World Wildlife Federation ad campaign
It’s not very often that I see an advertising campaign I instantly appreciate. That’s the power of imagery, and the power of targeting our environmental responsibilities.
This paper towel dispenser shows an ad campaign for the World Wildlife Federation (WWF), and the strapline reads:
save paper • save the planet
The idea is that the more paper towels you take, the less green South America becomes. De-forestation in South America happens at an alarming rate, so anything that highlights the issue is good in my view.
I’m not quite sure why green foil is used behind the silhouette of South America. After all, the paper towels are already green (which I think is quite standard throughout Europe?). Perhaps its use is so that white paper towels have the same effect. Regardless, I like it a lot.
The agency responsible is Saatchi & Saatchi, Copenhagen Denmark.
Via Ads of the World
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I love it! Great idea, and effective. I’d say the green foil may also be useful when the paper towels are blue. In fact, I’d say blue towels are as popular as green, but maybe I’m wrong.
I was thinking something similar could work on toilet roll. The first sheet would show the whole country, and each sheet would you take would have a map printed on, but a little bit would disappear each time, until the piece had none…or something like that. Although, it would be more expensive to implement, and wouldn’t be very cost effective.
I really like the design. It’s great that they are trying inventive ways to get people’s attention about their cause. But personally I think the whole idea of the advertising is wrong. They are better off not having paper towel dispensers at all. That would save a lot more paper! Most of the restrooms I go to don’t have dispensers anymore they just use the hand dryers instead.
You’re idea is an interesting, although more expensive one, but it’d be a contentious issue what country to show on the toilet roll. If I was Brazilian, for instance, I’d not appreciate people cleaning their back-sides with an image of my home country.
Aunrea,
I agree that hand dryers are better for the environment. I think that the impact of how you dry your hands is so small, however, that the real focus of the campaign is to highlight deforestation, and place the issue in peoples’ minds.
If washrooms really were the focus, it’d probably be better to concentrate on energy-saving light fittings, where the payoff is much clearer.
Aunrea,
Hmmm…good point. However, fast heating electric devices are the worst energy consumers, so in that way, they may actually be worse, and less cost effective.
lol…well maybe a picture of a tree would be more diplomatic!!
What green foil? Is it not just a cut-out showing the stack of paper towels inside the dispenser? As the towels are used, the stack goes down and South America ‘empties’.
In the US, it is more common to see white or brown paper towels in restrooms. I have yet to see green ones : )
But in terms of the design, it does encourage the user to kind of interact with it, which does help to hit home the message of conservation. Will this actually make people stop and think more about the paper they consume? I’m not so sure, but still, this is an interesting concept.
Yep, a tree would certainly be more diplomatic. ;)
Stuart,
There’s green foil covering the cut-out of South America. It’s why there are two different shades of green.
Rebecca,
The foil would certainly help where white or brown paper towels are used. Thanks for the comment.
For clever bathroom-based advertising, this is the thind that always sticks in my mind … http://t4w.blogs.com/spinningaround/2007/03/axe_ad_doing_th.html. For Lynx, bizarrely in the middle east.
Actually, there’s loads of bathroom-based stuff kicking around, maybe someone should start a blog category: communicating on the loo: http://t4w.blogs.com/spinningaround/2007/05/skateboard-less.html
Hope that all is good, David
That’s a fantastic ad. It’s so creative and meaningful that you can’t help but smile. :)
Michael,
Glad you liked it too, and thanks for the visit.
Wow, that’s really effective. Thanks!
I think technology will solve this problem for us soon…things like digital paper which doesn’t need to be thrown out..etc, but it is a huge issue currently. Hopefully things will change
I love the image, it’s such an instant reminder. Little things can lead to big differences.
Showing his ignorance of the human world, what exactly is causing the paper towels to be blue, brown or green? Dyes? If so, wouldn’t that make the paper towels themselves harmful?
Land down under also has brown and white paper towels.
I like it a lot, I have this other advert which I have taken photos that is sort of similar (up on my blog next week). With adverts and marketing ideas they need to be imaginative like this to get our attention as due to the media we tune out to most adverts these days.
That is great! What a unique idea!
exellent!! i was really impressed by that idea!
I’m sure they used green, as a reference to rainforests being cut down. The whole ‘green’ outlook on conservation. Green is reflective of nature.
here in Canada , most paper towels are white or brown as well.
I think this campaign is incredibly creative!! nice find!
SERIOUSLY GENIUS! I would go with a vote on using a tree though
ah - yeah. Got you. You mean like a green film in the South America ‘window’. Of course. My error.
its very impressive, like the idea a lot. and i think south asian people have already solved the problem we discuss here. instead of using toilet paper, they use bucket water to wash their back-side afterwards with left hand, clean and eco-friendly. (so never shake left hand with indian according to the tradition over there.) try it out if ur interested lol.
by the way David, is there any chance u know the Australia network, your logos seems quite similar in some way, has anyone told u that before?
All I can say is wow. What an incredible and effective piece of imagery.
And I thought all we had to do to save the world was to save a cheerleader…..I like this idea better. Great ad!
Thanks for stopping by to leave your opinion.
Matthew,
I’m with you, hoping things change for the better. I know I can be doing more to help, and that’s one thing I’m working on.
Swiss Mouse,
That’s a great question, and one I don’t know the answer to. Anyone else know why colour is added to the paper? Surely it’s intentional, and if that’s the case, seems pointless.
Jermayn,
Looking forward to seeing that ad you speak of.
Brian, Zabs, Sara
Glad you like. Thanks for commenting.
Stuart,
Yep, that’s the one. ;)
Climent,
I’m not familiar with the Australia network. No-one’s mentioned it to me before, so I appreciate you saying. Do you have a web address?
Kristen,
I’d no idea you could save the world by saving a cheerleader. How does that work? Good of you to stop by.
Fantastic idea! I agree, a tree would be more effective. If you polled the folks coming out of the rest room, I would bet that 40%+ don’t know why S. America is on the towel holder. Unfortunately, you have to shoot for the lowest common denominator.
never mind David, of course u r not familiar with Australia network ,its in down under quite far away from the real world :-) anyway its quite stupid that i said they r similar in some way actually they r quite different, just the first glance remind me the Aus network’ logo , it happens all the time when u see something then something else simply pop into ur head.but if u still interested u can check out its web site australianetwork.com
i like ur blog really thats why i m here again ,and i think i ll check it out constantly good luck mate
I like the psychology that lies behind this ad. People often underestimate the postive influence of advertising. In a world where people evolve to become less materialistic, marketing can be perceived as brainwashing worthy of being ignored. People will record shows in VCRs to fast-forward mindless commercials. People will tune-out radio stations with lots of advertising because it may seem annoying. I like to see the good reinforced. thanks for the story. This example reveals clever marketers evolve with the times and evoke meaningful, even far-reaching positive feelings.
Knowledge of geography isn’t the greatest asset for many people.
Climent,
Thanks for the link, and for the compliment on my blog. Your visits are much appreciated.
Liara,
You’re most welcome for this post, and I’m glad you like it too. Thanks for commenting.
The article I promised David
http://germworks.net/blog/2007/10/26/cure-on-advert-blindness/
What a creative design there. Well it remind people to save wildlife from harm. From lower budget can get high attention. Nice way to promote this ad instead of using electronic gadget to pull out tower.
Nsane,
Good of you to take the time to comment.
YAY!
Go Denmark!!!!
I have a dream that it should be free to advertise for humanitarian and environmental organizations like WWF with a certain quota of course.
I just returned from a trip to the States and they really have a long way to go concerning paper and water conservation. I mean, why waste a big flush when I’ve only taken a leak ;)
I hope you had a great trip to the States. I agree that there’s a great responsibility placed on the larger Western nations (the UK included).
Just this minute I’m listening to a BBC news article on waste management. Recycling facilities are on the up, though it’s still on a small scale, and not many people are taking part. There needs to be more incentives, such as less council tax for less waste.
Nice unique twist to a paper towel dispenser, will make people feel like garbage for drying there hands. It is an excellent idea and is very clever!