by Jeff Harvey. “Woke” ads are all the rage at creative award shows but, in an industry that celebrates originality, has this trend run its course?
Tag archives: Goodvertising
Corporate America swings from sobs to silence in this year’s Super Bowl
by Thomas Kolster. Of four quarters of fast-paced Super Bowl commercials, only around 10 aimed for something bigger than product plugging. What about some sense of purpose, or is it just products first?
The Switch: Ethics and profits — the elephant in the room
by Alistair Mokoena (@AlistairMokoena) For an industry that jealously protects self-regulation like the advertising industry does, the role of ethics is paramount. Not only is it critical to shaping the image of our industry in the eyes of our stakeholders, it is simply the right thing to do.
Green Sky Thinking: The need for thneed
by Colwyn Elder (@colwynelder) In March last year The Lorax came to our big screen in all its 3D glory and with a star-studded cast of voices including: Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Danny DeVito and Ed Helms. If you missed it, you can listen to the story here, a charming fable of corporate greed (represented by the Once-ler and his superfluous, but fast selling thneeds) and its consequent environmental damage.
Narrated by The Lorax who ‘speaks for the trees’, it’s a pertinent story and the cinematic release seemed timeous and considered, until you realise (or remember) that the original story was in fact written in 1971. That’s right, Dr. Seuss warned us against the dangers of not caring for our environment 40 years ago.
Would you give away your campaign for a better future?
In a world facing massive change, we need to take drastic measures. A lot of the issues at hand from water scarcity to poverty are bigger than any one company or non-profit can answer. We can solve these pressing problems by sharing what really works. There are so many exciting initiatives around the world offering solutions, but most often people don’t know about them.
With the Right to Recycle License we can all encourage free sharing of good initiatives. If an initiative can improve HIV infection rates in India, what is to say it wouldn’t work in Sub Saharan Africa? By sharing these ideas, we can make a real difference with real results and turn local initiatives global!
I hope to encourage agencies, companies, non-profits, governmental agencies and foundations to work together to find lasting solutions for health, environment and society, by submitting their sustainability initiatives or non-profit campaigns to a central platform. If we all share communication solutions for good; we can accelerate innovation and ultimately do greater good for people, the planet and business.