Do commercials really work?
We recorded a TV show the other day and when we went back to watch it we noticed the time bar indicated show time and commercial time. That reminded me of a value-added analysis. Of course, the show time is what I could consider value-add, but the advertising time is considered the value-add for companies shelling out the big bucks.
But do the ads work? I'm sure the companies placing the ads have metrics that tell them if sales went up after the ad aired, but I do not have access to that information. So, I decided to start rating the ads based on my reactions. Is it a 'cute' ad that I don't mind watching multiple times? Do I remember the company or product that placed the ad? Does it change my likelihood of buying the product? It there a 'message' that may be coming through that has a moral context?
Here are two examples of where I want to take this conversation. The first ad shows a meteor of waste products coming to crash into the planet. Then you see folks doing things that help reduce waste. Finally, by the time the meteor hits the Earth, it is down to a single plastic bottle. A little girls picks it up and places it in a recycling bin. I love the social implications of waste on the ecosystem. I never would have guessed that this was an ad for IKEA, specifically for their kitchen recycling bins. I wish this story had been reversed and it had started with a little girl placing a used plastic bottle in the kitchen bin. Then follow that bin on the way to a massive recycling plant and a message like: "It starts with you and a single bottle!" I give it a C. Link to the ad
Another is an ad for HULU, trying to spread the message that it is for more than sports programs. A black athlete and rapper can't seem to squeeze in all the notes, until they open up several briefcases of money, then he can easily perform the song. I get their primary message, but I also easily get the stereotype that black athletes are only motivated by money and will do anything to get more. I wish he had been talking with his team mates when one mentioned he watched HULU only for live sports, and he set them straight! I give it a D-. Link to the ad.
Does your company have ads? If so, take a critical look and give them feedback.