IKEA is the leader in its category for furniture. But it’s not the only place it dominates. IKEA has been known for delivering some of the funniest, most clever and most memorable ad campaigns.

From pregnancy tests to measuring tapes, IKEA ads have a way of being memorable. Known to go viral, the simple creatives always seem to pack a punch. 

Which IKEA ads are some of the best in the business?

Pregnancy test

IKEA makes cots. Pregnant people need cots. The solution? Get people to know if they need a cot. It was a cot ad with a difference, because it was also a pregnancy test. It was probably the first and last time a business has encouraged urinating on an ad, but it worked.

 

 

Free cot

Speaking of needing cots, if you’re not even pregnant yet, Ikea offered a free one. To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Ikea had a newspaper coupon go out on 14 February. For any baby conceived on Valentine’s Day, their parents got a free cot if they presented it to an Ikea store with proof of their baby’s birth on 14 November.

 

BookBook

IKEA is known for its catalogues. With around 200 million printed in 27 languages it has tremendous reach. But how many people are actually reading? In an obvious spoof of an Apple campaign, IKEA released the BookBook campaign. The campaign’s tongue-in-cheek message was about IKEA catalogues never running out of battery, being high resolution, and loading instantly.

 

Measuring tape catalogue

In another bid to keep IKEA’s catalogues relevant, one year the furniture store chain upgraded its catalogues. Not only did it upgrade them, it made them perfect for the IKEA shopper. Each catalogue came with a measure tape built in. So, when the reader had finished, the reader became the builder.

 

Paris subway installation 

Advertising or a pop-up exhibition? Like all art, that is subjective. In 2010, four Paris Subway stations were turned into installations. With room scenarios on the station walls, they were teamed with real IKEA couches. The campaign looked amazing and encouraged the general public to try out IKEAs products in real time.

 

IKEA Frakta bag vs. Balenciaga

IKEA’s Frakta bags are iconic. The bright blue reusable tote bag with yellow stitching is synonymous with the furniture store. So, when fashion house Balenciaga released a copycat of the 99 cent bag for over $2,000 IKEA noticed. Taking to a print ad, it listed the ways to tell if your bag is an “original IKEA Frakta” with instructions like: shake it, if it rustles it’s real. 

 

The Simpson’s living room

Perhaps the most famous couch in the world is the one on Evergreen Terrace, in the Simpson’s living room. Bringing the fictional living room to life, IKEA replaced all the major pieces in the room with IKEA furniture. Complete with price tags, IKEA let us know how to recreate the famous room.

 

It’s that affordable

Think you can’t afford furniture? IKEA thinks you can. Breaking down what you spend on soft drinks or coffees each week, IKEA uses a simple print ad that shows if you stopped buying something simple for one week, you can restyle your room.