Google has partnered with UK charity, Comic Relief, to bring viewers around the world closer to the famed Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Every year hundreds of musicians and comedians flock to Edinburgh for a chance at their big break, while thousands of fans come to see their favorite acts or the next big thing. Gigs take place in small venues across the city during the festival, but now a selection of those acts are breaking the digital fourth wall through via the Hangout Comedy Club. As the official Google blog post describes:
To be part of the Hangout Comedy Club, simply join a Google+ Hangout hosted by one of our famous comedians, including Katherine Ryan, Sanderson Jones and Joey Page. Just like a real comedy club, if you’re brave enough, you can join the front row with up to eight others. If you’d rather sit out of sight, join a Hangout, add your friends, and watch from the safety of the back row.
As in real-life, participants in the front row can heckle the comedians or (and perhaps more likely) become the object of the ridicule from whomever is on stage. [brief aside: is it harder for the comedians to make fun of people when they can't see their whole outfit or make fun of their date?]
Those people in the back row will have the opportunity to use the 'Laugh-O-Meter' which uses face tracking technology to measure how much you're smiling or laughing throughout the set. Based on the laugh-o-meter score, it will then suggest a donation amount (higher if you laughed heartily) with all proceeds going to the Comic Relief charity.
It's another wonderful example of using technology to bridge the gap between the real and digital worlds. Check out the intro video below or head on over to Hangout Comedy Club to see the schedule of upcoming events.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Intel/Toshiba - The Power Inside
Last year I wrote about The Beauty Inside a campaign from Intel & Toshiba which went on to win both an Emmy as well as three Grand Prix's in Cannes (including Branded Content) this year. Pereira & O'Dell are back with 'The Power Inside,' which is the third iteration of the social/interactive film series. As in previous years, the film is directed and stars various Hollywood heavyweights. The first episode launched August 15th with new episodes released weekly for the next month and a half. The key aspect is the participatory nature of the film which allows viewers to be featured in the episodes through various mechanisms such as uploading photos of videos of themselves.
This year's iteration takes a more comedic approach (as opposed to the emotional and earnest 'The Beauty Inside' and the original horror-based 'Inside.'). The premise is that an alien race of extraterrestrial moustaches and unibrows are attempting to take over the upper lips and eyes of people around the world. The main character is Neil, who together with his friends and the help of technology discovers his inner strength to defeat the moustache and unibrow invaders called Uricks. It's very much in the tone of Zombieland or Shaun Of The Dead. Ridiculous? Yes, but also very well written, shot and produced.
In an interesting twist, AdWeek reports that Intel & Toshiba are selling product placement within the films to additional advertisers: 'Spotify, Skype, Fossil watches and Skullcandy headphones are all paying for placements with merchandise rather than cash. The merchandise will be given to winners in weekly contests tied to the series and as giveaways when U.S. consumers buy a Toshiba laptop computer promoted by the series.'
I've never heard of such a thing being done before (at least in terms of branded content) but it's a clever way for a brand to leverage the previous success in order to offset the costs of the current campaign. Check out the trailer and episodes in the playlist below.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
This year's iteration takes a more comedic approach (as opposed to the emotional and earnest 'The Beauty Inside' and the original horror-based 'Inside.'). The premise is that an alien race of extraterrestrial moustaches and unibrows are attempting to take over the upper lips and eyes of people around the world. The main character is Neil, who together with his friends and the help of technology discovers his inner strength to defeat the moustache and unibrow invaders called Uricks. It's very much in the tone of Zombieland or Shaun Of The Dead. Ridiculous? Yes, but also very well written, shot and produced.
In an interesting twist, AdWeek reports that Intel & Toshiba are selling product placement within the films to additional advertisers: 'Spotify, Skype, Fossil watches and Skullcandy headphones are all paying for placements with merchandise rather than cash. The merchandise will be given to winners in weekly contests tied to the series and as giveaways when U.S. consumers buy a Toshiba laptop computer promoted by the series.'
I've never heard of such a thing being done before (at least in terms of branded content) but it's a clever way for a brand to leverage the previous success in order to offset the costs of the current campaign. Check out the trailer and episodes in the playlist below.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Coca-Cola - Personal Road
Back in 2011 Coca-Cola launched the incredible 'Share A Coke' campaign in Australia. The campaign saw Coca-Cola print 150 of the country’s most popular names on labels of Coke bottles for the first time in the brand’s history. The idea was to give people a reason to connect with friends through a Coke and by every measure was a huge success. Since then Coca-Cola has been rolling out the campaign across the world, recently launching Israel where Coke & Gefen Team took the idea of personalization a step further. They transformed the a series of prominent billboards into interactive displays. Consumers were asked to download the Coca-Cola smartphone app and enter their name. The app would then transmit and display their name on the billboard whenever they were in range (using geo-fence technology). The app would then notify the user when their name was being displayed.
I would normally write this off as a gimmick with too many barriers to entry to get traction amongst users, but one shouldn't underestimate the narcissistic nature of today's smartphone user and their desire to see their name up in lights. The app ranked #1 in Israel's app store and was downloaded over 100k times. It's a cool idea and a wonderful execution, but also somewhat creepy. Is this the first step on the road to the dystopian personalized advertising as imagined in Minority Report? Check out the case study video below.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
I would normally write this off as a gimmick with too many barriers to entry to get traction amongst users, but one shouldn't underestimate the narcissistic nature of today's smartphone user and their desire to see their name up in lights. The app ranked #1 in Israel's app store and was downloaded over 100k times. It's a cool idea and a wonderful execution, but also somewhat creepy. Is this the first step on the road to the dystopian personalized advertising as imagined in Minority Report? Check out the case study video below.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Interrail Mobile - Global Pass
A generation ago backpacking around Europe was a rite of passage for college-age youth with a little bit of money to spare. While the center of gravity for the backpacking experience has moved to SE Asia, training it around Europe for a summer or for a few weeks at a time is still a popular travel experience. In order to promote their European wide unlimited train ticket, Interrail and Havas have created a fantastic piece of utility for their customers. Interrail have partnered with mobile operators around Europe to provide a SIM card that allows travelers to use data and make cheap calls regardless of what country they are in for the duration of their travels. The aptly named Interrail Mobile is sold directly on the Interrail site and provides an invaluable service to their youth-oriented market; the ability to stay in touch and post updates to their social networks throughout their travels.
Giving their customers a cheap and easy way to stay connected to social media and document their journey not only eliminates a huge paint point for travelers, but also allows Interrail to leverage word of mouth among their customers in order to drive future bookings from their respective social networks. Check out the overview video below or check out the more in-depth article/interview at Contagious Magazine.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Giving their customers a cheap and easy way to stay connected to social media and document their journey not only eliminates a huge paint point for travelers, but also allows Interrail to leverage word of mouth among their customers in order to drive future bookings from their respective social networks. Check out the overview video below or check out the more in-depth article/interview at Contagious Magazine.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Bear Time Stories
Perhaps my hard heart has grown softer since having a child, but I seriously was blown away by this idea. Bear Time Stories is a project which: 'allows you to record yourself reading out a bedtime story. Your story will be put on a mp3 player built into a stuffed animal and given to parentless children around the world...
...Using voices from around the world the Bear-Time Project hopes to show how by donating a voice we can all help to make a child's dreams a little sweeter.'
Check out the overview video below and then head on over to Bear Time Stories to donate your voice or just your $$$.
via: Leon Bayliss
Posted by: Reuben Halper
...Using voices from around the world the Bear-Time Project hopes to show how by donating a voice we can all help to make a child's dreams a little sweeter.'
Check out the overview video below and then head on over to Bear Time Stories to donate your voice or just your $$$.
via: Leon Bayliss
Posted by: Reuben Halper
IKEA - 2014 Augmented Reality Catalog
A few years back it seemed like augmented reality was going to be the NEXT BIG THING. Reality has since intervened as most augmented reality executions proved to be mainly gimmicks that didn't provide a particularly compelling experience nor did they provide true utility to consumers. Now IKEA is showing how augmented reality can be truly useful through their 2014 augmented reality catalog. Created by McCann and IKEA's in-house agency, Icom the app allows IKEA customers to preview items from the catalog to see how they'd look in their homes prior to purchase.
Here's how it works, a user places the 2014 IKEA catalog on the floor in their home and then fires up the app on their phone or tablet. The mobile device recognizes the tablet as the augmented reality marker. The user can then select from various items in the catalog where they are overlaid onto a real-time view of the room (as captured through the camera of the mobile device).
Again, this is a great use of technology in order to provide true utility to the customer. Users can see how various colors would look in-situ, as well as getting a sense of the size/scale of the furniture within their homes. Those two features alone ease two of the most common pain points when buying furniture (eg. will color x good? will it fit properly?). In fact, IKEA developed this app after their research showed that 1 in 7 customers purchased items that were either too large or too small for their homes. It's a win-win as the app also has the potential to reduce the amount of store returns. Check out the video that demonstrates the app below (complete with slightly creepy Swedish guy):
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Here's how it works, a user places the 2014 IKEA catalog on the floor in their home and then fires up the app on their phone or tablet. The mobile device recognizes the tablet as the augmented reality marker. The user can then select from various items in the catalog where they are overlaid onto a real-time view of the room (as captured through the camera of the mobile device).
Again, this is a great use of technology in order to provide true utility to the customer. Users can see how various colors would look in-situ, as well as getting a sense of the size/scale of the furniture within their homes. Those two features alone ease two of the most common pain points when buying furniture (eg. will color x good? will it fit properly?). In fact, IKEA developed this app after their research showed that 1 in 7 customers purchased items that were either too large or too small for their homes. It's a win-win as the app also has the potential to reduce the amount of store returns. Check out the video that demonstrates the app below (complete with slightly creepy Swedish guy):
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Amstel - Pause
The past year has seen a wealth of clever experiential campaigns, interactive vending machines and other types of successful public stunts. They typically require some sort of feat of concentration, physical exertion or the like from the relatively few members of the public that actually encounter the installation or stunt. The more amazing, the more likely it seems that the subsequent video will garner millions of views. The latest stunt from Amstel in Bulgaria bucks that trend by asking very little from the user. Their agency, NEXT-DC created Amstel Pause, an interactive vending machine that rewarded users with a beer for simply doing nothing (eg. taking a pause in their hectic life). All you had to do was stand in front of the machine for three minutes in order to receive a free beer. It's a fantastic idea and taps into the reality of our busy world where we often forget to take time to stop and smells the roses (while drinking an Amstel of course). According to the agency, the installation was live for:
'16 days, working from 16:00 to 21:00 o'clock in the busy center in Sofia, Amstel Pause collected:
— 4,032 minutes of break or more than 67 hours of rest for different people;
— Average of 84 users per day;
— Total of 1,344 beers given to people who do nothing;'
Check it out below:
Posted by: Reuben Halper
'16 days, working from 16:00 to 21:00 o'clock in the busy center in Sofia, Amstel Pause collected:
— 4,032 minutes of break or more than 67 hours of rest for different people;
— Average of 84 users per day;
— Total of 1,344 beers given to people who do nothing;'
Check it out below:
Posted by: Reuben Halper
A Few Things I Like But Don't Have The Time To Write Up - NBC, San Pellegrino, & Oakley
Premier League On NBC
American TV network NBC recently acquired the rights to broadcast the English Premier League games in the States. In advance of this past weekend's season opener they released this hilarious video. So, so good.
San Pellegrino
I love this little experiment by San Pellegrino that gives their audience the chance to experience a little bit Italy by allowing them to control a robot in a small town in Sicily.
Oakley Dreamland - A Backyard Progression
Red Bull has forced other brands associated with action sports to step up their game. Oakley has answered the call with what's one of the most epic skate videos you've ever seen. If nothing else, fast forward to 7:30 to see amazing Helicopter shenanigans. Interesting that the brand didn't split this into multiple episodes as there's just such a wealth of great stuff in the 8-minute long video.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
American TV network NBC recently acquired the rights to broadcast the English Premier League games in the States. In advance of this past weekend's season opener they released this hilarious video. So, so good.
San Pellegrino
I love this little experiment by San Pellegrino that gives their audience the chance to experience a little bit Italy by allowing them to control a robot in a small town in Sicily.
Oakley Dreamland - A Backyard Progression
Red Bull has forced other brands associated with action sports to step up their game. Oakley has answered the call with what's one of the most epic skate videos you've ever seen. If nothing else, fast forward to 7:30 to see amazing Helicopter shenanigans. Interesting that the brand didn't split this into multiple episodes as there's just such a wealth of great stuff in the 8-minute long video.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Honda - Hands
To celebrate more than 65 years of engineering accomplishments and innovation, Honda has released this delightful film, 'Hands.' As W+K London (the agency responsible for the film) writes: We have simply called the film 'Hands' as a testament to the tinkering nature of the Honda R+D engineers whose curious spirit (or hands) has made Honda the largest engineering company in the world.'
The film is a delight to watch and simply features a pair of hands magically transforming Honda products from one into another, taking the viewer from the earliest Honda products to the present day.
It's captivating enough to want to watch it again. Additionally, Honda (and their digital agency, Collective) have launched an interactive version of the film. The interactive version of the film, called The Engineer's Cut, allows 'viewers to interact via seemingly hand-written notes and doodles. Once clicked, the notes reveal the tales of engineers and innovation that have gone into the various Honda products.'
See the screenshot below and have a play around yourself by heading over to Honda Hands. My only criticism is that there could be a stronger link between the flat film and the interactive version. Clearly car enthusiasts or people who were delighted by the film would be interested in the interactive version, so an embedded link in the video sending users to the interactive version could help drive even more users to the deeper version.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
The film is a delight to watch and simply features a pair of hands magically transforming Honda products from one into another, taking the viewer from the earliest Honda products to the present day.
It's captivating enough to want to watch it again. Additionally, Honda (and their digital agency, Collective) have launched an interactive version of the film. The interactive version of the film, called The Engineer's Cut, allows 'viewers to interact via seemingly hand-written notes and doodles. Once clicked, the notes reveal the tales of engineers and innovation that have gone into the various Honda products.'
See the screenshot below and have a play around yourself by heading over to Honda Hands. My only criticism is that there could be a stronger link between the flat film and the interactive version. Clearly car enthusiasts or people who were delighted by the film would be interested in the interactive version, so an embedded link in the video sending users to the interactive version could help drive even more users to the deeper version.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
Toyota - Meals Per Hour
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Toyota teamed up with the with Food Bank For New York City to assist those families still affected by the storm. In addition to providing financial support, they also brought expertise in terms of operational efficiency and engineering. They recently released a video documenting their efforts, called 'Meals Per Hour.' For example, Toyota brought in experts around the 'The Toyota Production System (TPS),' which is based on the principle that 'the summation of many, many small, cheap improvements can have a big impact.' They dramatically increased the efficiency of the local food bank by implementing the TPS system to help distribute meals. As one of the Toyota employees says: 'These basic principles of the Toyota Production System apply to any kind of process — it doesn’t have to be manufacturing.'
While the video is an inspiring piece of content, it might not have had a great deal of viewership without an additional twist. Upon the release of the video, Toyota pledged to provide one meal for every view of the video (up to one million views). This is a great example of marketing for a good cause. Additionally, it's a great way to both drive viewership of the video and further anchor Toyota's commitment to CSR initiatives in the mind of the viewers. Check out the video below or head on over to Meals Per Hour to find out more about the project.
AdWeek has some stats around the media generated by the project.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
While the video is an inspiring piece of content, it might not have had a great deal of viewership without an additional twist. Upon the release of the video, Toyota pledged to provide one meal for every view of the video (up to one million views). This is a great example of marketing for a good cause. Additionally, it's a great way to both drive viewership of the video and further anchor Toyota's commitment to CSR initiatives in the mind of the viewers. Check out the video below or head on over to Meals Per Hour to find out more about the project.
AdWeek has some stats around the media generated by the project.
Posted by: Reuben Halper
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