of a shirt memory. Pippen gleefully replies: "I'm the greatest Chicago Bull of all time." "Start Fresh," closes the ad, seen here, and created by BBDO New York.

  • rainvertisingNot only is rain Mother Nature's way to wash your car for free, it also serves as an ad medium to promote a music festival in one of the rainiest cities in America: Seattle. To promote the city's popular music & arts festival, Bumbershoot, Publicis Seattle devised a rain-activated advertising project on city sidewalks. The agency used a two-part spray paint system called NeverWet that is almost invisible when dry but comes to life when touched by water. Watch a video of the installation here. Next up: fogvertising in Los Angeles?

  • vansVans has relaunched its website, Vans.com, in an effort to streamline its online presence and increase consumer engagement. Huge redesigned the site, meshing brand and product storytelling throughout the shopping experience. The new site for the SoCal footwear and apparel brand has a ton of content on the homepage alone, yet it doesn't appear crowded or too overwhelming. Each picture or article resembles a Pinterest post, making it easy for visitors to scan the homepage and then click on what piques their interest. Users can also research products curated by real Vans athletes, locate Vans shops and scroll user-generated content from social media networks like Tumblr, Instagram and Vine.

  • olivariRandom iPhone App of the week: Phones and tablets have become kitchen tools in their own right, guiding users through delicious recipes. But what happens when you have to swipe to the next instruction and your hands are covered in flour, sugar or something sticky? Enter the Olivari Audio Cookbook, the brainchild of Olivari olive oil. The hands-free app reads recipe instructions out loud, using voice commands to take cooks through the process step-by-step. Users have access to hundreds of recipes from Eating Well magazine, and cooks can add their own recipes as well. Don't panic about going too slow while making a recipe, for users go at their own pace when using the voice control. Twofifteenmccann created the free app, available in the App Store.

  • verizon fiosSharing is caring, and Verizon FiOS offers consumers a free upgrade that allows them to upload content as fast as they download content. A TV spot supporting the upgrade illustrates sharing pictures with family members or gaming with a loved one in another state. The fast data transfer times for Internet and TV means sharing content with family online is almost as fast as sharing photos with them in person. Almost. Watch "Sharing" here, created by McCann New York.