I’m really not a masochist, but viewing the web site for the new Taser X3 yesterday left me with a feeling of “Wow. Getting tased looks really pleasant“. It also reminded me that really good advertising and marketing campaigns don’t need to describe a product that you like to engage you and build a relationship. A great example of this is the UNIQLOCK site. I easily spent 10 or 15 minutes there, not even realizing it was pitching a product. I didn’t care; I love the Japanese pop of Fantastic Plastic Machine they used in all the clips, and the visuals were strangely engaging in that way that only the Japanese can muster. Can you figure out what the product is? After you view the site, see the campaign details and more video here if you’re curious. Many of these sites use the still rather under-explored medium of Flash, which when used well, is great for greenwashing, as evident in both this Michelin site and this General Electric Smart Grid site. The Michelin guy already had his “cute cred”, but that GE site almost leaves you feeling like the planet raping war contractor and media company really cares. On a possibly more sincere note, check out the Eco Zoo (say “Ecodazoo!” briskly with a Japanese accent), complete with virtual pop-up books designed to instill a little conservation thinking in kids, without them even knowing it’s happening. There are thousands of these kinds of sites out there, created by hip (and usually new) ad agencies like Switch, BrandStudio.ru (they did this Toyota born every 5 seconds site),  BBH, and Mono 1. This site, for instance, is Mono’s idea of a happy new year wish. Below are some screen grabs and more links, and you can find a nice round up of more Flash sites like this here. Have any of your own to share?

As well as being visually compelling, you can navigate HRP‘s web site with a web cam

Milk is a totally new experience when it becomes a criminal activity:

This site by SIRE is a macabre and interactive look at child abuse and neglect in the Netherlands: