Even in this age of transistors and silicon magic, there is something amazing about watching a painstakingly constructed Rube Goldberg machine in action. From master of viral music videos OK Go to Red Bull to Honda, many groups and brands have tried up outshine one another in the viral stakes with their creations, and they are, for the most part, beautiful to behold. There are even competitions for this sort of thing.
The latest Rube Goldberg machine comes to us courtesy of 3M, makers of everyday practical objects like sandpaper and car wax. 3M built the machine using its own products only, from welding helmets and plastic sheeting to, naturally, 25,000 Post-it notes and many rolls of tape.
In this case, the big finish comes in the form of brightly colored streamers made of Post-its. That sets up the tagline, “Science. Applied to life,” which, for all its approachable gravitas, feels ultimately anti-climactic. The most powerful emotional appeal the brand can conjure is a bunch of bits of neon paper flying through the air.
That’s probably because all the other fascinating stuff it can do requires the audience to think way too hard. And the interlocking products also risk unintentionally suggesting that 3M’s varied businesses might encumber it (a notion its CEO dismissed as recently as March, in the midst of launching this new push to rationalize and modernize its public image). A Rube Goldberg machine may be functional, but it doesn’t exactly scream efficiency.
The end is a little corny for the brand reveal but it’s still a pretty commendable effort.
Watch it below.
This is cool, though I think the Honda Accord ad made the best use of Rube Goldberg machine
Yup, although I rather like the Red Bull Kluge machine too
I prefer the OK Go music video, what with the rocking soundtrack and all…
That one looked a bit too over-produced to me. I feel that Rube Goldberg machines are most interesting when you can see the makeshift engineering behind them in its entirety