First up is the work Wieden & Kennedy is doing for Dodge. I don’t like Dodge. We never had a Dodge growing up. I have never considered buying one as an adult. Always thought they made pretty good engines but then wrapped them in poorly designed shells that were not terribly well made or reliable. But man, the work Dodge has put together coming out of this financial mess is fantastic. There are other funny takes on minivans, etc…but here are two ideas that represent just some of what I think is the best they are doing:

Print:

TV:

I don’t know if their vehicles are any better, but in my eyes their brand is better because of this work. And that is good help to get from your agency. I have given them another look. Pro America. Pro Dodge. Funny and engaging. Not taking itself too seriously. A leadership position. Maybe Dodge should run for office, we sure could use a little more of that…

Next up is something near and dear to my heart as a Red Sox fan. What makes this even better is that I really don’t like Alec Baldwin very much, and he is cast as The Yankees Fan.

Take a look at what New Era has out on TV and Facebook:

This is brilliant. “Hats off” to The Brooklyn Brothers in New York for creating the work.

I want to go buy a new Red Sox hat right away. I have several. But to reward this, I need another. Oh, and did I mention the Red Sox erased their entire panic-inducing deficit that their early season losses created? See you in October, fascists!

Cheers,

Mark

Anyway, in keeping with my NBA theme, you gotta check out these spots if you have not already seen them.  They were originally done for the NBA Cares charity program, but they were so great that their appeal was broader than that and they ran to simply promote the NBA.

I believe there were 5 spots in the set.  Three were just okay and then there were these two.  And they are amazing.  This is essentially what we do for a living and yet, the first few times I saw these 2 spots (one featuring Kevin Durant and the other Steve Nash), I sat mesmerized.  And then I sat there and tried to figure out how they pulled it off.  Even with the technology and what we can do today, you still have to have the idea and combine it with the commitment to the details.  It is how you turn the good into great.

The premise is that of an NBA fan, sometimes young, sometimes not so young – paying a visit to an early “pre-NBA” version of Nash in one and Durant in another.  The soon to be superstars listen in casual disbelief as the visitor from the future tips them off to the NBA future that is in store for them.  I can’t do it justice.  Just plain super cool stuff.  See for yourself:

As I understand it, the praise goes out to Goodby Silverstein and the creative team of Eric Boyd and Andy Dao.  Lead Creative Director Jamie Barrett too.

Well done folks.  And more important – Let’s Go Mavs!

Kelsey was recognized as 2009 Teammate of the Year for her hard work and extended hours of market research that generated insightful thought-leadership and made the planning department shine. Everett was awarded the 2009 Firehouse MVP for his art direction and production of impactful TV for our two largest clients, Interstate Batteries & Romano’s Macaroni Grill. Thanks to both of them for their smart work that resulted in great things for our clients’ business. Yay Firehouse!!!

I know that this is not exactly new, but have you seen this spot for Jameson Irish Whiskey?

I love it. Now, in the spirit of full disclosure, I really love gin more than scotch, and even after a visit to Scotland and the Glenkinchie Distillery, I have not developed the acquired taste for scotch like my brother. But, I got to tell you, as a novice, trying to distinguish the difference from one mossy, peaty glass to another is half the battle to acquiring the aforementioned taste. This work helps them stand out and I imagine gives people a personality they can identify with. At least enough to get them in the boat. Well done, credit for the spot goes to TBWA/Chiat/Day, New York. That work comes on the heels of a long standing word-of-mouth campaign that got them the growth they needed to eventually speak to a larger audience—thus the new (or relatively new) work.

Great piece of film. However, the print is weak and looks like an afterthought. Web presence looks like they repurposed an off-the-shelf techno widget and feels out of touch with the wonderful story telling foundation they have with John Jameson. So close and yet so far.

Next up, how about this idea:

Fun take on a product that has all the money in the world but a tough time getting people to pay attention. Not a lot of news in the “classic” part of this category. Yet they have given us a reason to pay attention and a reason to think happy thoughts. Credit and the cork go to Coca Cola and Definition 6. Well done.

Eager to hear what you think.

The “Pick Me” work done around the Fantasy Football craze was a neat example of how creativity can extend your media buy. I never saw the work myself, although I imagine I’m in (or certainly near) the target. In fact, I would never have known about it unless my 10 year old son made sure to grab me one day when I got home to show me a cool thing he saw on the computer.

Fun idea. Easy to see why it spreads, but I got to tell you, I’m not sure what Reebok is wanting me to do? Now, I hear the words “Pick Me” and I may like the players a little more as I see them without all the gear so I can identify them beyond just a numbered jersey…but it feels like a missed opportunity.

Next up of the ideas is the Fun Theory from VW from overseas. Check out this clip:

Wow. Love it. Love it. Love it. A hand for the team that thought it up. A hand for the client that signed off on an idea that does not readily identify with driving. A standing ovation for the production team that pulled it off so well.

But there is more — check out the rest here: www.funtheory.com. Man, I was pumped when I saw it. Well done.

Finally, I saw some really fun work for a tired and formulaic category. Think CPG work for cereal has to be typical slice of life work with expected product shots? You might be suffering from IDS. Fiber One has a campaign around the idea of IDS or (Irrational Disbelief Syndrome). Does a nice job of getting your attention, making you smile and getting you to think differently or rethink the expected reaction to breakfast cereals and snack bars.

I mean these guys are hammering the copy points of Fiber One at you and it still manages to be funny and entertaining. No misunderstanding what they want you to take away, yet it is done well enough that it doesn’t get old. Then you hit the site they have created and the integration is terrific. Good stuff all the way around.

While I loved elements of all three and the VW staircase execution I believe is the most memorable, the cork this month goes to: The Fiber One team and the good folks at the Coping with Disbelief Institute. Great idea and a compelling reason to try the product.

Cheers!

Can someone please pass the skim milk?

Two executions initially caught my eye. One from Pfizer for a smoking cessation campaign.

The rest of the campaign is carried over to the website.

Well done. Nice entry into their products that can help you break free of the addiction. Thankfully, I have never been in the target so I can’t speak directly to its effectiveness. However, the themes and messaging put in a format that is both visually arresting and with an added sense of time slipping away I thought was brilliant.

Next idea that stopped me becuase I am in the target and was squarely in the media target as they were hosting a PGA golf tournament. Barclays Investing put this together to help connect with those of us that have been punched in the face economically in the last 18 months.

Loved it! Interesting, kind of creepy. Lots of little details. A story well told. Great copy. Barclays really comes off looking like a rock (sorry Prudential) in these times. Clearly a big budget traditional spot that stopped me dead in my tracks and made me sit up and take notice.

Bad news — that is where it ends for me. As soon as the tournament they sponsored ended, they were gone….

I went to the website to see if there was any integration and it feels very much like they fell victim of the silo effect. One agency comes up with a great idea. A different special agency is responsible for the content on the site and the two shall never meet.

Guess I’ll be looking for the next rock that comes along.

So in review, I loved the glitzy spot, but I feel like maybe I was faked out. I guess that is a little like art imitating life –- imitating art, imitating life.

The cork then goes to My Time To Quit and Pfizer. Great work better integration. A bigger idea than just selling drugs. And hey, maybe some people will actually quit smoking.

What’s not to like? Cheers!

It is an amazing story well told. As all of our work should be.

I could not find anything else that I thought would be fair to compare it to this month.

It wins the cork, hands down!

The first idea that caught my eye came from a creative team down at George Patterson Y&R in Australia. A writer and art director teamed up to prove once and for all that creativity makes good business sense.

You may have seen this already and if so you likely got a laugh, but equally important – the results of the Wicked Sick BMX experiment are impressive. This really is brilliant.

The second idea I came across this month blew me away. It was the most engaging thing I’ve seen in a while. And as far as I can tell there was no commercial application to it. It was simply an incredibly dynamic example of what the medium of social media is capable of producing.

I dare you to try and only watch one time. It captures a few minutes of a single morning earlier this year at a train station in Belgium. I really don’t think you can watch it only once.

Two terrific ideas. Each amazing in its ability to engage the audience.

Well, hard to pick between these two, both are fantastic. But this month the official Cheers goes to the guys down in Australia, not only well crafted copy to make a compelling ad, they positioned the bike apart from the competitive asset, and man did it get results!

That’s creativity at work.

The last Thursday of each month we get the entire agency together and take a moment to celebrate the ideas and efforts that helped make the month a success. It’s a way to reinforce the kind of effort, attitude and output that’ll separate our work and ultimately our clients from their competition.

How it works is that over the course of the month everyone takes a moment or two to nominate the individuals or teams they believe have been doing the type of work and achieving the kind of results we all strive for.

Now, I grew up the son of a West Point grad, so for me the reward for a job well done has always been the job done well. Good for getting things done, not so good for managing creative minds in this day and age. So, more than anything Champagne Thursday is an opportunity for me to take the time to see, hear and realize how many great ideas and how much great effort is exerted each and every day to drive our clients’ brands forward. I read all of the “nominations” to the crowd; we all have a laugh and then raise a glass of champagne in a toast. Then the corks are “awarded” to those individuals deemed to be most responsible for that month’s celebration.

It has been a great source of pride for me personally and I think for the entire agency as well. My hope is the people here continue to find creative ways to display their cork collections for all our clients and new hires to see.

Because of that, I want to extend the tradition into this space. A virtual nod each month to “nominate” work, effort or ideas I am seeing out in the marketplace. A way to stop and recognize some people, brands, clients, competitors…anyone or anything that is producing work worthy of recognition.

This is in no way intended to be comprehensive, so add your own thoughts, opinions and nominations. All are welcome.

SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADIEU, THIS MONTH’S NOMINATIONS:

They came right out and said they put the “No” in Innovation. Shredded Wheat’s new work is funny and honest. A trait we all could strive for. It is what it is, and the honesty makes me like and respect the brand more than ever. Let’s face it, you can’t BS someone into thinking Shredded Wheat is cool. But, lo and behold, after seeing this spot they got me there all the same.

Secondly, I watched the US Open over the weekend and I came across IBM’s “Let’s Build a Smarter Planet” campaign. I know it is not new, but I noticed for the first time that the writing and flow of the television are fantastic. If you haven’t seen the particular execution about the medical profession it makes me think they ought to be in charge of healthcare reform, not government (but that’s another post altogether). It’s really timely stuff that continues to move that brand from its history as a purveyor of beige box commodity to a commissary of intelligence and problem solving.

IBM has the tough task of selling service and thinking, and they’re doing it in a way that makes me believe they are really eager thought leaders ready to solve the kind of business problems that may ultimately lead to even bigger solutions than just business success.

And the cork goes to….

Both are great in their own right, but I say “Well done to the team at O&M” for the IBM work. Smart, heady, timely. All in all a great idea well executed.

Eager to here what you think.