If you pause for a moment and take in your environment, chances are you’ll notice the ocean of logos, slogans, and visuals all battling for your attention. In all the clutter, many people might feel like they are becoming ad-blind, but every once in a while, a very clever marketing team will put together something creative enough to cut through the noise.

We’ve collected a series of interesting, cool, and downright brilliant advertisements from around the world, so scroll through and upvote your personal favorites. Be sure to write your thoughts below and share your favorite marketing strategies in the comments section. 

#1 Very Direct Ads From The City Of Toronto Against Littering

Image credits: the_ravenant

#2 Best Pet Adoption Ad Ever

Image credits: adultstilllearning

Despite the internet being around for decades, 2017 was the first year that online advertising surpassed non-digital ads. While this might seem surprising, given the absolute dominance of online content, marketing, and shopping, it’s more a reflection of just how cheap digital ads are, compared to physical advertisements.

After all, once you have the design and copy, you can copy-paste images until your hard drive gives out. A physical ad, for example, a billboard, has to be printed, installed, and then you generally pay a monthly rent on it. A lot more costly and not guaranteed to get as many eyes on it as a banner on the side of a well-trafficked site. 

#3 Really Great Minimalist Billboard Ad

Image credits: ibmwatsonson

#4 Effective Advertising

Image credits: Sugarkrill

#5 This “Seatbelts Save Lives” Campaign

Image credits: harschil

Since the targets of a digital ad tend to be at their computers or on other, interactive devices, clever marketers can do a lot more than just showing an image and some text. While the worst examples include flashing lights, scammy texts, or, God forbid, playing sounds, good marketing teams use the versatility of the internet to sell and raise awareness. 

#6 Italian Pasta Brand Advertisement In Honor Of Simpsons’ 30th Season

Image credits: Zioropa

#7 Organ Donation Ad

Image credits: recoveringgayfish

#8 An Advertisement For Keloptic.com – A French Website That Sells Glasses

Image credits: Gaget

For example, Volkswagen’s “The New Golf” ad was basically a puzzle game that could be played directly from your browser. In it, the “player” would be given a random assortment of tiles with roads on them, which they needed to rearrange. Not only would it draw someone’s attention, it represented the car’s ability to navigate through anything. 

#9 Advertisement, You Are Doing It Right

Image credits: reddit.com

#10 The Best Tampon Ad I’ve Ever Seen

Image credits: SplatterFrogs

#11 This Ad Is Just Beautiful

Image credits: csiramokus

Unfortunately, many banner ads are cheap, annoying, and often quite useless. As any functional site doesn’t want to scare away users, these ads will be positioned at the margins of the screen so the main content is more visible. Think about it this way, an ad on the side might be a bit irritating, but it doesn’t stop you from reading this article, a cookie recipe, or a watch-review. Compare that to how an unskippable ad on YouTube makes you feel. 

#12 Bus Stop Bench Ad. These People Know How To Advertise

Image credits: Henryrollinsjr

#13 LEGO Advertisement

Image credits: squid50s

#14 This Coffee Advertisement

Image credits: likelyculprit

Researchers have found that regular internet users have developed what they called “banner blindness.” Because digital ads are often in the same places, people’s brains start to shut out these images and just ignore them automatically. While this phenomenon was first observed in 1998, we’ve gotten even better at limiting “unnecessary” information, a vital skill when nearly all the knowledge in the universe is available at the tip of our fingers. 

#15 The Picture Of The Japanese Movie Advertisement Is Printed On Two Sides Of The Newspaper, So The Full Picture Could Be Seen Under Light

Image credits: TCLP

#16 Alzheimer Awareness Ad

Image credits: Brone9

#17 Great Advertising For A Bar

Image credits: meekoiscool

A 2015 study even found that perhaps 93% of all internet ads go unviewed. People skip banners, do something else while unskippable video ads play, and just do their best to not notice a marketing team’s work. However, advertisers have gotten better at targeting, as the click ratio has been on the rise since the early 2000s, although 1998 was one of the “best” years, with a 2% click-through rate (CTR).

#18 Child Safety Awareness Ad

Image credits: Brone9

#19 New Marmite Billboard Ad, UK

Image credits: Ellis_Pulsar

#20 Los Tacos Ad In Norway

Image credits: broseph_johnson

Of course, bigger brands understand that their image is enough to sell a product, not a description of the product itself. There are many, many energy drinks on the market, but only one is closely associated with extreme actions and literal wings. Without even saying the name, there is a solid chance you already thought about Red Bull, even if you don’t ever drink their products. 

#21 Utah Ski Resort Gets A 1-Star Review From A Guy In Los Angeles Because The Mountain Was Too Difficult. They Used The Review To Advertise

Image credits: rightcoastguy

#22 Surfrider Foundation Sushi Ad

Image credits: MultiFunctionBot

#23 Sugar-Free Chupa Chup Lollipop Ad

Image credits: DrDreidel82

While Red Bull commonly sponsors all sorts of extreme sports, that doesn’t necessarily make them special, as they are one of the many logos that snowboarders, rally drivers, and paragliders adorn themselves with. But what sets them apart from the rest is the willingness to sponsor truly extreme events, like Felix Baumgartner’s jump from space, which they organized, and then live-streamed for the world. 

#24 About Autism

Image credits: AdWorldMasters

#25 I Would Hesitate Before Jumping On Board

Image credits: PaperkutRob

#26 Local Advertising Done Right

Image credits: DrossRottenzank

The result is that almost no one else can even try to claim “extreme” credentials, as they inevitably have to now compete with a company that helped a guy fall from the stratosphere. Clothing and shoe brand Nike (as if I needed to clarify that) is also hard at work building a reputation as the company for athletes and people interested in fitness. Their Nike+ app and devices, while not at all connected to clothing, are a good example of using a product to sell the brand. 

#27 This Beer Ad

Image credits: boredpanda.com

#28 How Mercedes Benz Advertised Their Strong Headlights

Image credits: Bomber_Sam

#29 You Know The Weather Is Bad Where You Live, When Advertisers Have To Be This Clever

Image credits: benjaminmin

So while marketing might be getting a bit of a dirty name, with bombastic slogans, intrusive, targeted ads, and just overwhelming sensory attacks, this list shows that clever ideas will still actually win in the fight over our attention. If this list wasn’t enough, fear not, Bored Panda has got you covered. Check out our other list that gathers posts from the “Best Ads Of All Time” Twitter account. 

#30 IKEA Reminding Us The Importance Of Sleep

Image credits: RED_WHITE_BLUE_1776

#31 This Ad For The British Shoe Maker Clarks

Image credits: ViddyDoodah

#32 Points If You Can Relate?

Image credits: darnoux13

#33 These Ads By IKEA Recreating Living Rooms From “The Simpsons”, “Stranger Things” And “Friends”

Image credits: wetthing

#34 Creative Advertising For Copenhagen Zoo

Image credits: bertie4prez

#35 Great Ad Placement

Image credits: nthensome

#36 The Kind Of Advertisement Which Works For Me

Image credits: mighelo

#37 This Inflatable Lock Advertisement On A Storage Building

Image credits: camilleb22601

#38 Erdal Shoe Polish Ad

Image credits: hi7en

#39 To Advertise Beer From A Van

Image credits: Duck_has_no_beaks

#40 My Wife Asked Me To Make Some Ads For Our Garage Sale On Facebook. I Think I Found The Perfect Hook

Image credits: tweak06

#41 Gods Of Marketing

Image credits: lilitbroyan

#42 The Photoshop Artist For This Digital Ad For Toothpaste Needs A Raise

Image credits: LetsFindSomeTalent

#43 If He Can’t Fix It, No Juan Can

Image credits: deall008

#44 Creative Baggage Carousel Advertisement

Image credits: The_Master_of_LOLZ

#45 Advertisement For Light Dog Food

Image credits: HRH_Maddie

#46 An Advertisement On The Back Of A Bus

Image credits: cheeki_hamiltrash

#47 McDonald’s Valentine’s Day Ad

Image credits: HackerTyper_

#48 Honest Advertising

Image credits: SharkRancher

#49 This Stranger Things Ad In Warsaw, Poland

Image credits: noaxreal

#50 A Neat Ad For A Ski Company

Image credits: America810

#51 Forensic Science Ad

Image credits: jvilanova99

#52 Found This Ad For Pressure Washing

Image credits: raspberryrae410

#53 Nescafe Wakes You Up

Image credits: CashIsFlowing

#54 This Ad Popped Up In Oslo, Norway, Where Over 4.000 American Sailors From The USS Gerald R. Ford Are Set To Enjoy Their Shore Leave This Weekend

Image credits: Viking-

#55 A+ Advertisement

Image credits: trancedellic

#56 This Reddit Billboard Advertisement For Their Voting Initiative

Image credits: DJO_1988

#57 Interesting Ad For Jeep

Image credits: GlutenAttack02

#58 LEGO Campaign Developed By Asawin Tejasakulsin, Senior Art Director At Ogilvy & Mather, Bangkok

Image credits: earthmoonsun

#59 This Billboard Ad For Pond’s Anti-Bacterial Facial Scrub

Image credits: morganmonroe81

#60 “Carry Heavy Attachments” Yahoo Mail, 2012

Image credits: Rivalry

#61 This Alzheimer’s Awareness Ad

Image credits: hiimcoleman

#62 This IKEA Crib Ad That Is Also A Pregnancy Test. A Positive Test Also Reveals A Discounted Price

Image credits: kmap1221

#63 This Ad

Image credits: Lutix_Tachyon

#64 Czech Advertisement For Budweiser

Image credits: FHayek

#65 This LinkedIn Ad

Image credits: brooklondon

#66 Ad For Bubble Tea In Sydney

Image credits: readerbynight

#67 Haha, Good Advertising KFC

Image credits: cantosp

#68 Ad On London Underground

Image credits: reddit.com

#69 One Of The Best Ads I’ve Ever Seen

Image credits: Jorster

#70 Noodle Restaurant Ads. Ingenious

Image credits: FluffyPandaMan

#71 A Court Mop That Advertises Cup Noodles

Image credits: jav_city

#72 Well, That’s One Way To Market To Millennials

Image credits: BookerDeWittsCarbine

#73 Best Ad I’ve Ever Seen On Campus

Image credits: Bugsy403

#74 Very Creative Idea For Advertisement

Image credits: MoOsT1cK

#75 Nature + Advertising = This Gem

Image credits: TommieTheTurd

#76 This McDonald’s Ad I Came Across

Image credits: KrewpoleioTakhs69

#77 Advertising Done Right

Image credits: mperez4855

#78 Next Level Advertising

Image credits: tacticaglobal

#79 I Love Clever Advertising. This One Is For Wide-Angle Lenses

Image credits: Bukinnear

#80 This Ad For The New Dodge Demon Is Simply The Letter From The NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Telling Them It’s Too Fast To Be Allowed

Image credits: Sepulvadorc

#81 A Neat Ad For A Ski Company

#82 For People Who Want To Lose Weight And Stay In Shape – [880×638]

Source: boredpanda.com