What's New: Portfolio

CHEVY S-10 PICKUP TRUCK AGENCY Campbell-Ewald, Warren, Mich. CLIENT General Motors' Chevrolet division, Warren, Mich. MEDIUM consumer magazines CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER Bill Ludwig CREATIVE DIRECTORS Don Gould, Jim Gorman, Joe Puhy COPYWRITER Bryan Hutson ART DIRECTOR Mark Cooke PHOTOGRAPHER Duncan Sim If a picture is worth a thousand words, this laconic ad's picture-within-a-picture must be worth 2,000. The basic formula is as old as the hills: A person we're sure to find appealing is presented as a flesh-and-blood emblem for the brand. But the ad freshens the technique. Small type sums up cowboy Steve Raney's role for the S-10: "Doesn't say much. Great spokesperson." In five words, Chevy distances itself from the usual blabber-mouthed hype, and without preening on its own anti-hype hipness. At the same time, by showing Raney with an artfully positioned photo of the truck-not the truck itself-the ad achieves a higher degree of visual sophistication. Whatever they say about being no-nonsense, people who buy pickup trucks aren't immune from the desire to be stylish, even if their flashiest fashion accessory is a set of hubcaps. ______ ROCKY ROAD CANDY BARS AGENCY The Miller Group, Santa Monica, Calif. CLIENT Annabelle Candy Co., Hayward, Calif. MEDIUM bus posters CREATIVE DIRECTOR Renee Miller ART DIRECTOR Michael Kadin COPYWRITER John Hage PHOTOGRAPHER stock This is funny? Some people will think so, I suppose, but many others will find it off-putting. One might respond: You can't please everyone. True enough. But people who find a joke offensive are apt to react more strongly (e.g., by shunning the product) than those who find it mildly amusing. Anyhow, it's an odd approach for a brand that seemingly wants to get mileage out of the fact it has been around forever. Caustic humor is so characteristic of new brands tailored to Gen X tastes that it's hard to take Rocky Road seriously as a candy-counter veteran that has stood the test of time. Kids won't care that Rocky Road is "as good as ever," since they don't have their own decades-long memories of the brand. And boomers won't be sent into raptures of nostalgia by an ad that imposes such a depressing coda on an image of '50s-vintage childhood innocence. ______ AVMED HEALTH PLAN AGENCY Crispin Porter Bogusky, Miami CLIENT AvMed Health Plan, Gainesville, Fla. MEDIUM consumer magazines CREATIVE DIRECTOR Alex Bogusky ART DIRECTOR David Swartz COPYWRITER Scott Linnen PHOTOGRAPHER Barry Rosenthal If you believe your stingy health plan is going to kill you, as many people do, you won't enjoy being told that you're your own worst enemy. But AvMed gives it a try. "This is scary stuff. According to a recent study, unmanaged reactions to a stressful job can put you at greater risk of developing cancer and heart disease than either cigarette smoking or high cholesterol foods. Which means you may be your own worst enemy." Instead of going out for a relaxing cheeseburger and a smoke, though, you should "talk to your doctor about combating stress. And be sure to have your blood pressure and cholesterol checked regularly. These days, it's all about preventive care." Quite so. But when health plans boast about their devotion to preventive care, doesn't it leave you suspecting they don't want to hear from you if you're sick? Odds are you won't have warmed up to AvMed by the time the ad divulges (in the next-to-last sentence) that members give it a "96% approval rating." Thus, a piece of information that might have piqued readers' interest instead falls by the wayside. ______ CALIFORNIA CHEESE AGENCY McCann-Erickson, San Francisco CLIENT California Milk Advisory Board, South San Francisco MEDIUM 30-second TV CREATIVE DIRECTOR Dave Tutin ART DIRECTOR Brian Eveslage COPYWRITER Curt Davis PRODUCER Jon Rosenberg PRODUCTION CO. Smillie Films, Venice, Calif. DIRECTOR Peter Smillie A sadistic guard taunts an Alcatraz inmate by rhapsodizing about the joys of San Francisco, just half a mile away. Not the wine, women and song. The California cheeses. "In North Beach, mozzarella's bubbling!" But nobody gets off the Rock, "and all the cheese that gets on is mine," says the guard as he slices a wedge of Monterey Jack and laughs demonically. The acting would do justice to the California Ham Advisory Board, but that just adds to the fun. Cheese can't plausibly claim to be something you need, as milk does in the "Got milk?" series. Instead, this campaign positions it as a highly desirable treat. Another spot takes us to a barracks, where a recruit has just received some snapshots from his girlfriend back in California. These are greeted by enthusiastic wolf whistles from his buddies, though we learn at the end that they show nothing more voluptuous than a California cheddar. In yet another spot, a lecturer suggests to his drowsy students that Bigfoot has migrated from Oregon to California because of the cheese-"indicating a creature of profound intelligence!" Only the grumpiest viewer could watch these spots without feeling well-disposed toward the product.

Brand Marketing

What's New: Portfolio

Mark Dolliver

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Mark Dolliver