Watch the full ad here:

Jo's thoughts:

"There can only be one pick for me on this list, Guinness Surfer.

Roll your eyes all you want but this ad makes it onto every list for a reason. It takes a truth and makes it magical – wouldn’t it be great if all work did that? I’m obsessed with ‘awe’ and this add makes use of almost all the characteristics of awe: moral and visual beauty, nature, collective effervescence, spirituality. This ad makes you feel connected, excited, part of something bigger. It has unconventional story-telling; incredibly simple but also hyperbolic, fantastical but relatable.

There is so much we can take from this and apply to work today: use of distinctive assets is off the charts (and it’s evidence of how, when you have such great assets, they can be the catalyst for creativity). It’s the poster boy for product demos – the liquid is literally swirling around the screen.

I challenge any true Guinness fan to watch it and not immediately make for the Coach and Horses. In the report it is cited as a great example of ‘extraordinary craft’ (and that it is!) but it’s also a brilliant example of ‘romancing the product’ and ‘entertainment value’.

Its timelessness is evidence of its genius – proof that great advertising never gets old (much like Guinness itself)."