Monster Tools + The Loss of Learning: Advertising 2022 Winners

What ideas do advertisers and advertising agencies look for when creating new advertisement? Do they draw from fun pop culture, or from something as simple as a single metaphor? These Advertising 2022 winners show that good work can comes from all over the place!

First up is a series of gold-winning designs by Traction Factory for the American manufacturing company Snap-On Tools. The first concept, “Stubzilla” (above, left), promotes the company’s launch of their newly designed PT338 3/8″ air impact wrench. Referencing the Japanese comic book and movie series Godzilla, the poster showcases the tool as a giant being, crowded by tall skyscrapers and looming over soldiers on the city street below. The image ties in perfectly with the poster’s many quips, like “Rampaging through crowded areas other impacts don’t dare to go” and “Born with freakish looks and a vendetta against hidden fasteners”, which illustrates how this new and improved product is designed to be smaller and easier to use in tight and confined spaces compared to older models. As the focal point, the product’s name, STUBZILLA, is written in white bold letters, taking stylistic inspiration from the font used from vintage movie posters.

Staying true to the original monstrous theme, Traction Factory references another popular movie series in their promotional poster “Frankimpact“, (above, right) which supports the manufacturer’s cordless power tool product line by bringing personality to the CT9010 with compelling product information for a mobile retail environment. To illustrate the power associated with the tool, the Traction Factory team decided to recreate the memorable “It’s Alive” scene from the film adaption of the beloved classic Frankenstein. To do so, they transformed the lead product designer into a mad scientist and digitally constructed his laboratory to add visual interest and communicate the power inherent in the tool. The fun visual concept was used in all campaign launch materials, such as posters, on-van merchandising, social media, and monthly sales materials shared with every technician customer during the launch in 2019. 

“Hold On” (above) is a video created by Lewis Communications to promote Abeka LLC, an American publisher that produces K-12 curriculum materials that are used by homeschooling families worldwide. According to the publisher, half of what most children are taught in school is forgotten in as little as three days. Abeka aims to combat this problem by utilizing the Spiral Learning approach to its curriculum design. The company explains that “the key benefit of spiral learning is proven and understood: children retain more of what they learn.” However, most parents weren’t familiar with the term “spiral learning,” or its direct link to Abeka. As homeschooling surged during the pandemic, the publisher saw the opportunity to introduce the concept of spiral learning to consumers while reinforcing its connection to Abeka, thus making them synonymous in the minds of millions of parents struggling in their new roles as educators. 

Lewis Communication’s promotional video sufficiently illustrates the problem of learning loss. The spot opens on a lush, green field dotted with dozens of children, each holding a white balloon with an attached flashcard representing a lesson, or “educational morsel.” Slowly, the children begin to release the balloons one by one at first, and then in twos, threes, tens, floating into a sky increasingly filled with “fleeting knowledge and lost potential.” As the camera works its way back to the ground, a sole purple balloon is left, firmly held by a smiling confident child, powerfully presenting the advantages of Abeka and the spiral approach. Since the commercial’s launch, the reception has been tremendous. Abeka expressed its gratitude for the agency’s work, stating that it “makes them feel like a national brand.” Consumer interaction so far has also been very positive, with more click throughs in the digital sphere and increased site visits.

To see more Advertising Annual 2022 winners, visit graphis.com. To enter our 2023 Advertising competition, click here.