We often write about bigger brands, so it's good to remind ourselves (and our readers) about what smaller brand marketers are doing on (naturally) smaller budgets to keep their brands top of mind.

Forget showing paid-to-be-happy employees talking about how much they love their jobs slinging pizza. Anthony's Pizza & Pasta, which operates 26 franchise locations in Denver, Colo., has the real take on good local pizza. Its latest local branding effort is broken up into two campaigns, each containing five 15-second commercials that can be mixed and matched.

One is called "Bad Comedy," which features a pizza slice telling jokes into a mic, but the jokes don't cut it. Each failed joke is followed by "Pizza shouldn't be a joke." The other one is called "Good Pie," which features Anthony's chefs preparing and cooking pizzas, with lines like "Most fast food chains don't toss their pizza. Why? Because it requires skill." All end with the tagline "Hand tossed by the slice, or by the pie," and "Anthony's authentic New York-style pizza."

It's not just a ploy to sell more pie to Mile High residents, but to see whether TV is the more cost effective medium for the chain which, prior to the TV switch, mostly used outdoor and transit advertising. Creative credits go to Anthony's agency, Cultivator, including creative director/copywriter Tim Abare, art directors Jeremy Pruitt and Chris Beatty, and copywriter Jen Reis. The campaign's director is Bret Bertholf of Denver-based production company Incite Films.

We'll keep you posted how the campaign goes, but any feedback you'd want to share with Anthony's and its agency, post your thoughts in the comments below.

On Nov. 4, 2010, Microsoft launched Kinect worldwide. A year later, a new Microsoft commercial, above, showcases the 'Kinect Effect,' showing how its motion-controlled gaming device has evolved into a product with much broader potential social impact.  

“We started with a sensor that turned voice and movement into magic. We thought: "This will be fun to play with" and it was. Something amazing was happening, the world was starting to imagine things we hadn't even thought of,” says the V/O from Oscar-winner Forest Whitaker.Continue reading...

This week, Old Navy launches its 2011 holiday marketing campaign, which "invites customers to 'Come fun, Come all' and experience the secret source of all Old Navy fun — the place where the brand's quirkiest ideas are born and tested."

The "magical tour of where the brand's fun and quirky ideas are born and tested" is called "Funnovations Inc."

It's a way for Old Navy to breathe a little excitement into the brand by giving consumers a look at, and some input into, its product pipeline. The only question is if Old Navy used its Researchovations department to see if the Willy Wonka-esque "Funnovations" was already trademarked. (Hint: It is.)Continue reading...

"For decades, the popular image of Mormon style has been shaped by clean-cut young missionaries on bicycles in dark suits, white shirts and skinny black ties — and more recently by the sculptured coif of the presidential candidate Mitt Romney or the sporty style of the motocross-bike-riding Jon Huntsman, another Republican presidential candidate," the New York Times recently noted.

But now, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is trying to humanize the members of the Mormon Church and show people that all different types of people are members as well as to help others see how the Church differentiates from other forms of Christianity. As part of the LDS push to humanize its brand, Brandon Flowers, lead singer of The Killers, agreed to appear in the family-centric video at top.Continue reading...

In times of economic and political uncertainty, authenticity takes a front seat in many marketing campaigns, like BDO’s "Eleven Time Zones" spot above. The brand’s tagline, “People who know, know BDO,” reinforces the message that it’s the insider’s choice.

BDO is the sixth 6th largest accounting firm, smaller compared to the Big Four, $1 billion versus $10 billion, respectively, but its latest TV advertising from Seiter & Miller, turns that to advantage; an alternative to the Big Four, with a successfully different culture.Continue reading...

With U.S. life insurance ownership at a 50-year low and one third of households having no protection at all, Massachusetts Life Insurance Company (better known as MassMutual) launches its antidote with “Why Life Insurance?” a new campaign featuring kids as the spokespeople.

The campaign leverages online video and social media to create a light hearted approach to a serious matter by using kids to take control of the discussion, interviewing agents, evaluating and purchasing plans and quizzing adults on their insurance know-how.Continue reading...

Cigna’s “Go You” campaign theme, “You were born an original. Make sure you stay that way,” is pitch perfect for an industry reinventing itself as consumers prepare for the health-overhaul laws that will require most Americans to carry health insurance by 2014.

Maggie FitzPatrick, Chief Communications Officer for Cigna, told brandchannel that their customers “want to be treated as individuals. Our surveys show that people place tremendous value on personalization and being in control.  This sense of control applies to both their health and health care costs.”Continue reading...

In other comedian/car brand hook-up news comes word of Toyota's deadpan new campaign for the Yaris, featuring comedian Michael Showalter (of Wet Hot American Summer quasi-fame) in eight spots.

The campaign is described on the Yaris Facebook page as "It's a car! Using only the most standardly standards, the standard features that come standard on the Yaris make it the car-iest car in its class (of cars). Go ahead! Take a gander and bask in its utilitarian extravagance!"

He touts a different "feature" in each spot, from the wheels on up, on a microsite (toyota.com/itsacar) that also features a multiplayer game optimized for Google Chrome. Check them out below.Continue reading...