Thursday, September 23, 2010

TIPP-EX Wows with Creativity

On the subject of creativity - here is a little something sent to me by a creative individual currently residing in Australia. Yes the Internet allows the word, images, and video to spread rapidly throughout the world. Since August 25 when this TIPP-EX video, A Hunter Shoots a Bear  was uploaded to YouTube it has garnered over 11 million views in over 2 months (updated October 21, 2010), boosted by its creativity which engages audiences and provides a forum for interaction.

It is rather unusual to have the protagonist in a YouTube video reach outside the video in a manner that totally relates to the product being marketed. In another creative twist the viewer is then encouraged to interact with the TIPP-EX video itself, repeatedly resulting in comical exchanges. Although many find this A Hunter Shoots a Bear YouTube video intrusive, creative, and memorable, others have commented that this approach could be improved. This is noted by  Jonathan Ginburg in his blog post that questions whether the TIPP-EX branding falls short in this video. His blog post, How Engagement Can Fall Short, http://bit.ly/ceTdA provides some suggestions for improvement. Read his blog post and take a look at the video itself by clicking on the links below to see what you think - be sure to interact with the TIPP-EX video to benefit from the full extent of its creativity.

NSFW. A hunter shoots a bear! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ba1BqJ4S2M

41 comments:

Unknown said...

I liked the campaign also, but I had a few pointers on how they could have made the advertising even better. Let me know what you think.

http://bit.ly/ceTdAc

Tikima Burnett said...

I found this video to be very creative. I liked how it gave the viewer an option to shoot the bear or not shoot the bear, that was the first creativity "WOW" factor for me. The second was when the shooter came out of the video and grabbed the white-out mouse and used it on the title. And the third and most creative "WOW" factor for me was that you could type almost anything in the whited out area and it would show a video of what was typed. If the word typed doesn't make sense then it shows the bear holding an "ERROR" message. So no matter what you type something appears that works with the bear.

This definitely works for the company because they're showing how you can change a mistake or re-word something with their product. There's over 9 million views for a white-out ad, my guess is because it's interactive and you can play along. If it were just a plain white-out commercial, I don't believe it would be as big of a hit as it is.

che v. said...

I really enjoyed watching this video advertisement because it is extremely unique and creative. This is definitely not a typical white-out ad. TIPP-EX really went outside of the box to create an ad that is interactive, humourous and fun. Very few advertisements invite viewers to be interactive on this level. It really demonstrates the power of creativity and technology and how the two work hand-and-hand.

I believe that this TIPP-EX Ad's creativity works because it engages the viewers throughout the entire video. The initial sighting of the bear creates a sense of suspense, which leads to viewer participation (i.e. shoot the bear option), which ultimately leads to the viewer becoming creative themselves (by writing whatever word they desire).

It is also creative because it gives the viewers a variety of options to play with. Some advertisements become boring and redundant after a certain period of time, but TIPP-EX's word options allow the viewer to see something new each time and create a new experience.

Ayano Higashiuchi said...

This is a creative and smart interactive marketing strategy. There are many companies these days that use games as a way to get consumers interact with their website, but I never saw something like this. First of all, great use of technology! Also, great work for making so many funny videos for different words!

I think this campaign is effective to increase sales. For products like white outs, people never spend a day to research which brand they should buy. The brand that gets into people's memories will get the consumers to buy its products. And this campaign will definitely be memorable to many people. The fact that there are over 9 million viewers already shows that Tipp-Ex's brand name spread.

JennyC said...

I found this ad for Tipp-ex to be very creative. It is one that I have never seen done before, especially because the hunter actually comes out of the video, and onto the rest of the screen.

This video keeps the consumer interested throughout the whole video, first by allowing you to choose whether to shoot or to not shoot the bear. Then you get to choose a word to fill in the blank. This not only keeps the consumer interested, but it markets the product. It allows the consumer to see that Tipp-ex can correct any mistake, and write on top of it again. I think this ad is extremely effective, and definitely one of a kind!

Health and Beauty said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Health and Beauty said...

This is what interactive marketing is about! Since watching this video last week I have vowed to buy Tipp-ex when I run out of liquid paper, forwarded this video to at least 5 people, and said the name "Tipp-ex" at least 20 times. With that being said we can see this interactive marketing clip works.

Competition in the advertising industry is fierce and Tipp-ex's new interactive approach is setting a new standard on what marketing has become and where it will go.

This video alone has generated plenty of word of mouth with over 9 million views. Next time these people are shopping for some office supplies they are going to laugh about the shooting bear as they drop the Tipp-ex in their basket.

Sivanithy G said...

Wow, this was one of the most creative videos I've ever seen. It was definitely a wow factor. I've never seen a video like this ever created. It was soo real like. I really liked that viewers were abe to write anything they wanted and it would do the closest thing to what was typed. To top it all off, if a viewer typed in just some letter, there was a error message, and that was the best part of the video.

Just by looking at the number of views, its safe to say that this company really knows how to get their customers interacted. This video works for the best for the company to show, how a correction of a word to a sentence can change a whole lot, and that's why customers should buy their white out product. I really enjoyed this video.

Anonymous said...

I think this is super creative. It was funny, and I really enjoyed how the audience was able to choose how they wanted the video to end. I thought it was really interactive with its audience. I alos liked how the viewers were able to write anything they wanted and end the video in any which way. I loved how there was a viedo for almost every ending I typed in. It had myself saying "WOW, THATS SO COOL" while I watched every video.

I can honestly say I have never seen anything like this or even close to this at all! It is deffinitely 100% creative and one of the most creative videos I have ever seen. I will be sure to tell all my family and friends about this. Great idea even better video!

AndrewT said...

ive showed atleast 10 people this video, and ive watched it personally about 15 times. Great Creativity and new thinking. im wondering whether or not YouTube assisted in helping with this advertisement? IF so, did they get paid to help? If not, can anyone make a character in a video reach out of an advertisement? Cool thinking though.

Vanessa Marchese said...

I thought that this ad for Tipp-ex was very fun and creative. I liked the way they get the viewer involved. It makes it interesting for the viewer and wants them to see more and learn more about the product.

First you are able to choose whether you want to shoot the bear or not and then you get to choose a word to fill in the blank. The viewer is interested in this ad from when you open it and doesnt want to stop watching it or stop entering words in the blank because it is fun and interesting for the viewer. The viewer is almost controlling the ad and making the ad do what the viewer wants it to. This is a great way to advertise and market the product. Before the product is purchased the consumer can actually use tipp-ex to white out a word and replace it with another. This is a great way to understand and become familiar with the product before purchasing it.

Chandeep Chima said...

According to this ad by Tipp ex was one of the most creative ads ive ever seen, if not the most.The way it communicates with you and gets them into it. The way it is created is like a game very fun and makes the viewer want to try every possible word and makes them watch it over and over.

the way i find it to be creative is how from the get go you get to choose what you want to do whether you shot or dont shoot the bear. Another way it is creative is how the person takes the white out from the screen and whites out the word and asks you to fill in the blank which is very creative and make the viewer go wow. In other words the ad gives an idea of what the white out is used for and how it works another way of sampling a product virtually which is very creative.

Chandeep Chima said...

According to me this ad by Tipp ex was one of the most creative ads ive ever seen, if not the most.The way it communicates with you and gets them into it. The way it is created is like a game very fun and makes the viewer want to try every possible word and makes them watch it over and over.

The way i find it to be creative is how from the get go you get to choose what you want to do whether you shot or dont shoot the bear. Another way it is creative is how the person takes the white out from the screen and whites out the word and asks you to fill in the blank which is very creative and make the viewer go wow. In other words the ad gives an idea of what the white out is used for and how it works another way of sampling a product virtually which is very creative.

Kimmel Stephenson said...

This was one of the most creative advertisements I’ve ever seen. It was definitely interactive and amazing; I have never seen an advertisement like this before. When I first saw it I was stunned especially because it was an advertisement created by Tipp-Ex, a white out company. I would have expected this type of creativity and technology from one of the top companies in that industry like Apple or Microsoft because they special more in technology. The most mind blowing factors of this advertisement were the fact that we the viewers can click whether to shoot the bear or not, then when the hunter reaches out of the video and uses the Tipp-Ex to erase “shoots” to show how their product can change anything no matter what and finally when he told us to rewrite the story by typing any word in the space where he used the Tipp Ex and it actually worked.

If you typed in a word that didn’t make sense or maybe a word that they didn’t enter in their database then the hunter and the bear would come up on the screen with an Error message in their hands. This company surely got my attention with this advertisement as well as the attention of over nine million people round the world. I hope this advertisement served its purpose which I think wasn’t only to generate awareness to the world but most importantly to get people to buy their product. It’s always good when you get your viewers involved in whatever it is that you’re trying to do and I think Tipp-Ex definitely did a great job interacting with its viewers in this advertisement. Great Job Tipp-Ex I’m giving this advertisement two thumbs up.

Emily said...

This was a clever approach in advertising a relatively mundane product. It seems it would have otherwise been quite a challenge to market white out to a younger audience as there is very little amusement regarding the product and its purpose.

I really liked the series of interactive possibility. It's not only the add and interactivity that is funny and thoughtful but it also leaves you imagining how many scenarios they must have thought up in the process.

It was fun to show others and see what they would have the guy and the bear do, as well :)

Nick said...

When I first viewed the clip, I never expected it to be an advertisement for correctional tape. When the video began, my initial thoughts were to believe the hunter was going to shoot the bear i.e the title. To my dismay, it turned into an advertisement for a correctional tap company called Tipp-Ex. What really amazed me was the creative thinking put into this video. Nowadays, advertisements are generic and boring having a hard time keeping the consumer’s attention. This ad did the complete opposite by immersing the user into the advertisement by letting them re-create the ending scenario. Being who I am, I typed in letters at random to see what would happen, and right away they had a video saying “Error #404”. I really enjoyed this interaction, and it kept me on their channel for at least five minutes. Next time I have to go buy correctional tape, I will definitely buy their brand thus proving this advertisement was a success.

关心 said...

This is a good material to create advertising because it makes people to join the scene. It could be an effective alternating advertising tool. Perhaps, this model will become the most popular pattern of advertising.
As a good advertising, it must attract people’s attention, and this video has this feature. In the video, unlike other traditional way, it does not show the answer directly. It gives different choices to the people, and it allows the audiences to find the answers by them, so they can match their thoughts. This breaks the tradition rule, which does not provide any choices to the audiences and put those audiences under compulsion. As a result, people enjoy having a voice in the process when they play with this video. At this point, this video would become a bridge that will narrow the gap between the audiences and the provider. If this video is offered by a company for a product’s advertising , I would say that is a successful communication activity.

Zac said...

This is an excellent way for an organization to provide an edge using creatice advertising. Considering that Tipp-ex is a relatively simple product, it is good way for them to gain some market share. These products tend not to be similar. By using such a creative route, Tipp-ex will most likely pick-up some new customers.

The creativity that went into the design of the ad was impressive. It would be interesting to see how many different clips they had to make. Even if the ad does not influence one to purchase the product, it is still a great way of creating buzz.

Robert Komejan said...

The ad that for NSFW. A hunter shoots a bear! Was in fact a unique idea created by the company. By making the ad interactive with the customer, it created a special connection. Having ads that are interactive can be both good and bad. The good is that the ad will generate a lot of word-of-mouth communications. But, with ads that take a lot of time to watch, the typically busy parents or young adults will not have the time to finish watching the ad or bother typing different comments in the top of the screen. I feel that the company really only targeted high school and college crowds. If they would be interested in targeting a larger audience they might want to look at creating an ad that takes up less time to watch.
Chow

Michael Maccarone said...

This video was a refreshing change from the average youtube video that you would normally see posted. I enjoyed how they made this video more interactive. It made it alot easier for the viewer to engage in the video, thus possibly increasing the chances of the viewer capturing interest in the product advertised.

The creaters of this video also added some shock value to the video. At the end of the video, the viewer was faced with an ultimatum, either shoot the bear or do not shoot the bear. And following this, there was an array of videos prepared for any likely word to be typed in the space provided.
What i found to be most interesting about this video is how the actor reached out of the screen and grabbed the product advertised and integrated it into the video. Very impressed. Great Campaign!!

Britney Miller said...

I really enjoyed watching this ad. It was very creative and strived to do what every company tries to do. That is produce a memorable and unique ad for their product.

After watching this, I forwarded the link to a few people I know and everyone played around with the ad for a few minutes and probably sent the link to other people.

Tipp-Ex was a name that I had never heard of. However, after watching this video I will always remember it. Great use of technology as well as creativity!

Anonymous said...

I think this is one of the most creative ads I've seen. I like the fact that the viewers actually get to interact with it by choosing what they want to do. It makes the viewers want to try all the possibilities to see how they will they turn out to be.

This is a very smart way of getting people to know about the product because it is very original and creative. Anyone who has watch this video will remember the product every time he or she decides to buy a white-out.

Mitchell Clarke said...

I think this campaign was quite creative. When i was a kid they used to have books called "Choose your own adventure" where you would skip to a specific page to see the outcome of the story that you wanted. This is like a modern day version of this kind of media, it works because it taking something a lot of people grew up with and modernizing it.

The one problem is the cost. I am really curious to see how much something like this would cost to make. Because you need to make a large amount of videos specifically for this campaign

David Freamo said...

I found this very creative because it was surprising and different. It was different because it had a modern day choose your adventure with cursing. It took a huge risk with cursing but added the lour this generation has toward R rated movies that shock. The viewer took a risk with shooting the bear thinking it would be gruesome but there ended up being no gore.

It was surprising because i typed in the word hit and they had a scenario for it. The bear walked up and waved his paws like it wasn`t worth a fight. I didn`t know what to expect out of that bear.

Unknown said...
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Justin Van Noort said...

Unique is definitely the word to describe this sort of interactive online ad. Personally this is the first time I have experienced this type of ad, and to be honest was very impressed. The sheer amount of interactivity is what stunned me at first. The ad provides the excitement right off the start with its enticing title, and immediate action of the bear attack. From there the interactive bit starts. The choice to choose weather or not the hunter shoots the bear was a shock as well. Normally an ad or video ad moves at its own pace without interaction. Even still, the interactive choice draws the watcher in, makes them feel part of the decision making process, important, and provides reason for the audience to keep viewing.

If the viewer continues, which is hard not to do, as i was now compleatly consumed by the wow factor of the advertisment, thye will see the degree of interactive material increase yet again. The best part of this ad to me was not the choice of shooting the bear or the individuals reaching out of the video and using the whiteout, but was actually the accuracy of the search bar. No matter what the viewer types, this ad is able to generate a respectable, reasonable, and most of the time humorous response. Even the inappropriate searches are "explicitly cautioned", and impossible searches are responded to with the bear holding an error code. All in all the ad is very ingenious idea, and manages to successfully draw in the viewer and make them WANT to view the advertisement instead of skipping by or closing the window. Well done Tipp-Ex.

Steve Lorini said...

This advertisement "A hunter shoots a bear!" is an advertisement that promotes Tipp-Ex. The advertisement is a good example of persuasive advertising following is the interactive sequence developed by Pocket Mouse to allow viewers to create their own ending to the advertisement.

In the beginning when watching the advertisement, viewers attention is immediately caught with entrance of a bear. The hunters personal experience is felt through the swearing and feared remarks. Viewers are given the choice to "Shoot" or "Don't Shoot" the bear. The advertiser successfully captures viewers interest in continuing to follow the ad and persuades you into accepting the "Shoot" button keeping viewers watching the ad to see the final result. Which is nothing but the hunter whiting out the title (with the Tippexperience pen) to "A Hunter ___ A Bear".

For visualization, the advertiser illustrates, theoretically, a scene for viewers telling that if he/she get themselves in a position they don't want to be in, they can erase and get themselves out. Obviously not with the Tipp-Ex pen; however, if something wrong or improper is ever written out, consumers can use the Tipp-Ex pen to fix the situation. The use of questions is another influential technique that the advertiser makes use of in order to persuade and interact with viewers, and continue into the rest of the add.

After analyzing the advertisement, I’ve realized how amazingly the advertiser grabs the attention of viewers and is able to persuade them into watching the entire ad and possibly push them into purchasing the product.

Daniel Lobo said...

I think that this advertising method is effective due to the fact that it is interactive, and not just to the point where viewers get to choose options but where imagination plays a role in it as well. It also incorporates the product into the theme by being able to change options that might have been permanent, such as white-out will do. There are many directions that this video can go in and I feel that it has the possibility to get potential consumers to spend a lot of time on an advertisement, something that consumers do not usually tend to search on video websites.

However, I found that it did not incorporate the brand as much as it did the product. I actually tried to search for this particular video a couple of days ago and I couldn't remember the brand name but I did remember the concept. I think that TIPP-EX should try to incorporate the brand name into the process more, even if it is something like a small logo at the bottom of the video because it would be simple, effective, and it would not interfere with the concept that is being created.

Steve K said...
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Anonymous said...

The greatest aspect of this advertisement is the buzz and publicity it is receiving. There is no question that this is genius advertising. The ad literally demands viewer interest, interaction, imagination and laughter.

The beginning of the video is a fun and "hip" build up that captures the viewer in it's event. When the viewer is given the choice of choosing to shoot or not shoot the bear, they are eager to see how the story will unfold. Little do they know that they will be caught by surprise. As the hunter grabs the TIPP-EX and whites out the "shoot" of the title of the video, first time viewers are shocked, surprised, stunned and amazed. I know I was. Then the most innovative advertisement I have seen on YouTube is the function of choosing the destiny of the hunter and the bear. Having covered all types of actions by both the hunter and the bear the viewer is going to experience at least four or five minutes of humour.

The viewer is naturally pleased at seeing the ad because they've probably never seen a ad like this before. They will advertise it to all their contacts, their friends, colleagues and etc. I believe that this was the long term goal of TIPP-EX. Guerrilla marketing has allowed "NFSW. A hunter shoots a bear!" to have over 10 million views and many more to come. My biggest surprise was seeing this video take the blogging world by storm and people revealing their feelings and thoughts on the video.

Raffaele Esposito said...

It’s obvious how a video like this can’t go unseen. Right from the beginning, as the bear is coming out, it definitely had my attention. In my opinion, an advertisement is most effective when it has its viewers feeling an emotion. This can normally be accomplished through video ad. However, this is advertising on a whole new level. It has the viewer choosing different outcomes for the video. Due to the fact that each outcome is different, the viewer then doesn’t know what to expect. It’s almost like an endless entertaining advertisement.

This is only the beginning of interactive advertising. It only makes sense to start its journey online since we have a cursor to interact with. Give it sometime, and sooner or later our smart phones, billboards, and posters will all evolve in a way no one has ever imagined.

Ernest A said...

I thought that this ad for Tipp-ex was very fun and creative. It just amazes me how creative this company is. let alone just saying "Shoot", don't "Shoot" was creative for me, but pushing the boundaries for other peoples creativity means that the company has engaged the viewer to his or her fullest potential. Giving people an option to make their own story is so different. With social media now, people have to offer interaction and a "social" aspects where others can input their opinions, thoughts, and feelings on a certain topic or issue. Even though it may not be what they want to hear.

I found one key aspect of the video that could have been better which was incorporating the white-out in the video more, for example "what can you white out", then make skits for that. I felt Tipp-Ex need to put in something that had to do with their product, but unfortunately Tipp-Ex didn't stand out to me, but the bear and the hunter did.

Overall the innovation was great, and interaction was even better. Being able to push the boundaries of creativity is endless with viral and social marketing. I think as we learn more about online interaction we will be able to do so many more things.

Anthony Johnson Campbell said...

I think this ad is highly creative because it creates interaction between the brand and the consumer. The majority of ads we see only enable the brand to speak to us in a one-way conversion. By identifying opportunities in promotion, Tipp-Ex has used Youtube in a unique and innovative way to cut through the cutter and stand-out.

This ad creates extensive brand awareness for Tipp-Ex (over 10 million hits) and it also drives considerable amount of traffic to its Youtube page where it can encourages you to interact with the ad.

Overall I think that this ad has accomplished its communication objectives. I can’t wait to see how the rest of the story unfolds.

Sajan said...

I found this video to be ever more enjoyable and creative, this is so because it uses a form of interaction with an user. I am able to type almost anything in a blank space above the video and watch exactly what I typed.

This video really got people's attention, it certainly got mine and I found it interesting. Last but not least, more videos much like (A hunter Shoots A Bear) should be made because it is entertaining. Aforementioned, I enjoyed the video performance.

Paul Schroeder said...

I found this ad very creative.White out is a rather commoditized product and this ad does a terrific job differentiating itself from competitors by being interactive, funny, and out of the ordinary. This is part of the beginning of new innovative ads to come.

Eliza Graham said...

I believe that this ad campaign created by TIPP EX is extremely creative! I had never seen an interactive YouTube video like this before. It captured my attention from the beginning. Being able to choose whether or not to shoot the bear was quite interesting to me because it makes you think twice about what you actually want to happen to this poor bear.
As the word shoot was being whited out, it made me have a big smile on my face and chuckle. This part was extremely creative to me in that you could choose your own action word.
The best part is that I never ever would have noticed the ad to the right of the video until the man reached out and grabbed the product right from the ad. I think that was an ingenious way to advertise a usually normal and boring white out gadget, which I would have never noticed.

Steve K said...

This video is very creative and unexpected. At first i thought it was a video about animal cruelty, but then the video took a turn and gave the viewers the opportunity to choose the outcome. The fact that the video is interactive grabs your attention and draws you. Also, it allows you to be creative in deciding what the shooter should do. I didn't realize that the video was a Tipp Ex ad, until after he used it to white out the title. Overall i really liked the way Tipp Ex brand advertised their white out with this interactive video, but could have involved the whiteout and brand more.

Alisha Marj said...

A truly clever campaign! They definately caught my attention! Their way of catching the audience's attention was unique and extremely affective. The campaign managed to speak to it's audience on a very personal level. I thought this was an exceptionally well thought out viral marketing campaign. This is the way to do it!

Chris Arruda said...

I really enjoyed this video. I believe it is really unique and is somewhat creating a new "era" or phase on how to watch videos on Youtube. Youtube videos till now have never been so interactive and memorable like this one. At first, the video started off to be just like any other youtube video but created a "wow" effect by having the option to shoot the bear or not. What made this video so original though was how Tippex created a video that could be unique and very personal to the individual watching with the choice of typing in whatever came into your mind in the erased section.

By having Tippex invest their time and money in creating this video, they were able to create a very successful viral marketing campaign. Instead of Tippex creating traditional advertisements, they were able to reach many individuals and create brand awareness. Up until this video I never really knew of Tippex and never thought of a brand when using liquid paper but with this successful campaign, all of the hits on this video link alone must of successfully completed the objective Tippex wanted. I highly recommend that other companies follow such a unique concept that Tippex did.

SUMIT MUNJAL said...

We saw the video in class too, I think this type of interactive videos and technology is ideal to send the message to the consumer an dis important part of marketing campaigns.
It act as touch point where consumer can relate to the product or service hence it makes them more involved into the campaign than a regular advertisement.

R9_blog said...

Youtube adds can be awesome and creative. But this is one of the most creative ones I've seen. If this isnt brilliant, I dont know what is. Tipp-Ex nailed it. Simply BRILLIANT!!