It was a year like never before. Globally, it was the year of Barbie’s triumphant return, as Mattel and Warner Bros orchestrated a dazzling revival through larger-than-life advertising. Dunkin’ Donuts stole the spotlight with a memorable Ben Affleck commercial at the MTV Video Music Awards. Back home, Mondelez redefined the boundaries with AI, while Amazon, Coca-Cola and HP wooed audiences with their heartwarming moment advertising. FE Brandwagon reached out to some of the industry’s top creative guns to spotlight the year’s standout ads. Here are four of them talking about social messaging, celebrity narratives, innovative use of AI, and the artistry of festive marketing.
Column #1
By Josy Paul, chairman and chief creative officer, BBDO India
Column header: Made simplicity the focus of narrative
When I saw this film, my first thought was that I wish I had thought of it first. Everything unfolding in it mirrors my experiences with my dad — driving him around to revisit old places familiar to him and listening to him reminisce. I never realised that I could offer that experience to the world through the gift of an ad, until I saw this tear-jerker from Chevrolet. It rings so true. I wept as it hit home.
The heart-warming narrative revolves around a young woman’s holiday journey to gift her grandmother memories from years past, all told from the front seat of a classic Chevrolet Suburban. This nearly five-minute ad, set to John Denver’s ‘Sunshine On My Shoulders’ opens with an extended family preparing for a holiday dinner. The grandfather confides to his daughter looking over at his wife, “There are some days when she doesn’t even recognise me.” Moved by these words, the granddaughter takes her grandma on a trip down memory lane in the family’s 1972 Chevy Suburban.
The emotional climax unfolds as the two of them return to their family home, greeted by the grandfather. The older couple embrace and kiss with tears streaming down their faces. What thoughtful action! So simple, yet so beautiful and so real. The Chevrolet marketing head Steve Majoros says it so well when he calls it “the brand’s holiday card to America.”
The film is a ray of hope for those with loved ones affected by dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. It has become a sensation on all social media platforms, opening a floodgate of tears.
It is creative therapy for a broken world. When you feel the tears, know that you are not crying alone.
Column #2
Category: Campaign with the best use of AIBrand: Coca-ColaCampaign: Create Real Magic
By Amit Wadhwa, CEO, Dentsu Creative India
Column header: Generated original artwork with iconic creatives
AI has been a hot topic in 2023, with many debates, claims, challenges and breakthroughs. But it is more than just a fad or hype; it is a powerful tool that can solve real problems and create real value in the world. Over the years, we have seen how AI has made a positive difference in the lives of people and brands.
This year, one of the AI-led campaigns that really stood out was ‘Create Real Magic’ by Coca-Cola. It used a state-of-the-art AI platform to generate original artwork with iconic creative assets from the brand’s archives. Consumers could get access to various branded elements like the distinctive Coca-Cola bottle or even storied symbols like the Coca-Cola Polar Bear.The platform combined the capabilities of GPT-4, which produced human-like text from search engine queries, and DALL-E, which produced images based on text. The result was a stunning collection of posters, stickers, wallpapers, and animations that showcased the diversity, creativity, and heritage of Coca-Cola.
This is just one of the many examples of how AI is making a real impact across the world by creating value and enhancing experiences. I hope that 2024 will bring more such examples of AI that are not only innovative but also meaningful and real. I know that we will be trying to make that happen.
Column #3
Category: Campaign with the best use of a celebrity endorserBrand: Virgin VoyagesCampaign: Jen AI
By Sudish Balan, co-founder & chief creative officer, Tonic Worldwide
Column header: Gave a humorous twist to a celebrity ad
In an era of boring ads filled with the same celebrity faces and predictable scripts, Virgin Voyages threw a lifejacket to creativity with the JLo AI campaign, proving that advertising can be as fun as a crazy dance party on deck. This isn’t your standard cruise ship commercial. We’re talking Jennifer Lopez going virtual, powered by ordinary folks in motion capture suits trying (and failing) to channel her sass.
The ad is like a reality show where the gratification is that you can become JLo. It makes you laugh and cringe as wannabe JLos struggle to master her hair flipping style or glamorous persona. It is a humorous take on celebrity campaigns, and somehow makes you love the down-to-earth and quirky Jen AI even more!
The ad also serves as a virtual video messenger, helping you invite friends on a tropical getaway. It allows you to personalise video invites featuring a virtual JLo. The fact that it was interactive and allowed for personalisation made it much more than just an ad. I would say it is much like a margarita with extra tequila, making the ad fun, sweet and potent.
It also reminds us that marketing, with the right mix of innovation, technology and celebrity magic and a good dose of humour, can really work wonders. The campaign saw a significant rise in bookings for Virgin Voyages.
Column #4
Category: Campaign with the best showcase of festivitiesBrand: AppleCampaign: Fuzzy Feelings
By Rahul Mathew, chief creative officer, DDB Mudra Group
Column header: Took storytelling to a new orbit, well-executed
As a child, Christmas gifts were only the ones under the tree. But then I joined advertising, and along came Christmas commercials with gifts of storytelling neatly wrapped in the most delightful craft. There have been so many of them over the years – Sainbury’s 1914, Allegro English for Beginners, M&S Mrs Claus – one can keep going.But it was the John Lewis Christmas commercials that I always looked forward to. Over the years, they’ve made me laugh, sigh and even cry. And I wasn’t the only one. Twitter (I’m not calling it X) would be buzzing every time John Lewis dropped their Christmas commercial.
This year, my favourite from all the Christmas campaigns has undoubtedly got to be Apple’s Fuzzy Feelings. The almost four-minute film is of a young woman with a grumpy boss. She deals with her situation by using her creative skillset to make a stop-motion film on her iPhone featuring the irritable manager. The film is set to the tune of Isn’t It a Pity by George Harrison, the lyrics of which really hit the spot, reminding us of the importance of seeing beauty in all things. It is a beautiful human story with wonderful storytelling and exquisite craft weaving it all together.
I’ve gone into so many Diwali campaigns thinking this will be the year when we will weave some festive magic of our own. Here’s to 2024 being that year.
— Compiled by Christina Moniz
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