By now everyone knows that last night’s Super Bowl featured a blowout game and very few truly memorable commercials. As RLF’s Creative Director Ron Irons put it: “The game was sad. The commercials a tragedy. What few commercials I watched were boring and full of borrowed interest. The good ones are rare these days.”
However, there were a few bright spots among the mostly unremarkable Super Bowl commercials, and for the next few days, we will be highlighting some of the commercials that captured our attention.
Name: Monty Hagler, CEO
Favorite Commercial: “America The Beautiful” from Coca-Cola
Why I Liked It: In an evening that featured a disappointing football match-up and an even more dismal array of commercials, Coca-Cola demonstrated why it’s one of the most popular brands on earth. What started as another ad featuring a tried-and-true patriotic song morphed into a beautiful, moving and unexpected visual and auditory feast. Seven languages from diverse cultures, blended together to celebrate our country’s rich tapestry. The fact that the ad ignited immediate criticism and controversy were proof that it touched people and stirred their emotions. America is a country that still inspires the world to treasure our freedoms and simple joys. That’s worth a Coke and a smile.
Name: Michelle Rash, director of financial and professional services brands
Favorite Commercials: “The Phone Call” from Radio Shack and “Wings” from Volkswagen
Why I Liked Them: While on the surface, these commercials may seem very different, I see a common thread running through them – brands accepting, and poking fun at, the reality of how they are perceived in the marketplace.
While I am certainly not an electronics genius, or even a likely Radio Shack customer, my perception of the store is that is has become out-of-date and irrelevant with the rise of other electronics stores and the ability to order anything you need online. I think this commercial did a great job of embracing that “stuck in the 80s” reputation, using it to announce a new, updated Radio Shack. Based on the commercial, my guess is the key demographic for the “new” Radio Shack will be people in their 30s and 40s, and showcasing so many icons of the 80s in the commercial successfully grabbed their attention, created a sense of nostalgia and got them talking – at least if my Facebook and Twitter feeds are any indication.
Likewise, Volkswagen embraces the car company’s reputation for making very reliable, dependable cars and uses it to create an entertaining, and slightly unexpected, commercial, as the company’s engineers are rewarded with wings for each car that reaches 100,000 miles. Today, so many companies take themselves too seriously, so it was refreshing to see Volkswagen find a creative approach to discussing, and enhancing, its reputation in the market.