brand-e

By Simon Fuller. Movie media. Last week, we took a look at how comms strategy group Naked Comms had set up its own branded entertainment division to roll out engaging pieces like the film The Forest Guard, a documentary following the adventures of a bunch of Californian kids who have invented a device for the quick detection of forest fires
Well, Sony Europe green-lit the film and commissioned it. So we thought it only right to have a chat with Sony about the project, and about why brands in general are beginning to turn to moviemaking to get their messages over to consumers.

By Simon Fuller. Retail Cubed. Pop-up stores were a highlight of last year’s festive season, with big names like Red Bull and Marmite setting up shop in London. One brand that made a splash in the capital – and elsewhere in Europe – was Japan’s Nissan, seeing a neat opportunity to promote its Cube model – then on the verge of being released – via a Cube Store.

By Simon Fuller. Augmented iPhone. More brands – and their fans – are set to get a piece of augmented reality action, thanks to a new AR engine from UK-based mobile tech outfit Yuza Mobile. SKAN – Private Label, for the iPhone, combines cutting-edge augmented reality with a content management system to enable brands to quickly get involved on the AR app scene. Though not at ridiculous prices.

By Simon Fuller. App lighting. The Virtual Zippo Lighter mobile application recently hit the 5 million-download mark, a milestone the company claims makes the Lighter the most popular free, branded app to date.
Launched last year, in collaboration with mobile content outfit Moderati, the app was built to recapture those classic lighter-swaying moments at arena concerts, and the app makes the iPhone do everything a common-or-garden lighter could do – apart from provide you with real fire, of course. You flick the iPhone to open the Lighter, use the wheel to light up, and then move the handset around to control the flame. Hours of fun, no burnt fingertips.

Marketing appliance. Miele has created an ‘Inspirience Centre’ in the Netherlands to showcase its high-end domestic appliances. Whether it’s cooking, washing, chilling, warming, baking experiences the consumer is after, it seems Vianen is the city to go to get them.
There’s more than 3000 square meters of Inspirience to tackle, and the centre contains a range of custom furniture, lighting, brand-enhancing visuals, signposting, info channels, sounds and scents ‘all collaborating in a centrally managed way’ to provide visitors with a ‘seamless total sense experience’.
Inspirience delivers more than 100 screens offering over 40 channels of Miele branded content – all in HD quality, of course. This programming runs either dynamically, or is controlled by the visitor.

By Simon Fuller. Run it. Gamers with a need for speed might get a kick out of advergame outfit Matmi’s latest offering, Rooftop Runner, which sees players ripping through cities at breakneck pace in aid of Cancer Research UK.
The charity tasked Matmi with encouraging participation in its Run 10K events – more than 40 of which are slated to take place around the country in the autumn – and the game gets players navigating their way past famous British landmarks to collect ‘donations’, all the while racing the clock in a bid to make it to the start of a race on time.

By Simon Fuller. Tacking trio. When mobile phone giants Sony Ericsson and Vodafone UK wanted to promote the new W715 Walkman model, they opted for The Inside Tracks, an online destination offering London-based audio tours, as well as personalised maps from a trio of the music scene’s brightest young things.
The campaign is all about shining the spotlight on the W715’s Find & Go service, which hooks into the handset’s GPS capabilities. So, after downloading each tour, users can, for example, listen to singer Eliza Doolittle chat about her experiences of Camden, while walking the Camden Inside Track walk.

By Simon Fuller. Bath time. Paddy Power turned to both social media and the nostalgia of football fans during a campaign to develop its new TV ad, Pass Me The Soap.
The UK bookmaker asked Facebook and Bebo users to pick which one of half a dozen footballers should feature in an ad showing him in the bath. There was no David Beckham or Cristiano Ronaldo on offer. Instead, creative agency Karmarama featured memorable players from the near past. Peter Beardsley, Neville Southall and Bruce Grobelaar, among other old favourites, each had a Facebook page dedicated to them, and gained a vote every time a user became a ‘fan’.