Posted on 03/16/2022 5:44:31 PM PDT by nikos1121
I took an advertising course in college. The prof gave us an assignment to make a radio or tv commercial on any product we chose.
He was an old school guy, who told us that the rules of advertising hadn't really changed since the Clark Gable movie, The Hucksters, came out especially when it comes to "funny" ads.
He said funny ads don't work. People may laugh at the commercial, but they won't be persuaded to buy the product by comedy.
And his next thought stuck with me. People may remember the humor, but they won't remember the product that goes with it.
I think of him every time a "try to be funny" ad comes on the air. You've seen them. It's usually a white pajama boy who is totally clueless, and his wife or girl friend sets him straight.
The ad might start out serious and actually may be pretty good, but they're compelled to finish it with about ten seconds of some goofy gag line.
Then you have those car insurance or cell phone ads. They all try to be funny, and a few are, but the next day, like my old prof said, you can't remember the product.
These companies are paying millions of dollars to these advertising agencies for commercials that are stupid and insult your intelligence, and probably do not sell their product as well as if they presented the product in a straight forward honest manner.
I'm not talking here about a catchy phrase, like "Where's the beef", or "I'd walk a mile for Camel." Those are clever and the product sticks in your mind.
Which brings me to the latest Infiniti Commercial. It's not funny or even clever. It just makes you scratch your head wondering, who thought this would sell their cars.
If you've seen any of their latest ads they seem to be marketing to mainly snooty, rich, white women.
This is the company, that some years back, had this great idea to introduce their latest car, BY NOT SHOWING IT!
Instead, the commercial was silent with words on the screen that said "The Car is Coming!" and "It Will Change Your Driving Experience Forever" etc. before a backdrop of a winding country road.
The current commercial is called "The Band Recital," and it depicts an orchestra made up of these cute well groomed middle school kids who are trying to play the 2001 Space Odyssey Theme. Unfortunately they're playing it badly, and way out of tune, but they don't know it.
They play their little hearts out reminding all of us of those times we sat at a concert of our own kids. We would never think of doing what this gal does in the commercial.
First of all, she has her QX60 parked in front of the band. They're not outside, they're inside! Who drives their car into a school auditorium to listen to their kids band?
That's weird enough, but it gets worse.
This gal has her windows and moon roof opened, but as soon as she hears the cacophony of this little orchestra, she closes the windows and roof, and with a smile of pleasure this rich b*tch turns on her car stereo playing the 2001 Theme by a professional orchestra.
The thought of this commercial, for sure, will remind me of the Infiniti product, but it doesn't make me want to buy one of their cars.
Exactly. You ask yourself, “Why is the car in the auditorium?”
OH, I know! She drove it there so she could get a better view of her kid in the band.
Yeah, it’s too show how quiet the car is. So, quiet that this snooty Karen inside won’t hear the honking of the cars behind her, when she doesn’t drift out into the intersection, LIKE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO, to make a left hand turn on green.
It’s also to show to how friggin entitiled she thinks she is, by driving the car indoors in the first place.
No way.
Thank God they didn’t. Just about all UAW made cars are garbage or eventually the business goes belly up after all the state incentives are used up.
Some exceptions are Caterpillar, but they pulled out of the UAW by relocating their plants elsewhere,
IN short, American cars are inherently mediocre. Oh, driving a Caddy or a Lincoln might seem nice at first, but where are the cars when they hit around 80,000 miles?
I wonder how many people on this thread drive Infiniti?
Or Psaki, or Geraldo and any other left leaning bleeding heart that they have on The Five.
I keep thinking 42% of Americans approve of Biden’s job performance. WTF?
Something to watch while you’re sipping coffee today.
Handpicked, just for you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tnANMTAOew
Another insurance company. Although, this one might work.
You are right about it being marketed towards rich women who want luxuries that shield them from the everyday hum-drum stuff. I never bought a car to escape the world around me, rather to help live it. My car had to have a roof rack to hold things like bicycles and canoes. It had to have a trailer hitch to pull the sailboat. It needed a hatch-back to hold lots of camping gear, or the latest antique treasure purchase, or the groceries or our music instruments and the kid’s sports equipment. It had to have top safety ratings and room to haul 3 kids on our adventures. Needless to say, when the day came that 4-wheel drive was available and by then we could afford it was a plus And back in the day, it had to have a radio to listen to Rush Limbaugh while I ran errands and carpools.
I don’t know if this one works. A buzzed Huskster pushing a cheap product that costs almost $30
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxGn2Egekic
Hahaha. Great images.
Don’t tell me it was a Suburu.
PS...TCG posting in a couple minutes.
I miss Vince! He was entertaining.
i’ve seen that ad- i think some folks make a big deal over nothing.
the worst ads are the Liberty Insurance with the Emu.
They are so stupid i would never get that insurance.
“Look at my nuts!”
;-)
OMG yes!!!!!!!
These Ad guys are probably all patting themselves on the back, because the ad DOES get you to associate it with Liberty. But I hate the guy and his Emu.
First off, it’s creepy, secondly, don’t trust a guy who is wearing tinted glasses.
I agree with you, I would never buy Liberty insurance, mainly because of the EMU.
I think Liberty runs those other ads, where you have the dumbs white guy trying to be funny, when he’s acting stupid.
Was reading your tagline....
Back in the 70’s - 80’s a VW Camper Bus. In the 90’s, we had what-ever Mr, Apple Pan dowdy got as a company car and I drove the Taurus SHO….. LOL, wanted a “sports car”, and it was a compromise that allowed room for the kids, a huge trunk and the power to pull the boat trailer and was big fun to drive. Admittedly, it was not our best choice and was totaled when a girl on her cell phone ran a red light and crashed into Mr. APD (no injuries, thank the Lord). After that and on to today, a Chevy Tahoe for him, and YES You guessed it, a Subaru Forester for me. I don’t know why they call it a Lesbo Car. 10 years ago there were more Foresters in our little town than anything else and the only Lesbian I know didn’t drive one…. She had a truck.
Yeah, I don’t know how it got that nom de plume either. They’re really great cars for people in the North who have to drive in snow for one thing.
I have some female friends, single who drive them, but they’re not lesbos.
TGC an easy peasy.
Hey! check your private mail....
I’m the first to admit something is funny, but the bulk of these commercials are mindless and stupid. You get the impression that the writer has no street wise idea of what is funny.
You talk about Obama era. That’s a good point. I think the academics have finally hit mainstream with the Democratic Party.
They’re all a bunch of fruitcakes. Looks like Bill Maher and other liberals are agreeing.
but getting back to commercials, I agree with my college prof who said funny commercials don’t sell because you forget what product was being advertised.
I’m thinking of the one years ago. You had that Japanese guy looking up and pointing at the Blimp. I can’t recall if the commercial was for Goodyear or Goodrich.
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