Feb 8, 2010

3 Worst Superbowl XLIV Commercials

1) Emerald Nuts, Goodby Silverstein & Partners:

In a year where the Superbowl ads were a relative let down, the Emerald nuts and Pop Secret Butter spot, by Goodby Silverstein & Partners, was, in my opinion, the worst. First of all, the fact that in a 30 second spot, the advertiser tried selling two different products was an obvious sign of desperation (the opposite of what a good advertisement should convey). Secondly, the bizarre concept of aquatic success being a result of consuming snack foods, made this already poor storyboard, all the more pathetic. And finally, the tagline of “awesome+awesome=awesomer”, sounds like an advertising cliché right out of an outdated textbook, and part of the reason our industry is disregarded by so many people.

2) Dove for Men, Ogilvy & Mather:
With this spot, I wasn't quite sure what the intention was. Dove, a brand known for good advertising (although predominantly for women), missed the target this time, at least for me. With the tagline of "be comfortable in your own skin", it seems like a poor spin off of the Real Beauty campaign. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Ogilvy & Mather's work, and for Dove as a brand, however, this new launch obviously has some work to be done before Dove can really be considered "a man's brand".
3) Dr. Pepper Cherry
This commercial, in my opinion, would have been brilliant if it were 10-15 seconds shorter. It starts off with Dr. Kiss introducing the product (typical, but nothing terrible) and then saying how smooth the cherry flavor is (good, on strategy with describing the product). However, once the commercial heads into a 10 second Kiss concert, I think that's where it loses its initial appeal. At the end of the day, this is just another silly soda commercial, and apart from a few Coke and Pepsi spots that have become well respected in the industry and by consumers, soft drink advertising is a tough nut to crack. Hopefully this changes over the next few years.

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