:: adgruntie :: Adobe's CS2 ad campaign

+ You might have heard the rumors about Adobe's CS2 that have been circulating during the last couple weeks due to AppleInsider's aquiring of company-authored documents in March. Well, now the news is officially out and a press release has been issued on the creative for the ad campaign.

Adobe Systems Incorporated today debuted its "Everything but the Idea" ad campaign, designed to reinforce the company's connection to the creative professional community and drive demand for Adobe(R) Creative Suite 2, announced yesterday. The ad campaign -- which aims to create a deeper, more emotional connection with graphic artists, designers and other creative professionals -- was developed by advertising firm Goodby, Silverstein & Partners of San Francisco. The campaign represents a broad strategic marketing effort by Adobe that includes advertising, direct marketing, public relations and special events such as the Ideas Conference held in New York yesterday.

Building on the success of Adobe's "Design Therapy" campaign in 2003, the new ads reach out to graphic designers, illustrators, professional photographers, art directors and the creative industry at large by expressing Adobe's passion for ideas and demonstrating the company's strong understanding of the creative process. The campaign positions the new Adobe Creative Suite 2 as the essential, integrated and upgraded software needed to help bring ideas to life.

The imagery used in the ads catches designers, photographers, illustrators and others at the precise moment when they're on the cusp of having a big idea, often working late at night. Renowned photographer Philip-Lorca diCorcia shot the photographs featured in the ad series. The copy speaks the "insider" language of creative professionals, helping to establish a more immediate connection.

"We're demonstrating Adobe's compassion for what creative pros live through every day: the constant struggle to generate fresh ideas," said Melissa Dyrdahl, senior vice president of corporate marketing and communications at Adobe. "Rather than focus on individual product features and benefits, the 'Everything but the Idea' campaign demonstrates Adobe's understanding that ideas are at the foundation of every designer's world."

The campaign consists of three ads, which will run in leading design industry publications, including Archive, CMYK, Communication Arts, Eye, HOW, ID, Print and Step Inside Design, as well as outlets that designers turn to for creative inspiration such as Flaunt, Surface, Wallpaper, Black Book, Dwell, and Nylon. Outdoor ads will run in New York on phone kiosks, transit shelters, urban panels and wild postings at construction sites.

To extend the print and outdoor ad effort, the campaign includes a series of online ads, to be featured on sites such as Adcritic.com, CommArts.com, and Newstoday.com. Using clever, spare text and clean graphics, the online ads aim to engage their audience on a highly personal level. One banner ad invites readers to pitch Goodby, Silverstein's creative director Rich Silverstein a creative concept, as if in a one-on-one meeting. Other ads fantasize about the "idea fairy" and comment slyly on the pressure to win awards for creative work. To round out its marketing mix, Adobe hosted the Ideas Conference yesterday in New York. The event -- where Adobe Creative Suite 2 was formally launched to an audience of 1,000 creative professionals -- featured presentations from design industry luminaries, keynotes from Adobe executives, and hands-on workshops.

"Like our audience, we live, eat, sleep and breathe what creative professionals do on a daily basis, which allowed us to bring special insight and humor into the ads," said Rich Silverstein, creative director and co-chairman of Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. "The campaign imagery shows that Adobe feels what designers feel, and the text communicates in a voice that is sophisticated, yet honest, human and real, without any technical jargon and advertising double-talk."