Put your blinkers on for Mahindra

Ad Nut is as tired of a bad gimmick as the next creature, and there’s no shortage of them in adland. But every now and then, a tech-based campaign comes along that makes Ad Nut’s whiskers twitch into a smile, together with the thought: ok, that’s gimmicky, but fun.

So fair play to Bangalore-based creative tech company AliveNow, for its latest effort to promote car brand Mahindra’s XUV300 sports utility vehicle. Using Facebook Spark AR, the campaign lets viewers, through their smartphones, see the new SUV in 360-degree motion, and then change its colour by blinking, showing all the colours the vehicle is available in.

The Facebook Spark platform, AliveNow CEO Adhvith Dhuddu said, means the biggest hurdle for AR experiences­—having to download an app—has been removed. This is true, the experience is remarkably seamless, with almost no lag between blinking and colour change. Although Ad Nut must point out that you need the Facebook app on your phone in the first place to make it work, which as we know is not as ubiquitous as it once was.

But back to the campaign. Sure, it’s gimmicky. Sure, it held Ad Nut’s attention for a few blinks, before Ad Nut’s claw scrolled up. But it brought that smile, and Ad Nut still remembers it was a short, simple, fun ad for Mahindra. Which is the entire point.

Ad Nut is a surprisingly literate woodland creature that for unknown reasons has an unhealthy obsession with advertising. Ad Nut gathers ads from all over Asia and the world for your viewing pleasure, because Ad Nut loves you. You can also check out Ad Nut's Advertising Hall of Fame, or read about Ad Nut's strange obsession with 'murderous beasts'.