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  • Top Innovative Super Bowl Ads of All Time

    Top Innovative Super Bowl Ads of All Time
    2026/02/04

    Super Bowl 60 is almost here, but which ads truly changed the game?
    With Super Bowl 60 approaching, the VML Canada team reveals the most innovative commercials ever – and why they worked. This isn't about the funniest spots or biggest celebrities. It's about the campaigns that truly disrupted the advertising game.

    Discover how:
    • A 5-second Reddit ad crashed their servers
    • A bouncing QR code broke Coinbase's app
    • A 1,813-character promo code had viewers ignoring the game
    • A fake TV glitch fooled 100 million people

    But here's the kicker: some of the biggest winners never paid for airtime. Some very smart advertisers "hacked" the Super Bowl, saving millions while generating billions in impressions.

    Commercials Discussed:

    Joe Namath, Beautymist (1970)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBl7Q1TPTLs

    Mean Joe Green, Coca-Cola (1979)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xffOCZYX6F8

    Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, McDonald's (1993)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1shK-j_u6LI

    Monster.com "When I Grow Up" (1999)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY1WoHkNGy4

    E-Trade monkey commercial (2000)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Muyq2kMDFoA

    Reddit Super Bowl ad (2021)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wkvH0qBMP8

    DoorDash commercial (the one with the 1,813-character promo code)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTLM5o-9hYg

    Tubi ad (2023, the fake TV glitch)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73p4lL1iq7w

    Coinbase QR code (2022)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIUD_NE1BDo

    Apple's 1984 commercial
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErwS24cBZPc&list=RDErwS24cBZPc&start_radio=1

    Bud Light "The Wardrobe Malfunction" (2005)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIJZJw-ZQqI

    Pepsi Polar Bear commercial
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPHI2zNf_ww
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    26 分
  • Exclusive Interview: Rob Guénette

    Exclusive Interview: Rob Guénette
    2026/01/23
    Opening quote from Rob Guénette: "We ought to shape it before it shapes us. I think that is the right healthy attitude."Rick Brown: Welcome to "Why Didn't I Think of That?" This is our first episode of 2026, and we have a very special guest with us today. Rob Guénette is here. Rob is the CEO of VML Canada. He's an absolute legend in the advertising business and an incredible storyteller. So stay tuned for this – you're going to love it. And then right after that, we have a panel discussion about gamification with our host Jeremy Lens and Tim Voet.Interview with Rob Guénette: From Brand Management to Agency LeadershipRick: Welcome to the show, Rob. Do you want to maybe start with your background and how you got into advertising?Rob: Sure. So I started my career at Unilever Canada as a client in brand management, and I was there for 14 years. Through that time period, I received the best business education I could ever have gotten. Unilever was amazing in those years. I started in '86 and left in '99, and was able to cross a lot of categories and learned a ton, worked with outstanding people.Through that, though, I learned that I was really gravitating to one aspect of the job more than the others, and that was the advertising piece. I loved working in the communication area. I loved working with agencies. I loved doing work that the public saw, that impacted our brand and all that stuff. And I decided at one point I wanted to do two things: I wanted to work in advertising, so I'd cross the bridge, and I also wanted to be an owner. I wanted to have an equity stake. So those were my two objectives.Rick: That's pretty ambitious, right?Rob: It was. Well, I was at that stage in my life where I was super confident, I was ambitious, and I just wanted to get on with it. And I thought, if it happens, great. If it doesn't happen, you know, I'm happy. I have a good career, I have fun, I work with great people. But I got pretty lucky, and it happened.The VML ConnectionRob: So what happened was, my first introduction to VML was at a dinner held at Peter Stringham's house in New York shortly after we sold. And he invited myself, my wife, Paul and Jane. And at that dinner was a man named John Cook. This was in 2010. And I met John Cook at that dinner and I was so impressed with John. He's amazing. And I was in awe of the VML trajectory.And by the way, a little factoid: VML was born in 1992, same year as Taxi. So Taxi was born in Montreal in 1992, VML was born in Kansas City in 1992. Amazing.So back then, there was a period of time where I would attend meetings in New York that Martin Sorrell chaired, and John Cook would also be attending those meetings. So I got to see John in action. I got to hear about VML. I would do my bit on Taxi, but really we were there because Telus was one of the largest accounts in North America at that time for WPP. It was a big account. It was massive.So through that introduction, I was always an admirer of VML. And of course, VML was on a different track than Taxi. Taxi was a pure creative shop, really, and VML really started in digital and tech, and solving client problems in different ways – not necessarily through TV and outdoor and all that stuff. It was really wired differently, pun intended.The Decision to Merge Taxi into VML CanadaRob: So I always thought – well, first of all, I should say Taxi after the acquisition was a bit of a corporate orphan, right? Two things happened. One, we were attached to the VML system, so I reported to John Cook, and they were great with us. We were integrated, we were on all the global calls. We were part of all of it.But at one point, I guess I had a moment, sort of one of those epiphanies, and I said, you know, VML's growing and the world is changing fast. They seem to be in the right lane. I thought it was time to change our direction with Taxi. And as you know, there was an opportunity that came up. There was a merger between VML and Y&R, and so at that moment in time, I said, you know what? I'd rather retire Taxi while it's still strong, while it's still great, and decided that it's time to put VML Canada on the map. And that was a manifestation of putting Taxi and WT together as Wunderman Thompson.And that was a difficult, but I think necessary decision to really go where the growth was and go where the future is. Because I come at things a little bit more left-brain because of my background and how I grew up in business. And also as a person, I'm just not that nostalgic and I'm just not that emotional.So for me, the way I looked at it, it was important to retain the spirit of Taxi, which lives every day, as you know, at VML Canada – as opposed to just the nomenclature, the naming. And again, I've seen in my – I've been around now 40 years – for me it's about how do we grow, how do we keep all our great people in place? How does everybody get stimulated, learn, and challenged and motivated, right?And I just at that time thought ...
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    36 分
  • The Power of AI Agents

    The Power of AI Agents
    2025/10/18

    Ever wonder what lies beyond your everyday ChatGPT? Join the VML Canada Innovation Team as they dive deep into the world of AI Agents – specialized, self-enclosed chatbots designed to be experts in one thing. This episode unpacks what agents are, how they work, and crucial best practices for leveraging their power... and avoiding their potential pitfalls.

    In this episode, you'll discover:

    • What Exactly is an AI Agent? Learn how these focused bots differ from general LLMs, offering unparalleled accuracy, personalization, and the ability to challenge your thinking – unlike "puppy dog" chatbots prone to hallucination.
    • The Art of Training: Rick Brown and Jeremy Lenz reveal the critical importance of quality inputs ("garbage in, garbage out") and clever strategies for structuring data to make your agent an expert.
    • The Human Element: Trevor Byrne highlights the essential role of feedback loops, while Jeremy issues a powerful warning: "We are still the experts." Discover why the carpenter never blames the tools when it comes to AI.
    • Real-World Innovation: Explore how VML Canada is already using "briefing agents" to streamline projects and the exciting potential of building "teams of agents" for complex tasks.
    • How NOT to Use AI: A crucial segment featuring cautionary tales from Bell's Fan Expo blunder and Home Depot's facial recognition controversy. Learn why empathy, transparency, and avoiding generative AI in public-facing social content are paramount.


    Connect with VML Canada Innovation: Have questions or ideas? Email us at innovationcanada@vml.com
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    25 分
  • Cannes Innovation Recap

    Cannes Innovation Recap
    2025/10/03

    2025 Cannes Innovation Recap:

    • The Fourth Judge (00:03:00): Jeremy shares a mind-blowing AI-powered judge for boxing from Big Time Creative Shop in Riyadh. Discover how AI is tackling subjectivity and bias in sports, trained on a century of boxing history to provide unbiased real-time analysis. Is this the future of fair play?
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcLlNta1deE
    • Daisy vs. Scammer (00:06:00): Tim introduces us to O2's ingenious AI "granny" from VCCP London, designed to waste scammers' time. Laugh along as Daisy hilariously stalls fraudsters and ponder the potential for this tech to be integrated directly into our phones. Could this be the end of spam calls?
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV_SdCfZ-0s
    • Shakespeare Bic (00:09:00): Rick reveals VML Sao Paulo's incredible campaign for Bic's 75th anniversary. Learn how AI recreated Shakespeare's lost handwriting, complete with authentic variations, and a robot penned an entire Romeo and Juliet manuscript with a single Bic pen. A beautiful blend of history, tech, and product demonstration!
      https://www.vml.com/work/one-bic-one-book-two-classics
    • Grand Prix Innovation Winner: Sounds Right Campaign (00:12:00): We dissect AKQA's groundbreaking "Sounds Right" campaign, which monetizes nature sounds for environmental conservation. Explore the concept of "Nature" being credited as an artist and debate the true definition of "innovation" in today's tech-saturated world. Is it truly innovative, or just a new application?
      https://www.akqa.com/news/sounds-right-wins-the-cannes-lions-innovation-grand-prix/
    • News Story of the Week: The Velvet Sundown Hoax (00:16:00): Jeremy breaks down the viral sensation of "Velvet Sundown," an AI-generated 70s-style band that amassed 50,000 fans overnight on Spotify before being outed as an art hoax. We discuss the implications of AI music creation (like Suno, which created our intro music!) and the ongoing conversation about AI's role in the art world. How did they get so big, so fast?
      https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/ai-band-hoax-velvet-sundown-1.7575874

    Have thoughts on these innovations or want to chat with our hosts? Email us at Innovationcanada@vml.com
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    19 分