What happens when a storm knocks the power out? You flip the switch back and forth a few times, and then realize the digital clock isn’t on and neither are any of the lights in the neighborhood. Damn.
Carrier wanted help positioning generators as a necessary safety item in areas that fall victim to big storms frequently. Being without power in the middle of a heat wave or a deep winter chill means no HVAC, and that can be dangerous.
We bought space for Carrier down in areas of Florida during hurricane season, and then ran different campaigns. Unsurprisingly, the ad that faked the news killed it.
From the ad, the user arrived at the microsite we built. Generators work by figuring out how much wattage you’re going to have supported by the generator. When the power goes out, those circuits you choose will keep running.
The question is: which circuits should you choose? Go visit the Carrier Generator site: It’s seriously a very cool experience.
No seriously. You should go visit the Carrier Generator site. We had a blast designing this immersive experience.
Marketing a a furnace or an air conditioner reminds me of one of those classic ad conundrums: How do you sell the hole, not the drill?
In the world of HVAC, products are rated by efficiency and size. But no homeowner cares about SEER or AFUE. No one cares about the rust-proof exterior or the UV lights that prevent mold from growing on the coils.
Generally speaking, HVAC brands are considered only in times of need. As long as their A/C unit works, consumers want no part of any sort of awareness campaign. Heck, hyper-aware consumers might even feel turned off by a winter-time furnace ad because it smacks of being predatory.
Which means that HVAC is perfect for the highly segmented, rational, long-form approach of interactive.
At Pop Art, I worked with Carrier Residential on a number of campaigns. I’m in the process of adding more examples. Click around for descriptions.
The Cascadia gave us an opportunity to revisit the Run Smart manifesto.
Breathing New Life into “Run Smart”
Freightliner Trucks is the left brain of the trucking world. They make durable heavy duty trucks that run until the wheels fall off. They pride themselves on total cost of ownership, uptime, and ROI.
They are, however, almost apologetic about it. When they launched the new Cascadia truck — their first new truck in nearly a decade — we tried to change that. Read the rest of this entry »
Only a Guy Named Leatherman could Build a Tool This Ugly
Who gets paid to write stuff this fun?
When Leatherman celebrated their 25th Anniversary, it marked a big year for the company. They rolled out amazing new products like the Skeletool, and planned several more big steps forward. Read the rest of this entry »
