🏆 Ads of the Year, 2023
Mom, wake up. The Ad Spot just announced its ads of the year.
Roll out the red carpet. The spots of the year are here, and they’re glorious as ever. The team here at the Ad Spot (me) voted, and we’re proud to bring you our picks for the top ads of 2023.
Without further ad-o.
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The Top Ads of 2023
IKEA: Proudly Second Best
by David Madrid, Ingo & Ogilvy
Long-time readers of the Ad Spot know that, despite not really liking visiting IKEA whatsoever, the brand is my favorite advertiser of all time. And this spot is just one more gallon of gasoline being poured on my IKEA is the best bonfire.
Honorable mention to the big-ass meatball.
Hilton: The Ad You Stay In
by TBWA\Chiat\Day NY
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
Tell me if this sounds familiar:
“People only engage with short form content”
*One week later*
“We NEED more long form content!”
*One month later*
“Nevermind, people only want BITE SIZED, SNACKABLE CONTENT”
*One quarter later*
“KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON IS 4 HOURS LONG, WE NEED TO HIRE MARTIN SCORCESE TO DIRECT OUR NEXT TWEET”
It’s exhausting. But Hilton Hotels bucked the trend and tested out a 10-minute-long spot on TikTok with smashing success. They used the platform’s native features to create a compelling, 10-minute-long ad that racked up over 35 million views.
From Paris, with love.
McDonald’s: The As Featured In Meals
by Wieden+Kennedy New York
Betcha thought you’d see the Grimace something or other on here, didn’t ya? Nope. For me, the As Featured In campaign was the better spot this year. Look, I’m not saying that the Grimace campaign didn’t explode into something wild for McDonald’s and didn’t impact their bottom line more than this spot - what I’m saying is I think a lot of the credit for the Grimace craze goes to TikTok’s Austin Frazier, and not the happy birthday Grimace commercial. I’m rambling now.
That said, I also really love the McDonald’s x Crocs collab this year. They’re on my Christmas list.
Nissan: The Big Old Playlist
by Titmouse
I loved the outside-the-box thinking on this spot. Nissan graced its YouTube channel with a mind-boggling four-hour video. It's a journey set to a custom Lofi playlist, following an animated character cruising along in a Nissan ARIYA, passing Nissan billboards as they go. It racked up 18 million views this year. Hell ya, Nissan. The story.
German Rail: In-person is still an option
by Ogilvy
This ad spot is for German Rail, and it is awesome. Be sure you click through to hear the audio on this one. It's way too relatable. That being said I don’t want to meet in-person, either. Can we meet on Fortnite?
Barbie: Just, everything really
by in-house
Yep, 2023 was the year of Barbie. She was nominated for TIME person of the year for Pete’s sake, and might I remind, you, SHE ISN’T A REAL PERSON.
Nevertheless, just an all-around epic campaign from everyone at Barbie, from the Architectural Digest collab above, to the Pink Billboard below, to the shortlist of companies the company collaborated with, like Primark, Gap, ASOS, Boohoo, Aldo, Pacsun, Forever 21, Zara, Bloomingdale's, MeUndies, Loungefly, Hot Topic, Alex and Ani, Superga, Moon, Swoon, NYX, Truly, CHI, Mermade, Tangle Teezer, Kitsch, Hally, Ruggable, Barefoot Dreams, Dragon Glassware, Charmed Aroma, Pasta di Martino, Cold Stone Creamery, Pinkberry, Crocs, Béis Travel, Bumble, Kipling, Fossil…you get the picture.
Uber: Trains, now on Uber
by Mother
Let’s talk about Uber Trains. In the UK, you can now book journeys through National Rail, National Expres, and Megabus from the Uber app. And this awkward spot highlights just that. Love the simplicity of this one.
Chevrolet: A Holiday to Remember
by Commonwealth//McCann
On Nov. 22, Chevrolet released a holiday ad partnered with the Alzheimer’s Association about a grandmother struggling with dementia. You’ll be shocked at how fast the five-and-a-half minutes goes. It’s a really memorable spot, striking a chord with a lot of viewers.
Give it a watch if you haven’t already.
What was your favorite spot of the year? Drop it in the comments so we can all enjoy your top pick.
And that’s a wrap. Those are the ads that made us laugh, cry, and wish we could get our hands on a gigantic meatball.
To all of our subscribers, thank you for making The Ad Spot what it is. It’s your encouragement, enthusiasm, and readership that keep us writing.
Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and I’ll see you after the winter break. Mwah.
