"Advertising is based on one thing: happiness. And do you know what happiness is? Happiness is the smell of a new car. It's freedom from fear. It's a billboard on the side of a road that screams with reassurance that whatever you're doing is okay. You are okay."

I saw an ad at the weekend that I love. Dancing baby + Gangnam Style = My attention What an unexpected and poignant turn.  “What are you missing?” I’m sure many smokers have felt this way – when they have to pop out for a quick smoke and miss a part of a film, a hilarious conversation, or in this case, something far more important. I like how the slogan fits perfectly with the comical exaggeration, but also has a far more evocative meaning; what else will you miss apart from your grandchild’s first steps if you keep smoking? Your grandchild’s future? E-Lites are an electronic cigarette. They look like cigs, they taste like cigs, but actually have no tar, tobacco or carbon monoxide. You can legally smoke them indoors or at work without effecting or harming anyone around you. It just has a bit of nicotine in it, similar to a patch or gum – the perfect way to ween yourself off and makes giving up smoking a hell of a lot easier. For the first cigarette ad ...

So, I was driving around the one-way system the other day and nearly crashed my car when I saw this Times Square-sized poster lit up like a Christmas tree - 'Pussy: The drink's pure, it's your mind that's the problem' Oh, is it my mind that is dirty? Because I'm pretty sure the tagline is what made it into a sexual innuendo, so it automatically makes it more shocking to see 'Pussy' so boldly emblazoned. I doubt I'd have thought anything dirty if there were a picture of a cat or the suggestive name wasn't so central to the ad. It feels like a bunch of horny teenage boys made this ad, guffawing and high-fiving over the fact they got away with putting a naughty word in public and making people say it when ordering a drink. Well, that's how it kind of started out... Pussy founder, Jonnie Shearer, created the brand at college and says he got his inspiration for the name from Richard Branson's 'Virgin' brand and, as he was t...

I don’t know who first came up with the phrase, ‘ Timing is Everything ’, but it’s a damn good phrase. You can relate it to pretty much everything in life; especially if your job is in PR, stand up comedy, cooking or, as I have just realised, advertising. An ice cold drink ad in the summer, a pizza ad when you’re hungover, a double glazing ad in October, or a Thomas Cook ad on payday… all these coincidental timings are crucial to the success of an advert and the sale of a product. If ads are lucky, they will pop up at the right time when the audience is in the mood to watch them and be affected by them. But if you have a product that can be placed in the right spot, at the right time, then you should take advantage of that. Here is my personal example. The other day at 7.45am I was at my bus stop en route to work - it was Monday, it was raining, and it was cold. For those who don’t know me, I hate the cold more than world famine or war or crocs. I was miserab...