The&Partnership and Big Yellow Storage

Storage Nightmares

No one likes the horror of too much clutter. We worked with the Big Yellow Storage Company and The & Partnership to create these short animations for social media that bring to life the storage horror we face when we’re making life changes.

The Scrapbook

The challenge

Capturing the Big Yellow Storage brand was critical to our thought process when creating these animations. Our tone had to match their brand image and existing campaigns, informing our animations as we approached the creative brief. These animations had to be concise, eye-catching, engaging , tongue-in-cheek and relatable. Working with the client, we listened and captured their creative vision - creating a range of ideas to help guide our process.

The films

Depicting three different settings for three different audience groups, our animations reflected the storage nightmares people can find themselves in - underpinned each time by the same core message. To do this our short animations presented ideals such as a spotless bedroom and stylish living room, enhanced by sound effects and animation which, before transitioning to nightmarish situations people face as they seek to enact their home goals. The transition included the room’s contents, seen in examples such as a pile of washing becoming laundry a zombie and a demonic flat screen TV. Supported by on-screen text, we carefully illustrated our animations in their before and after states to be both relatable to audiences and to fit the tongue-in-cheek brand tone. To place the these animations even more firmly in the brand, the animations began and ended with logos and slogans, ending with a call to action. In 15 seconds, we used engaging and memorable visuals to communicate both the brand the challenges they support customers with.

About the clients

Big Yellow Self Storage have been helping people with their storage needs since 1998. They focus on innovation, community, environment and security. The&Partnership help their clients to create faster, more responsive and more effective marketing. Working with brands such as Toyota, The Wall Street Journal and NatWest Group, they take a data driven and agile approach to the a marketing campaigns they work on

The context

Find out more about the Big Yellow Storage campaign here.

Cognitive are award-winning pioneers of whiteboard animation, and the creators behind the RSA Animates series. We help corporate, academic and charitable organisations like the BBC, TED, Coca Cola and Sanofi to tell their stories more powerfully. Find out more about us here.