Harnn Massage Balm, Deep massage , print Thailand

Uhm. I only have one thing to say about this. OMG creepy. I don't think that was the reaction Y&R Thailand was going for.

Trong Tantivajakul (Creative Director)
Denchai Kererug (Copywriter)
Nares Limapornvanich, Ratapon Houyhongtong (Art Director)
Photographer: Anuchai Sricharunputong, Nok
Photographic Studio: Remix Studio
Digital Imaging: Remix Studio

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Anonymous Adgrunt's picture
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Neo's picture

Oh dear God. FAIL.

Dabitch's picture

Yep, I emailed it to adlist this morning saying "when visual ideas go bad" - got to be careful me though, else agencies quit submitting stuff to us. wusses

caffeinegoddess's picture

Simply nasty. Definitely does not entice me to purchase.

backwrite's picture

Creepy at first glance, but you know, I've had that wish on occasion: a knot in the back (or, frankly, in the soul) and the thought "Oh, I wish someone could just reach deep in there and make it go away." No idea what that says about me.

I wonder how it's playing in Thailand? Really different culture there.

purplesimon's picture

Too literal - that's why it's crap.

purplesimon's picture

Maybe my comment needs more:

I can hear the briefing, saying how this stuff works real deep.

Team goes off, thinks: how can we show how deep this stuff works? I know, why don't we show fingers going deep into the skin to massage those muscles. Yeah. Job done.

CD says: But what about the logo?

Team reply: That's okay, we'll put it way over in the corner, because with this background it'll look like it's floating on air. That way it'll be even harder to spot. Or maybe it'll look like it's not even part of the print campaign.

Which reminds me: one idea with three different photos is NOT A CAMPAIGN. Apologies for shouting.

Bet you're glad you don't have to work with me? :)

caffeinegoddess's picture

"Which reminds me: one idea with three different photos is NOT A CAMPAIGN. Apologies for shouting."

Hallelujah! This is a serious peeve of mine. It's not a campaign, it's a series or something else...there is a difference!

purplesimon's picture

Just seen this on AdFreak, where they quote Ads of the World as the source.

Now, I love that site, but often (quite often, that is) the ads there are not sanctioned by the client or agency; it attracts a lot of students and scam ads. Is this just another in a long line of student work/scam ads?

Just a thought.

Neo's picture

You've summed up why I stopped going there. Half of the ads are student/scam ads. And I hate the fact that you can't see a campaign at a glance like here. Like you said earlier, one idea with three different photos is NOT A CAMPAIGN. Sorry, but it's gets me angry as well.

Dabitch's picture

Honestly, the more submissions we get the less time I have to sit and chat with each creator to make sure it's the real deal. But so far, we've been pretty OK in regards to scam ads, probably since when freebie-mails (as opposed to ad agency domains or PR company domain emails) submit work I still take time to ask them if it's a real ad or what. Freebie emails are an obvious giveaway.

This is not to say that agency-email addies haven't submitted non-approved work and later regretted it. They have. We star these agency names and keep watchful eye on anything they submit in the future (if they do). We've had to remove 3 campaigns out of 50,000 ads so far as scam ads/not approved/ and the latest reason "rights issues". I hate removing anything, and prefer to mark them as spec or whatever they turn out to be.

purplesimon's picture

I don't envy you this job, Dabitch, I really don't.

But I don't think it's your role to worry about whether they're scam ads or not - that legal obligation should lie with the creator or submitter of the work. Not sure if that's legally the way it works, but it should be. I think our Chinese friends exposed how you're not to blame for 'reporting' quite well, even if they couldn't understand it. [an aside: don't see many of them here any more, do we?]

I wasn't suggesting that this site (or anyone who works tirelessly to put stuff up and sort through submissions) is to blame for this ad; nor am I suggesting that Ivan on adsoftheworld.com only posts scams. What I am saying is that these ads seem too literal and scammy to be real. Something doesn't add up.

I wouldn't let this piece of work past me if I were CD (one reason, perhaps, why I'm stuck as a copywriter!) and I wouldn't want my name put against it. Unless of course I was living and working in an emerging advertising market and was looking for some international exposure (good or bad PR = GOOD, don't it?). Which I'm not. And neither are those that are responsible for this, surely?

The real shame of all this is that it denigrates the hard work a lot of creatives and other staff put in to their work, day after day. And it makes it seem as if anyone in emerging markets only goes for literal, obvious, first-thought executions. Now I know that isn't true all the time.

Am I making sense? It's been a long week and it's only Tuesday!

Dabitch's picture

You are making total sense to me. Who was it that said winning an award with a scam ad is like pummeling your competition at the special olympics - it just makes you an ass? (Totally paraphrased as I can't remember who said it now).

I'm guessing that there might be a visual language pun here that we are not getting, or perhaps it's "an advertising naive" countries attempt at winning Cannes with a literal visual that just doesn't quite work.

Also, I actually like the job - if it was a real job that paid me it would be great - and think that it is part of of my responsibility to try and ensure that spec ads / student work is marked as such and that the submissions are timely (ie; not two years old) - to keep matters straight as I think it keeps the 'brand name' of Adland a high quality one in the sea of adblogs out there. Yeah I'm nuts. I'd be even crazier if this was my real job, I betcha.

purplesimon's picture

Thanks, I sometimes go off on one and lose the plot!

Okay, so maybe partly responsible, but only partly. You can't be blamed if you're only reporting on something or if you were hoodwinked by an agency or person. I'm glad you do this 'job' though. I'm not sure the world could cope with a crazier Dabitch!

Also, I don't know who said the quote, but it sounds like something Neo might say. Maybe Neo quoted it? I don't want to say it's definitely Neo, so Neo if you read this, sorry if it's not you. It's someone and I've read it on this site.

Shit, I need to go home. :D

Dabitch's picture

But I don't think it's your role to worry about whether they're scam ads or not - that legal obligation should lie with the creator or submitter of the work. Not sure if that's legally the way it works, but it should be.

I see what you mean here, and that does make sense - but around 2003/04 or something, suddenly everyone got in the habit of sending us links (youtubefuckinglinks) with a message along the lines of "Someone sent me this.. ...." - it got to the point that I refused to discuss those ads, as they were clearly ads but the creators would create free email accounts and try to stealth it onto Adland. Somewhere it became important to keep secrets - and that is fine I can keep a secret but don't fucking keep it a secret from me. If the submitter can't tell me who they are then I consider it rubbish - but yaknow feel free to post it yourself to the front page with that line, and let the readers make their own judgement (that is after all how this place works). Usernames with no previous posts to their name are viewed with a pinch of salt - everyone has to work to get "credit" around here.
We've had teams submit their work before the creative director even saw it - and the creative directors later begging us to pull the work down as well. Advertising is a game of who fakes it the best it seems. Honesty is not what it used to be.

I think our Chinese friends exposed how you're not to blame for 'reporting' quite well, even if they couldn't understand it. [an aside: don't see many of them here any more, do we?]

No, we don't see them around much. That was quite.... interesting. To a point, then it got a little scary. Then I got really pissed off. Respect to all real journalists who report about things that may tick some people off if that is what they have to live through daily. That was quite the unfunny episode.

aiiobo's picture

Chinese friends? What happened?

Dabitch's picture

Long ugly story - check this post as the links in it and comments under it might give you an idea.

Neo's picture

I don't think I've said that but I'll take the credit,

Dabitch's picture

I have no idea where I read it now. Thought it might have been someone here, but whatevs. It's ours now. ;)
Perhaps it was some creative director who said it in an interview? My mind is going.

purplesimon's picture

Nice quote Neo. :)