Animal Flex
Humans are amazing. We're born adaptable, and can acclimate to new environments until they become invisible–like a fish in water. This process can create a blindspot, and explains why experience often comes at a hidden cost. Work too long in one industry and you can become inured to it. This can lead to derivative thinking and mediocre results ("copycatting" is one obvious example). I always try to be conscious of this, making sure not to rely on the lexicon (textual, visual) of that space. Instead of looking inward, it's often useful to look outward and find ideas and inspiration from other industries. This is part of my normal critical thinking process, one that relies on different mental shortcuts (i.e., when others turn right, turn left).
PRODUCT | Animal Flex | X-Ray Campaign | I first read about the
work of Nick Veasey in 2009, after his first major art exhibition.
What's striking about Nick is that his work has also been used
commercially, featured in international advertising campaigns. I've
always preferred complexity in creative expression, and I found Nick's
work to be striking.
Years later, I began work on a new ad campaign for our joint support product, Animal Flex. Kicking around ideas, I remembered Veasey and his use of x-rays in photography. So I found his contact info, picked up the phone and called his U.K. number. After sketching out my ideas, he agreed to work with me. Below are a few finished ads that appeared in magazines–as both singles and spreads.
When thinking about a joint support supplement, it's easy to visualize the parts of the body that benefit, from the joints to the bones. Because Veasey's photography is very eye-catching, I just needed to make sure the copy did its job. To remain consistent with the brand, the ads featured basic compound movements everyone who trains is familiar with–along with powerful physiques that represented Animal in a way familiar to the fans.
Not unsurprisingly, Animal Flex was among our best-selling products, not
far behind Animal Pak. Animal Flex also won several BBCOM awards as the
"Best Joint Supplement"–an honor I'm still proud of to this day.
Believe it or not, I use Animal Flex reguarly–and have for the past 10 years.
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