It’s been just over a week. No one in the Boston area is untouched by the bombings and their aftermath. Certainly we, my husband and I, were lucky. At the time, we were watching runners pass our house as they geared up for the start of Heartbreak Hill six blocks ahead. We had friends—and friends’ […]
Super Bowl ads: Three categories say it all (nearly)
Once as a brand manager I was shown the same storyboard twice, a couple of years apart. The twist? This “new ad concept” was presented for two entirely different product categories at two different companies. Detergent and food. Same agency. (BBDO, if you must know.) I don’t recall the storyboard, but I’m certain it was […]
Humanity shines (Part 1): Super Bowl ads a week later
Has anything changed in a week? At least in Brandland? Since the hubbub from the Super Bowl ads has subsided, what do we remember? More importantly, do we care about any of it?
Two ads remain fresh and moving to me a week later, because they’ve found a place in my heart. While both could be improved as pieces of advertising, they remain ingenious pieces of human truth that bear repeated viewing, and they offer lessons for others to emulate.