Jeep Commercial

The focus group for this Jeep was for adults about 50 years of age. In the commercial, a man about 65 years of age pulls into his son's home and gets out of the car. Next scene shows his grandson getting into the driver side and the grandfather in the passenger. The grandfather mentions "you ready for your first lesson?" The grandson is excited, but nervous. Throughout the lesson, the grandfather starts mention many of the cars safety features. Each time he mentions one, the grandson does something on accident to show the feature. The grandson forgets to look at his rear mirror and almost hits a garbage can, but the grandpa is there to point out the back up camera that shows what's behind him. The grandson next almost hits a car on his side because he forgets to check his blind side, but the grandpa mentions the side mirror alerts if you get too close to another car. Almost on cue, the mirrors beep as the grandson barely misses another car on his left. It just so happens the car next to him is another grandfather with his grandson with the same Jeep. As they return home, the grandpa says "I hope you enjoyed your first lesson!" The grandson responds "I sure did" and reluctantly gives back the keys. The grandpa puts on some shades and drives off like a boss.

Bug Vacuum

My group went with the bug vacuum TV and Radio commercial. For the TV one we thought of having a beautiful Thanksgiving feast on a family table. The whole family is about to dig in when there is a huge buzzing sound. The whole family goes crazy trying to swat the fly as the buzzing grows. They all keep missing and just when the big bug is about to land on the turkey, the smallest kid comes up with the bug vacuum and sucks it away. There is silence, no mess, and the whole family can enjoy their dinner in peace. 

The radio ad produced more of a challenge as the visual aspect isn't available. Because of that the emphasis on the sound of the bug was heightened. We chose to have the radio ad to be shorter (so it wouldn't be too annoying) and had a group of friends just talking. All of a sudden, they stop because a bug is buzzing around them and they all start trying to swat it away, eventually slapping each other in the face. Eventually, a different person comes along and says move and sucks up the fly. The friends are baffled at the ease. 

Creativity - the key to success in advertisement

Creativity is obviously one of the more important factors of an advertisement. It doesn't matter if your message is a helpful or informative concept if you can't garner attention. Creativity often times needs to be fun and sometimes fresh. I've found that any commercial with animals, babies, or slow motion always attract my attention. Without creativity, ads would be completely pointless because no one would watch them. If no one watches them, your product fails along with it. However, with the addition of creativity your product will be considered memorable and probably gain an audience. In this example, the usage of the horse speaks to a large group of people and is able to make people watch. While there is no dialogue, the story is told through the emotion and reactions. An entire story is told and is able to captivate an audience, creating a special identity for Budweiser.

Rose Pedal Playhouse

The playhouse is obviously targeted towards girls. Colors involved with the video can be considered feminine colors like pink, purple and more pink. Only girls appear in the video and most of the actions provided in the ad exhibit a house keeping woman. These include working in the kitchen and doing the laundry.

To make it less feminine, we decided to change the music. A more rock style would help attract boys. Also, changing some of the jobs to a involve boys could help. This means adding sports and other things. Switching up the "roles" and having actual boys in the video also prevents stereotyping. Having them do things together like washing the dishes or clothes eliminates negative stereotypes. Actually having a boy in the video also projects them as a family instead of simply a woman at home taking care of the house.

The Simpsons - stereotypes

The Simpsons stands as one of the longest running shows currently still on. It is also famous for its somewhat crude comedy and stereotypical characters. While this show is an obvious picture of modern day America, The Simpsons remains a comedy that points out the almost absurdity of it all. The show often includes current events, other TV shows, and society perceptions. These are often parodied. I think this sort of comedy is important. While some may find it offensive, its good to look at things from multiple perspectives. The Simpsons often times make things a bit more lighthearted. Some of us could look at it this way and understand that somethings really shouldn't be taken so seriously and cooler heads may solve problems. The sheer ridiculousness of the show may help that.

I haven't watched in a long time, but I do know that the show is pretty much a play on stereotypical America.  Each character is an image of someone you know or knew in your life. Homer Simpson remains the dim-witted, overweight, yet lovable father that cares for his family and loves beer. Bart Simpson remains the hell-raiser that our preteen nation represents. A multitude of minor characters all represent a portion of America. The clerk at the local Kwik-E-Mark is Apu, who is the stereotypical Indian man who always tries to sell you stuff. Krusty the Clown's character is depicted as children's favorite cartoon character, however has a million problems off screen. Milhouse is that dorky friend that always got beat up next to you. Mr. Burns is that evil boss personified, but in a cartoon. The list goes on and on, which makes The Simpsons an extremely efficient show. 

Interruptive Advertisement - a pain in the cheeks?

The greatest example of interruptive advertisement is probably popups and Youtube videos. All of us have watched a video on Youtube only to be stopped before it starts by a 5-10 second ad. It does get irritating after awhile, even though there's the skip button that is allowed. I recently found an Ad Blocker that stops all those ads. (easily found on the Google Chrome web store) However, getting an Ad Blocker isn't the problem. The problem lies in use of these advertisements that inhibit time that users have. While it is understandable that Youtube uses ads to pay for their video usage, it shouldn't come at the expense of viewers.

At the same time, these ads are Youtube aren't the worse thing ever. What could help is actually monitoring the sort of ads that go to specific videos. For instance, if I'm watching a sports clip, I'd rather not watch something about women's soap. If I were required to watch an ad, why can't I watch something about buying a sports TV package or new shoes? These ads would actually make the connection between what we're watching on the video and the ad. I would consider it a smarter marketing tool because you have a target audience in sight, instead of making a reputation of a nuisance.

Ads are always going to be a part of business. While many see it as a pain, its a necessary negative to keep positives in our lives. We always want things that are free and I'd rather watch a few seconds of boredom than have no video or TV at all...

Almond vs Original

instagram:

Post picture with almond or original and hashtag

We decided on putting up pictures of what people used their Toblerone with. Creative ideas on different foods (cake, hot chocolate, brownies)

Youtube:

Mini episodes of how chocolate is made and how almonds are added to chocolate

Controversy: almonds should not be added

--Alternate endings and “like” the video--

- create characters out of both sides

Facebook:

Mini episodes also on facebook

“Like” Toblerone Almond or Original Toblerone to follow their campaign