Hey there,
Let's be brutally honest. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, gets excited to watch a product demo. The endless screencasts, the feature lists, the robotic voiceover. It's the fastest way to get someone to tune out.
The biggest mistake B2B marketers make is thinking their product is the hero of the story. It’s not. The problem your product solves, that's the real star.
Some brands get this. They’ve stopped selling the solution and started selling the problem in the most entertaining ways imaginable. This week, we’re looking at five ads that took a boring, abstract business pain and turned it into a tangible, unforgettable spectacle.
Here’s what they pulled off (and what you can steal from their playbook):
1. HubSpot CRM - ‘Holler’
The Play: Make the Problem Physical
Nobody can visualize "data silos." But they can definitely visualize two teams trying to yell at each other across a giant canyon. HubSpot didn’t just talk about bad communication; they made it a 1,000-foot-wide punchline where "train acquisitions" becomes "stagecoaches."
Takeaway: Turn your customer’s invisible problem (bad data, poor communication) into a physical, ridiculous joke.
How could you apply this? Stop saying you solve "workflow friction." Instead, ask your team, "What if we showed two people trying to run a three-legged race?" That’s what HubSpot did. They turned a boring business term into a simple, funny picture.
2. Quickbook - Eggs
The Play: Visualize the Anxiety
What does cash flow anxiety actually feel like? According to QuickBooks, it’s a greasy diner where the only thing on the menu is eggs and you’re about to be shaken down by a gang of giant, menacing chickens. This isn't an ad about accounting. It's a full-blown panic attack, artfully directed.
Takeaway: Stop talking about "peace of mind." Find the chaotic, stressful feeling your product solves and turn that feeling into a cinematic nightmare.
How could you apply this? Your customers don't buy "real-time dashboards." They buy "not waking up in a cold sweat at 3 a.m." Brainstorm ways to show that feeling on screen, then position your product as the moment of relief.
3. Vidico x Toggl - Toggl Track
The Play: Show the Absurd Old Way
How do you sell time-tracking software? You show three ancient Greek philosophers trying to bill a client using a quill and an hourglass. It’s a perfect, simple joke that immediately frames manual time tracking as an ancient, obsolete practice.
Takeaway: Find the dumbest, oldest version of the problem you solve and put it on screen. The contrast makes your modern solution look like a miracle.
How could you apply this? What's the main "old way" your product replaces? Spreadsheets? Email chains? For your next campaign, show people trying to do their job using an even older tool, like an abacus or a carrier pigeon. The contrast makes your product the obvious, modern choice.
4. Amazon Business - How Peter Piper Picked Smart Business Buying
The Play: Turn a Case Study into a Legend
Instead of a boring testimonial about B2B procurement, Amazon Business gave us the Peter Piper origin story. We see him go from a guy with a few sad-looking plants to a global pepper magnate, all because he could get the right supplies, right when he needed them.
Takeaway: Stop writing case studies and start writing legends. Show the entire journey from A to Z that your product makes possible.
How could you apply this? Take your best customer success story and forget the stats for a minute. What was the "before" struggle? What was the "after" victory? Tell that simple story. People connect with a journey, not a bulleted list of results.
The Play: Sell the Metaphor, Not the Demo
MNTN wants you to believe their ad platform is fast. So they promise a demo from an F1 car, narrated by Ryan Reynolds. They sell you on the idea of "F1-fast" so hard that by the time he chickens out, you've already bought it. The joke is more effective than any real demo could ever be.
Takeaway: Attach your brand to a huge, exciting idea. You don't even have to show it, just making the connection is powerful enough.
How could you apply this? What’s the one word you want people to associate with your product? ('Fast,' 'simple,' 'powerful'). Now, what’s a big, exciting metaphor for that word? An F1 car? A magic wand? Make your whole ad about that metaphor.
The Pattern: They're Not Selling Software, They're Selling a Story.
None of these ads led with the interface. They led with a story about a problem.
They are Trojan Horses of entertainment. They hook you with cowboys, chickens, or F1 cars, and by the time you realize you're watching a B2B ad, the message is already inside your brain: HubSpot fixes silos, QuickBooks cures anxiety, Toggl is modern.
They sell the problem so well that you're begging for the solution.
Want to learn the framework for finding the hidden story inside your own product, and then building an ad that tells it? Dive into the full, in-depth breakdowns in the B2B Video Ad Library.
Stop selling the tool. Start telling the story.
Keep making B2B memorable,
Black Camel Agency
Regan George
[email protected]
P.S. What's the best B2B ad you've seen that makes the problem the star of the show? Hit reply and send me the link. The best ones get a shout-out next month.