My Favorite Marketing Moments of 2021
2021 was no doubt a strange year for advertising. But when times are tough, creativity and storytelling perseveres. The best ads aren’t always the ones that win awards (although most of these did) but they impact culture and get people outside of our industry talking. Here's some of my favorite marketing moments of the year.
5. Lil Nas X Satan Shoe (MSCHF)
Lil Nas X launched a controversial pair of "Satan Shoes" featuring a bronze pentagram, an inverted cross and a drop of real human blood -- and they sold out almost immediately. Nike then sued him which brought even more attention to the “collab”.
Let’s face it, this was a wonderful moment for the country.?
3. Superb Owl Ad - Reddit (RGA)?
While the 2021 Super Bowl was filled with the expected array of big budget spots, Reddit stealthily grabbed the spotlight with what appeared to be a glitch promoting the brand in what appeared to be a game day car ad.? It was actually a clever move from R/GA that leveraged a local media buy and the brand’s recent fame with the Gamestop and Robinhood saga fueled by the subreddit “R/WallStreetBets.”? Bleeding edge meets mainstream but done in an original way.
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2. Frida Mom Stream of Lactation (Mekanism!)?
Ok one of ours out of five, but this work was groundbreaking and even was so good, that the network changed their standards so it could run on the Golden Globes.??
1.? Scoop There It Is Becomes an Ice Cream Flavor (The Martin Agency)?
With “Scoop, There It Is,” Geico and The Martin Agency created a spot that revived a favorite song of the past while having a clear cultural impact on the present. How many times in your house have you said it?
Viewed more than 15 million times on YouTube and referenced in countless ways on platforms like TikTok, Geico’s spot featuring 1990s hip-hop duo Tag Team has been named by Adweek’s editors as the Best Ad of the Year.
The spot, launched around New Year’s, quickly became advertising’s defining crowd-pleaser of 2021. The ad was so beloved, when its original TV flight ended, McSweeney’s even ran a piece titled, “The Five Stages of Grief When Dealing With No Longer Being Able to See the ‘Scoop, There It Is’ Geico Commercial.” (The ad returned in September, bringing with it an official ice cream flavor made in partnership with New York-based creamery Mikey Likes It.)