:: adgruntie :: Drugs, Volvos, and Animals

+ Pfizer takes steps to eliminate spammy reputation.

Tired of seeing Viagra ads in your e-mail in-box? Think how Pfizer feels.The maker of Viagra has been deluged with complaints about spam that it has not sent - so much so that last month it embarked on an advertising campaign to inform consumers that it is not the source of all those "make her want you more then ever" e-mail messages.
"I unfortunately get a lot of Viagra spam myself," said Tim Pigot, who leads the men's sexual health division for Pfizer. "Hopefully this will help."
The campaign, which will also focus on the dangers of ordering drugs from unlicensed online pharmacies, features banner advertisements and text messages on search engines like Google and Ask Jeeves, among others, explaining to consumers that Viagra does not send spam. E-mail ads will not be part of the campaign.

Seems like a smart move.

+ Bethany Hamilton, the 14-year-old surfing champion who had her arm bitten off by a shark, is featured in Volvo's latest TV and online branding campaign, developed by Fuel Europe.

"Life on board", which is launched this week, features sports personalities who have overcome great sporting injuries, including Hamilton, who has returned to surfing following her horrific injury. TV ads directed by documentary maker Lance Bangs shows a clip of Hamilton in a Volvo XC 70 talking to US jockey Greta Kuntzweiler, who has suffered great injury. The ads drive people to the full internet documentary on the Volvo site. Tim Ellis, global advertising director at Volvo, said: "The starting point of this campaign was the starting point of Volvo: 'Cars are driven by people.' In exploring this concept, the more we spoke to people about real life inside their cars, the more we understood just how powerful, important and intimate that experience can be."

For more go to the Volvo site.

+ Thai campaign targets animal lovers. See the link for images of the ads.

WildAid, a US conservation group has launched an advertising campaign to persuade Thais to report traders in protected wildlife.
In a series of television commercials, famous models, actors and other celebrities warn of the dangers facing Thailand's endangered animals and fish.
One commercial features a police hotline for viewers, encouraging them to report anyone selling animals or by-products such as ivory or tiger skins.
"When the buying stops, the killing can too," the advertisement says.
The campaign, organised by the group WildAid, also includes posters of orang-utans in suitcases, with airline baggage tags, to draw attention to cross-border smuggling.

Pretty powerful images.