It’s fun to regress.
Dunkin describes its tribe as the regular, everyday folks who keep America running. Which often includes firemen, construction workers, office staffers, moms and dads. But what do you do when you get the brief for Dunkin’s new SoBe Coolatta, targeted to teenage guys?
You regress, that’s what you do.
So many spots require you to shade subtle psychographic nuances. “What’s a modern working mother really feeling?” But with teenage boys, subtlety gets kicked to the curb. So when my partner Kevin Daley and I got the brief for Dunkin’s new SoBe Energy Coolatta, we put some lug-headed heavy metal on my iPod, then got to the serious business of regressing. Here’s how the concepting went down:
TIM: Okay, you’re 15. You’re amped. What do you do?
KEVIN: Rip phone books?
TIM: My friend Murph was awesome at that.
KEVIN: How do we push it?
TIM: Maybe we have kids ripping everything in sight?
KEVIN: Maybe a car.
TIM: A canoe or steamer trunk might be funny.
KEVIN: Have everyone chugging and high-fiving. Product everywhere.
TIM: And end it with something about “Rip it up with a SoBe Coolatta.”
KEVIN: That’d be cool.
TIM: Yeah. Can you imagine if they bought that?
And with that, one of my favorite Dunkin ads in the America Runs On Dunkin campaign was born. Not a subtle psychographic nuance in sight.
It’s good to be 15 again.
Tim (SVP, Group Creative Director) is one of the top 10 writers in America today, as cited by Archive Magazine. He writes and oversees campaigns for Dunkin' Donuts, Liberty Mutual, Procter & Gamble, and Gather.com. He was a key figure in the creation and launch of Dunkin's very successful campaign platform, "America Runs on Dunkin'," and he conceived and produced the popular Miller Lite "Epidemic" effort that coined the phrase, "I can't taste my beer!" To date, more than 100 of Tim's ads have garnered national recognition and awards. Tim lives near Boston "with my wife, two children, and a 100-pound Bernese mountain dog named Otis." In his free time, Tim enjoys "songwriting and performing; writing and directing films; and not-so-long-distance running. I'm also an unrepentant NFL addict." 
Great ad guys. Love the “regression” concept. Only question is, what about those teenage guys who aren’t total meat heads?
You must not have teenage kids yet. They’re all meat heads. That’s what makes them so great. Refuse to calulate and and disrespect caution are good things. Great ad guys. Love the DD brand you creating and the voice you’ve developed for them. Love the positioning. And cheers to DD folks for trusting great work. It’s gotta be working.
Tim,
Your name came up in a story I was telling about SU this week with some colleagues. I did a google and what do ya know…all those late nights doing storyboards paid off.
Just keeping an eye on your career…Great stuff man keep it up!
I hope all is well…
Came to the HHCC site to find a news story but found this instead. This is great. It’s one of those concepts that seems so simple and obvious and plucked from the vernacular of american culture that you wonder why no one has come up with it before. Perfect. I love all the stuff you guys ripped in half. That must have been fun. The color of that drink is a little scary though.
This is a very dis-tasteful ad. Having teenagers knocking over tombstones? Teaching violence. Very smart. Hah. Tongue in cheek.
how do i get this video for myspace?
You guys couldn’t come up with anything better than this?
There must have been another idea.
“They’re all meatheads.” I think a good part of being a creative is being able to get in touch with your inner child, or teenager as it were. But the first poster (Colin) has a valid point. When I was 15, a very looong time ago, I was not a meathead and neither were most of my friends. And I’m not talking pencil-necked geek here: I’m talking martial arts tournament fighter, politically aware community volunteer, the school artist, and the the live announcer for the basketball team. The 15 year-old “me” would likely been amused by the commercial, but relate to it? “Well I’ll be, a drink for the doofuses, that’s just great…” And I was more sarcastic then than I am now. Concept aside, the execution is very well done; the “extremeness” allowing for the humor of it to really come through. The mattresses do look a little like dislodged tombstones though (not a good image). However, the radio spots are incoherent and stupid (you lose a lot without the visuals).
Indeed, I had to watch it twice to figure out what the mattresses were, otherwise pretty good.
Rip things in half? Why?
Jackasses don’t need anymore ideas to be jackasses.
Sobe dumb
Sobe an ass
Sobe destructive
or how about
Sobe busy at your summer job
Sobe great at team sports
Sobe going to the beach.
hate this spot with a passion. thank god it’s a smallish media buy.
I’ve worked with Kevin and Tim and I’ll tell you at best they had to regress like a year. Love this spot boys. You ripped it up.
I think the entire campaign is genius. Never expected anything like it; can’t wait to see more!
Karate, yah!
Rip things in half…
Who knew?
I think it’s great that you guys have this blog! As a senior in a graphic design program it’s great to catch these glimpses into the brainstorming process – thanks, and great idea!
Speaking of the Dunkin’ campaign, here’s a currently running spot that I like as well as the PSA to go with it!
It’s great to see brand competition like this…
**Public Service Announcement**
Your Fix Is In:
A certain upscale, green-logo’d mackaccino chain will be closing its doors on Tuesday night, February 26, for a mass barista training exercise (stop inhaling the retail, kids?).
You can tell your friends most likely to explode into a caffeine-withdrawal freak-fit that Dunkin’ Donuts will be filling in with a 99¢ latte/cappuccino special from 1-10PM. And you know, chocolate-glaze donuts with pink sprinkles, 24-7.
https://dunkindonuts.com
Well what can I say…Thats just painfully Goofy. Regressing? Yes. Inspirational? Hardly? Some brainstorms are meant to inspire not to elaborate on. Its being able to telling the difference that separates the professionals from the adolescents, but then what can I say?!