Best Ads Ever

Sussex Safer Roads: “Embrace Life/Always Wear Your Seatbelt”

John — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 11:18:54 +0000

(Promoted again, and deservedly so)

Okay, is it just me, or is this one unfriggin-believably emotionally impactful?

You start off not knowing what’s going on… which is exactly what draws you in further and further. And then it just packs a wallop. Now, here’s the thing… I’ve got no inside info, and don’t actually know what they spent, but… one room + no sound/no mics needed + sountrack = a great ad for what must’ve been a very reasonable budget. Great idea, great editing = didn’t need a zillion dollars worth of special effects.

GEICO: “Octopus”

John — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 19:36:49 +0000

Okay, I’ll stop putting up GEICO ads for a bit, but… dammit, this one is just hysterical:

Got Milk? “Calcium & PMS”

John — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 17:06:00 +0000

The first 7 times I viewed this, I thought for sure it must be a parody. But after some research (well, a little), it looks like this was actually a real ad (and certainly the production value seems way too high for an amatuer job).

Assuming I’m right… wow, this is a riot. I can’t believe they ran it, but this is brilliant.

GEICCO: Little Piggie

John — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:22:06 +0000

So awesome. I could watch this a hundred times… The annoyed expression on the passengers’ faces is totally what makes it one of the “best of the best.”

Anonymous: “Vote Different”

John — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 06:49:00 +0000

One of the most talked about ads of the presidential campaign… didn’t come from one of the candidates… and didn’t even run on TV. Well, paid, at least. But God knows, it showed up a zillion times in the news.

Originally an “anonymous” ad, this actually came from Phil de Vellis. I met him, actually, to chat about this. Good guy, funny as hell, and… he did this alone on his own computer. How cool is that?

New “Messin’ with Sasquatch” — “Campfire”

John — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 15:00:35 +0000

Brand new one, from the same geniuses who created the original series. Honestly, I can’t get enough of these. They’re just so friggin weird, in a wonderful way:

Old Spice: “Your man could smell like me”

John — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 18:06:15 +0000

What can we say about this that hasn’t already been said? Absolutely brilliant, funny as hell, and… it sparked a viral firestorm (28MM views on YouTube and climbing!)

“Kindle – Your Portable Library” – Amazon.com (on spec)

John — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 18:23:51 +0000

This is very clever. From the good folks at Two Trick Pony. They apparently made this on spec for Amazon.com. And I must say, if I were Amazon.com, I’d definitely run this. It really drives home the value proposition of the Kindle, and… well, it’s fun and funny!

Kindle – Your Portable Library (Spec Commercial) from Two Trick Pony on Vimeo.

American Express: “Conan/Curtain”

John — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 17:30:15 +0000

This is a riot. Conan is funny as hell, and the timing — synced up with all the marketing for the launch of his new show — is very smart. And it has you wondering the whole time what the heck is going on… which means you pay attention… which is very, very good for advertisers.

Two thumbs up.

GEICO: “Woodchucks”

John — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 19:02:32 +0000

Okay, I don’t like it as much as the “Piggie” ad, but… still a total hoot: