Ad-miration's Top 10 Valentine's Day Ads

As a friendly reminder that Valentine's Day is just around the corner (you're welcome, lads), here is my top 10 past and present Valentine's Print Ads from around the world. Enjoy.

Client: 123fleurs.com
Agency: Callegari Berville Grey, Paris

Client: Thrifty Car & Truck Rentals
Agency: JWT, Sydney, Australia

Client: Miller
Agency: Manajans/JWT, Turkey

Client: Heineken

Agency:  Thoainguyen/Bates, Vietnam

Client: Wilkinson Sword

Agency: JWT Paris, France 

Client: executivesearchdating.com 
Agency: Rethink Communications, Vancouver

Client: Durex
Agency: Eternalite Advertising, Bangalore, India

Client: Nutrient Water
Agency: DDB Melbourne, Australia

Client: Women's Aid
Agency: Grey, London

Client: Adria Pasta
Agency: age. comunicações, Brazil


And finally, where would an Ad-miration blog post be without a little ranting?

Here are two more ads for you. One is an absolute pile of crap, the other is a vintage ad that's, more than anything, a little disconcerting.

Enjoy.

Click In The Ribs

This is an excellent and hard-hitting ad for Pro Juventute, a campaigner against cyber bullying in Switzerland.

Created by TBWA/Zurich, this image gets the message across that cyber bullying causes actual harm to individuals in a poignant and almost shocking way, and could lead to suicide. 

As well as print, the campaign was across billboard and integrated on Facebook, whereby the more clicks, the less harm the cursors caused to the boy in the image.

A wonderful way to demonstrate the harm cyber bullying can cause that so, so many parents are unaware of.

Jonny On The Spot

I love the style of these ads. The visuals are classy and stylish and, for me, they work.

But the headlines really let them down.

How often is it you get to create copy-heavy ads about fucking? These should be bolder, more attention grabbing and, in some ways, audacious.

Created by Coloradan agency TDA_Boulder for Sir Richard's Condom Company, these headlines should be much, much braver. They're giving away free condoms for Christ's sake. Make the most of it. Why not go with "Free sex" or something similar?

Like I said, I love the style, but the copy is way off the mark.

Total Wipeout

Do you Scrunch or Fold?

You don't understand?

Well, let me put it in layman's terms for you.

When you wipe the shit from arse, do you scrunch the toilet paper, or do you fold the toilet paper?

Because that's the revolting question being asked by the nation's cutest and oh-so-innocent puppy, Andrex.

The brainchild of JWT, London, this ad sets out to create a national debate in an attempt to replicate the success of the 'Love it' or 'Hate it' Marmite campaign. And in the process they have disgusted and probably alienated the majority of the British public.

In the ad, we see members of the public tell us how they wipe their arses. With one woman attempting to make the subject sexy. You heard. Sexy. Jesus Christ. When was the eroticisation of excrement considered to be a good idea? Have they not seen 'Two Girls, One Cup'?

The campaign is even being rolled out across Twitter and Facebook, I shit you not.

For years they have avoided any need to go into the details of their product and they have become a globally successful company in the process. So why change?

Has Andrex hit a bum-note here?

Watch the video. Grimace. Buy another brand.

Excuse My Language

Every now and again I see a set of ads that are so terrible, so awful, that I am forced to post them simply to have a glorious rant at their inadequacy.

This is one of them.

These ads created by Y&R, Peru are for the Británico English Institute, which is for students whose mother language is Spanish, and I am seriously finding it difficult to describe them without swearing incessantly.

I get them. I do. With the Institute, Spanish words can be turned into their English equivalent. But is it really necessary to take the excess letters from the word 'Británico'? 

But that's not all. What is the worst thing an Institute that prides itself on teaching English to Spanish speakers do? 

That's right. Use f***ing terrible English.

What the bloody hell does "What your English needs to be understood" even mean? This is a case of poor translation and terrible use of the English language from an institute that is advertising their services of excellent translation and a brilliant use of the English language.

[rant terminated]

Rack and Blue

These three ads are for Nod & A Wink, an online lingerie store who recently started selling Sportswear, and was created by Cogent Elliott, London.

A nice idea, that I'm sure has been done before, but is simple, effective and attention-grabbing. It's not groundbreaking, but its humour makes this campaign extremely likeable.