Appropriate is just a word?
What makes an AD stand out? Is it the product? Funnier? Better looking people? To me, an AD stands out if it is clever and effective. A clever AD is subjective, but what makes an AD effective? Obviously, if you go out and buy a product because of a commercial it can be considered effective. To me though, an effective AD is memorable, whether or not you plan on buying the product. About two months ago I saw a Direct TV spot and I instantly fell in love. I’ve only seen it once until today and it still stands as one of the funniest and oddly controversial spots I’ve seen. Check it out below…
I love the way Direct TV makes the “Cable Company”, into a sort of weird group of people. One of those people that we all know but would never really be friends with. It’s a similar strategy as what Apple did, making a PC into an overweight middle aged nerd, while the Mac guy is young and hipper than ever. After the cable guy introduces his campaign to, “Get Youthenized”, someone yells Direct TV will never know what hit them. They seem so naive and out of it and right when you think they can’t make this commercial any better the CEO type says excitedly, “ Where gonna Youthenize America”. Euthanasia is a controversial topic that is not normally joked about. I have only seen this commercial once and I wondered if Direct TV might have pulled it because of its content. I find this commercial extremely effective in the a way where it stuck in my head. But the question I ask myself is, was this spot socially appropriate? I thought this commercial was in good fun. Lemme know what you think…
-Ezra
