The Photographic Adventures of Nick Turpin

Here's an example of a brand having a good online idea to promote one of it's products only to be let down by a poorly laid out and frustrating website.

Samsung sent renowned street photographer Nick Turpin around Europe with their new 8 megapixel cameraphone. His mission was clear and simple, to take the best photos he could using the Samsung phone. Visitors to the website suggest the themes that Nick must focus on during his travels. These range from "Beer" to "Space" to "Sticker" and "Danger".

The site is well linked, Nick has a Twitter page, a Flickr gallery and you can see where he is on Google via GPS and the associated pages work well. But the microsite itself looks cheap and is annoying to navigate. It's a shame, because the quality of the photos and the quality of the idea is high,but it's let down by the microsite. It could have followed a much better formula, as shown in a website like this - put together by an amateur photographer. Anyway here's some examples of how Samsung have used various platforms to spread the message.

Diageo Guinness Viral Ad - Fake but Pure Genius

Diageo Guinness Viral Ad - Fake but Pure Genius

From the Brand Republic - A "fake" and pretty saucy Guinness viral ad has surfaced on YouTube. It's best seen for yourself but Diageo has posted a statement claiming that it is in no way associated with the advert. Diageo's reaction however has prompted YouTube users to spread the video even more. Or maybe it's all an elaborate PR stunt? It's pretty much a win win situation for the company, free viral advertising and the knowledege that their brand is so strong that it's inspiring such high quality fake ads.

Adverts in the Sky?

Ever had that feeling that you can see shapes in the clouds? Maybe you were looking at one of these. So it looks like there is literally nowhere left we can look without seeing advertising. It's definitely inventive but maybe a bit far I think - there's such a thing as overkill!

TBWA's Amnesty China Adverts

Omnicom ad agency TBWA has got itself in a bit of hot water pre-Olympics. The agency has been working on two briefs according to the Wall Street Journal. One, for Adidas (see below), shows Chinese sports icons held up by legions of adoring fans. The other, for Amnesty International (see above), shows Chinese athletes being tortured under the strapline "After the Olympic Games, the fight for human rights must go on"



Chinese netizens are all over this story, proposing a boycott of all TBWA ads. The agency has tried to distance itself from the Amnesty ad, claiming that it was the work of a lone creative working on a pro bono account.

TBWA won't be the first foreign company to feel the wrath of the Chinese internet population, an increasingly potent and active community. Earlier this year, Carrefour was boycotted by many Chinese and as the WSJ points out, luxury retailer LVMH dumped Sharon Stone from it's Chinese mainland marketing campaign after she commented that the Sichuan earthquake which killed around 87,000 people and left 5 million homeless might have been karma for China's role in Tibet.

China's Environmentalists and the brands lagging behind

Anyone who has travelled to China will have seen how thrifty and resourceful the average Chinese can be; nothing goes to waste, anything that can be re-used will be. I feel this is often overlooked by worldwide media coverage.

Environmentalism is becoming more and more popular in China, the middle-class increasingly cares about green issues and protests are becoming commonplace.

China Dialogue is a great site, a forum focused on environmental issues where comments and articles in both English or Mandarin are translated into the other language.

China Dialogue's Paul French points out in his article "Why is China different for western brands?" that a number of worldwide brands which adopt green practices in other markets fail to do so in mainland China:

"• Banking chain HSBC sends its mail in Hong Kong on recyclable paper, in envelopes that note the bank is committed to protecting the environment. None of this is mentioned on envelopes sent to Chinese mainland addresses;

• Luxury retailer LVMH’s new Catherine Deneuve-led advertising campaign features a tag line that supports the Climate Project. It appears everywhere from London to Hong Kong, but not on their ads in the Chinese mainland;"

Advertising - "Buy More" vs The Planet - "Please for God's sake buy less"

I've been reading a few articles recently that have got me thinking about the role of Marketing in the future and how this potentially clashes with the way the world has to start behaving. If we need to start consuming less and advertising on the whole tells us to consume more, then surely something needs to change with advertising.

Even Martin Sorrell, the Chief Executive of WPP, one of the largest communications groups in the world, has commented recently that "conspicuous consumption is not productive and should be discouraged" (as quoted in Campaign Magazine).

So what does this mean for marketers? If, for example, the stigma related to being a conspicuous consumer grows and grows to the point that it becomes a stereotype to be avoided, in what ways will advertisers and clients for that matter have to change their game in order to appeal to the new generation of thrifty, planet-conscious consumers of the 21st century?

Well, I think the challenges that advertisers will have to face will have to answer the following questions that the new consumers will be asking themselves about the products they are researching, (some of these are extremely obvious)-

Do I really need this?
Do I have "ENOUGH" of this product already?
Will I be able to repair it/maintain it/upgrade it myself?
Will it be obsolete this time next year? If so, why?
Has it been constructed by fairly paid workers and constructed in a way that does not harm the environment?
What does this product tell those around me about my beliefs and environmental credentials?


In the same way that the internet is democratising media coverage around the world, it's also fundamentally changing the way in which people view the world and their role in it. People are now looking online to find communities to be part of and moving away from the idea that materialism is the be all and end all.

Nike China Advertising

Nike China is planning an advertising blitz this summer in the run up to the Olympics. As well as having the most famous Chinese athletes in their stable, hurdler Liu Xiang, basketball player Li Jianlian and the latest Chinese sports sensation Zheng Jie, the tennis player who reached the Wimbledon Ladies semi finals last week.

The adverts shown above, although a couple of years old, show how advertising should be done in China. Everday Chinese people in everyday situations show off unexpected improvised athletic skills using just what comes to hand. For anyone who has spent any time in China or watched any Chinese television, this video will definitely ring true.
















Nike 100
A few months ago, Nike took over a space in the 798 district of Beijing. While, relatively unknown outside China, the 798 area is a burgeoning creative neighbourhood in the north east of the city. It's full of old munitions factories and warehouses which are now being used by local artists and gallery owners.

The Nike 100 building showcased the top 100 innovative concepts ever created by Nike and was only open for one month. On entering the building, each guest was given an Ipod Touch preloaded with 100 tracks describing each of the innovations. Also on display were a great deal of rare exclusives. Although I wasn't lucky enough to see the exhibition, it strikes me as a great example of Nike building hype around their brand pre-Olympics.













How long before "Made in China" becomes "Created in China"?
Only a matter of time in my opinion, there's increasing focus around the world on the creative output coming out of China, eg. China Design Now at the V&A in London. From gauging reaction on various blogs, it's clear to me that the label "Made in China" is becoming increasingly resented on the mainland.

It will be interesting to see what kind of role brands like Nike will play in enabling homegrown talent to emerge, and what kind of imagery/advertising will follow. I'm not sure who was involved in the creation of the above Nike Liu Xiang outdoor advert but it's definitely distinctly Chinese in style. I wonder if this is the path Nike will go down in the run up to the Olympics.