There are many rules, guidelines, and formulas a designer/developer must follow to be successful, but sometimes, sparks of inspiration are needed to ignite and fuel the creative mind. Once a week, I hope to write about something inspirational, just to keep the juices flowing! Okay – so it’s been pretty apparent that I have not gotten around to keeping my “once a week” promise. However, I do plan to resume writing soon!

A fellow colleague passed on a video that struck home, both on a personal and professional level. As an avid auto enthusiast, I love clever advertising for automobiles – a rarity these days. However, this particular video also reminded me of a less than pleasurable experience I had with a previous employer. Long story short, the CEO didn’t like my suggestion, and very bluntly stated:

The last thing we need is another good idea.

No joke! Direct quote! Needless to say, it was this very phrase that convinced me it was time I move move on… and I did.

Going Viral

These clever viral videos by Subaru really resonate with me. I really wish more companies would take a chance with clever advertising and not just for “viral marketing” purposes. The idea of selling a product or service with a commercial and website, that doesn’t even show their product just freaks them out. On one hand, I understand that Subaru could afford to do so as they are large enough that a small failure wouldn’t really set them back. On the other hand, smaller firms risk not ever being noticed without some form of attention.

The only bad publicity is no publicity.

Think about it. If you created an Ad that upset the world, the whole world would be talking about you. Good or bad, there will always be those that understand and those that don’t. But the key to advertising to get your brand in front of as many people as possible. Keep your brand at the forefront of people’s minds and you will succeed.

“What can Beige do for you?”

Don’t forget, ads that seem to upset the apple cart have the opposite effect on some people. Me for example, I don’t own a Subaru. Never have, never will (probably). However, I base that statement on never having driven one. But this ad, and others like it – make me want to go out and test drive one just to see what the fuss is about.

So what’s Subaru’s payoff, you might ask? A mild chuckle for some, a few thousand clicks on Facebook and Twitter, and perhaps if they’re lucky, a handful of people actually buy a Subaru. Does that mean it was worth the effort and investment into such an elaborate marketing campaign? Well, I don’t have the stats to back it up; but, I believe it is a success – in keeping their brand alive while targeting a young market. Their goal may not have been to necessarily sell more cars, but perhaps just act as a reminder that Subaru is here and they have something that is better than an old Kia Optima.