Kate Upton is Having the Best Week Ever

Well maybe not ever, but it’s probably the best week this month. Aside from being announced as the cover model for Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit magazine on Monday, supermodel Kate Upton just landed a commercial deal with Carl’s Jr. & Hardees (aka Carl’s Jr.). The 19 year old Michigan native is the beauty in the upcoming commercial for Carl’s Jr.  Southwest Patty Melt (below). Since the 70+ year old restaurant chain has positioned its U.S. commercials heavily to men, incorporating some of the country’s hottest women has always been a focal point in their ads. Previous faces have included Kim Kardashian and most recently Gizem Mimec (Ms. Turkey). Now that Kate is the cover girl of Sport’s Illustrated swimsuit edition, it looks like Carl’s Jr. pulled the year’s best woman for the new job.

To create the ad, Carl’s Jr. agency 72andsunny went to IMG Models (New York) to negotiate a deal of Kate working for the fast food restaurant chain. Although the commercial won’t air until late this month, both Carl’s Jr. and 72andsunny have dropped the behind the scenes video (below) to get you amped for the finished product. What you get from the sneak peak is more than Kate eating the burger, but a look at the strategy to create the spot. To tell the story of the all American style patty melt, 72andsunny gives you a 50s inspired commercial set at a drive in movie theater. Kate came into play primarily for her sex appeal, but also because of her “American qualities” that were evident during her work with Guess back in 2010. Combine it all together and you can drool over Kate as she seductively eats the spicy patty melt with jalapenos atop a vintage car from various angles. Filmed in Los Angeles, Glenn Cole, Chief Creative Officer at 72andsunny, explained that “if Kate Upton is not giving young hungry guys what they want, I don’t know what young hungry guys want.”

So what do you think, the does the sneak peak look hot or not?

Behind the Scenes: Kate Upton Commercial for Carl’s Jr. & Hardee’s

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“Behind the Scenes: Kate Upton Commercial for Carl’s Jr. & Hardee’s” image and video: Carl’s Jr. YouTube Channel

Super Bowl XLVIs Best Ads – Samsung Galaxy Note

I’m Team iPhone and always will be, but I have no shame in crossing over to say the Super Bowl ad for the Samsung Galaxy Note was amazing. Created by 72andSunny, the Los Angeles agency set out to make an ad that would grab your attention—and that it did. To do so, they took a mass deviation from Apple’s simplistic advertising, and created and overtly over the top ad for Samsung. The excessive ad can appear obnoxious, but somehow the final product comes out exceptionally well designed.

Initially it makes very little sense how the groups of  consumers are listed as in San Francisco, Boston, and Denver, yet they all end up together in one place. Maybe, when they transported Justin Hawkins of The Darkness and his “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” track from out of 2002 they teleported the three cities together? Ugh, whatever. Either way, when everything is set in the same location you’re given a mass array of excitement circling around the phone. You get Samsung Notes falling from the sky and magically into people’s hands. How no one got injured is beyond me. Then there’s the celebrity cameos of Miranda Kerr (Victoria’s Secret supermodel), Brian Urlacher (Chicago Bears linebacker), and P-Rod (skateboarder). To add to that, BMX ramps are conveniently set up in the middle of a street where moving vehicles are non exsistent. And what could take a semi over the top ad over the top: a person rocket. I knew something was missing! Not to mention all the converted iPhone consumers suddenly know how to use the Note. I won’t even attempt to rationalize it all.

But here’s why the commercial is effective. Even in the pandemonium of everything you are shown the phone and its features. The wide screen, 8 megapixel camera, and S+ advanced smart pen are the main selling points and you get that right off the bat. Another reason is because it takes the well-loved flash mobs and focuses on singing instead of dancing. Flash mobs are slowly transitioning from dance to singing and seeing as 72andSunny has picked up on that, the commercial has a forward thinking appeal to it. Then there’s the song itself. “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” was amazing when it came out and has landed itself on many charts and received recognition from countdown shows by the likes of VH1. The falsetto in Justin’s voice was so memorable and the track was such an exciting song back then that bringing it to the forefront today was like going back to high school—well to the good parts. As crazy as everything is, it works because the totality of the ad signifies the ultimate degree of freedom. There are no rules or restrictions and that’s what the phone is all about.

You know how I feel about it, but tell me what you think: is it an epic hit or a hot mess?

“Samsung Mobile USA – Thing Called Love”

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“Thing Called Love” commercial and image: Samsung Mobile USA YouTube Channel

The Top Ad Agencies Get Rewarded on the AdAge A-List (No. 5- No. 1)

Topping off Advertising Age’s Agency of the Year the list are the 5 agencies that created some of the best work for 2011. And the award goes to…

No. 5: 72andSunny

Founded: 2004
Clients: Bugaboo, Carl’s Jr., Discovery Channel, Nike, PacSun, Samsung
Talk That Talk: “The guiding principles for the brand they developed years ago are so relevant, and we still use them…They really built our global brand with us.” – Madeleen Klaasen, chief marketing officer at Bugaboo.
Double Take: They made the HP and Dr. Dre collabo dope.

“HP: Dr. Dre”

No. 4: Razorfish

Founded: 1995
Clients: Audi, Delta, Kellogg, Red Bull, Sony, XM Radio
Talk That Talk: “We can throw a nasty, thorny business problem at Razorfish,” Bob Kupbens, VP of e-commerce for Delta.
Double Take: They created a dashboard mounted video site for Mercedes Benz.

No. 3: BBDO

Founded: 1891
Clients: AT&T, Arbys, Exxon Mobil, Foot Locker, Mars, PETA
Talk That Talk: “The advertising really took us from a brand that was an occasional advertiser with [some] relevance, to people wondering what we were going to do next, and what the next ads were going to be like,” said Bob Kraut, Arby’s senior VP-advertising and marketing communications.
Double Take: Yeah, they made that.

“AT&T: Flash Mob”

No. 2 & Creative Agency of the Year: Droga5

Founded: 2006
Clients: Activision, CocaCola, Hennessy, Microsoft, Prudential, Unilever
Talk That Talk: “Some of their work can challenge the consumer to think a bit — but it’s so emotionally on point that it really makes it work,” said Rodney Williams, senior VP-marketing at Hennessy USA.
Double Take: I see you Droga5!

“Rhapsody: Jay Z”

And the agency that won everyone over…

Agency of the Year: McGarryBowen

Founded: 2002
Clients: Anheuser-Busch, Burger King, Disney, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, The Wall Street Journal, Verizon
Talk That Talk: “They had strength in planning, account service, creative development. To have a long-term relationship, you need all three. … If you’re not [strong] in all three and your creative is not linked to a long-term strategy, it’s not going to work.” – Paul Chibe, VP-U.S. marketing at Anheuser-Busch InBev
Double Take: Oh you guys made that…

“Be 7UP featuring Cee Lo Green”

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Source:  Advertising Age Special Report – Agency A-List
“HP: Dr. Dre” commercial: 72andsunnyLP YouTube Channel
Razorfish Mercedes Benz Image: Razorfish Portfolio
“AT&T: Flash Mob” commercial: ShareATT YouTube Channel
“Rhapsody: Jay Z” commercial: JayZ’s YouTube Channel
“Be 7UP featuring Cee Lo Green” commercial: 7Up YouTube Channel

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3’s Epic Trailer. Enough Said.

The official Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (COD MW3) live action trailer hit the airwaves and it’s amazing. The eighth installment in the Call of Duty series, Modern Warfare 3 might just be one of the most anticipated games of the year. That broad statement comes as the game has achieved success as “the best-selling first person action series of all-time” (COD MW3 site) and because after checking out E3 this June the wait time for the game was hours long. Couple that with hearing my friends geek about it online (below, left) and I think it just might be big. Remember, in 2010 COD’s publisher, Activision, went to TBWA\Chiat\Day to create the trailer for its COD: Black Ops game that featured both everyday folk and celebs like Kobe Bryant and Jimmy Kimmel. This time around, Activision pulled in Los Angeles based agency 72andSunny to create a trailer equal to the 2011 anticipation. 72andSunny may not be a highly recognizable name to the world outside of marketing when you compare them to WPP or Olgivy & Mather, but don’t discredit their capabilities. The roster for these guys include Nike, K-Swiss, and Carl’s Jr. So clearly they know their stuff.

While the game dropped a reveal trailer in May prior to E3, this new trailer comes just in time for the game’s purchase debut. In this new trailer, 72andSunny continued with tying celebrities to the game and pulled in Sam Worthington (Clash of the Titans and Avatar), Jonah Hill (Super Bad and Knocked Up), and Dwight Howard (Orland Magic basketball player). Keeping the tag “There’s a soldier in all of us” 72andSunny showed how everyone has a soldier within them differing only in their skill level. One may be a noob (newbie) like Jonah or a vet like Sam; regardless of who you relate to the point is, you can relate. Take notice that the trailer focuses primarily on Jonah’s character to reach out to noob players around the world. Understanding that vets or COD MW loyalists will purchase the new series as a result of their fascination with the game, Activision now wants to reach this audience to convert a new generation of followers and bump up sales along the way. Not a bad idea since myself, the noob of all noobs, is gaining interest in the game just off the trailer alone. Of course that’s also in part of seeing the sexy guys run around sweating and blowing things up. For guys, it could be interesting just to see the aspirational cool guy (Sam), relatable funny guy (Jonah), and athletic super human (Dwight) play the game they enjoy. To add to that, throwing in AC/DC’s “Shoot to Thrill” track makes it all the more even greater. Smart moves 72andSunny, smart moves.

The new trailer is progressively better than the 2010 version because it connects to people at their varying stage in the game. Instead of focusing on gamers who know COD MW well, it extends to anyone who wants to play—whether it’s their first time ever or their first time within the hour. Plus it has a sense of humor which most games don’t know how to incorporate properly. Available for pre-order tomorrow (11-8-11), this new trailer is a badass way to get people amped about the new game—as if they needed another reason.

“Modern Warfare 3 – The Vet & The N00b” Trailer

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“Modern Warfare 3 – The Vet & The n00b” Image: Call of Duty Trailer
Brandon Roberts Facebook Status: Brandon Roberts’ Facebook
“Modern Warfare 3 – The Vet & The n00b” Trailer: Call of Duty YouTube Channel