Ramadan 2012 - Post 2
Hello friends,
Now we're a good 5 days into Ramadan, more copies have been released and more ads for us to nibble on..
Voila..
Etisalat:
Ever-since the Mobile Number Portability (MNP) agreement was kicked into action in April 2008 (changing ur mobile operator without changing your number), Etisalat have been playing this game heavily (being the newest player in an already mature & saturated market; they had to) they wanted to get the benefit of having a higher subscriber's base.. Playing every trick in the book to make people switch sides (churn as the telco industry calls it). But they've been doing it in a discreet hush-hush manner with real incentives for the user; they slashed minute rates, gave you extra minutes on your normal card value, bundled scratch card minutes and USB modem in one package, they even created a whole reward program (Fawzy.com) just for people to get hitched.
Now they've waged war officially with this campaign; a set of copies that serves as a cheat-sheet on the different ways you can "break-up" with your mobile operator..
In case this didn't happen with you; Etisalat are now calling people on their mobiles; asking them to jump ships onto their network in exchange of:
- Keeping your number as is
- Keeping the same benefits you're already enjoying with your current operator
- Giving you a near 50% off on your monthly bill, for a period ranging between 6 months and 2 years
The above happened with my wife & I, wana 3shan aseel w akhla2i 3alya, took this offer to my current operator w laweit dra3hom as one of their "valued" customers is on the verge of leaving and got the same offer from them without the hassle of changing operators... haha..
Anyway, that's not the point.. back to the ad.. So here we see a stop-motion animation of a guy "breaking up" with his operator and the different ways of doing so..
I'll just stop and ponder a bit about the production, stop-motion is usually used for low budget purposes (e3lan me7tag yetla3 3al saree3 w b floos 2olayyela), and from my humble knowledge Etisalat is one of the top 5 spenders in the country so I dont think that a proper copy production would have been a major ta3weera for their pockets.. so I would assume that the stop motion here is actually intended, to give the copy the light humorous feeling it should convey.. which worked actually..
I like the ad, funny and to the point.. not their best of ads though..
Grade: B
Mobinil:
Well, regardless of how great or ungreat this ad might be, this is an excellent CSR campaign and the beauty of it is that intrigues viewers into it year after year.. I just LOVE ads that take you on a journey, even if it is a long journey. If the destination is worth it; you'll still remember every step of the way.. Just like Pepsi launched "دوري بيبسي للمدارس" to scout for U-16 hidden talents 10 years ago, now these kids are en-route to represent Egypt in the London Olympics with half of the team being brought up from the Pepsi scouting Program... That is how you build a long term commitment with the society and its consumers (not a hit and run campaign, something that is actually sustainable, tested and proven successful).
So Mobinil announced the campaign a couple of years ago that they're launching an initiative to employ 200,000 hands (100,000 jobs).. The above ads just serve as a flag, a reminder, making a statement that "HEY, we did it, and here's a sample"..
Both figures they've portrayed in the copies show that finding a job isn't impossible afterall; if you have the right drive and motivation.. It is even harder for these 2 models because each has his own hurdle to cross, more than any average jobseeker out there... but they did it!
Hopefully desperate & hopeless jobseekers would find inspiration in these fine gentlemen and be as self-drive as they were.
Grade: A+ for the initiative, B for the copy
Universal:
Its been a while since we've seen a decent jingle/choreography ad.. a one that you'd actually want to see again.
Nothing super special about the idea or the setting.. nor the music honestly (its just a fusion of a couple of 90s hits)
The ad is just an example of little things done right.. So the music, the choreography, the colors.. just give you an overall feeling of lightheartedness.. Wish Coca-Cola had seen this before they did their "happiness" ad..
Now THIS is a happy ad..
Grade: B+
Maxibon:
OK, so for the past 5 days, I've been thinking about this ad and what to make out of it..
I doubt there's someone who watches TV in Egypt who hasn't seen, heard or spoken about this ad.. Attitudes towards this ad are world's apart. So either you'll find people who LOVE it or people who just hate every single thing about it.. I doubt you'll find someone with neutral sentiments.
I belong to the second group here, I loate the ad... I detest every single thing about it..
Quite honestly, I don't see how this ad links to ANYTHING, anything at all that has to do with advertising.. how is this ad building up a case to engage consumers or invite them to try the brand; 3shan yaklo so7abhom ba3d kda?
Secondly, the idea is not unique at all (to the brand or the category).. If I remove the name Maxibon and put Chipsico, Tiger, Todo, Kalbaz, Mo2men's new sandwich, Gold's Gym, Kia Cerato.......... you name it... any other brand would fit here, so it doesn't even touch upon icecream in the ad, thus dropping on affinity.
What even makes me more confused are the below 2 points:
- The makers of the ad are actually two quite brilliant gentlemen: with video blogger Tameem Youness (of Rasseeni) as the Creative Director behind it and directed by world famous Ali Ali (known for his Panda campaign - which won numerous worldwide awards including a Cannes Lion).. So I don't quite see how such an ad slipped both... Either that or something is wrong with me and the ad is saying something I'm not seeing (maybe the brief was directed at a specific target audience that we don't belong nor relate to).. But if it is, then why is the icecream priced at 5 LE a piece.. Now the people you're trying to reach here are already complaining about it... Wa2taha then ur problem is with the brief which said you should speak in such a tone to people who won't afford your product.
- I was shocked to see that this ad actually belongs to Nestle, a Swiss brand that is perceived as gourmet and upclass.. I would have expected such an ad to come from these small time snack companies that shine in the spotlight for 10 seconds just to grab attention then disappear (Tiger, Al Hassan Wal Hussein Luncheon... even Dayem), but not Nestle. Even if the target talks and behaves this way, as a brand you shouldn't behave as such, because you have a lot of history to protect (vs Dice Underwear; which had every right to speak in such a tone, because their brand image allows that.. Check the detailed casestudy here)
The way I see this ad, is it that had "AWARDS" in Neon lights before the creators' eyes, so it is made for that purpose, to win awards for the agency and raise its profile, regardless of how that will affect that brand or reflect on its performance KPIs.. And the end of the day, the client is probably happy because they did an ad that everyone's talking about (bel kwayes aw bel we7esh), unaware that this could be a nail in their brand's casket (مسمار في نعشه... ترجمه حرفية).
Kol eli fo2 da is just me talking... Now, in the interest of fairness, the ad does have a LOT of groundbase and did score excellent with a lot of people (including A LOT in our SEC class).
An ad that automatically infiltrates itself into popular culture is automatically a successful ad.. and this one didn't fall short in that..
Tab3an el sha3b el masry mabeysebsh 7aga t3addi, with massive creativity and some modest photoshop skills.. So the next day this ad aired, there were 3 different knock-offs of this ad pertaining to different topics of Egyptian current affairs (mostly sports and politics).
 |
| Political reactions |
 |
| Sports Reactions Karim Hassan Shehata to Abou Treika after Zamalek's defeat in CAF Champions League |
To cut a long story short, the way I see it, the ad worked beautifully with a lot of people, it just didn't crack it with me... at all!
Grade: Wallahi me7tar, bas i'll go with my initial feeling and give it a D
That's all for now
Cheerio
3omdaz
Ramadan 2012 - Inaugural post
Hello friends,
Kol sana wento tayyebeen...
Another Ramadan comes along, with more than 60 TV series and 20+ programs, costing around 1.7 Billion EGP.. But that cost doesn't just go in vain, there should be some decent dollars spent behind that on advertising to cover up for all the production costs.. and of course, for our viewing pleasures :)
Disclaimer before I start: Uptil now, I haven't seen one ad that left me with my jaw dropped.. Nothing with major production budgets and celebrity endorsements (such as Etisalat 2010)..
The revolution's economic aftermath is definitely a major factor after advertising budgets have been slashed from last year to this one.
With that said, the grading will be a bit downscaled because from what I've seen so far, nothing deserves an A or A+.
Yalla beena, lets kick off Ramadan 2012...
Vodafone:
1. Olympic Football Squad Copy:
I first saw this on mute, on a mobile phone with a friend... and boy, I was furious...
Being a fan of original work, I really take copied work with a giant pinch of salt... Might be overreacting but I actually feel offended and rediculed that the brand didn't do the effort to come up with something new or copied some int'l copy and thought that no one else in the world saw the int'l ad except them..
I felt the same sentiments towards this, as I thought it was a carboncopy of Nike's Write The Future campaign, launched before World Cup 2010.
So I went back, searched for the ad on Youtube and awaiting to unleash hell in my critique.. then I saw the ad, and all these emotions diffused!
Turns out that the ad is pretty well thought actually.. A whole new concept all together, that puts aside all the fans, supporters and patriotic slogans aside.. This one actually talks to the haters, the sceptics and the ones who always drag someone down. The ad is skinned to the nitty-gritty details of the football industry.. an industry that is regarded as.... well, lets just say that is it not too ideal.
Copywriting here is excellent too, with each sentence having a solid & profound value that is relevant to being a football player.
The use of one of the most popular icons in Egypt's Football History; Mahmoud El Khateeb (Bibo) definitely gives the ad some decent weight.
In conclusion, I really like the ad.. Too bad I made an early judgement about it, but the copy was too strong to put me back on track..
Grade: A-
2. Vodafone - El E3lan Baz:
Its an extremely ordinary ad... Nothing super special there.. maybe just a hint of a smile in the last 2 seconds.
But the fact that Samir Ghanem is there makes me automatically biased to it
However, we can't only judge by 1 copy only, as it is obviously just the first of a series of TVCs adapting the same storyline... so lets see!
Grade so far: B-
CocaCola:
Another Happiness themed ad from CocaCola, I'm just not too sure how different my happiness levels have varied before and after seeing the ad... Its a very faint ad for the impact they aim to create..
Especially that people are already in their lowest morale levels because of current country events, the ad should have been much stronger than just a pale circus-like setting, that didnt even leave me with a little smile, let alone feeling happy.
It should have been much more festive, louder music, colors......etc
The good thing here though is that although the copy is weak, is that they're turning this into a real proper integrated campaign, with a website to vote for the next visit of the happiness parade..
Grade: C for this ad, lets wait for the rest of the campaign.
3. Pepsi:
I'm not too sure what to make of this one.
Lets just say that not everything with Donia Samir Ghanem in it would fly.
Grade: C-
4. Birelle
Birelle was the first client to jump ships from Leo Burnett to KTP; King Tut's Playground (The new venture of ex Leo Burnett award winning creative director Mohamed Hamdallah). This is Birelle's first and KTP's second campaign after Etisalat's Fawzy.com.
Birelle aims to continue in its manhood platform for years to come now, and they still manage to do that through a witty idea that makes you laugh yet delivers on the intended message..
Can't wait for the other copies in this campaign..
Grade: A-
These are key ones I've been seeing/hearing of lately...
More to come as the rest unveil..
Cheers
3omdaz
Kol sana wento tayyebeen...
Another Ramadan comes along, with more than 60 TV series and 20+ programs, costing around 1.7 Billion EGP.. But that cost doesn't just go in vain, there should be some decent dollars spent behind that on advertising to cover up for all the production costs.. and of course, for our viewing pleasures :)
Disclaimer before I start: Uptil now, I haven't seen one ad that left me with my jaw dropped.. Nothing with major production budgets and celebrity endorsements (such as Etisalat 2010)..
The revolution's economic aftermath is definitely a major factor after advertising budgets have been slashed from last year to this one.
With that said, the grading will be a bit downscaled because from what I've seen so far, nothing deserves an A or A+.
Yalla beena, lets kick off Ramadan 2012...
Vodafone:
1. Olympic Football Squad Copy:
I first saw this on mute, on a mobile phone with a friend... and boy, I was furious...
Being a fan of original work, I really take copied work with a giant pinch of salt... Might be overreacting but I actually feel offended and rediculed that the brand didn't do the effort to come up with something new or copied some int'l copy and thought that no one else in the world saw the int'l ad except them..
I felt the same sentiments towards this, as I thought it was a carboncopy of Nike's Write The Future campaign, launched before World Cup 2010.
So I went back, searched for the ad on Youtube and awaiting to unleash hell in my critique.. then I saw the ad, and all these emotions diffused!
Turns out that the ad is pretty well thought actually.. A whole new concept all together, that puts aside all the fans, supporters and patriotic slogans aside.. This one actually talks to the haters, the sceptics and the ones who always drag someone down. The ad is skinned to the nitty-gritty details of the football industry.. an industry that is regarded as.... well, lets just say that is it not too ideal.
Copywriting here is excellent too, with each sentence having a solid & profound value that is relevant to being a football player.
The use of one of the most popular icons in Egypt's Football History; Mahmoud El Khateeb (Bibo) definitely gives the ad some decent weight.
In conclusion, I really like the ad.. Too bad I made an early judgement about it, but the copy was too strong to put me back on track..
Grade: A-
2. Vodafone - El E3lan Baz:
Its an extremely ordinary ad... Nothing super special there.. maybe just a hint of a smile in the last 2 seconds.
But the fact that Samir Ghanem is there makes me automatically biased to it
However, we can't only judge by 1 copy only, as it is obviously just the first of a series of TVCs adapting the same storyline... so lets see!
Grade so far: B-
CocaCola:
Another Happiness themed ad from CocaCola, I'm just not too sure how different my happiness levels have varied before and after seeing the ad... Its a very faint ad for the impact they aim to create..
Especially that people are already in their lowest morale levels because of current country events, the ad should have been much stronger than just a pale circus-like setting, that didnt even leave me with a little smile, let alone feeling happy.
It should have been much more festive, louder music, colors......etc
The good thing here though is that although the copy is weak, is that they're turning this into a real proper integrated campaign, with a website to vote for the next visit of the happiness parade..
Grade: C for this ad, lets wait for the rest of the campaign.
3. Pepsi:
I'm not too sure what to make of this one.
Lets just say that not everything with Donia Samir Ghanem in it would fly.
Grade: C-
4. Birelle
Birelle was the first client to jump ships from Leo Burnett to KTP; King Tut's Playground (The new venture of ex Leo Burnett award winning creative director Mohamed Hamdallah). This is Birelle's first and KTP's second campaign after Etisalat's Fawzy.com.
Birelle aims to continue in its manhood platform for years to come now, and they still manage to do that through a witty idea that makes you laugh yet delivers on the intended message..
Can't wait for the other copies in this campaign..
Grade: A-
These are key ones I've been seeing/hearing of lately...
More to come as the rest unveil..
Cheers
3omdaz
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
