It’s that time of the year when ‘best of the year’ lists are published, so here are my picks for ‘Best creative ads of 2022’ – similar to my list of creative picks last year and the one from 2020. Over the last few years, the ad industry has taken pains to convey that their business has changed fundamentally. Agency executives say that the business is about being at the intersection of technology & data, while creativity is still paramount. There is no doubt that investments in what is referred to as digital (mainly web ads, programmatic spends, social media creatives, YouTube campaigns) has increased. Technology has also played a role – but I would argue that technology in the advertising domain is nowhere near the complexity or scale seen in IT services companies.
Obviously, the business of advertising has changed simply because consumer lifestyle & media habits have changed. Yet, new advertising is old advertising at heart, with some facets remaining timeless: consumer understanding, creativity that is relevant and clutter-breaking, great use of the media or platform the consumer spends time on. Here are a few creative ads from 2022 which probably tick all these boxes:
TCM: Happy Place
‘Some films just stay with us’ is likely to resonate with most film goers. We still recall select scenes from movies we saw years ago. TCM anchors its offering on this truth – re-creating a famous scene from ‘When Harry met Sally’.
More here: TMC’s ‘When Harry Met Sally’ spoof, Formula E and other creative ads of the week
Twitter billboard: dreams which came true
Despite its relatively low user base, there is no denying that Twitter punches above its weight in popular culture and news media. It’s the go-to platform for announcing or checking on real-time announcements for many. What’s conveyed there by celebrities is tracked closely. An outdoor campaign from Twitter earlier this year captured such announcements from the past to juxtapose with present day achievements. Great use of the platform’s core strength and outdoor as a medium.
BBC Winter Olympics: trailer
Stop-motion technique that holds viewer attention and sits so well with the theme of winter Olympics – that’s the simple context to this riveting ad from BBC.
Agency: BBC Creative
More here: Twitter billboard, Oyo and other creative ads of the week
L’Oreal: lesson of self worth
In 1971, Ilon Specht, a junior copywriter at McCann created the famous line ‘Because You’re Worth It’ which has served as a mission for the brand, more than a mere tag line. In February this year, a new campaigns got celebrities to speak about what the phrase means to them.
Agency: McCann, Paris
First Choice: “Metaverrrr”
This maybe an inside joke for ad agency & marketing folks, but this hilarious spot from Thailand has loads of fun at the cost of clients. They have a reputation of making changes to an ad and then ‘approve’ it after countless iterations. Another example of uniquely Thai brand of advertising.
Agency: Leo Burnett, Thailand
More here: Another hilarious metaverse spoof, L’Oreal ‘worth it’ and more: top creative ads
TWIX: Camping
The creative mind sees ideas where none seemingly exist. A couple of identical bars of Twix inside a wrapper leads to a brilliant idea: ‘it doesn’t matter if you choose left or right’. And then taken to another level by the context. Hilarious ad.
Agency: adam&eveDDB
Keeper’s Heart: almost everyone is excited
In a category where heritage, mastery of skill and source matter – a unique perspective for Keeper’s Heart whiskey makes it all so endearing.
More here: SRK+ for DisneyPlus Hotstar, Heineken metaverse spoof and more: creative ads of the week
Nike 3D billboard: Air Max
Technology and art come together to create this show stopper of a billboard in Japan.
International Women’s Day: unconscious bias
There’s a belief that communication that showcases people’s faces has a better chance of garnering attention. And then there are creatives which break such ‘rules’. A set of typography driven posters with powerful copy went viral earlier this year during International Women’s Day.
Agency: CPB, London
Street Easy: win the game of real estate
The best of advertising is team effort. While the core idea may come from a copy writer or art director it takes both kinds of talent to lift the idea up. When in Trikaya Advertising, the agency had the 5-10 principle: the strategy (‘what to say’) was either 0 or a 5. In other words – it was either wrong or right – there was no halfway house. And then the ‘how you say it’ (the creativity) lifts it up several notches. I was reminded of in the context of this poster & print campaign from a real estate brand in New York.
Agency: Preacher
More here: Streeteasy outdoor, #LetHerFinish and other creative ads of the week
Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.
