Adaily's Year of Brilliance #11: Demonstrate
This week, we're looking at campaigns that convince by Demonstrating. Going beyond simple "how it works," powerful demos show consequences, lifestyle, side effects, or even complementary products to make a point compellingly. The key is choosing what to demonstrate and the right tone, from serious to satirical, for that satisfying "Aha!" moment. See more in Adaily here.
1. Better With Pepsi • Pepsi
Alma DDB Miami • 2022 • Carbonated drink • United States • North America
Campaign Summary:
Pepsi tackled burger chain exclusivity deals by using blind taste tests to demonstrate that consumers preferred Pepsi over Coke with burgers, highlighting a denied pairing preference. The campaign creatively showcased this finding using origami art on repurposed competitor bags and media placements.
This direct demonstration of taste preference generated massive buzz (3.4B+ impressions) and positively impacted market share (+1.1 share swing).
2. The Unbreakable Instrument • Nexxus
Weber Shandwick New York • 2023 • Beauty • United States • North America
Campaign Summary:
To launch its Unbreakable Care Collection, Nexxus demonstrated the product's strengthening benefit through an extreme, tangible test: creating "The Unbreakable Instrument," a guitar strung with human hair treated with the product. Partnering with Meghan Trainor, this unique demonstration aimed to showcase efficacy and remove stigma around hair thinning.
The campaign drove significant sales ($7.3M YTD), earned massive reach (4.5B impressions), and boosted brand perception for scientific proof (+14% lift).
3. Fury or Else • Z By HP
Giant Spoon New York • 2023 • Computers • United States • North America
Campaign Summary:
To launch its powerful Z8 Fury computer, Z by HP performed an extreme test demonstration showcasing processing speed under intense conditions: rendering a file during a skydive to trigger the parachute. This death-defying stunt aimed to highlight the machine's capabilities dramatically.
The launch video captured significant attention, achieving over 1M organic YouTube views and demonstrating the Z8's superior performance memorably.
4. The Cushioning Route • Nike
Boost Brand Accelerator Barranco • 2024 • Retail - apparel • Peru • LATAM
Campaign Summary:
To launch its Invincible 3 shoes in Peru with limited stores, Nike demonstrated the shoe's cushioning benefit by filling potholes on running routes with material simulating the cushioning. This innovative outdoor activation allowed runners to physically experience the key feature directly on their path.
The creative demo drove significant engagement (5.6M reach, 883k web visits via QR codes) and helped place the shoe among Nike's top sellers.
5. Smack For Heinz • Heinz
Rethink Toronto • 2024 • Retail - food • Canada • North America
Campaign Summary:
Heinz addressed restaurants refusing its ketchup by creating an interactive OOH billboard that demonstrated the iconic "smack" ritual and dispensed the product itself. This playful demo engaged passionate fans, allowing them to physically interact and get Heinz even where it wasn't served.
The campaign generated significant buzz (500M impressions), broke norms in resistant markets like Chicago, and drove high engagement online (24k virtual smacks).
Quick Takeaways: Demonstrate
Prove Superiority with Comparison: Use direct comparisons or taste tests, like Pepsi did against Coke, to demonstrably show your product's advantage over competitors. Think: What clear benchmark or competitor can you use in a demonstration to prove your product's superiority?
Invent Creative Torture Tests: Showcase product effectiveness under extreme conditions. Think guitars strung with hair (Nexxus) or rendering during a skydive (HP). Think: What unexpected, extreme scenario could creatively demonstrate your product's core benefit or durability?
Make the Demo Experiential & Real-World: Let people experience the benefit directly in their environment, like Nike's pothole cushioning demo. Think: How can you take your demonstration out of the lab and let people interact with or experience the benefit in a real-world context?
Demonstrate the Ritual or Usage: Sometimes demonstrating how people use or interact with your product (like the iconic Heinz smack) can be as powerful as showing the benefit itself. Think: Is there a unique ritual, gesture, or method associated with using your product that you could turn into a demonstration?
About Adaily Inspiration
Adaily Inspiration is your weekly dose of creative fuel. Each Tuesday, we explore a powerful creative thinking tool from the Deck of Brilliance (a collection of 52 methods by Juggi Ramakrishnan and Todd McCracken). We break down the tool, show you how to apply it to your marketing, and analyze five award-winning campaigns from the Adaily database that demonstrate its effectiveness. Our goal is to help you generate breakthrough ideas and create campaigns that truly resonate.
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Disclaimer: All campaign descriptions in this post are AI-generated, based on real-life descriptions provided by the authors.
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