Can advertising change the world?

The Humanitarian lions asks, can advertising change the world?

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Anonymous Adgrunt's picture
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smizzly_bob's picture

This is a good idea. Still there are a lot of videos on YouTube encouraging people to take the initiative to change the world. I'm afraid this idea may be too much of a YouTube cliche to work.

kidsleepy's picture

Brief for X brand + Change the world

Get: The world.

To: Change

By: By pointing out how X Brand can enhance your lifestyle, even if you live in an underdeveloped country and your concept of lifestyle is wholly different from those of us in the western world.

Secondary message: Create awareness that Brand X is now lower in fat/has new packaging/ is 50% organic/tastes better/gives more mileage/is greener/now comes with anti-histamine.

Tertiary message: Come up with an idea that might solve the world's problems.

Mandatories:
Product must be in ad.
Logo
Price point (if applicable)

Legal: said product is not held responsible if idea does not in fact change the world. new packaging/taste.more antihistamine preference based on clinical trials

Client does not want to see images that are off putting. Please stick with approved brand guidelines of "Happiness, fun and excitement."

Special NOTE: Client feels entire concept might be too "Chest beating." They suggest focusing more on the product, logo and people having fun. They have indicated they would not be interested in seeing the agency version this time.

Please stick with TV, radio and retail print for this assignment.

Thanks!

purplesimon's picture

"It can't go wrong."

Oh yes it can!

It seems to me that one or more of the 'clients' shown may well be causing some of the troubles in the world this idea is attempting to alleviate. No? It makes me think of the time Nike offered consumers the chance to have their own personal message stitched on a shoe and then didn't like it when someone suggested sweatshop.

However, behind the cynic lies someone who sorely wishes this could work. I know that I may have attributed to some bad things, but I've also tried to do my bit. There is plenty of great pro bono work being done in agencies around the world, so perhaps advertising is already trying to change the world for the better? (Some people may argue it's worse since advertising came about, but I don't want to discuss that here.)

Anyway, making it a pre-requisite for entering Cannes means we have to take it seriously. My idea is for a toilet that analyses your poo and suggests a better diet plan. You can have that for free.

Dabitch's picture

The someone who suggested "sweatshop" was Jonah H. Peretti.

argantil's picture

Everyone knows that agencies only do pro-bono work so that they can enter it into shows.
So wait, this could actually work.........

Seriously though, there's an insane amount of "creativity" and ideas created daily by professionals who work for humanitarian organizations and industrial designers, doctors, biologists etc that all work for same. To think a bunch of "portfolio school" educated marker high adgruffs could outdo them is ludicrous.

mpared's picture

nice idea...i love it

Dabitch's picture

I can't believe this was 2008