Big Cat Bars + “Flying” Fish Sandwiches: Advertising 2022 Winners

The Early Bird deadline for our Advertising 2023 competition is tomorrow, so submit now and win big like these past entries.

The Gold-winning poster advertisement “Photo Bars” (above) is a part of a campaign launched by Big Cat Rescue (BCR), a sanctuary committed to rescuing abused and abandoned big cats like lions and tigers. As one of the most influential leaders in wildlife conservation, the sanctuary also aims to educate people on the importance of protecting big cats and debunk misinformation that circulates around big cat conservancy. As the focus of their most recent campaign, BCR wanted to change the public’s perception of the practice of cub petting (where baby big cats are used as photo props for paying customers) by revealing the truth behind the operation and informing people why it’s not as “cute” or as “innocent” as it seems to be. To convey the “real picture”, the sanctuary partnered with the independent advertising agency PPK USA, whose team devised the campaign’s stirring image of a tiger cub bound by a polaroid frame with prison bars. 

At the bottom of the advertisement, a statement in white reads “Before you get a photo with a tiger cub, get the real picture.” The “real picture” is that breeding tiger cubs for petting and photo ops is no life for them, and it can even lead to their deaths once they got too big for photo ops. Since its launch, this powerful poster has promoted a lot of exciting conversations in and outside of the wildlife conservation community and has driven people to visit CubTruth.com to learn more about cub petting and its deceptive practice. In addition to the poster, the campaign also included digital banner ads, pre-roll videos, and PSA spots to encourage people to support a ban on cub petting and help pass the Big Cat Public Safety Act, which will prohibit private ownership of big cats in all states. 

Need to stop for gas? If you’re in North America, try the truck stop and fuel station Pilot Flying J Travel Center with their “New Fish Sandwiches” (above). Known more for gas and quick-to-go snacks, the establishment is also quickly transforming into a go-to spot for travelers and truckers alike to visit for delicious fresh-made food while they take a break from the road. With the help of advertising firm Tombras Group, the company created a series of advertisements to introduce their fish sandwiches to their menu.

Tombras’ approach started with the awareness that fish sandwiches aren’t a meal people expect to find at a travel center, and “if they do, they certainly don’t expect them to be any good.” To prevent hesitation, the creative team of designers and copywriters designed a campaign packed with “gills and humor” that both disarms and entertains the viewer. The first photo from the series features the debut fish sandwich caught on the line of a fishing rod, alluding to the fresh quality of the prepared codfish. This allusion continues in the second photo from the series, which pictures seagulls flying over the Pilot Flying J Center as if drawn there. In the last photo of the series, the fish sandwich is mounted on a wooden plaque in place of the usual fish head. Pilot Flying J loved the agency’s playful take on the project and the creative campaign won a Silver award in our Advertising Annual.

To see more winners from our 2022 Advertising Annual, visit Graphis.com! And don’t forget to enter our 2023 Advertising competition here.