NYNEX | If it's out there, it's in here / DUMBWAITERS | 1988
The Yellow Pages Even Listed Dumbwaiters / NYNEX "DUMBWAITERS"
A phone book ad that actually gets a laugh — that's a big deal. NYNEX's Yellow Pages ads were a memorable presence in the northeastern US in the late '80s.
The problem
The late '80s in America were the height of the phone book wars, and companies needed to stand out among many competitors. NYNEX's Yellow Pages ads were a series created by Chiat/Day, praised for grabbing consumers' attention in a crowded market through humor and a minimal approach.
The insight
The selling point of a phone book is "how much information it contains," but pitching that directly doesn't land. So the idea was: just show people a weird word nobody would ever expect, as is.
The idea
The campaign was built as a series showing one odd industry or word after another that seemed to have nothing to do with the Yellow Pages. In the print version, strange images came first — a cow, a truck made of matchboxes, a sheep stuck to a magnet — set up like a quiz, with the answer revealed weeks later. DUMBWAITERS was one entry in this "the word itself is funny" line of ads.
What happened
The campaign won multiple awards, including from The One Show and D&AD, and was one of the driving forces behind Chiat/Day being named Agency of the Year in 1988.
Afterthought
Phone books are a nostalgic thing now, but the idea of never explaining the product and instead just making the sheer randomness of the information itself fun — that still lands today. Have you ever heard the word "dumbwaiter" anywhere other than this ad? Nope, didn't think so.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 1988
