The 20 most creative ads I’ve collected:
1. BIC
Principle: The Timeless Product
2. British Airways
Principle: A picture paints a 1,000 words
« The world’s fastest airline »
London > Singapore in a blink of an eye.
3. WWF – World Wildlife Foundation
Principle: Ride The Wave
When everyone is talking about one thing — insert yourself into the conversation.
4. New Balance
Principle: Skeuomorphism
Create magic by taking something from one medium (digital) and applying it to another medium (billboard).
5. Nescafe
Principle: The Logo Hack
Make your logo embody your values.
6. McDonald’s Sun Dial
Principle: Link your product to habitual events.
Friday by Rebecca Black might be a terrible song — but it’s still getting played weekly 12 years later.
7. Luxor
Principle: Show, Don’t Tell.
Genius way to advertise a highlighter.
8. Loctite
Principle: Topical Event Hijacking
9. Vaseline
Principle: Iconic Layering
Use something iconic to stand your product on top of.
10. Iceland anti-drink driving
Principle: The Choiceless Choice
Choose who will drive you home: Ambulance, police, funeral hearse — or taxi.
It feels like an open question, but you’ve already given them the answer.
11. KFC
Principle: Anti-Fragile
Turn your copiers into sexy social proof.
12. iPod Shuffle
Principle: The Product Map
13. Depression Awareness
Principle: The Small Text Reveal
Step 1 – Reader sees the big text
Step 2 – Reader thinks it’s the sad looking person nearby
Step 3 – Reader sees the small text
Step 4 – Reader realizes Steffen is the person smiling in the distance
14. Keloptic Glasses
Principle: POV hacking
Everyone has had the experience of putting on glasses and seeing differently.
Notice how this ad was done with the viewer in mind. Genius.
15. BIC Color
Principle: Contrast Effect
If you want to make cold water feel like hot water — put your hand in ice cold water before putting it into the cold water.
If you want to sell a coloured pen — limit them to a basic black pen first.
16. McDonalds – Breakfast
Principle: User Interface Hacking
iPhone Alarm clock… Applied to Mcdonald’s breakfasts.
17. Stadetler Highlighters
Principle: Lollapalooza effect
Charlie Munger has a concept called Lollapalooza: It’s when you combine multiple persuasion techniques at once.
This ad combines iconic association, storytelling, AND showing the product in action.
18. Barilla Pasta
Principle: The Greatness Stack
Show the icons… and then take a sudden left turn.
19. Air Asia
Principle: The Hidden Swear Word
Make the customer swear without swearing.
« Phuket, I’ll go »
20. KitKat
Principle: User Interface Hacking
Looks like a Google calendar that their brain sees every day — and then you realize it’s an advert.
Bonus one:
Here’s an ad I created for Tesla
Another bonus one:
Here’s an ad I created for Porsche
Final bonus one:
Here’s an ad I created for Nike