Haven't I Seen That Before?
In 2016, Joe La Pompe, the famous copycat hunter, found hundreds of campaigns sent to award shows that paradoxically and totally lacked originality. Here you'll find his selection of the 10 most obvious cases. Copycats or coincidences? The only thing that's for sure is that every example has been presented as ‘new’, but is 100% deja-vu !
Joe La Pompe is the founder of joelapompe.net and the author of the book ‘Copy Paste: How advertising recycles ideas’ published by Maison Moderne / Gestalten.
PRINT & OUTDOOR
1 – Creative Idea : Headphones that looks like smileys.
http://www.joelapompe.net/2016/09/20/headphones-smiley-sennheiser-matrix-fm/
2 – Creative Idea : Socks so elegant you can use them as tie.
3 – Creative Idea : You drink so much beer that it looks like you're pregnant.
DIRECT
4 – Creative Idea: A Vuvuzela that can be used as breathalyser.
GUERRILLA
5 – Creative Idea: Free beach lockers specially designed with a customized locking system. You must use sun cream to lock/unlock them.
6 - Creative Idea: Create a ghost protest using holograms.
FILMS
7 – Creative Idea: A guy tries to kill a mosquito using bug spray... but he realises (too late) that he hasn't used bug spray.
INTERACTIVE VIDEO
8 - Creative Idea: Video with pop-ups masking women's faces. On the pop-up you can read messages that illustrate excuses women find not to tell the truth... when you close the pop-ups you can see that the faces are covered with bruises.
PROMOTION
9 – Creative Idea: A concrete coupon you must be able to bring back to the gym to benefit from a commercial offer.
DESIGN – PACKAGING
10 – Creative Idea: Bottles that have the exact same shape as dumbbells. To illustrate the benefits of the product on your body.
Find hundreds of other cases from around the world on http://www.joelapompe.net
About the author:
Joe La Pompe is France’s celebratory blogger, speaker and ‘copycat hunter’, and recently released the book ‘Copy Paste – How Advertising Recycles Ideas’.
So who is this guy? Nobody knows actually - he keeps his identity secret – but, while he himself remains masked, he works to unmask campaigns, revealing those that are plagiarized.
The book is based on his website, joelapompe.net, which has gained a faithful following over the years for its service to the ad industry. On the site, he analyzes new campaigns and compares them to others to determine if possible similarities are intentional or happenstance. He not only offers his own reviews; he allows users to make their own judgments. The blog is a true reference for agencies and journalists alike, and frequently gives credit to smaller agencies who get lost in the mix despite the quality of their work. “Copy Paste” allows readers to cross-reference nearly 600 campaigns, discover new creativity, take a look at what other agencies have been up to, and ensure their future ideas are original.
The book, which is in French and English, was released this fall and is available on Amazon starting at $30, or directly from its publisher.
