Like many industry observers, I’ve been admiring the recent Ambi Pur air freshener campaign which appeared recently. (If you haven’t seen the campaign, just click on the image.)

I really like the creative concept, which works particularly well for the print ads. (The tv spot is a bit bleeding obvious for me.)  Let’s not split hairs though, overall, it’s a strong idea. What I also find interesting is that it’s very much a traditional advertising campaign (haven’t read a word about viral ideas, or Twitter).

Which, like the campaign, is really rather refreshing (no pun intended). It seems that everyone in the communication business is so intent on being edgy, alternative and ahead of the curve, they seem to forget that, sometimes, a good old fashioned creative idea (with a usp, no less! ) can still do the business very nicely, thank you. It can even translate online, if required.

I mean no disrespect to the creative team or the agency when I say that this campaign  (with some small visual updates) could have been produced any time from the late 60’s onwards. It takes a few basic perceptions about the product category, then turns them on their head to create a brand with a real personality, sense of humour and a memorable differentiation point. Something like Collett, Dickenson and Pearce might have conceived in 1975 and won a few gongs with.

It’s not rocket science. Usually, all you need is a good creative team, a half decent “suit” and a client that knows the difference between a good idea and a bad one. I’d wager that over the last couple of decades, a few hundred good creative concepts for air freshener products have probably died at the hands of unimaginative brand managers, who thought they knew best: “the research says…” “our worldwide brand guidelines must be adhered to…” etc., etc…

So, in some ways, this campaign is already a winner, simply because it was allowed to exist at all. So, well done to everyone involved, both client and agency.

Posted by Ian Minter