[dazc]

There are good ads and bad ads, mostly it's just businesses throwing mud at a wall and hoping some of it will stick.

Did I ever buy anything from an ad, well I must have since I buy a fair amount of products and something makes me choose one brand or another? I guess it's more subtle than just seeing an ad and thinking I must rush out and buy that thing. Businesses spend a lot of money on brand building and it's kind of hard to not be influenced by this.

One ad campaign that does spring to mind goes back to the early days of analogue mobile when digital was about to become the next big thing. A company called Orange were at the forefront of this and their ads were groundbreaking at the time (more than 20 years ago). I remember thinking I want to be part of this thing.

Ask any British person to complete the sentence 'The future's bright... and I'd be surprised if anyone fails to reply 'The future's Orange.

Comparable products/campaigns would be stuff like the iPhone. But, yeah, they are pretty rare.