Schweppes Does A Stylish Drinks Ad. What Did You Expect?

A nice, short and sweet spot by Fred&Farid for Schweppes tonic water. A few days ago I was talking about the fun, simple directness of Oasis’ “We have sales targets” ad. Well, Schweppes takes a quite different take on the challenge, and it’s pretty eye-catching as well. It’s adult, slightly sensual and, well, pretty mouth-watering.

Typical France, right?

I mean, there’s actually nothing all that French about ice cubes, tonic and citrus peel, the elements that make up the core imagery of the spot. But it does feel rather French, in a stylish (and slightly off-kilter) way.

The “What did you expect?” campaign started last year, featuring the star power of Penelope Cruz, but if anything I think that this new effort is even stronger. Using a celebrity can be fun but it always runs the risk of overshadowing the product itself.

Most importantly, the new spot is simple and tightly scripted, down to the fun little “Cheers” at the end. Ice, tonic, peel, moment of attractive characters staring at each other, done. It’s snappy, straightforward, and manages to make a soft drink not just premium, but outright glamorous.

And visually, it’s pure “thirst appeal”, and the product is the hero throughout – without it feeling over-sold. It’s just a beautiful, rather irreverent wee ad.

Now I really want to go into bars and just order Schweppes tonic on ice. With a bit of lemon peel.

This is strange.

Did I just get advertised to?

Check out the ad below.

Oasis Gets To The Point

It’s a funny thing when being straightforward in your advertising seems like a novelty, but there we are. Fun new piece from The Corner London for Oasis in their outdoor and print advertising, with a headline that immediately elicits a chuckle.

“It’s summer. You’re thirsty. We have sales targets.”

It’s been said that the millennial generation is one that scorns indirect, obtuse advertising, in favour of more open sales pitches and clear calls to action.

(I have my doubts about any theory that claims that there’s some huge difference between generations, if nothing else because people have always claimed the same.)

Whether or not that idea holds up, this is a prime example of that kind of advertising. Clear, terse and appealing. It’s everything you want a quick sales pitch to be.

If nothing else it’s a clever little move to sneak in the words “You’re thirsty”. In weather like we’ve had for the last few days, that’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Perhaps because of the growing stigma against them, soft drinks ads often seem afraid to advocate for themselves. But once in a while it’s good to see an ad make fun of itself – and deliver an engaging message at the same time.