Whether declared a win or fail, the competition is tight this year when it comes to brand campaigns. Lucky for you, we've compiled the top ten brand wins that caught our eye and envy, along with the fails that are so spectacularly terrible that we love to hate them.

1. SUMMER 2014 logic + magic REVEALING THE SECRETS OF DIGITAL MARKETING
logic + magic REVEALING THE SECRETS OF DIGITAL MARKETING
SUMMER 2014 logic + magic REVEALING THE SECRETS OF DIGITAL MARKETING
published by LEAP
THE
BEST
OF
DIGITAL
2014
published by LEAP
10
10
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Yourguidetothetop10trends,toys,SEOsecrets,ohsomuchmore.
10 Biggest Brand Wins and Fails of 2014 SUMMER 2014
By: Mike Brown Published by LEAP
Our definitive guide to the top 10 trends, toys, SEO secrets, and more. www.LEAPagency.com

2. 1 0 B I G G E S T
Y E A R
BRAND WINS
AND FAILS
O F T H E
BY MIKE BROWN

3. 10 GOPRO — “PEOPLE ARE AWESOME”
This adrenaline-pumping video shows off the core function of the GoPro
camera—to film action shots from a 1st-person POV. It’s fun to watch
and begs to be shared. It also inspires. It gets you jacked up to try
something adventurous.
09 OREO – “BLACKOUT” SUPER BOWL TWEET
When the Super Bowl went dark, many eyes
turned to Twitter, where an amazingly clever
and timely tweet by Oreo had just gone viral.
A 30-second TV spot for the big game cost $4
million. Oreo’s tweet cost virtually nothing.
10 BRAND WINS
WORK THAT CAUGHT OUR EYE AND OUR ENVY
07 GUINNESS – “FRIENDSHIP”
It’s band-of-buddies love at its tear-jerking best. The spot opens on a
group of guys in a game of wheelchair basketball. When the game ends,
all but one of the players stands up. We're getting misty-eyed just thinking
about it. We need a beer.
06 CHIPOTLE – “SCARECROW”
This Pixar-esque short follows a
scarecrow as he frees his “people”
from the soul-crushing oppression
of a giant corporation. The beautiful
animation and hauntingly gorgeous
soundtrack by Fiona Apple make
Chipotle—ironically, itself a giant
corporation—seem human.
08 LOWES – BEST USE OF VINE
Lowe’s DIY Vines are like HGTV on hyper-drive.
Each one takes you through a DIY project and
multiple product demos in 6 seconds. As a
bonus, the choppy style makes the featured
projects seem fast, fun, and easy.
BY MIKE BROWN
23 TOP 10 OF 2014

4. 04 KMART “SHIPPED MY PANTS”
MOST EPIC WIN
STARBUCKS — TWEET A COFFEE CAMPAIGN
Starbucks Tweet-a-Coffee campaign allowed any user with a credit card-backed Starbucks account to send $5 gift cards to
friends via Twitter. So far the campaign is responsible for more than $180,000 in sales, and a lot of free publicity.
05
GOOGLE EARTH — SAROO BRIERLY: HOMEWARD BOUND
This mini-documentary tells the true story of a man who used Google Earth
to find his childhood home in India and reunite with his birth mother, 25
years after he went missing. If you have a heart in your chest, it’ll put a lump
in your throat.
This video is childish, punny and totally
freakin’ awesome. The humor hammers
home a clear and memorable message—
Kmart will ship anything. It also went viral,
which was a big win for Kmart.
03
02 DOVE –CAMERA SHY
NETFLIX — ORIGINAL PROGRAMMING
Through original and highly binge watchable
shows like House of Cards and Orange Is the
New Black, Netflix was able to build brand
loyalty without ads. Brilliant.
Sketches gets all the love, but Camera Shy was the real masterpiece of Dove’s
inspiring Real Beauty Campaign. Through a clever use of home-video-like clips,
the work gives a stark, but compassionate look at how women are socialized to be
self-conscious.
01

5. SAMSUNG – LOST IN TRANSLATION
Subtly sexist with terrible acting, Samsung never expected American audiences
to see this ad. Unfortunately for Samsung, the Internet knows no borders. The
campy ad went viral, and had the executives as Samsung feeling ill.
10 BRAND FAILS
SPECTACULARLY TERRIBLE IDEAS WE LOVE TO HATE.
BY MIKE BROWN
10
STARBUCKS – VAN BREAK DOWN
A Starbucks van in Japan featured a side
graphic with the brand logo and name.
Unfortunately, the van had a sliding
door, which left the logo visible, but
shortened the name. The image went
viral on Reddit.
08
PEARL IZUMI – BAD DOG AD. BAD.
This sports apparel company’s print
ad featured a runner giving CPR to a
Labrador. The message? Our gear will
help you run so far, your dog might die
trying to keep up. Unfortunately, folks
love dogs more than Pearl Izumi.
09
LULULEMON — CEO GAFFE
When Lululemon received complaints about the quality of its yoga pants,
CEO Chip Wilson defended his brand. It’s not the yoga pants, he said.
It’s the unyoga-like bodies of the women trying to squeeze into them.
Bad Karma Chip.
MSN – MEMORIAL “LIKES” 06
MSN asked for “likes” of its Facebook page as a way
for users to pay their respects to former lead singer
of Bee Gee’s, Robin Gibb, who was recently deceased.
MSN came off looking cold and opportunistic. Not
exactly what we look for in a news organization.
07

6. 05 UNDER ARMOUR – MACH 39
MOST EPIC FAIL
KENNETH COLE – SYRIA’S TROUBLE
Kenneth Cole did great things with social media in 2013. They also made an epic
blunder. Then did it again. Through Twitter, Kenneth Cole twice put its shoes
in its mouth by referencing deadly tragedies in the Middle East as a way to
promote sales.
SPEEDSKATING UNIFORMS
Analysts felt like the Mach 39—the U.S.
Olympic speedskating uniform designed
by Under Armour—presented an unfair
advantage. And it did, just for other
teams.
04
03 AMY'S BAKING COMPANY — FACEBOOK FREAKOUT
NUTELLA – GRINCHING ITS OWN HOLIDAY
Nutella sent a cease and desist order to Sara Russo, founder of “World Nutella Day.” That’s right. Nutella threatened its
most loyal fan with a lawsuit in order to stop a wildly successful and totally free promotion. Talk about nuts.
01
HYUNDAI –
ATTEMPTED BRANDISCIDE
To promote its new zero emissions car,
Hyundai created an ad where a man tries,
but fails, to commit suicide when his car’s
exhaust proves to be safe. The ad was
designed to be shocking. It overachieved.
After a poor performance on the the TV show Kitchen Nightmares, the owners
of Amy’s Baking Company received negative comments on Facebook and other
social media. Their response—attacking commenters with obscenity-laced
tirades—led to an even bigger nightmare.
02
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PICTURES
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brand WINS FAILS of the year
FICTIONAL TOYS
turned tech tools
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