Last June Comedy Central released a new series of commercials in which clowns harass Comedy Central’s headquarters for its “anti-clown policy”. It goes without saying that the attack by the “children’s party entertainment veteran” clearly spoofs the breaking news item on the Iraqi journalist throwing his shoes at George W in 2008 – this time a size 68 is being dodged. The commercial, created by Nothing and directed by Jonathan David, very smartly shows what kind of humour Comedy Central is made of – the format is the message, so to say; funny it is.
What we like best about this commercial for Comedy Central is the copy. Starting your commercial with “Comedy is serious business” does grab people’s attention. And ending the commercial with “Bunch of clowns” shows you know how to top things of in a subtle but catchy way. The metaphor of clowns attacking the Comedy Central head quarters is maybe a little too obvious and (in our opinion) not funny, but on the other hand; it does communicate a clear message: “Only seriously good comedy”. So all in all, Nothing and director Jonathan David did a good job in selling Comedy Central. Here’s another commercial that did make us smile.
There’s not many ad agencies that open a second office in the same city – especially when you live in the village called Amsterdam. Agency Nothing did though. And not just at some random location, but at IKEA. When we asked Nothing, is this a PR stunt or is there something else you’d like to share with us, Michael Jansen, partner at Nothing, answered; “Our office at Spaces [their current office building, AAB] is not very spacious. Maybe it’s good PR, but it’s especially the great m2 price, compared to the €250 per m2 we pay at the Herengracht, that lured us to this new location“. O.k., we get your point, a sense of humour it is.
This very basic phone, branded John’s Phone, was created by Amsterdam agency John Doe. As it is the most simple mobile phone you can imagine, it is dubbed ‘dumbphone’ – you cannot even text with it. But it’s also made with a sense of humour, since it carries a pen and small address book (at the back) to write down (sic) mobile numbers. The phone’s simpleness gives it a stand-by time of three weeks. And since the phone is also made of soy it’s (partly) bio degradable. John’s comes in different colours and this week a golden limited edition (picture) will be released at the luxury department store De Bijenkorf. The phone is not the first product John Doe has created. With the brand From The Supermarket (“Buy it, and it’s yours”) the agency already made Japanese styled water cartons, t-shirts, and even a scooter called Toni Electroni. John’s Phone could be very successful for its simplicity and the fact that it combines design with eco, but its limited ‘smartness’ could just as well be the nail in its coffin. Only the future will tell. In any case John Doe has once more put itself on the map quite smartly.
Dutch Fashion brand G-Star appointed Nothing Amsterdam to run its international account. Joris Aperghis, CMO G-Star said Nothing understands the brand and the challenges that lay ahead to help it with its international growth. G-Star was founded in 1989 (originally called Gap Star). Today the brand has over a 1000 employees and 250 shops in 69 countries. This is G-Star’s first agency, which is quite surprising given the fact that already for quite a while the brand has launched international ad campaigns – most recently with photographer Anton Corbijn.
Amsterdam Worldwide hired ‘Director of Strategy’ Uli Kurtenbach to support the agency with (among other brands) the brand new tequila account Olmeca and to help it develop new products and services – which sounds interesting and a bit vague at the same time. Kurtenbach lives in Amsterdam already for 14 years. He worked at Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam (together with his new agency’s ECD, Richard Gorodecky), 2008 (today SSSS & Orchestra), and most recently at Naked, where he was managing partner.
Our last Shoptalk reported about a brand new Amsterdam agency: Nothing. In last week’s Adformatie the founders, Bas Korsten and Michael Jansen, announced yet another label; Nothing Ventured. With this parallel proposition they want to introduce new products and services for existing and potential clients, to prove that the essence of their added value is creative power. The idea is not entirely new; agency John Doe already introduced ‘From The Supermarket’ products (“Buy it and it’s yours”) and Rotterdam agency ARA Cardinal Condoms (“The safest way to heaven”). However, Jansen assured us that it’s not about quasi humoristic one-offs, but about serious, relevant product propositions. We like the idea very much and suspect it could even be a future trend in the world of advertising. After all, online is dramatically changing the way many companies do business; the medium is their product, which makes it harder to seperate business development from advertising.
