Brands have shaken up B2B ad campaigns in recent years, with many trying to break through the noise of drab, value-proposition marketing with attention-grabbing tactics. A notable example from this year is Basis Technologies' award-winning campaign, produced by Bottle Rocket Media, which brought nostalgia and creativity to a B2B audience in the digital advertising world.

Known for helping advertisers and agencies automate digital campaigns, Basis Technologies launched their fresh, brand-focused campaign in fall 2024. It combined connected TV (CTV) ads, out-of-home (OOH), direct mail, and experiential activations to key advertising decision-makers, and could serve as a guide for other B2B companies looking to make waves.

Rebranding in style

Basis Technologies rebranded from Centro nearly five years ago, but wanted to break new ground for B2B campaigns in the tech space with a bold campaign. McAdams said the effort to create memorable brand experiences helped redefine the new brand, while delivering on lower-funnel outcomes.

“Ad tech B2B campaigns are pretty formulaic,” said Basis CMO Katie McAdams. She said they asked themselves, “'How do we tell the story about this company that does so many different things, that connects emotionally?'”

A plan formed around CTV ads and other channels, supported by experiential marketing at key advertising events. All of these components would be thematically linked.

“We wanted to harken back to the days when advertising was more ‘fun,’” McAdams said. "People in our industry were excited to get into advertising and excited about the creative aspect of it, before ‘spreadsheet hell’ came along.”

A star for B2B ads is born

In the campaign, Basis Technologies wanted to combine the benefits of modern ad tech automation with nostalgia for advertising’s “Mad Men”-era swagger.

The result was a fictional campaign spokesperson: Eleanor Weeks. The campaign positions Basis Technologies' tech as allowing Eleanor more leisure time. In one video spot, she says, “Sorry, I have to take this,” referring to a martini on a silver tray and not a high-pressure client call.

Chicago-based agency Bottle Rocket Media produced the ads, which ran on CTV in the lead-up to key advertising events like Cannes Lions festival and New York’s Advertising Week.

“These are '60s-style ads, but in some ways they’re going back to '60s-style campaigns in that there’s a spokesperson,” said Brett Singer, principal at Bottle Rocket Media. “For a B2B play, I think that’s a bit unique.”

Experiential results

For an on-site activation, Basis Technologies leveraged the world of Eleanor Weeks to create the “Basis Oasis,” an in-person experience at Cannes Lions and Advertising Week that used 1960s props from the video shoot and repurposed ads from the era.

“I had so many people that came up to me and said it feels like an art gallery,” said McAdams.

• Events and experiential marketing ranked is an investment priority in 2026 for one-third of worldwide B2B marketers, second only to AI-powered tools, per an August survey by Content Marketing Institute (CMI).

Over three-quarters (78.0%) of B2B marketers budget for experiential activations, according to CMI.

McAdams said plans are in the works to continue the campaign during next year’s industry events.

“Basis drove 90% engagement with our target list, meaning they engaged with the Basis brand, content, website, or searched for us using a Basis branded keyword,” she said . “And, while lead generation was not the core goal of the campaign, we also saw a lift in year-over-year inbound leads, showing that our top of funnel brand building efforts also created a lift in areas that were typically tied to lower funnel tactics.”

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