Best of the Decade: Geico's Pre-Roll Ads Are Literally Unskippable

Through New Year's, we'll be counting down the best work of the year in TV/Film/Branded Content, Print/Outdoor/Design and Interactive/Integrated (IX) as our picks of the day. Best of the Decade We have Geico to thank for pop culture gems like the Cavemen, the Gecko and the Hump Day Camel. But the brand took its offbeat comedy into a new era with the “Unskippable” campaign from the Martin Agency. In the nearly intolerable world of online video advertising, it captured eyeballs with a series of inventive pre-roll ads that practically dared viewers to stop watching them. The films told watchers they couldn't skip them because "they're already over," since the apparent action "stopped" at the beginning of the films, which took place in mundane settings like a family dinner, an elevator, a barbecue and after hours at an office. But what subsequently ensued was so damn funny that you'd regret clicking that skip button. During the Cannes International Festival of Creativity, the film jury awarded this particular spot, "Family" as the Grand Prix winner. The campaign still serves as a reminder that any ad format—no matter how boring—can be home to a fresh, attention-grabbing message. Original Story So many of us can't wait to "skip this ad" to get to the videos we wanted to see in the first place. Geico and The Martin Agency get that. The creative shop taps into that insight for "Unskippable," the insurance brand's latest digital campaign that's tailor-made for the pre-roll format, directed by Park Pictures' Terri Timely. The figures in this set of short and sweet ads freeze just as viewers' patience begins to wear thin. A self-assured voiceover then points out that "you can't skip this ad, because it's already over." Is it really, though?

Best of the Decade: Geico's Pre-Roll Ads Are Literally Unskippable

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