Blog Posts

Photo by Mike from PexelsAdvertising has come a long way from the ‘Mad Men’ days: yes, it’s still about selling stuff, but it now plays a much larger role in holding up a mirror to society. The last decade in particular has seen several taboo-busting campaigns tackle those topics society finds difficult to discuss openly.Read on for our Top Six Taboo Topics we’re expecting to see more of in 2020.MenopauseOmg, seriously??? Yes, it’s really, really, REALLY hard to find any advertising at all around
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Every year we’re seeing more taboos – those topics we’re uncomfortable talking about as a society – being tackled in ads and brand marketing. Here’s a rundown of Six Silence-Breakers that caught our eye in 2019.Sexual diversityThis was the year that high-end fashion house Ralph Lauren – a hot favourite with conservative preppy types – featured a same-sex couple for the first time in one of their commercials, and fellow fashion label Calvin Klein sparked controversy among the LGBTQ co
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It’s the time of year when we’re being advised to moderate our alcohol and other intakes to avoid excess, so where’s the ‘consume responsibly’ label for North American actor-turned-advertiser Ryan Reynolds?The 43-year-old, who’s married to U.S. actress Blake Lively, has become ubiquitous this festive season, hitting different kinds of headlines on what seems like a daily basis as he forges his own unique genre of comedy and action.Netflix viewers may already be well aware of his new movie, ‘
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And why?Well, as the Christmas 2019 countdown begins - ever earlier, it seems - and our screens throb with food porn, fun, and sparkling gift ideas, Greenpeace serves up a reminder about the connection between meat consumption and the environment.'Climate emergency' was named as Word of the Year 2019 by Oxford Dictionaries, which defines the term as: "a situation in which urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmenta
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Wow, really? What's this all about?Following up on their recent 'Three Billboards' campaign highlighting lack of accountability in gender-related incidents among British MPs, (https://addvertising.org/boris-johnson-decision-sparks-three-billboards-reaction) the UK Women's Equality Party (WEP) has launched a further series of posters that drive a stiletto-thrust of black humour into the heart of British government and law-making, Westminster itself.The WEP asks why MPs facing unresolved alleg
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The ‘Swinging Sixties’ brought us a whole new era of sexual freedom thanks to oral contraception. Known as The Pill, it was approved in 1960 in the USA, and came to Britain in 1961 - though it could only be prescribed for married women until 1967, the same year homosexuality was decriminalised in the UK.Female sexuality soon began to take a new shape: This Noxcema shaving cream ad features a seductive blonde and the well-known striptease music, but maybe not in quite the way viewer
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Well, duh, you might be thinking - of course it is! Ah, but the devices originally billed as designed to help cigarette smokers quit or switch to something less harmful are now hitting the headlines themselves as causes of lung disease and death.In the USA, news of a dozen deaths and several hundred cases of lung disease - some of them teenage patients - have been linked to vaping, prompting calls for people to be discouraged from using e-cigarettes, vaping, juuling and similar until more informa
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?Alexa loses her voice? has become YouTube?s most-viewed ad of 2018, with over 50 million views. It?s fun, sassy and clearly effective - what?s not to like?Pithy, lol responses from Gordon Ramsay, Cardi B, Rebel Wilson and Anthony Hopkins made this Super Bowl ad an instant classic: Amazon's virtual assistant Alexa 'lost her voice' and had to be replaced by diverse celebrities who, well, just didn't have a clue how to answer the kind of demands routinely made of Alexa. So there?s no
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While it was one of the most-viewed Christmas 2018 ads here on ADDS, this saucy #ASTurnUpTheHeat campaign for luxury lingerie purveyor Ann Summers clearly got some people heated in a certain way: We ran a pop-up poster survey in a London co-working space and the body of one of the models featured in a still from the ad was covered with red 'sad' stickers.There's no way of knowing if this was the reaction of one person or several, so it's hard to draw any conclusions from it. But we still found it
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The world?s most famous doll is topping sales again, which some attribute to her brand re-positioning as a female empowerment tool. But isn?t that what she always was?U.S. company Mattel?s baby-boomer doll has taken a lot of flak for wrongful focus of little girls? aspirations, especially around her physical ?perfection?.However, an estimated billion Barbies have been sold since 1959, and she still brings in close on US$1 billion a year - it?s hard to argue with that figure even if you
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With a million plastic bottles bought every minute worldwide, according to The Guardian, and a billion going into our oceans the movement against single-use plastic is gathering momentum in the UK. London Mayor Sadiq Khan is pushing for water fountains across the capital for people to freshen up and fill up free of charge; and January 2018 saw Costa Coffee owner Whitbread leading the charge of companies signing up for the Refill campaign to offer similar stations on their premises.&nbsp
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If you've been in Spain at all recently, you may have seen this ad in store fronts for fashion designer Adolfo Dominguez.?S? M?s Viejo? (?Be More Old?) is the written message alongside a black and white image of a female model, hands deep in her elegant pockets, lines deep in her elegant face.?I love it, I really love it,? says a mature woman checking out the new season?s offerings in the shop window. ?It acknowledges that we?re not all young and perfect for ever, we?re just not.??The li
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If you?re into alternative rock, you?ve probably heard of him. If you?re into rock babes, he?s apparently becoming one. Now the Kaleo frontman lends his distinctive voice to conservation.Fans of Icelandic band Kaleo will recognise the soundtrack, 'I Can't Go On Without You' for this one-minute campaign by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), urging action to conserve endangered species.?I believe in preserving the natural world and its beauty," says lead vocalist and guitarist JJ, attributing
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Famous for unsmiling poses, fashion designer Victoria Beckham says her line always involves an element of poking fun at herself. This recreated Marc Jacobs ad proved the point for her 10th anniversary.Fashion icon, former Spice Girl pop singer, and an original footballer?s wife - she?s Mrs David Beckham - British designer Victoria Beckham has always had a sense of humour belied by her famously unsmiling face. The mother-of-four's fashion house is now celebrating its 10th anniversary. To
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Fear not, fans - it?s just Square Enix playing cute in a spoof trailer for their 2018 video game ?Shadow of the Tomb Raider?. Insulting, hilarious, wtf? The jury?s out on this one!With the latest edition of the perennially popular and long-running Tomb Raider series of games recently released, the marketers put a fresh spin on things with a ?Shadow ofthe Cute Raider? parody promotion. Whether you're a skilled gamer or a 'Who's Lara Croft?' type, you'll find something to enjoy as the trai
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We all know the saying ?easier said than done?. In Spain, there's a similar saying about the fact that it's a long road between words to action - el trecho. This trailer-style ad shows diverse people settingout on that particular road trip as they decide to take action rather than just talk about it.The context is a new law in Spain which aims to drastically cut under-age drinking in the interest of adolescents? health. Seventy percent of 14-18-year-olds surveyed admitted that they had consum
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If you find it scary having to pay fees just to access your own money, you'll love this 'Jaws'-style spoof documentary about the new kind of shark that attacks millions every year.Duuuunn dunn? duuuunn dunn? dun-dun dun-dun dun-dun dun-dun? Just when you thought it was safe to go back to your ATM! The confusingly named Fifth Third Bank in the USA bills this 1'30" spoof promoting its services as a 'full documentary'. Parodying the close-up, intensely personal survivor story format - an
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Californian start-up Dollar Shave Club (DSC) got famous fast for sending guys monthly packs of good quality razors at an unbeatable price, and for humorous ads pointing out the absurdity of paying over the odds, falling into the free gift trap, or getting hooked on too much tech for what should be the simple task of shaving. The first Dollar Shave Club ad featured its founder Michael Dubin straight-talking to camera in an amusing, stripped-down promotional taking the mickey out of elaborate ads
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Wow, free water fountains in London! Stunningly simple idea that could surely offer an appealing advertising opportunity as well as obvious advantages for the environment and for all us thirsty souls who can't find a tap when we need it.The movement to reduce the staggering plastic waste in society - a million plastic bottles are bought every minute worldwide, reports The Guardian - is gathering momentum in the UK: London Mayor Sadiq Khan is pushing for water fountains across the capital for
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