Instead they start with plain yogurt and stir in wünderful ingredients
to make wünderful stuff that makes you feel, well… Wünderful.

So we took a dull, grey city, mixed in some wünderful characters and
beat the forces of plain and mundane into submission one raspberry at
a time.

After all stirring in a little wünder can make the world of difference.

Sometimes a piece of advertising transcends this thing called Advertising. In honor of Steve Jobs, Apple’s “The Crazy Ones.”

Full disclosure, this film was made by TBWA\CHIAT\DAY, Los Angeles.

Source: Rob Schwartz, Chief Creative Officer, TBWA CHIAT DAY, LA on forbes.com.

There was a period when the music industry despaired that the digital era was eroding its economic model. Since then, however, solutions have emerged – notably a rich partnership between musicians and brands.

 Now brand activation agency TBWA\BEC and music company Universal Music have joined forces to celebrate this new economy. From sponsored festivals and concerts to online activations and even celebrity-endorsed in-car sound systems, Musicacitvation.com is a veritable showcase of cool collaborations.

It will grow into a collection of compelling case studies and, in the words of its founders, become “a digital bookmark for marketing and music professionals”, as well as inspiring musicians and marketers who’ve not yet joined forces. Music fans, too, will find plenty of evidence to convince them that teaming with a brand is a route to creativity.

TBWA\BEC’s Music Manager Luc van Stiphout says: “Being one of the most consumed passions globally, music offers brands unique ways to connect with their consumers…Musicactivation.com offers marketers an overview of some of the best work and music cases out there.”

Director Digital at Universal Music, Thierry van Engelen adds: “It’s vital that we are creative and open to new ways to promote music acts and new paths to create revenues other than record sales. Collaborations with brands offer these new opportunities to our artists.”

https://www.facebook.com/musicactivation

McCafé Germany has launched their new brand belief “everything good begins with a good cup of coffee” in the beginning of the year. Part of the brand’s new communication were also new to-go cups in the brand’s recognizable colours and featuring conversation starters. These proved to be especially popular, so much so, that McCafé Germany is bringing the second edition of the cups to their restaurants in September.

For this purpose, McCafé Germany has just started an activation on its facebook page, inviting its fans to create their own McCafé To-go cup with their own smart, funny and intriguing texts. Among all applied, the best ones will be put to the public vote on the 5th of July.

The one with the most votes will be produced as a part of the new edition of the McCafé to-go cups.

Jean-Marie Dru, Chairman of TBWA\Worldwide, is the Jury President for the first ever Creative Effectiveness Lion at Cannes this month. Here he talks about his role.

You’ve attended Cannes a few times now. How much has it changed?

I’ve only missed one Festival since first attending back in 1973. At that time, it was not as prestigious and impactful as it is today. The Americans participated with only a few entries and the Festival was primarily European. Only creatives used to attend. “Creativity” was not really a popular subject among clients, who saw it as a means for agencies to talk among themselves, in their own self-indulgent language. Today it’s very different. Last year at Cannes, there were more people attending from some of the big multinational clients than there were delegates from our network, TBWA. In forty years, Cannes has become everyone’s business.

Now you’re Jury President for the first ever Creative Effectiveness Lion. Is this proof that the debate about creativity and effectiveness has been settled at last?

Creativity sells. But from now on, with the Effectiveness Lions, advertising will be judged on tangible evidence. Our panel will evaluate campaign results in a factual way. ROI will enter into the language of Cannes.

Surely there’s more to effectiveness than numbers?

Don’t forget we’re talking here about “creative effectiveness”. A message that sells, but that is not based on a fresh or breakthrough idea is unlikely to attract our interest. Because Cannes aims first and foremost to reward efficiency achieved through creativity. It should make for some lively debates with my fellow jury members.

How has the digital era changed notions of effectiveness?

Younger generations show interest only in messages that engage them. Otherwise, they just ignore them, or zap. Creativity is no longer optional, it has become recognised as being essential.

If anybody out there is hesitating about coming to Cannes, what would you say to convince them?

It took years for the idea of creativity to become accepted as a source of effectiveness. Cannes has participated in raising that awareness. This is the place where we can see the things that will pave the way forward for our industry; it’s where we can keep ourselves on top of the emerging creative trends, and it’s where we feel the pulse of our industry.

As the tragedy in Japan disappears off newsstands, the daunting task of reconstruction is just beginning. With this in mind, TBWA\Group Singapore decided to launch a fundraising initiative called “Jam with Japan.” When you visit the site, jamwithjapan.com, a music video for the song, “Choose,” plays. The song, written and arranged by Australian-Japanese punk band The Dirt Radicals, is a collaborative work of 15 musicians from Singapore, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan, Canada, UK, Israel and Japan. As the video plays, people are able to own a frame of the music video by writing a personal message of hope. And, of course, donate funds to the relief in Japan. A great collaborative initiative that shows our ideas are no longer held hostage to a media schedule.

Go to the site here.

A conversation between the CEO of TBWA Germany Dr. Sven H. Becker and William C. Taylor, Co-Founder and Founding Editor of Fast Company on Disruption and its role in a booming economy.

Practically Radical: Manifest für Erfolg durch Wandel (engl.) from TBWA Germany on Vimeo.

For any comments or suggestions, send an Email to Ulrich Proeschel.

Fund & Follow Creativity: A disruptive new generation of online platforms allows normal folk to become art patrons.

Once upon a time, only venture capitalists could invest in projects they deemed worthwhile. But in the brave new world of social networking and “crowd sourcing”, we can all back a creative venture, whether it’s a work of art, a movie, a novel or an invention. This altruistic form of investment has become known as “micro-patronage” or “crowd funding”.

One of the leading “crowd funding” platforms is Kickstarter, which has backed initiatives ranging from a documentary film about jazz to a 360° panoramic video lens for the iPhone. As with similar sites like RocketHub and Sellaband, it works on a simple model: those with an idea that needs backing apply to Kickstarter to have their project posted on the site. They set a minimum target of funds to be raised. Once the project is visible on the site, the public pledge donations (starting at a minimum of US$1) using Amazon Payments. If the funding target is not reached by the deadline, no funds are collected and the backers lose nothing. Kickstarter takes 5% of the funds raised; Amazon charges 3-5%. Kickstarter claims no ownership over the projects, although these remain on the site for viewing after completion.

For the backers, it’s a chance to help creative people bring their ideas to life – as well as a source of inspiration and stories. The most imaginative products inevitably reap the most funding as their backers pass the word about them via blogs, Facebook, Twitter and other social media. Backers often receive rewards depending on how much they pledge – from a DVD or a signed and numbered art edition.

More than anything, Kickstarter is a disruptive way of building a new community of creative individuals who might previously have been locked out due to lack of funding. During the Renaissance, the church, merchants and powerful banking families sponsored artists. But in the digital era, you and me can be a Medici.

www.kickstarter.com

For any comments or suggestions, send an email to Ulrich Proeschel.