Welcome back to A Creative Review with James Cooper. Today Coop compares two spectacular executions for sister fashion retailers Old Navy and The Gap.

Do, Don’t Say

There is a rule we creatives like to tell ourselves - actually for a profession that is supposed to be more like art, there are a ton of rules we try to live by - anyway, I digress, the rule is that any ad should do or be what you want to say rather than say it. There is nothing less cool than saying ‘hey, I’m cool’. You should just be cool. And so here we are with two billboards about brightness. 

Photo credit: Gelatobaby, via Flickr

The Gap board says, ‘Be Bright’. I guess it is quite bright and there is a slim play on words as bright can mean clever. I quite like the use of the t-shirts, it’s a good product demonstration - remember the product! – but, I’m just left a little underwhelmed by it. I do worry ever so about the dirt on those nice pastels. 

When a Billboard Is Not a Billboard

Photo credit: BoweryBoogie

If literal brightness is the goal, then this Old Navy billboard takes the cake. But when does a billboard cease to be a billboard? When it’s a sign. To some this is just a glorified sign - and an over-illuminated one at that. In previous posts we have talked about getting people to comment in billboards and share content. People are talking about this one alright, but perhaps not in the best light. ‘Borderline blinding’ was one comment, ‘spewing out copy’ was another.

Clearly our job is to sell, and to do that we need to get noticed. This billboard certainly does that, but at what cost?

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That’s all folks! Want to get involved? Send us the best or worst billboards you’ve seen and we’ll choose one every week. Just email coop@adstruc.com.