Best Advertising Campaigns of 2021

Regardless of the industry you are in, advertising can be effective. Whether you are looking for more donations, trying to drive traffic to your website, or searching for new clients, there’s a lot to be learned from good advertising campaigns.

That’s why we wrote today’s post: to inspire our readers from great advertising examples in the nonprofit industry.

Let’s look at three of the best campaigns of 2021.

Three Of The Best Advertising Campaigns Of 2021

1) “Wasteminister” by Greenpeace

One of the most important aspects of a good advertising campaign is surprise. You want your viewers (or readers) to see something they don’t expect. That captures their attention – regardless of their political beliefs.

That’s why “Wasteminister” by Greenpeace was so effective. In this advertising campaign, plastic bottles are continuously dumped on downtown London. The amount of plastic is so massive that it creates a pile that turns into a tidal wave. The fact that the people in the video are also plastic figurines makes the 90 second ad even more interesting.

At the end, you learn that this massive amount of plastic is what the U.K. sends to other countries for waste management – every day. Again, regardless of your politics, one thing can’t be denied: this is an effective ad. And much of the effectiveness comes from surprise. You aren’t expecting to see just about anything that happens in the video, and that’s exactly what holds your attention.

Lesson learned: Don’t be afraid to be different. Often, it’s the campaigns that push our comfort zone that make the most memorable impact on us. In fact, these are often the very campaigns that force us to think the hardest and drive engagement with the organizations creating them. You see this quite often in social media marketing. After all, in the are of information overload, the attention of an audience is one of the most important things you organization can have.

For example, we have been experimenting with different content types at Lúgh Studio. We plan ahead and try to provide a fun and engaging Instagram image on holidays throughout the year. And not just the big ones like Thanksgiving and Christmas, but days that make you think. Give our Instagram a look to see what we mean.

2) Father’s Day by Prostate Cancer UK & Papa John’s pizza

A new look can have a lasting effect. We’ve learned this from designing new websites for numerous clients. They often bring in more site visitors, bring more attention to their cause, and convert more customers – simply because their website has been given a fresh look.

This “new look” principle can also be applied to advertising campaigns – sometimes in surprising ways. Take Prostate Cancer UK as a great example. Before Father’s Day of 2021, this organization partnered with well-known restaurant Papa John’s. The pizza chain deleted the word “Papa” from their famous logo to represent the thousands of men that die each year in the UK due to prostate cancer.

This campaign was especially effective because of the new look of the logo. It wasn’t what you saw – it’s what you didn’t. With a word missing from such a famous logo, people noticed instantly. This led to the success of the campaign, driving awareness of the effects of prostate cancer as well as a spike in donations.

Lesson learned: Often, it’s the little details that can have the greatest effect. Whether it’s adding something to your typical advertising campaigns (or taking something away), the effect can be huge. People notice, and when they do they are more likely to engage with your cause. Combine this with the fact that the campaign dealt with an emotional topic and you have a recipe for success.

Be sure to experiment with what you organization typically does. Maybe, like we mentioned, that’s a new look for your website. Maybe it’s a change in your color scheme. It might even be a change to your logo. Regardless, you’d be surprised what small change can do to the effectiveness of your campaigns.

3) “This is Human Kind” by British Red Cross

In 2021, lockdowns due to Corona continued around much of the world. It’s easy for this kind of “once in a lifetime” event to inspire negativity. Look at the effects that Corona has had and it’s hard to find much of anything to be positive about.

That’s why this campaign was such a breath of fresh air. Artist Yinka Ilori MBE painted a mural in London that inspired hope and optimism, and the work was quickly picked up by the British Red Cross. Paired with the message “everyone had kindness in their soul,” this was a campaign that reminded viewers of everything good that still existed despite Corona. The campaign has since been seen by millions of people on social media platforms around the world.

Lesson learned: Effective ad campaigns don’t have to be complicated. It’s often the tiny gestures that inspire the most emotion and can drive the most engagement with your brand. This is important to remember before planning expensive campaigns with some complicated messaging.

From a marketing angle, it’s also important to remember the importance of user generate content. Often the most engaging content (whether for your blog, sales page or ad campaigns) will come from your own audience. Figure out a way to get them involved!

We hope you’ve learned something from the best campaigns of 2021. Always remember – experiment with your own campaigns. You never know what will resonate with your audience and drive engagement!

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Are you an enterprise, nonprofit or small business looking for help on your website? Give us a shout! We provide a free consultation. Email us at info@lughstudio.com or call us at (718) 855-1919!