Tuesday 3 January 2012

Never smile at a crocodile?

A brand new year has to start on the right note.
One of the best and most memorable ad campaigns of 2011 was Moneysupermarket.com. It was a bit mad and therefore fresh. It was funny and deliberately (initially) unpolished with a great strap line and V.O. It was a breath of fresh air in a highly saturated market.

The first ad looked like Uncle Ernie had been trying to follow the instructions for his 'new' Super 8 - the advent of digital being a trail yet to be endured. That was its strength and it was great because of it. It featured a bloke emerging from the surf on an inflatable crocodile. Loved it.

It was a real departure from the tedium of Far Eastern proverbs, lucky numbers and cultural nuances. (HSBC.) Or playground equipment and kitchen timing devices. (Barclays.) And, thankfully, the insipid and depressing 30-second rides on the 'death train' (complete with god-awful wailing) otherwise known as Lloyds' 'The Journey'.

Yesterday I read one of those end-of-year lists so beloved of the UK press as fillers. You know. Mad calls to 999 and the emergency services and so on. The top daftest call-out for the Coastguard Services last year, was in aid of a bloke who was drifting out to sea on an inflatable pair of teeth. And. Guess what? He was rescued by… a bloke on an inflatable crocodile. It is! It's true! Does life imitate advertising or is it the other way around?

No names were given but whoever he was he's Sooo Moneymarket!
They should find him and sign him up pronto.

Happy Brand New Year

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