Audi_fail BMW advertising

This one will go viral…

Great Viral Ads no. 25: The iPhone + iStalk

Here’s another great example of how YouTube’s being used to distribute parodies of classic adverts.

This spoof iPhone ad has had more than 500,000 views since its release on 21st August:

Emirates aren’t the only carrier to trash luggage and not care

Our own story starts in Dubai – the overnight stop between our Mauritius honeymoon and London Heathrow.

Both pieces of our luggage were destroyed by Emirates, including an ‘indestructible’ Samsonite case, which was broken so badly that many of the items within were also broken or had fallen out. We were offered replacements (each worth a fraction of the replacement value), but had to fight to keep our damaged luggage.

On leaving Dubai with all four cases, the ground staff were mostly polite, except, sadly, the supervisor, who refused to be of any help, insisting that we should pay around £300 for going overweight (the weight only of the new cases, of course). We had to leave one of the cases behind.

Speaking to baggage crews at Heathrow, it seems that Dubai is well known for wrecking luggage and is not subject to the same camera surveillance of most international airports.

Three months later and there is still no sign of our bags, compensation or even any correspondence from Emirates, despite continued attempts to contact the airline. And we’re still around £800 out of pocket.

But, we’re not alone!

Here’s a song, posted on YouTube about a similar incident involving United Airlines and a guitar worth $3,500. This video became an overnight hit and United’s share price fell by 15% almost instantly.

‘People of Walmart’ is viral hit

Warning!

If you shop in Walmart (we only have ASDAs here, to the best of my knowledge) and you look, well, different, then you could be the subject of a new viral craze – photographing oddballs in the supermarket.

People of Walmart is a compilation of photos of shoppers with long nails, strange hair or a bizarre dress sense. Worth a look. And it’s gone viral this week.

It was the subject of a Time magazine article on Monday, and has been up and down since its ‘discovery’ by the media, through sheer weight of traffic.

It’s not a new concept – do you remember Hot Chicks with Douchebags, which is still always worth a look if you need a laugh?

Great Viral Ads no. 24: Heineken Walk-in Wardrobes

This Heineken ad from Holland’s been all over the Internet for several weeks, notching up tens of thousands of views on YouTube.

This is a far less popular, but much better quality version of the same thing.

Great Viral Ads no. 23: Bond Wins It All in Casino Royale

Spot the Tell Poker logo – inserted into this scene of Casino Royale for viral distribution on YouTube.

(Don’t bother watching to the end – Tell Poker ruin it with less subliminal marketing in the last few seconds).

Great Viral Ads no. 22: Guy Catches Laptop With His Butt

Thank you mashable for bringing this MSI Computers viral ad to the world’s attention, through the power of Twitter…

So far, it has accrued more than 75,000 views in just a few days… but then again, the title is too good to pass over without clicking

Great Viral Ads no. 21: Project Natal (new Microsoft Xbox 360)

Project Natal really is the future of gaming. Think Wii, without the controller.

And there’s more – the platform is even richer than gaming and entertainment. Developers Lionhead Studios claim that personal relationships can be formed through the Xbox 360. Here’s a demonstration of the character ‘Milo’ interacting with the real world.

Great Viral Ads no. 20: Muslim Demographics – the changing face of Europe

With 10-million views in 4 months, Muslim Demographics, posted on YouTube by friendofmuslim is a classic example of a viral video. Searching on YouTube for videos with keywords like ‘Muslim Europeans’ and ‘future of Europe’ doesn’t reveal this particular video on page one of YouTube search results, suggesting that the web address itself has been emailed, or the video has been embedded time and time again.

As it happens, the facts are not accurate: while there may be 2.5m muslims in the UK now, the increase in population hasn’t been quite so explosive as the video suggests: According to Dr Andrew Hinde, a demographer at Southampton University, from the 1981 census, those born in Pakistan and Bangladesh in the UK alone numbered 300,000.

25% of the Belgian population isn’t muslim – the actual figure is more like 6%.

And to suggest that muslim women produce 8.1 offspring is hokum – according to 2008 UN figures, the average for Moroccan and Algerian muslims is much lower, at 2.38.

But the real issue is why this video has been distributed and subsequently viewed 10m times. It’s inaccurate, it’s inflammatory and doesn’t it remind you just a little bit of anti-Semitic propaganda in the 1930s?

More here: More Or Less, Muslim Demographics on BBC Radio 4, 8pm Sunday or online

Great Viral Ads no. 19: Between wanting a Porsche & owning one

A TV spot that’s gained traction on the web.

At 3 minutes, it’s long enough for a viral, but doesn’t feel like it…