Lindsey’s Daily Deal: The First Funny Bank, Seagal’s Recycling Wrath and The Rematch of the Century

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. The First (Funny) Bank

Banks are notorious for having the dullest, driest and most boring ads known to advertisingkind. In fact, any concept that’s borderline creative or dare I say it, wacky, is usually vetoed by the client faster than you can say Don Draper. However, it’s easy to see where banks are coming from. It’s not that they WANT to be boring, they just feel like it’s their duty to reassure their customer base that they’re a strong, capable and trustworthy money-protecting fortress. But, that doesn’t mean they have to bore us to tears in the meantime. Which is why First Bank gets major props from the Captains for having the most creative yet strategic commercial campaign we’ve seen in a while. They manage to embrace humor while still showing their potential customers how important it is to anticipate trouble before it happens. Check out the spots, “Pills” and “First Date.” They’re my absolute favorites.

And THAT, other banks, is how it’s done. Oh snap!

2. Recycle your old motor oil, or feel Seagal’s wrath

Since there are still a lot of nitwits out there who don’t bother to recycle their old motor oil, Earth911 (formerly known as Cleanup.org) decided to drop the good cop act and got the world’s most badass deputy to scare non-recyclers into changing their ways. Needless to say, Seagal hasn’t lost his touch over the years.

3. A score to settle

Gatorade is made up of more than just sugar and water. They’ve got a lot of heart, too. And according to one of my favorite bloggers, The American Copywriter, they’ve got a Lion to back them up on that. In case you haven’t heard, TBWA\Chiat\Day recently won at the Cannes for their video series about the rematch of the century.

Let me set the scene for you. Back in 1993, two of the nation’s biggest high school football rivals, Easton, Pennsylvania and Phillipsburg, New Jersey, played their annual Thanksgiving Day game. In fact, the rivalry is still so intense that crowds of more than 20,000 fans come to watch the teams play each year. Although the players gave it everything they had back in ’93, the game ended in a spirit-crushing 7-7 tie. Well, Gatorade felt as though the players shouldn’t have to live with that kind of “what if?” hanging over their heads, so they gathered the now 30-something players and put them through an intensive 10-week training and conditioning program to help get them back into fighting shape. When game day finally came, the players strapped on their helmets, laced up their cleats, and played the best rematch anyone has ever seen in high school football history. If watching this video doesn’t make you want to guzzle Gatorade, nothing will.

Until tomorrow,

Captain Lindsey