A roundup of the best advertising campaigns to coincide with the Paralympics

The 2012 London Paralympics was an astonishing success, which only added to the glory of the Olympics. The nation was overjoyed in excitement as we met these new heroes. In retrospect, it seemed effortless, but it was anything but.

Through big name brands like Sainsbury’s and Channel 4 taking a genuine interest, it showed how marketing can be used to make Britain take an active interest in the 12 million Britons who have either reduced mobility or hidden disabilities. Here at Ability Superstore, we’ve collected some of our all time favourite adverts.

Samsung

The Samsung School of Rio has been a feature through the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics. It features Jack Whitehall in his usual posh shtick persona. This time, instead of being schooled by Olympian Bradley Wiggins, it is Paralympic swimmers Ellie Simmons and Susie Rodgers, who put him through his paces in the pool.

However, things don’t quite work out for Jack, who complains before his toes have even touched the water, disgusted about being “dragged” to the pool at 6am. Getting into the pool also proved to be a tall order as he couldn’t pick the right swimming trunks. Finally in the pool, the Paralympic medallists get to show him exactly how it’s done.

Maltesers

A small beer garden in Surrey provided the location of this brilliantly raunchy Maltesers advert, that aims to normalise all disabilities in society.

As the Paralympics continues, this cheeky Malteser ad features disabled actress Storme Toolis describing a sexual shenanigan between her and her new boyfriend. The advert, aptly entitled ‘New Boyfriend’, was shown in an ad break during the Opening Ceremony and became a viral sensation across all social media platforms.

‘New Boyfriend’ is part of a series of adverts launched during the Paralympics by Malteasers, which have all been inspired by real life stories.

Channel 4

The latest campaign ‘We’re the Superhumans’ comes 4 years on from the award winning ‘Meet the Superhumans’. This fantastic advert is what you get when you combine 140 athletes and musicians into a few minutes of television. The campaign has been shared by the thousands, with 23 million views on Facebook alone. This incredible advert has clips of a mother changing her baby’s nappy with her feet, and a wheelchair stuntman hurtling down a ramp.

The advert has a powerful message and is really all about a positive attitude. The advert isn’t really about disability but more about talent and the ability that everyone in the world is blessed with.

Alice Tonge, the creative director at 4Creative encourages us to stop focusing on disability, but to switch our focus on super ability.

Sainsbury’s

This ad from 2012, shows a blindfolded David Beckham just how difficult blind football actually is. This advert also aims to gives us a better knowledge of what it actually means to be a Paralympic athlete, showing one of the most able bodied and famous people in the world what it’s like as a visually impaired athlete. Beckham had to show high levels of concentration and skill that is needed to play at the highest level of blind football.

Let’s see what the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo brings!