Procter & Gamble retains lead as top Warc advertiser while Ariel's 'Share the Load' ranks as top ad
Procter and Gamble has secured the top advertiser spot in the Warc 100 for the second year running, with the report revealing there was a strong showing for big-budget TV among brands.
Procter & Gamble retains lead as top Warc advertiser as Ariel campaign ranks as top ad
The annual ranking of the world's best marketing campaigns and companies according to their business impact also ranked Ariel's highly awarded 'Share the Load' drive, which was developed by BBDO Mumbai and Mediacom Mumbai the P&G-owned detergent brand in India, in first place in the global advertising campaigns table.
The film (below), depicts men encouraged to share the weight of household chores and was supported by campaign-specific packaging, running on TV, online and in cinemas. As a result of the push 1.57 million men pledged to 'share the load' leading Ariel to double value and volume shares.
P&G overtook Unilever as the top global advertiser in the rankings last year, holding on to the overall title for the second year running with five campaigns in the top 100 versus Unilever's three. For 2017, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Heineken completed the top five.
In terms of specific campaigns, John Lewis took second place after 'Share the Load' thanks to its hallmark Christmas ads.
At number three was 'Lucy the Robot' from Double Robotics. The American tech company created a telepresence robot called Lucy to be first in line to buy a new iPhone 6s outside a Sydney Apple store.
This year the report showed an appetite for big-budget TV campaigns among advertisers with both P&G and John Lewis' highest-ranked spots falling into this category. Other examples of this in the top 20 included small screen work for Old Spice, Ikea and Sainsbury's.
While TV got a strong showing two of this year's top campaigns seen success from the smart use of data to drive creative and media strategy. The Economist, for example, used a targeted programmatic display campaign to reach new prospects with tongue-in-cheek ads.
"This year's WARC 100 reflects an industry in flux. It's clear from the rankings that TV-led, 'big idea' advertising, when executed well, is still highly effective," said David Tiltman, head of content at WARC, "But we're seeing a range of alternative approaches also capable of generating business results - from data-driven 'moment marketing' to stunts or events designed to focus consumer attention.
"One of the big questions in the industry at the moment is whether these alternative approaches build brands and deliver results in the long term as well as at the time of the campaign."