Monday, March 9, 2009

Can a product be so iconic that you don't need any copy?

Maybe. I mean I know that packaging is iconic, but what about when you open a box. What is actually on the inside. What products are so iconic? I think cereal is a good one. Think fast:



Cheerios.

But are there products so iconic, that they could make an ad with ONLY their product. And like I said - not packaging. No label. No marking on the product.

Behold: the most recent banner click registered to this IP address (it was static, there were NO other frames):


I was curious. I am a vegetarian, and I could have sworn that they are Whitecastle slyders. Not just any burgers. Whitecastle burgers. I have never eaten a Whitecastle slyder, let alone set foot in a Whitecastle, but I knew exactly what they were. It led me to:


So there you have it. A brand where the product is iconic enough to identify itself.

I am curious - what other products can you think of, that with no packaging or copy can identify themselves? How do we feel creatively about this ad?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

First thing that comes to mind is Coke... even just a silhouette of the bottle is immediately recognized as Coca-Cola.

Libby Issendorf said...

Quite a few foods...Doritos, Cheetos, M&Ms/Skittles...

Starbucks cups, even if you can't see the logo.

I'm trying to think of a non-food item but I'm having a hard time!

Carina Enbody said...

Ah Coke was my first thought too! I wrote it off as the bottle, because the liquid wouldn't necessarily do it, but I completely agree.

And Libby, I can't think of any non food items either! The closest that I came was cars. I guess I would know Sally from a corvette, even if there was no label.

Danielle said...

The only ones I can think of are consumer goods, like the Charmin, Listerine, Aussie, and so on. They are also more likely to have a "character" to represent their brand.

alicia houselog said...

iPod.

Claire Grinton said...

XBox 360 or Wii

you might be able to argue some of the pieces/lines from IKEA

Smith & Wesson, Magnum guns

Fender guitars?

mac desktops/laptops

Anonymous said...

The brands that have become synonymous with a product itself: Q-Tips and Kleenex come to mind. Even if it's not actually their product, they're brand is what one will think of.

 
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