Is your message bold enough to stop traffic?

The Fearless Girl statue that stands defiantly in front of the famous Charging Bull on Wall Street is pure advertising disguised as art. State Street Global Advisors used McCann New York to create the bold statue to promote the firm’s new roster of female run companies and  investment fund, SHE.

The statue’s base reads “Know the Power of Leadership, SHE makes a difference,” but no one read it because the visual message is strong, clear, and buzz worthy. It created so much buzz it stirred endless debates. Feminists argued the girl should have been a woman rather than a lesser adversary, a child, in the face of the more powerful male bull. Others felt it was an empowering message attracting attention to the need for more women in leadership roles.

Some felt the statue lessened the positive meaning of the bull and others argued that it changed the bull’s message to a negative one—making the bull aggressive, confrontational, and threatening to women. And many were just upset that feminism was being used as a marketing tool.

This small statue created so much buzz it started conversations all over the world. It also won 4 Grand Prix awards at the Cannes Lions ad industry festival. What did all the buzz garner? Over a million tweets, free publicity, a huge increase in business for State Street and a 375% increase in their SHE fund.

The old adage that ‘any press is good press’ worked because the bad press never impacted the firm’s abilities—it highlighted their commitment to women-owned business. The controversy made State Street’s name famous and associated with women. McCann did a perfect job of employing out-of-the-box thinking with a buzz worthy outdoor “ad” that would put their client’s name on everyone’s lips. Is your ad bold enough to keep people talking?

Morty Silber, CEO

Mad Strategies Inc.
a Wizard of Ads Partner

In October 2015 United Airlines stopped flying to JFK airport in New York city. It focused its flights to their nearby hub in Newark, N.J.

Two years later they had an insight that New Yorkers believe JFK is a closer airport than Newark. But that isn’t the case.

The airline installed screens on 125 taxi tops throughout the city that shows the travel times from a taxi's location to both JFK and Newark airports in real time.

Of course they only introduced the taxi top screens after they did their research and realized that travel times to Newark are notably shorter than those to JFK, often at least 30 minutes shorter. Many times even more.

Often times the thing that’s keeping your business from leaping to the next level is simply making something clear.

Is there anything you need clarified?

Thank you Shuly Vorhand for sending me this story.

Morty Silber, CEO

Mad Strategies Inc.
a Wizard of Ads Partner

Advertising has never felt so real.

Late last year, the Cineplex at Yonge-Dundas became Canada’s first 4DX movie auditorium.  The Cineplex website describes 4DX as "a new, state-of-the-art, cinematic technology that physically immerses the viewer into the film. It uses motion-based seating that is expertly synchronized to the screen, along with captivating effects such as: water, rain, fog, snow, and lightning."

The seats vibrate and swerve making you wonder if there would ever be a good time to take a sip of your over-sized fountain drink.

“I love the fact that it sort of envelops you,” said Dan McGrath, chief operating officer of Cineplex Entertainment. “Most people don’t ever get to experience this kind of thing unless you go to Disneyworld or you go to Universal Studios."

The technology is particularly well-suited for action scenes involving fast movements like car chases and films with extreme weather.

Last April, Audi Canada was the first company to release a 4DX commercial. This 4DX-enabled version of "Pure Imagination" is an ad for its A5 2017 mid-size coupe.

“The campaign tag for the A5 is actually, ‘If AI could dream, it would dream the car we’ve just made,’ which is very similar to our goal at Audi, which is to make that connection of emotion on one side, and technology and innovation on the other side,” Christian Schueller, Audi Canada’s director of marketing and digital innovation.

“Innovation has been our key element from the company’s very beginning: emerging with new inventions that are always pushing the boundaries of what’s possible,” Schueller says. “You’re always trying to make things better, or invent new things, re-inventing yourself along the way.”

As you watch the ad, you feel the wind on your face as well as smells from the passing scenery. Your chair veers and shifts to go with the action. You can even feel Audi’s heartbeat-like sound logo at the end of the ad through the vibrations in your chair. Hopefully, now you'll want to go out and try the real thing.

Below is the ad. Unfortunately, you'll have to imagine the wind in your hair, or eyebrows. On the bright side, you'll stay dry. Enjoy!

How can you immerse your customer into more of an emotional experience in your advertising?

Morty Silber, CEO

Mad Strategies Inc.
a Wizard of Ads Partner