Social media this week has been like a time machine, taking users back to 2016 in the latest manifestation of online nostalgia. The trend seems to be about romanticising the past and recapturing a time when culture was less fragmented, before algorithms had taken over the internet.
What happens when we apply the same nostalgic lens to advertising? It wasn’t a classic year, but some of the most award-winning ads from that year can now be seen as pioneering – and a lot more fun than looking back on Brexit or Trump’s first term in office.
Netflix #FU2016
BBH New York’s faux political broadcast, made to promote the new season of the original streaming hit, House of Cards, took over the conversation during a TV debate. Brilliant use of media, 6.6 billion impressions, and eerily relevant right now.
Harvey Nichols Shoplifters
The double Grand Prix-winning ad to promote Harvey Nichols’ new loyalty scheme was made in the days when adam&eveDDB were riding high and taking risks – and could afford to work with a client that had minimal budget.
Burger King McWhopper
The campaign from Y&R New Zealand, another double Grand Prix winner, where Burger King proposed a truce with McDonald’s. Conceived in a time when there was still hope that rivalry didn’t mean enmity.
