The way to create an advert from dwelling
As brands and agencies grapple with the new reality of lockdown production, CR is exploring the challenge of homemade advertising and how it could change the industry in the long term
Since directors and creatives were locked up in the house for weeks, the agencies had to rethink how they advertise. Huge crews and elaborate productions are on the move and attach more importance than ever to the idea that is the focus. And all this at a time of international fear in which many brands are not sure how to react to the corona virus crisis.
However, there has been some promising progress in recent weeks. Škoda published three homemade advertisements with miniature cars – all filmed in the directors' houses – and Malteser mocked our new confidence in Zoom. Facebook has also used the role of video chat. An ad was created from content created with the Messenger Rooms service and set to music by Lizzo.
What is a successful lockdown campaign? First of all, some of the same ingredients are required as with any normal advertisement – a good relationship with your customer, a degree of honesty and an idea that fits the brand. For example, if you run a Maltese ad that showed four women on a zoom call, you didn't feel a hundred miles from some of the brand's earlier creative accomplishments. Beyond that, however, it becomes more difficult. Because of the restrictions on locking, there is far less of the usual spit and polish you can rely on, which leaves the idea fairly open.
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