Brands and ad guys have been constantly raising the bar of creativity and innovation. So, as the year comes to an end, we look back at endorsements that made us pause and think. There were others that wowed us or left us in splits. There were some that took the industry by surprise too.

Today we do a recap of ad campaigns that stood out in 2022.

When we #SeeEqual, we #ShareTheLoad - Ariel

Conceptualized by BBDO, this is the fifth film in the #ShareTheLoad series that shows how men create a bias unconsciously with a forthright narrative. The film shows a married couple visiting their two male neighbours who are helping each other with daily chores. The woman makes a note, and the husband goes back to the days when he was living with his college roommates. This makes the women retrospect that she is not being seen as equal. She brings it up with her husband who realizes his folly and takes the initiative to help his wife with household chores.

The video got a lot of appreciation on social media with many even writing blog posts about it on LinkedIn. It had over 73 million views on YouTube and was included in lectures at ad or filmmaking schools this year.

According to experts, the storyline portrayed in the TVC is something that has been talked about for a very long time, but a brand like Ariel taking a stance makes it an issue that needs to be resolved. The ad has been a part of many discussions and was used as a case study for the impact of advertising on consumers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DA64FF7MR58&ab_channel=ArielIndia

5 Stars Everywhere - Cadbury 5Star

While many brands invested heavily during the festive season on their ad campaigns, Cadbury 5Star spent nothing! It was a quirky take on ‘doing nothing’. The tagline for the campaign was ‘When you #DoNothing and the entire world does your work for you’. The idea was every time an app asks for a rating, the five blank stars that appear on the screen would resemble the new 5Star logo. So, the brand was now visible across apps without ‘spending anything’. 

The ad received over 37 million views in 3 weeks.

According to an expert, 5Star took the liberty to not follow purpose-driven advertising, and that's why it stands out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErpPVNvD330&ab_channel=Cadbury5StarIndia

Dove’s The Beauty Report Card: #StopTheBeautyTest 

The ad film talks about how beauty-based judgments are ingrained in the minds of young girls because of the “advises” they get from society at various stages of their lives. Through the film, the brand has asked consumers to stand against these judgments and accept inner beauty. “Her face and body are not your mark sheet. The biggest test Indian girls face in their school years is the beauty test,” the ad said.

The video has received several positive comments with many sharing their own experiences of facing similar issues in their formative years. It has received over 46 million views and even evoked a revolution in social media with many saying #stopthebeautytest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mv_1W3ss408&ab_channel=DoveIndiaSabhyata’s Diwali Campaign: #RedifingCelebration

Sabhyata, an Indian ethnic wear brand, evoked varied opinions on the internet with a storyline revolving around a young woman seeking a job while being pregnant for the first time. 

The ad shows a young woman waiting to get interviewed for a job when she is approached by an older woman played by Sheeba Chaddha who strikes up a friendly conversation with her and gives her a pep talk about the seemingly impending interview. Chaddha's character is able to gauge that the young woman is pregnant and offers some advice as to how to handle the interview.

The ad was discussed on various social media forums and received mixed responses from the audiences. It received less than a million views too. Many people wrote elaborate posts on the same. While many said that the ad should’ve not encouraged hiding such important things as - pregnancy, others loved the fact that the brand made the most out of story-telling. 

A LinkedIn user wrote: “Some stories are best told at a leisurely pace. They un-spool, layer by layer and stay with you. This is one of them. Sabhyata's ad film. One wish: i wish the characters agreed upon 'not hiding' and telling the truth as is.”

According to an expert, the story was great but the brand should have been more careful about how they integrated themselves into the film. He said, “There is a graceful way to insert your brand in the storyline, but if you have chosen purpose as your storyline, stick to it rather than shoving the brand mindlessly.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNhUpRK9gQA&ab_channel=Sabhyata

Cadbury Celebrations - #ShopsForShopless

Mondelez’s Cadbury Celebration’s #ShopforShopless took the brand’s idea of helping others a notch ahead during the Diwali festival. This was Cadbury Celebrations’ third instalment in the ‘helping others’ festival campaign. The campaign shows a man searching for a hawker and gifting him a box of Cadbury Celebrations while enabling him to a virtual shop of his own. The campaign received over 35 million views with numerous comments appreciating the ad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI8V1T0iJuo&ab_channel=CadburyCelebrations

Bournvita presents Forced Packs - Cadbury Bournvita

Cadbury Bournvita rolled out its ‘Forced Pack’ campaign for Children’s Day with an aim to sensitise parents against forcing kids into pre-set career moulds. To make a point, the brand showcased its product in containers meant for other items – ketchup bottle, tissue holder, disinfectant, etc. – instead of the usual Bournvita jar. Conceptualized by Ogilvy Mumbai, the campaign received mixed responses from the audiences. While some loved the idea others frowned upon it.

While Bournvita previously endorsed competitive spirit in its ‘Tayyari Jeet ki’ campaign, the brand has realigned its tone in the last three years to be more mindful of children’s mental health. With this campaign, the brand took the courage of changing its container to deliver a strong message to the parents. The ad was viewed by more than 7 million people on YouTube and invited numerous debates on various social media platforms.

This ad, which is a 2-minute documentary, also received mixed reactions on the internet. While many people loved the idea and applauded the creators as well as the brand to talk about this issue, many called the idea a ‘forced’ one. Brand expert Karthik Srinivasan wrote on LinkedIn, “Ogilvy and Bournvita get the campaign name very right - "forced" packs, for an adequately "forced" idea. This one screams 'awards' right off the hook. It's a surprise Cadbury flagged this off.”

Coca-Cola’s ‘Follow The Bottle’

The ad shows how people are preferring to celebrate festivals virtually due to work commitments. The brand brings out the element of joy and togetherness via this film and makes people leave social media to enjoy the celebrations physically.

While the ad was appreciated for the idea and the message, the background score, and the song was appreciated more with many asking for the full version of the song. The film has received 17 million views on YouTube.

Talking on the same, an expert said Coca Cola has always been a brand to celebrate togetherness, and with this film they have tried to do that yet again

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFPKos3BLD4&ab_channel=Coca-Cola

‘Buri Neeyat Wale Tera Call Laal’ - Truecaller

As the proverb goes in India, "Buri nazar waale, tera muh kaala", which can be loosely translated to "Those who have bad intentions, may your face be blackened," Truecaller hinged its ad campaign on this popular saying, swapping the kaala (black) for laal (red) since the app notifies users of spam calls by marking them red.

The campaign is a piece of art from a cinematic lens and the idea was executed well showcasing the culprit ‘colored red’. The ad film garnered more than 2.5 million views on YouTube. Although viewers appreciated the idea of the brand many people questioned why a male played the antagonist in the film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7949Q9PM528&ab_channel=Truecaller

Iss Diwali, Thodi Si Jagah Bana Lo - HP India

The campaign film, conceptualized by Simple Creative, was laced with expressions of compassion and generosity and spoke of the need to support traditional artisans and local businesses. The campaign had social media users write heart-touching posts and share the film. The film has received over 3.1 million views on YouTube.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzAaczmX-Q0&ab_channel=HPIndia

The Interview - Tanishq

In this campaign, the brand took the initiative to talk about women who resumed work after maternity leave. The film shows how a woman is ready to get back to work and how a gap in the CV can affect her career in the future but instead of judging the gap, the company wants to offer her a bigger position than the one she applied for.

The ad had many mothers come forward and talk about their experiences of joining back to work. This is a raging issue faced by women while coming back to work after maternal leave/sabbaticals. The film has received a viewership of 3.8 million views on YouTube. 

Experts said that not many brands have spoken about this issue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a58TPoilEU&ab_channel=TanishqJewellery

This Daughter’s Day, tell your sons it’s just a period - Stayfree 

This ad speaks about how important it is to have such conversations in growing years. Although this ad didn’t garner many views, experts found it to be a wonderful way to start a conversation. The ad followed a storyline unlike other ads where you could see the characters running around. This ad focuses on making one realize how crucial the issue was. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dw6Zch2ETPQ&ab_channel=StayfreeIndia