The 10 Best ‘Music’ Ads of All Time?

"Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything." (Plato)

Music is a dominant feature in many of today’s TV ads. And with good reason too. Careful selection of appropriate music that matches the message can help brands connect on an emotional level with their audiences. Music has an intrusive value, meaning that while people don’t always actively listen to your ad, they can passively hear it. That said, a catchy tune can capture people’s attention a lot easier. And there is a better chance of the ad being remembered too. It’s not just a picture that paints a thousand words, music does it pretty well too.

And this is not just my opinion (or Plato's for that matter). Research company Millward Brown ran a test using two versions of a mobile phone network ad that were identical except for the choice of music. One used a well-known song, 'Teenage Kicks' by The Undertones, and the other used a song that had not been a hit called 'Annie'. The differences were clear: the 'Teenage Kicks' soundtrack positively benefited both rational and emotional responses. And, as a result, the positive reaction to this track helped generate a stronger response to the brand. It has been suggested that getting the music right can increase sales effectiveness by as much as 30% (The Power of Music, Admap, October 2013). 

So, this week I thought I’d share with you my shortlist (in no particular order) of the best ‘music’ ads of all time. Some are recent, others not so recent. And, when I say 'music' ads, I don’t mean ads that are selling music. I mean ads featuring music. You know what I mean...

1.      Cadburys ‘Gorilla’ ad featuring ‘In the Air Tonight’ 
(Phil Collins)

I would love to have been in the room the day this one was presented. "So, essentially the idea is we will not feature product in the ad at all, but we will feature an adult male gorilla playing the drums to Phil Collins' 'In the Air Tonight' - how does that sound?". This still goes down as one of the maddest ads of all time for me, but perhaps it was so successful because of it. There is obviously a whole lot more to talk about here, but music was a central feature.

2.      Evian ‘Roller Babies’ ad featuring ‘Rapper’s Delight’ (The Sugar Hill Gang)

Originally created as an online video, and shot in Prague, this production featuring the first big rap tune 'Rapper's Delight' (1979) made it to TV screens in 2009 and was a big hit with both young and old.

3.      Levis ‘Launderette’ ad featuring ‘I Heard it Through the Grapevine’ (Marvin Gaye)

I am a big fan of this classic from 1985, featuring Marvin Gaye's 'I Heard it Through the Grapevine'. I recently reviewed this ad, but it's worth repeating on its 30 year old anniversary. 


4.      Durex ad featuring ‘Let’s Get it On’ (Marvin Gaye)

Again featuring the king of soul himself, Durex ran this brilliant ad to the tune of 'Let's Get it On'. This one is sure to bring a smile to your face.

5.      Nike ‘Airport’ ad featuring ‘Mas Que Nada' (Tamba!)

To coincide with the World Cup in 1998, Nike produced this great ad, using probably the most iconic piece of latin samba ever written, 'Mas Que Nada'. Not cheap to produce I'm sure, but it certainly communicated the message that music and football is in the blood in Brazil and, when those boys want to dance or play (or both at the same time), they just do it.

6.      Nike ‘A Little Less Hurt’ ad featuring ‘Hurt’ (Johnny Cash)

This blog post is not sponsored by Nike (although I am open to offers). It just so happens that this one of theirs makes my shortlist too. An enthralling depiction of the physical and mental commitment made by athletes and the pain they put themselves through in order to achieve their goals. After the ad draws you in with emotional visuals, with Johnny Cash singing 'Hurt' in the background, the finishing message is 'Nike Air - A little less hurt'. Nice. The visuals get the attention. But it's the music that makes it memorable.

7.      Walls ‘Just One Cornetto’ ad featuring an edited version of ‘O Sole Mio’ (Luciano Pavarotti)

I bet Luciano Pavarotti wasn't very happy when Walls decided to adapt a tongue-in-cheek version of this classic opera number. I also bet the lads driving the gondolas in Venice are a little fed up hearing 'Just One Cornetto' from annoying tourists who think they're the first to ever do it (apart from the guy in the ad of course).

8.      Sony ‘Colour’ ad featuring ‘Thieving Magpie’ (Rossini)

Set in Glasgow, 70,000 litres of paint and 1,400 separate explosions were used, as this spectacularly choreographed production was built around Rossini's 'Thieving Magpie'. The visual message was all about colour. But it just wouldn't have been the same without the music, would it?

9.      Hamlet ‘Football’ ad featuring an excerpt from a jazz rendition of Bach's 'Air on the G String' (Played by Jacques Loussier and his trio)

Okay, so I know ads promoting cigars are not allowed anymore (and rightly so), but this one is worth looking at. The punchline is beautifully delivered while the trademark Hamlet tune plays. (Ouch. You'd need a Hamlet after that.)

10.  Guinness ‘Anticipation’ ad featuring ‘Guaglione’ (Perez Prado)

The perfect pint of Guinness takes about 120 seconds to settle and it is well worth the wait. If you're thirsty however, those 120 seconds can seem to take much longer. In 1994, Guinness suggested a useful way to spend that time waiting in anticipation - dance to the tune of Guaglione. I'm sure the barmen of the era remember many's a drunken eijit making a total clown of himself trying to replicate those dodgy dance moves. Still it was good, harmless fun. And the ad a classic, made possible only by a great piece of music.

So, what do you think? I bet you’re dying to tell me the ones I missed. Go on...

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5 'Must Haves' for Your Social Media Strategy

I had an interesting conversation last week with the Chief Executive from one of Ireland's largest media agencies about the increasing importance of social media. We both agreed it is essential for most brands, as they look to connect in a meaningful way with their audiences. Many cohorts of the population in Ireland are now spending more time consuming social media daily than other channel, even TV. In fact, the user adoption rate for social media has been like nothing we have ever seen at any time in history.

However, despite the importance of social media, we both also agreed that brands need to spend a lot more time developing a strategic approach to their use of social media channels. Although it is an improving situation, brands are still not approaching their social media communications with the same level of planning rigour as they do when it comes to offline media. The tried-and-tested process involving a strategic 'big idea', insights gleaned from research, a specific target audience, defined objectives and a scrutinous approach to evaluation, will always deliver the best results, whether your communications are on or offline.

In recent times, brands have been diving into social media without a strategy, with the justification being "well, our competitors are doing it, so we should too". But that's simply not good enough. The blind leading the blind has never been a smart approach. What is a smart approach, is for brands to carefully consider what's right for their brands and their audience. A smart approach is to develop a social media strategy. In doing so, here are 5 'must haves' they should consider.


1. Match the Channel to the Audience

It seems like every other week we hear of another 'fastest growing social media channel in the world'. You just have to take a quick look over the Brian Solis Conversation Prism to see the number of social media channels at play in the social media-sphere. But, do you need to be active on every single one? Absolutely not. You just have to be active on the ones that your audience is active on. Find out where your audience is hanging out online and be present there. And, don't just lazily share the same content across all channels, because that's not smart either. Adjust the content according to the channel.


2. Identify the Influencers

In his quite brilliant book The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell discussed, what he called, the creation of 'social epidemics'. He talked about how to get ideas to spread. Although he wasn't specifically talking about the social media world, he did identify three types of people who are often responsible for creating social epidemics. He talked about (1) salesmen - people who can deliver a message in a persuasive and compelling manner, (2) mavens - people who feel a certain responsibility to share the knowledge they have acquired on a certain subject, in order to help others make informed buying decisions, and (3) connectors - people who, as a result of the massive number of connections they have in their social network, possess 'raw transmission power'. All of these people exist on social channels. Your job is to find them. Whether they be an affiliate organisation with a shared objective (salesmen), an informative blog that your audience trusts (mavens) or an individual with the power to spread influential messages to their couple of thousand online 'friends' (connectors), they can help you spread your message. And, when they spread the message, they will do so in a much more powerful way than you ever could.


3. Give Your Content 'Stickiness'
The thing is, influencers do not spread any content. They only spread interesting content. And, it doesn't really matter if you find it interesting, they will only share the content if they find it interesting (and if they feel their audience will too). You have to make sure you give your content, what Gladwell calls, 'stickiness'. The content has to stick to them almost everywhere they go as they interact with others. They must feel compelled to talk about it. Your content must be, as Seth Godin calls, 'remark-able', in other words, it must make people able to make a remark upon. Content that is explicitly promotional in nature doesn't tend to be sticky enough to get shared. Content must be entertaining. Think, what will make people laugh? Would people like to see a sneak view behind the scenes? What is the personality of our brand and how can we communicate that? You must find out what your audience is interested in and talk about that.


4. Be Transparent

There have been numerous examples of companies trying to be too smart about getting their message to spread. Like the Carlton Hotel who ("allegedly") asked their staff to post fake positive reviews on TripAdvisor, in order to boost its online ratings and influence people's decision making. They even asked their staff to use PCs that were offsite, so IP addresses could not be traced back to the hotel group. When Conor Pope from The Irish Times exposed the story and their cunning plan, it all backfired on them pretty badly. You cannot expect to get away with being false on social media. You will get found out, so don't do it. It's a much better approach to be honest, credible and transparent.


5. Monitor Online Conversations
We know that word-of-mouth has always been important, probably never more so than in today's highly connected social world. But, in the past, when people were engaging in social chatter that was influencing others and shaping their opinions, we didn't have the ability to listen in. Now we do. By means of many social media monitoring tools (Radian6 being one example), we can tune into such consumer communications and know what messages are spreading and how fast. It would be well advisable for all brands to monitor what is being said about their brand, their competitors, their industry and their audience's interests. After all, it is these conversations that really matter at the end of the day. People are no longer passive consumers of content, they are now active producers of it too. Of this fact, brands need to take note and listen.


In truth, you don't do social, you be social. And although you will need to react to what's happening in the news or talk about events taking place that are of interest to your audience, brands really need to work to a structured plan for their social media communications, just like they do with any other channel. In fact, given the rising importance of all things social, this is probably even more important.

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Why Businesses are Now Competing Against the Unseen

“The ability to learn faster than your competitors may be the only sustainable competitive advantage.” (Arie de Geus)

...or here's another one for you; "If two people are being chased by a lion, they don't have to run faster than the lion. They just have to run faster than the other guy." And so it is with competition. Those who do a better job than the competition at attracting and keeping customers are the ones who will win. But some times we become so fixated on competing with those we can see, that we don't widen our focus enough to keep an eye on those we can't. It is much easier for us to spot our head-to-head competitors and aim to beat them. Coca-Cola have been kicking lumps out of Pepsi for years. McDonald's want to sell more burgers than Burger King. Apple are constantly at war with Samsung. But in recent times, many organisations have faced the stiffest challenges from competitors they couldn't see.


Nokia the Giant
I wonder do you remember the days when Nokia was global leader in the mobile phone market? (It will be interesting to see if Microsoft's decision to resurrect this once powerful brand will pay dividends.) If you are in your 20's you will no doubt say "really? Nokia?". Nokia was quickly overtaken by brands they failed to notice and recognise as threats. They focused on competing with other mobile phone manufacturers, when really they should have been keeping an eye on the likes of Apple and Samsung. 



The Kodak Story
Kodak's story is even more interesting. What was once one of the biggest brands in the world, in recent times has been in serious trouble. Kodak's global sales have fallen from about $19 billion in 1990 to around $2 billion in annual sales today. In that time, the company's workforce has been cut from 145,000 to about 8,000 today. The is largely due to the company's inability to gain a sustainable competitive advantage from what it had learnt (an unfortunate twist on the opening quote of this post). Kodak have been selling film camera technology at a time when the world has gone digital. The ironic thing about the Kodak story though is, it was Kodak that invented digital camera technology (in 1975) but decided not to launch it, a decision based on the threat the new technology would pose in cannibalising their existing business. What Kodak didn't realise was that other organisations, who they didn't see as competitors (Sony, for example), might also 'invent' this technology. By the time this happened and Kodak tried to react, it was too late.



Emerging Business Models
And then there are many examples of companies that are really struggling to compete with, what can only be termed, emerging business models. It really doesn't matter if HMV manages to sell more CD's than Golden Discs, if most of the world are buying their music on iTunes or streaming it on Spotify. It doesn't matter either how many free bags of popcorn Xtravision give with their DVD-movie rentals if most of us prefer to subscribe to Netflix or Apple TV. And I bet Eircom never even considered an alternative to fixed-line telephony before Skype was launched in 2003, creating a brand new business model and redefining global communications for one and all in the process.

Businesses are now not just up against competitors they can see, they are quite often competing with those they can't. Marketers need to start looking at things from their customers viewpoint and ask themselves, "how else could they solve their problems?". Could it be possible a fixated focus on your direct, head-to-head competitor will lead to a solution coming from the periphery that will render you both irrelevant? Let's hope not.

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Disrupt Your Customers (They’ll Love You For It)

Traditional marketing (whatever that is) is dead. We are living in an age when the normal stuff marketing students are learning just doesn’t prepare them for the world we now live in. The usual AIDA model (attention, interest, desire, action) just won’t cut it. And neither will most of the other acronyms they are asked to memorise. The theory written in academic textbooks is just too clinical. It is written for a different time. A time when consumers had a lot less choice, a lot more time, and were much more predictable in terms of their behaviour. Things have changed, dramatically.

Consumers are bombarded with thousands of marketing messages on a daily basis. One particular report suggested the daily marketing information overload could be to the tune of 5,000 messages every single day. Do they notice all of these messages? Not a chance. Most of these messages will be a waste of time and money. According to Nigel Hollis, Chief Global Analyst at Millward Brown, consumers have become experts in ‘ad avoidance’. Consumers are complex animals and, if brands want to win their hard-earned attention, they must create disruptive marketing campaigns.

Now, for the record, I said ‘disruptive’ not ‘interruptive’ marketing. Nobody likes being interrupted from doing something they find interesting, to be forced to pay attention to something uninteresting and not relevant to them. The old rule of matching a target audience with a relevant message still applies. But what has changed is the style of the messaging. It must be something that stops people in their tracks. Here are some essential ingredients of marketing that is disruptive.

1. Entertainment

Think back to the good old days (before marketing got over-complicated) when street salesmen stood up on a soap box and entertained their audience. They were showmen. They made people laugh. Marketers don’t do that enough anymore. Consumers don’t want information, they want entertainment. Marketing has become too boring. Brands need to find a way to entertain. If they don’t, they will blend in with the mundane.

2. Surprise

People don’t notice things that are expected. Things that are expected can be invisible. We need to find ways to surprise our customers, to create campaigns that are unexpected. Make it BIGGER. Make it brighter. Make it appear different. It must contain a touch of the unexpected. It must surprise to stand-out.

3. Experience

Marketers that engage their audience in a memorable brand experience deliver a more compelling message. The key to achieving this is to deliver a multi-sensory experience. As humans, we don’t perceive the world around us through just one or two senses, which is how most brand messages try to communicate with us. We are influenced by information received through our five senses. It is easier to deliver a brand experience when you can physically bring consumers to a venue. The challenge, however, has become being able to deliver a brand experience via communication channels. The question is not just what does your brand look like, but what does it feel, sound, smell, and taste like?

4. Amplification

Word of mouth has always been important. Since time began, never has there been a more influential form of communication. But never has word of mouth communications been of more relevance to brands than they are today. The ubiquitous nature of online platforms and social networks has given rise to consumer-to-consumer communications that have been injected with steroids. Messages now spread like wildfire. But not every message does; only ones worth talking about do. Brands now need to find out what their customers deem worthy of social chat, what they will feel compelled to talk about. The powerful amplification that consumers add to messages has become the single reason why some brands fly and others don’t. Just look the recent phenomenon Fifty Shades of Grey. The conversation diffusion rate of this particular brand was nothing short of astonishing. Every single adult in the country had at least one conversation about it. Most critics say the book is awful and the movie is even worse than awful. And yet, the book will go down as one of the literary classics of our time (based on sales) and the movie was a massive box-office success. Why? Amplification. Find out what gets people talking and, if you can reach a tipping point, you are on to a winner.

5. Urgency

If we allow our customers to procrastinate we give them time to think about why they shouldn’t buy. We need to create a sense of urgency. We need to compel people to stop what they’re doing and take action. Now! Brands like Microsoft and Nintendo are masters at this. If you want to buy the latest video game in time for Christmas, you have to buy it early because they just don’t have enough! Urgency turns into frenzy and product literally flies off the shelf. Some poor, unfortunate parents scamper frantically in December looking for Mario Kart 8 only to be frowned upon by the smug parents who bought in October. They really were the lucky ones. Brands need to put a time frame on their offer. Get them to buy it before they even have time to think about. There’s not plenty for everyone. There’s a shortage. Hurry or you might be disappointed. It is an emergency after all.

6. Provocation 

“To stimulate or give rise to a reaction or emotion (Oxford Dictionary).” Marketing that doesn’t get a response is utterly useless. Whether people love it or hate it, the message must evoke a strong reaction. And striking the emotional middle ground won’t do it. The message must be provocative. It must shock people one way or the other. It must challenge people’s intelligence, their perceptions. Most marketing messages have become bland and, right now, playing it safe is the riskiest thing brands can do.

So, there you have it. It’s time to break new ground. It’s time to innovate. The ‘traditional’ approach is no longer relevant. If we want to effect change and engender a response we must do something different. Now is not the time for conventional thinking. It’s time to practice disruptive marketing.

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