Break Through Buzz is the creative stuff that impressed Ketchum’s creative community this week. Check out what captured our imaginations and inspires us to keep pushing the boundaries of possibility.
From Pinterest to Popping the Question
Selected by Angelica Carter
What it is: When a man overheard his girlfriend say to her friend that it’d be cool to get engaged and married in the same day, he took that idea and ran with it. One year later, with help from her Pinterest ‘wedding board,’ he created her dream wedding, proposing to her on the morning they were married.
Why it is Break Through: This is a real-life example of how listening and being proactive in utilizing resources in a creative way makes headlines and happiness. With the use of a social media platform, the groom was able to turn his wife’s digital dreams into a physical reality.
Disney Brings Paper to Life
Selected by Prasanna Ratanjankar
What it is: Disney Research has found a way to generate electricity from paper. With a few simple items such as paper, a Teflon sheet, tape, wires and the user’s physical interaction, one can create enough voltage to power small LED lights and make small animated cards and games.
What makes it break through: Electricity without batteries is break through enough! What makes it awesome is the potential the paper generator has to be used for our communication programs. With hand-powered paper generators, we could someday create media invites that light up by tapping them, hide messages in magazine ads, incorporate small games on product packaging – the possibilities are endless. The paper generator is unique, exciting, fun, cost-effective and VERY easy to build, giving it brilliant potential.
The Power of Fresh Starts
Selected by Kevin Scheers
What it is: Underwear and socks brand Fruit of the Loom, with the help of Crispin Porter & Bogusky and Ketchum, sent messages to 25,000 LinkedIn users who updated their career profiles with a new position. The users were congratulated with a complimentary pair of underwear – a “Fresh pair for a Fresh gig.”
What makes it Break Through: The team recognized that a fresh pair of underwear at the beginning of a new life chapter makes all the difference and amplified this point through both traditional and digital means. The campaign is funny and eye-catching enough to have gained recognition in the New York Times.
Pink Ribbon Highway
Selected by Shirley Symister
What it is: In celebration of cancer awareness month, Iceland ad agency Brandenburg partnered with the Icelandic Cancer Society and painted a curved highway ramp pink. When viewed from the air, the looped road resembles the pink ribbon symbol of breast cancer.
What makes it break through: Brandenburg caught the attention of thousands by changing the color of a common mode of transportation. This simple but brilliant idea stands out by literally bringing cancer awareness to the forefront of people’s minds.
Telekinetic Coffee Shop
Selected by Victoria Morrison
What it is: Thinkmodo, a viral video marketing company, created a promotional video for the new movie remake of Stephen King’s Carrie by installing hidden cameras at a New York City coffee shop and capturing the reactions of unsuspecting customers as they witness a telekinetic event.
Why it’s break through: The video is hard-hitting and hugely engaging, and it went viral within days (I’ve had it forwarded to me by numerous people). Even though I knew it was a setup, it still gave me the creeps! If that’s not the hallmark of a fantastic campaign, I don’t know what is.
Pictures for Your Ear, Sounds for Your Eyes
Selected by Jeff Lewonczyk
What it is: The Guardian recently posted a series of innovative music scores that use surprising and often beautiful visual cues to give musicians bold new paths toward performance.
What makes it break through: Just because there’s a commonly accepted way to do things doesn’t mean it’s the only way. These scores are a reminder that, just as traditional music notation is only one choice among many, so are many of the other creative strategies that we take for granted. Shaking things up with a new approach can lead to exciting new sights and sounds!
The Newest Word in the Dictionary
Selected by Elena Weinstein
What it is: Ad agency McCann Melbourne launched a guerilla marketing campaign for the newest edition of a dictionary by inventing their own word – “phubbing” – to describe the phenomenon of ignoring people in front of you to pay attention to your phone. They spent a year seeding the term in relevant publications and online conversations through an integrated campaign in hopes that it will organically become a part of our lexicon.
What makes it break through: This campaign illustrates the intersection of communications and culture. While written dictionaries are fast becoming obsolete, the inclusion of new words to describe technological phenomenon still serves as a mirror on our culture. By recognizing that words are part of our cultural zeitgeist, McCann pulled off a very believable marketing stunt and succeeded in seamlessly inserting their own word into English and several other languages.
