Ad Facial Recognition: The Next Frontier

Recently, Immersive Labs located in New York City developed the technology for billboards or in-store displays to use facial recognition to identify age and gender.  They also will take into account the location, weather, and other surrounding cues and based on all the information gathered it will present an ad that may appeal to that person.  They can also detect if the person is directly looking at the ad or if their attention is elsewhere.

While some might find this slightly creepy, it does not violate any privacy laws as it claims that the devices do not actually store the pictures taken.  Personally, I find this advancement really cool and it will pave the way to personalized ads and help companies more easily reach their target markets.

Check out the video below for more information on this new development.


Now I'm just throwing this out there, but recently I was discussing this new idea of mine with some friends. I think that someone should develop a cell phone that is essentially free, however the catch is that it will receive ads that will either be based on location or other factors. This way the phone is paid for by the people wanting to place their ads and not by the user. For this to be successful though, obviously enough people would need to want the phone in order for it to be worth the advertising investments.  Like I said...just throwing it out there!

To see the full article on the facial recognition ads visit: Facial Recognition

Street Art

So this entry is just a very large compilation of cool street art!  Street art was one of my favorite things to find and photograph when I was traveling in Europe.  I just love the contrast between the picture painted and the surface/area it is painted/constructed/etc.

So without dragging this on... lets begin!


These first several are shadow art, in that the picture makes more sense when a shadow is in a certain position.

 
These ice sculptures were placed in Berlin and used to demonstrate climate change. 

Good stuff!  To find more street art photos visit:  http://www.streetartutopia.com/

Guerrilla Marketing

I am a total guerrilla marketing advocate.  I was going to define this in my own words, but best to let wikipedia do it for me:

"The concept of guerrilla marketing was invented as an unconventional system of promotions that relies on time, energy and imagination rather than a big marketing budget. Typically, guerrilla marketing campaigns are unexpected and unconventional, potentially interactive, and consumers are targeted in unexpected places. The objective of guerrilla marketing is to create a unique, engaging and thought-provoking concept to generate buzz, and consequently turn viral."

It brings a whole new challenge and has no real structure to follow.  This medium tackles trying to place your product or advertisement in a unique place and situation in which no one has ever really done before.  It also achieves a lot of recognition and sometimes media attention for relatively low costs.  Also, my favorite thing is a lot of these strategies are really daring and some a bit controversial.  Draws a lot of attention!

Folgers put a coffee mug sticker over steam vents in larger cities.  This makes it appear as if the coffee is steaming when people walk by.

Mini Cooper put "Mini Cooper" boxes in trash piles throughout the city demonstrate their small size.  Although I am not sure how environmentally friendly this is...

 Amnesty international put these hands coming out of sewage drains reading "wrong" on one hand and "faith" on the other to raise awareness for human rights.

 This ad is for dental implants.

Mr. Clean has the only white strip on the crosswalk.

This seafood restaurant left large clam shells covering the beach, which when are opened have a insert that reads, "Looking for seafood?" and includes their logo.

This ad for the Sopranos was seen on taxi cabs.  There is a fake arm hanging out of the trunk and a sticker for the Sopranos on the bumper of the cab.

This idea is great!  It is for a store having a sale on shorts.  They have a panel of a bench replaced with engraving that reads, "Short shorts. On sale. Superette."  This leaves the imprint on the legs of people wearing shorts for an ad for all to see!  And the best part is a lot of the people probably don't even notice it.

This next ad I actually wrote on for my COLAB application entry.  It is for truth and expresses the negative associations of cigarettes.  The campaign created little orange signs to be stuck in dog poop which read, "Cigarettes contain ammonia.  So does dog poop."

 

To see more ads like these or learn about them more in detail visit:  Guerrilla

I have also found a lot of unique videos that show some of these things captured in action.

voyages-sncf.com - The Escape Service

This is so cool!

 

Here Tropicana powers a billboard using oranges and their chemical properties as people watch on.

Auditiva - Subtitled park

McDonald's - Dip Dip Nuggets

Using elevators to look like Chicken McNuggets

To see more videos featuring Guerrilla Marketing visit:  Videos

For more on guerrilla marketing also check out my posts on:

IKEA 

Outdoor Ads

Fanta Invades College Campus

Fanta, the popular soda drink, has recently began working with Ogilvy to re-brand themselves.  As a part of this effort the company invaded elevators at the University of Wisconsin.  The elevator would repeat back what people said, make ominous breaking noises, and eventually open a hidden fridge full of Fanta soda and play music!  The elevator also has a ceiling release in which it can release hundreds of small orange balls that overflow out of the elevator and into the nearby floors.  It is very entertaining and the students seem to really enjoy their ride!

Definitely a fun way to mix things up and a good way to create a viral video!

You can view the video larger and read more about the Fanta invasion here:  Fanta

Old Spice - A new manly man?

I'm sure everyone is familiar with Wieden + Kennedy's Old Spice campaign with Isaiah Mustafa.  They are hilarious and have become a viral wonder.  From having Isaiah answer questions online and take on the radio this campaign has become a wild success.  However, there is now a new Old Spice representative to market their Danger Zone products.  He is an avid adventurer that seeks danger, but needs to smell good doing it.  For now, the commercials are not airing in the U.S., but I am sure that they will be another viral explosion soon!

Below are some of the commercials from the Old Spice campaign with Isaiah.

One of the reasons for this new man, might be Isaiah going to Microsoft.

This video for Windows Phone 7 launch in Australia is very similar to the Old Spice act in the way it is written and delivered, however it seems to be missing a lot of its originality and spunk.  I believe that maybe Microsoft was trying to keep the same personality, while not completely copying Old Spice.  I do find this commercial to be somewhat boring in contrast to his prior Old Spice ads... and I don't think it is entirely clear what the product is.

Wieden + Kennedy and Old Spice have already found alternative's to Isaiah using Ray Lewis. 
Below is a compilation of the new ads running with Ray Lewis.

Besides Isaiah somewhat betraying Old Spice, Axe is also attacking the brand.

However, despite all the hardships, with Wieden + Kennedy's genius and Old Spice's strong brand these things won't keep them down.

Below is the new ad for the Danger Zone line of Old Spice.  Different man, same hilarious commercial!  Instead of being the "Man your man could smell like" this new Old Spice man says, "Danger excites me. But I can't fully enjoy it when I smell like fear and body odor".  Valid point in my opinion. 

Thank you Wieden + Kennedy for another entertaining ad!  I look forward to more from this new Old Spice man.