Getting your Z's on the Go

Although sleeping is a necessity for all humans, neglecting the need for enough sleep is a common practice among many adults…especially professionals.

Some just can’t get enough sleep at night because their lives are filled with obligations that consume more than 18 hours of the day. Wouldn’t it be nice to get a 20 minute power nap once in a while without having to spend all the time of going home, getting undressed and relentlessly trying to slow down your mind?

Two guys took notice to this market and created a system to allow business professionals or anyone who needs it to enjoy a mid-day nap in the ideal atmosphere for earning a decent rest. Metronaps is showing up all over the world in hospitals, airports, offices and anywhere that someone might have the need for a quick snooze.

Although each ‘pod’ costs around $8,000 at $14 a nap, this money is returned quickly. What a brilliant idea! These idealists have partnered with organizations to create “nap only” institutions around major cities including New York, London and Dubai. These nap stations are marketed towards business professionals, located in the heart of business districts in major cities and provide a “freshening up” center to clean up your breath and face before returning to that important meeting.

The idea came from two professionals in the financial industry that took notice to afternoons in the office full of sleepy and lethargic employees. They gave up their careers and invested in the venture to devise an ideal napping environment. They knew that their idea would take off due to the statistics of sleep-deprived professionals. Several studies show that over 50% of working professionals are sleep deprived and that small power naps can have serious positive effects on short term and long term health and most importantly, brain efficiency.

Not only are these “napping clubs" present in major cities but corporations are buying the metronap pods to keep in the office permanently. The company widely known for their positive work environment and high employee moral, Google, bought a few metronap pods to keep employees rejuvenated throughout the stressful work day. The pods are available for purchase by individuals or corporations.


The pods provide a perfectly ergonomical place to rest your head but they also include features to help you get the most out of your nap. Calming music soothes you to sleep and you can request certain scents as well. The pod doesn't wake you up with a harsh alarm but with a series of dim flashing lights and a mild vibration. Just writing about this makes me want to try one of these pods!

This avantgarde product might not change the world but as metronaps continues to make money and help people feel more rested, it makes difference and has a positive effect on the health of overworked professionals around the globe.

RedBull Says 'Jump' and We Say, 'How High?'

Sponsoring famous athletes is one of the best and often most expensive marketing tools. The biggest stars in world-known sports like football, basketball and Formula1 are real heroes for a wide range of people. These individuals represent something unique and certainly all the big brands know this. Some stars embody the brands’ key communication messages. Just think about the world cup’s Nike “Write the future” ad with Cristiano Ronaldo: simply the best - this is what Nike wants to say. Although the campaigns are effective, this type of sponsorship costs an extremely large sum of money and there are many competing companies in each sport market. So what can a brand do if its aim is to sponsor as a marketing tactic but doesn’t want to get lost in a completely penetrated market? RedBull knows the answer.

The energy drink giant noticed that the most effective way of marketing is doing something spectacular to raise the public’s interest. By choosing this method, the company started to invest in various types of extreme sports. Not just on an individual or team level; comprehensively into the whole world of dangerous but spectacular sports. Their flags are everywhere, from small snowboard shows to the most well-known technical air races. With a brilliant sense of business and communication RedBull has become the first brand to support an entire sport market.

Of course, the phenomenon fits perfectly into RedBull’s brand messages: almost all the sponsored parties are doing something unbelievable and full of adrenaline, for instance Crashed Ice. Or the "10 biggest and best jumps ever" video, a selection of the craziest and more daring jumps recorded in the history of mankind. You get the feeling that they have and you want to have the same…or at least something similar. The video is not an official ad, but the RedBull brand appears 6 times, meaning they are on the right track. This strategy made them one of the world’s best lifestyle brands.




It has an inestimable value: almost everyone that is attracted to extreme sports knows RedBull is his friend. With this communication strategy the brand has achieved more than just sympathy from potential costumers: it is almost a “common thought” that the company is behind everything that is related to extreme sports. By choosing this method of communication they reach many young potential costumers who are presumably in a good financial situation. The numbers speak for themselves: they have more than 12 million fans on their FaceBook site. To put it in context: the world’s 5th most valuable brand, Coca Cola has 19 million fans but another well known giant, Nike has only 3 million.

RedBull is a leading company: they are in the core position of the energy drink market and their communication activity is worth the spending. A completely innovative approach: placing the brand as a monopolistic sponsor of a sport market. They have achieved their goal- if you watch extreme sports on TV or on the web and you don’t notice any brand or logo, odds are RedBull is behind it. The marketing and PR teams did a great job: your brain associates a certain brand with videos of a phenomenon. Ruling the entire image of a genre of sports? Avantgarde thinking.

The Delicate Balance of Work and Heavy Metal Life

Everyone knows that it’s difficult to balance a career and a family but Bruce Dickinson, lead singer of the famous metal band, Iron Maiden, has added another facet to this challenge by expanding his career in the business sector. This famous, 52-year-old musician not only balances his rock star career and family life but now serves as the Marketing Director of Astraeus, a Gatwick-based charter airline where he has served as a pilot for several years. Where does he find the time?

The airline decided to expand its commercial team to see more growth in the market and with Dickinson’s straight forward communication skills they believe he is just the man for the job. Dickinson claims that taking this position is somewhat of a natural occurrence for him and that he will not cease to tour with his band.

It seems from the airline’s communication that they really don’t see this hiring decision as a big deal. It’s only the millions of Iron Maiden fans that feel the shock. Is it possible that this rocker’s entire career was filled with down time of striving for corporate life? Were this man’s days spent getting to know the aviation industry inside and out so that one day he could wear a suit and tie to work every day instead of a black leather vest? It’s unimaginable for most but guess what? He is not the only one.

Here at Avantgarde Group we have a similar situation as our own marketing director is the lead singer in a rock band. Actually I have come to know several business professionals that rock out pretty hard on their free time. Is there some direct correlation between cut-throat business and front man characteristics? Well, I’ll tell you it’s no coincidence. Businessmen and women tend to have excellent communication and leadership skills. Business professionals must also exude a certain level of confidence and have the ability to ‘perform’ their trade in front of many people. Does a front man of a band need to possess these qualities as well? Yep.

Maybe it’s the inherent need to feed an alternative part of the self. If you wear a suit and tie all day, don’t you want to loosen it up and go crazy on your free time? Doesn’t everyone need this balance? Maybe it took Bruce Dickinson 40 years to realize that he needs this other aspect of life but it’s never too late! Props to him for following his ‘other’ dream and making it a reality!

It is extremely avantgarde to have the ability to balance such a double-life. It takes courage to take on the scrutiny of being both a band’s front man and a working professional. I think we can all take some advice from Bruce Dickinson on how to successfully maintain a multi-faceted existence.

Vietnam's Small Steps Towards Green

As global warming and deforestation has caused an increase in awareness for the protection of the environment, some communities are joining the brigade on a local level. Hearing all of the hype about “going green” makes us all want to do something but what can one person really do? Cities in Vietnam joining a corporate partner seem to have the right strategy.

The Ministry of Education and Training, the Vietnam Environment Protection Agency and the local governments of Hai Noi, HCM City and Da Nang have partnered with Toyota and other non-profit community organizations to carry out the “Toyota Vietnam Go Green Program” which calls students, volunteers and other community members to join the efforts of saving energy and creating a more green Vietnam.

Toyota developed a website to support the initiative with interactive trivia, local event posts and forums allowing the public to get involved in the project. The campaign promotes awareness which in turn, leads to action. The message takes “going green” down to a basic level, encouraging community members to start with small habits such as turning off the faucet when not using it or making sure energy is not wasted in homes. In addition, “Go Green” will help the central Da Nang University to research and use biogas fuel for power generation at breeding farms in central provinces.

The campaign advertisements contain short messages, such as ‘Remember to Tighten Me’ (to be pasted on water taps), ‘Clean Before Using’ (to be pasted on microwave ovens and irons), and ‘Turn off the Screen When Not in Use’ (to be pasted on TV screens and computer monitors). These low-cost tactics are aimed to create new practices in the community, creating a more environmentally friendly Vietnam.

The campaign hosts events each weekend, calling to action local volunteers to get their hands dirty to help the environment. In local schools, “Go Green Clubs” and other after school activities support the project from a younger generation. Toyota is also funding local awards for “Green Ideas” and office initiatives that significantly reduce energy consumption.

The campaign is a three-year long program that reaches out to several communities in Vietnam. If only every community could organize an initiative like this? We can learn from this program that awareness and a small effort from individuals can make a huge difference. Find a corporate partner, gather up some volunteers and turn your community green!

Artificial Leaves Save the Planet?

100% natural, it writes. The product is 80% recyclable. No animals were harmed, no forests were cut, but keep it away from children. Why? This is what we hear and read each day while trying to stay as eco-friendly as possible. Somehow aren't managing to do so and if we ever do it could be too late.

Dandelion Environmental Consulting and Service Ltd.'s, new service calculated our ecological footprint and according to their report an average Hungarian person would need over 1.5 Earths for the lifestyle they live and for the pollution they create. Hungarians are not the worst…

Without crucifying any nation, let’s just say that any of us who sits on a plane or drives a car helps CO2 emissions which penetrate the atmosphere and will warm our planet for many years. Reforesting the whole planet would not help either because the decaying trees release carbon as well.

According to Klaus Lackner and Allen Wright, the solution could be something they call artificial trees. There's that word artificial again.

In Lackner’s lab at Columbia University he and colleague Allen Wright are experimenting with a type of plastic (artificial leaves). The plastic is a resin of the kind used to pull calcium out of water in a water softener. When Lackner and Wright impregnate that resin with sodium carbonate, it pulls carbon dioxide out of the air. The extra carbon converts the sodium carbonate to bicarbonate, or baking soda.

Yay! Sounds overly interesting and quite incomprehensible for those who never really mastered the science of chemistry (like myself).

So now will we plant artificial trees all over the planet? And what would we do with the trapped gas, to where would be it released?

The two scientists have an answer for that too. We add hydrogen to the CO2 that we collected and convert it back into liquid hydrocarbons. If the energy for that came from renewable sources, engines that burned the fuel would emit no new carbon. The key here is to produce no new carbon, I suppose.

We could keep our cars and gas stations and maybe even have bigger cars and planes and still prevent Sweden from becoming an orange plantation. Maybe our ecological footprint could be narrowed down to one!

This situation reminds me of a South Park episode where the citizens were asked not to poop because the ozone layer was in danger. Those who did that ended up spontaneous combusting, so the idea was dismissed and people were asked to continue their everyday lives moderately.

If we look at the artificial leaves and trees from this aspect it seems like the optimal solution. We should continue living our lives, of course, try to be a bit “greener” day by day, but also work on a solution that prevents us from giving up too much of what we created, which is totally against human nature.

My Faith, My Voice Campaign Speaks Out

Discrimination and hate crimes persist all over the world, even in countries that pride themselves on democracy. Recently coming to light in the United States is the hate campaign of Muslims due to the plans to build a mosque near the site of the 9/11 attacks in New York city. An uproar of protests continue near the building site, fueling American Muslims' decision to speak out.



The group, labeled My Faith, My Voice is an non-affiliated organization aimed to dissolve stereotypes linked to the Islamic faith and educate the American public about previous misconceptions. Not only are they visiting the ground zero site to protest the hate campaign, they have decided to both digitally and on television, create an educational campaign to promote understanding and tolerance.

The campaign highlights the peaceful nature of the Islamic faith and individual American Muslims who follow the Quran. The Youtube video channel linked to this campaign allows individuals to create videos from their own computers, telling their own stories of following Islam. This personal approach reaches out to the hearts of the American public and asks for empathy and compassion.

This year is especially conflicting as the Muslim fasting practice, Ramadan will come to an end on September, 11th, the anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the twin towers in New York. Muslims all over the United States have decided to respectfually celebrate the end of this holy month on the 10th of September to avoid an uproar of protest groups. Despite the efforts of Muslims to avoid confrontation many conservative Americans continue to organize discriminatory practices, such as "International Burn a Quran Day."

Americans seem to misunderstand themselves, in this regard. These conservative Christians supposedly preach peace and understanding of others yet they hold discrimatory events to destroy the sacred word of another religion? Maybe the efforts and funding for this hate campaign could be used as well as "My Faith, My Voice" to educate and inform the public of their own practices. The discrepancy is obvious: those who preach understanding should practice understanding and tolerance.

The "My Faith, My Voice" campaign should be an example to all for how to fight discrimination with education and peace. It may not reach and change the mind of every American bigot but the word is getting out and will most likely have an affect on the hearts and minds of many non-Muslims living the US.

The Future of Transportation

Throughout the 20th century mankind has solved many problems by speeding up life and as a result the whole planet has become a „bustling hive”. The main characteristic of this era is everything moving at a much more rapid speed than it used to. Just think about how much more time it took to buy a special book a hundred years ago by sending letters to the publishing house and of nowdays via internet or how long it took to cook your lunch in 1915 and now in 2010 made of pre-prepared ingredients.

These changes manifested quite visibly in public transportation and trucking as well. In the 19th century the most modern ways of transportation were to go by ship, cart or landau. When trains appeared, this mode of transportation became famous in a short time. Eventually, automobiles and airplanes took over the lead of the transportation industry and continues to stay at the forefront.

With new methods appearing in the system, older solutions became less and less fashionable. Landaus and carts totally dissapeared –except romantic rides in Vienna- and it is a delicate experience to go somewhere by ship these days and nost of the time long-distance journeys are made by airplane. For a while it looked like train transport would be a part of the history ending in the 21th century.

Although trains were previously thought to be out of fashion, they got another chance from Japan (Tohoku Shinkansen), France (TGV) and England (Eurostar, La Manche Tunnel). These high-speed trains entered in the competition and were greeted by travelers with open arms and minds. These lines were and are linking cities mostly within their borders, with train routes for longer journeys not being the most efficient solution.

Now there is a country planning to make a revolution in train transportation – you can bet which one it is. One of the most innovative and definitly the fastest developing land, China is planning to connect London and Beijing by a High Speed Rail Link in 2020. The rail line will fly through 17 countries at speeds reaching 200miles per hour. The whole journey will take approximately two days.

Inside the country China already uses the technique, for instance Shinghai Airport is linked with the city center by a High Speed Rail called Maglev. China incorporates their own benefits in business with the countries the rail line goes through: they will build the infrastructure in exchange for rights to natural resources in the nations that benefit from the high-speed links. At the same time, China gets a fast, efficient means to pipe them to cities within its borders and smaller, sometimes isolated nations get a high-tech, high-speed connection to the greater global economy.

There are many goals and advantages of rail transport. First of all, it is the most environmentally friendly solution, it carries many people and loads and at the same time it’s calculable. It looks like the future of transportation is in the past.

Bravery or a Death Wish?

Ed Stafford, a 34-year-old former British army captain recently returned to England from a 27-month excursion over the entire length of the Amazon river. His efforts were meant to raise awareness for deforestation in the Amazon rainforest while facing and digitally capturing the highlights and dangers of the area in his blog.


The story here is this guy's overwhelming quest to do something out of the ordinary, never done before and consequently, avant garde. 859 days of walking, fifteen pounds less and I'm sure a world of experience richer the man returned home after conquering a feat that others could only dream of.


The respect to be paid to this man should come from his bravery but does raising awareness for deforestation really call for walking the length of the Amazon? How are these two linked? Is it just a form of egoism? Does he really want to make an impact on deforestation or does he want other people to see what he has done, praise him for it and then later pay him to speak about it/write about it?

I'm conflicted. Yes, this is a very amazing accomplishment but what's the need to put your life into danger only to raise awareness to a certain area? He could have gone down to do a month long project with a tribe in the Amazon to raise awareness. If he is already a well established motivational speaker and writer (which he claims to be) why would he need to walk the entire Amazon river to gain media attention?


Some people just need these kinds of thrills. Everyone has their reasons but when does it become too much? When does it become too dangerous? When do you start writing your own death wish?

I must admit I am in awe of this guy but would like to understand his motives a bit better. Not everyone can spend two years in the Amazon-for that I commend him. Maybe I will pay to see him speak one day?

Hungary- A biker's paradise?

15-20 years ago riding a bike in Budapest meant you were a bohemian artist or a student. Many things have changed the number of bikers is increasing day-to-day and many events take place to promote and demonstrate the advantages of pedaling around the country. We can say with conviction that the hype surrounding biking all over Europe has finally arrived to Hungary as well.

In the last few years many researchers have tried to assess the Hungarian pedaling society. Most of them focus on the changes in the number of bike riders in cities and villages. A recent survey made by the Hungarian Bicycle Club claims that 47% of the entire Hungarian population over the age of 15 used bicycles for transportation in May, 2010. That means almost every second person rode that month! Interestingly, riding a bike is more common in the countryside than in Budapest: this proportion was only 18% in the capital, according to the survey. The main reason behind this phenomenon could be that a bicycle has always been a common means of transportation in smaller settlements and has not changed during the years, while in Budapest it has never been a wide-spread instrument of moving from A to B- at least not until the millenium.

Nowdays if you go around Budapest in the city center you’ll see many different types of bikers: businessmen in suits going to work, young guys doing tricks at Gödör or ladies leaving for their everyday shopping on bikes. The amount of bike users in Budapest is rising, no doubt. To measure that, an official counter was set up at the Astoria intersection in June. This machine was used to calculate the number of bikers that pass. At the end of an average day the display was around 1000 bikers. There are many movements (i.e. Critical Mass) demonstrating that there is a will to build up a biker community in Hungary.

According to another survey, the younger the respondent’s age, the more optimistic they are regarding the future of biking in Hungary. It seems promising for the youngsters. Promising because if this tendency does not stop, there will be an increasing number of people with positive attitudes among bikers. That assumes Hungary won't step away from the road that takes the country to being a bike-friendly home.

New ways of communication open new ways of travel

My grandfather used to travel around the country with no specific destination. He just wanted to see a region so he got on a train, got off at a village and started to ask around: Good morning sir, do you know any place to stay in this village? What is the specialty in this region? Do you know a good place to eat around here? What is worth seeing here?

This was in the 60’s in Hungary. My grandfather had the best times while traveling and he also had the best stories. So does Andrew Nelson, who, according to his article that appeared in National Geographic Traveler, visited Miami by taking advice from only locals. However, his ways of communicating to locals was different. It was word of mouth, but this time – digital. While grandpa took the advice of the first stranger he met on the street, Nelson trusted the first tweet that he received on his Twitter account where he announced he wanted advice for this special holiday of his. Hungry for a good sandwich or hungry for some local music? Just tweet your desire and Ping, ping! You get the best recommendation from your local followers. Twitter revitalized the way of being a tourist for him and it served as his very own digital Lonely Planet for the day; an alternative one. Many of us kind of hate to be the touristy tourists, we want to have adventures and we want to do “as the Romans do in Rome”. What better way than taking the advice of your local tweet-friends who make a sport of recommending the best places?

After hanging out in Miami for a couple of days following local tweets, Nelson put down his Blackberry and choose the old fashioned way and invited his digital advisors for a drink at a bar that was recommended to him on Twitter. Summing up his trip he said, “It's a happy table of 11 Miamians and one out-of-towner who have decided that Twitter is where it's @.”

Testing for a Better Quality of Life?

In the past few years, genetic testing has become a bit of a commodity. These tests can potentially prevent diseases and provide doctors with detailed information in case of a threat to the body. It's a genius idea- the ability to assess the genetic make-up of an individual. For research purposes, this is a huge breakthrough in the medical field but should it really be available for the average consumer? Should these tests be covered by insurance? Many professionals think so and more and more are jumping in the genetic testing bandwagon.

The market for these tests is still the relatively wealthy but as the health industry creates more hype around this phenomenon the more “average” people consider it. Although there are no dangers to the test itself, is the idea of the testing dangerous? Are we all just too interested in having the perfect health, the perfect life, the perfect child?

These genetic tests are not only used for preventative health but sometimes when considering procreation in an attempt to avoid a child with a tendency to certain illnesses. I see the point here- why would you want to make a baby with someone if the chances of the baby having down’s syndrome are 90%? Ok, it’s a preventative measure but does this go against nature?

I see these tests as a danger to society in general and as only feeding hypochondriacs and the pharmaceutical-obsessed world that is increasing at a rapid pace. Of course in certain situations I see genetic testing as a great alternative to using the trial and error method. For instance, if someone is suffering from intense symptoms and their doctor can't figure out the problem, the test could prove very useful. The tests are sometimes used to see if a person receiving an organ would be likely to reject it- also a useful situation. For every day people that struggle with feeling perfect? Not necessary.

The genetic testing companies are now focusing on their ability to provide guidance when choosing medication for psychological disorders including depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. There is a current “pharmaceutical challenge” ailing psychiatrists all over the world as they are finding it difficult to know which drug to prescribe to which patient. The companies are claiming that with a genetic test a psychiatrist is more likely to understand which medication would work for your brain. Again, these "depressed" people may only find that the genetic test gives them even more disconcerting information. Many tested have found problems in their body they didn't even know about previously. Couldn't this lead to anxiety? The Mayo Clinic recently posted an article concerning genetic testing creating more anxiety for people that think they may have cancer. Is someone facing bad or maybe life-threatening health problems in a position to handle even more bad news from a genetic test?

Why are we, as humans chasing a perfect life? Why are we all obsessed with feeling good all the time? Should we accept life and take its twists and turns without trying to “fix” ourselves constantly? It seems that these concerns and efforts are creating even more anxiety and potentially leading to more health problems. Has anyone ever considered that it's better not to know? Ignorance is, in fact, bliss.

Genetic Testing is a very avant garde idea but does it represent our desire to live forever in perfect contentment? I think we should contemplate why we feel the need for these tests. My suggestion is that we should all accept our fate, our lives and the situation we were given when placed on this earth.

World Cup Gets Social

The rise of Social Media influenced both our personal and corporate lives, daily routines and the way we watch the World Cup in 2010. The great brands integrate social channels in their communication and come up with great strategies building their concept for this worldwide event. It’s somehow paradox though, that while on the corporate side the brands use Social Media during the World Cup to reach their target groups but some main players of the sport event are banned from it.

Teams from Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Holland, Germany, Argentina and England are forbidden to use social services such as Twitter. Marcelo Bielsa, the coach of Chile even banned all social networking and non-social Internet use during the evening. There are some exceptions like Kaka, who could use twitter to connect with their fans which was impossible during the last world cup in 2006, as Twitter didn’t exist.

Another interesting aspect of Social Media is to see how the digital evolution really took place through the example of the World Cup’s history. In 2002, the World Cup in Korea and Japan was the first to use the Internet by creating websites for teams and tournaments.

By the next World Cup in 2006 Myspace was the ruling social site especially in the US, with Adidas creating a Myspace site featuring video and exclusive content. Meanwhile Coca Cola published a blog to track two unofficial World Cup mascots. In Hungary, the dominating social platform, iwiw.hu (still number one in 2010) set off its World Cup bet game on the network. Nike and Google launched “the first social network for football fans worldwide,” Joga.com.
This year, although neither Nike or Pepsi are official sponsors of the worldcup, Nike’s "Write the Future" video broke the record for the biggest audience in the first week of a campaign with 7.8 million views, and Pepsi’s "Oh Africa" spent seven weeks on the Viral Chart.

The number one in using social media this year was Budweiser, always a big sponsor for all serious sporting events. The massive campaign placed 32 fans from all 32 World Cup countries under one roof in South Africa. Users voted for the fan from their country to show their support and also influence the actions of the house members. Bud’s YouTube channel is the 4th most watched since the beginning of the World Cup. The reality show style campaign on YouTube is a first. Bud United also includes a popular iPhone app and a profile pic designer on Facebook.

Nike’s first World Cup ad launched on Facebook and has dominated Social Media as neither an official sponsor nor a partner of the games. The video launched on May 20th has over 14 million views on YouTube and is getting picked up on blogs as the best use of media during the games by any brand.

Pepsi’s “Oh Africa” features athlete super stars Messi, Kaka, Drogba, Lampard, Henry, and singer/songwriter Akon. Their Facebook Page is nicely integrated, while the YouTube channel is thriving with millions of views from fans in love with Pepsi athletes. Pepsi Max Football Hero is impressive.

Coke is showcasing viral football videos on YouTube and their official partnership allows fans to listen to music, submit celebrations and win video awards. Coke created multiple widgets and a new microsite in addition to a custom YouTube channel for Powerade. These user-generated videos have millions of views. Despite this wild success, we question the minimal integration with Facebook and Twitter.


VISA has built a YouTube-based campaign encouraging fans to submit a video shouting “Goal!”. This popular cheer has inspired fans of all nations to submit a variety of impressive imitations. As an incentive to watch the videos throughout its site, VISA has placed “golden cards” among the submissions. When clicked on, the fan has a chance to win a trip to South Africa or $100 VISA cards. The more the user watches the videos, the more likely they are to see the cards.

Adidas is putting all their focus on soccer’s grandest stage. Fans can win Adidas prizes by recruiting other fans, voting on which players will perform the best, and simply visiting the custom Facebook tab which houses a slick Flash app.

Sony mounted a creative campaign where users can film themselves doing the wave. Each submission is then added to Sony’s website which features an endless World Cup wave. They called in NBA superstar Steve Nash to promote the effort. The website features Facebook’s new “Like” button and the Facebook app boasts over 23k monthly users. Campaign integration with Twitter and Facebook Page leaves room for improvement.


The video game giant is utilizing social media to pump up sales during the World Cup. The brand encourages fan interaction on Twitter and has amassed a strong following on Facebook. EA Sports has also partnered with Coca-Cola on select ads. EA’s YouTube videos rank 3rd most viewed in the UK and its channel is the 32nd most subscribed to of all-time. EA also partnered with Playfish to roll out its first Facebook game - FIFA Superstars.

The British oil company is not wasting this rare chance to connect with football fans. Castrol activated Facebook and Twitter accounts to interact with fans by providing an in-depth means to monitor player performance. Fans are able to choose their favorite teams and players to follow. Castrol has also created an iPhone app that supports its campaign with player, team, and opponent predictors. A dedicated microsite was also created for this campaign and the World Cup.

An official sponsor of the England National team, the British brewery has created this campaign to give fans a chance to talk their beloved side while winning free Carlsberg to drink during the World Cup. The official website links directly to the campaign’s YouTube channel. This campaign features all three major platforms, but Carlsberg could have benefited from more frequent fan interaction on Twitter by identifying and reaching out to English futbol influencers.

UK based brand, Continental held a YouTube contest for fans to tell them what lengths they would go to be at the World Cup. Fan interaction continued on Facebook with a game called ContiTireKick where users shoot on goal for entry into a sweepstakes for Cup tickets.

McDonald’s, an official sponsor, had a great campaign to send fans to the World Cup with VIP tickets on a dedicated website. However, the only social media that coincides with the website is an unbranded, dedicated YouTube channel.

During the World Cup not only the companies but fans are very active as shown the internet traffic. Twitter’s tweet record hit during the Japan-Cameroon game on June 14th with 2,940 tweets per second. Many of those who were tweeting about the vuvuzelas and the bad calls by referees may have been at work, according to Cisco’s ScanSafe SaaS Web security service, as corporate web traffic was up 27 percent globally during World Cup matches taking place during working hours.

The content-delivery network, Akamai said that on average, World Cup-related traffic has been driving close to 1Terabit/second of traffic.

The wide range of social campaigns and digital activities around this event show us how digital media changed the way we communicate in just a couple of years. It will be stunningly interesting to compare the next World Cup’s, or the Eurocup’s digital communication to the actual event. The fast technical evolution might create new levels of interactivity and the shifts between social platforms in addition to new social sites could change the marketing-mix and accentuate new channels.

Our Take

Welcome to the Avantgarde Group blog! We are the leading business communications (Public Relations & Public Affairs) consultancy in Hungary and aim to serve our clients by providing the most up-to-date, cutting-edge and avantgarde communication solutions to their business challenges. In line with our efforts, this blog will provide information on topics from around the globe that we deem to be in line with an avantgarde mentality.

The Cambridge International Dictionary of English defines avantgarde as, "Painters, writers, musicians and other artists whose ideas, styles and methods are highly original or modern in comparison to the period in which they live.” -this is who we are.

Here at Avantgarde Group we have several well-rounded and well-travelled consultants whom you will get to know through reading this blog. Please feel free to comment and interact on these topics as we appreciate any feedback and/or participation.

Avantgarde Group and it's members welcome you to our take on avantgarde happenings in the world. Vanguard or Rearguard- the choice is yours.