Advertising agency Reid Sheehan Latimer+Crew (RSL+Crew) has just launched a national TV and social campaign for the local business review app and website Yelp as the service expands across multiple verticals and increases its mobile focus. The creative features Ben Sinclair, star of the upcoming HBO comedy series High Maintenance.
In the films, Sinclair and Yelp save desperate people from horrible situations, including a dentist at his first day of work, a class led by a less-than-limber yogi and a trashy tropical hotel hosting an inexplicable mattress fire. There’s always a better option on Yelp, which has “whatever you need, whenever you need it.”
“Simply put, the more people get to know Yelp’s brand personality, the more they love Yelp. In this case, that meant lighting mattresses on fire,” said John Reid, lead creative and cofounder of RSL+Crew.
The work is an extension of Yelp’s humorous “We Know Just The Place” campaign, also created by RSL+Crew and starring Sinclair, which launched nationwide on air and online last September. The Yelp work also marks RSL+Crew’s first client and one that embodies their model of assembling a talent-dense crew for high-profile projects.
Designed to increase awareness of Yelp, the 15- and 30-second executions are meant to make people actively seek out the service when looking for a better business. Video executions on digital and social channels will drive awareness with viewers on mobile and capture eyeballs missed by TV. Additionally, the work aims to expand awareness of Yelp’s services beyond restaurant reviews to a tool that can help you in a variety of categories that you’re looking for.
“RSL+Crew delivered an efficient and focused experience for Yelp, thanks to their lean design,” said Brian Osborn, vice president of consumer marketing for Yelp. “Building on our original idea, they brought to life the humour and relatability of finding a new local business in a way that shows the value add of Yelp in a range of situations.”