Heineken "Walk In Fridge Ad"
Have you ever seen a commercial on TV, and thought it was brilliant? Hilarious? Classy? Instructive?
We all have favorite commercials, even though we may generally resent having programs interrupted by them. Sometimes the television commercials are even better than the sitcoms, new shows, or movies we're watching.
Then again, we all have commercials we absolutely hate. To me, almost all automobile TV commercials are despicable or boring. My main complaint is that car commercials often show people driving at super high speeds, bordering on recklessly, with no other traffic or pedestrians around. This is both unethical and unrealistic.
For example, I like the Capital One TV commercials featuring the Vikings.
I also like the Geico caveman commercials, but I find the gecko commercials extremely stupid and annoying. Sometimes I wish the Geico caveman would catch the Geico gecko, roast it, and eat it. Just kidding, but I'm not the only one who gets a bit passionate about certain TV commercials.
Passionate?
Well, if people are really enthusiastic about a TV commercial, even if it's just because it's really funny, there's a missed opportunity for corporations. If corporate websites posted their TV commercials in an archive, and provided code to enable fans to embed their commercials in their blogs, think of how that could help promote the brand.
Even though they're laughing, people are still thinking about your product and brand, if the commercial makes it clear what's being advertised and uses humor correctly to highlight a product benefit or differentiation from competing brands.
You'd think that businesses would love to have people embedding their TV commercials in their blogs. That's FREE advertising, unpaid distribution of marketing material. If the blogger is influential, the company's credibility and good will would increase a lot also.
Companies could put the embed code right into the frame of the video, so people who visit a blog and view the commercial could also embed that video in their own blog. I think you now see the viral potential available here.
So why don't corporations post their TV commercial videos on their websites?
Why don't they post their TV commercials on YouTube?
Why don't they provide video embed code for their TV commercials?
I have pondered this for years, and only today did I realize this would be a good thing to blog about.
I have found some websites that post TV commercials and provide video embed code. Check out the Computer Associates "Caesar" commercial posted at Clipland.
TBS gets it.
They sponsor a TV commercial archives website called Very Funny Ads, and under Share This Ad, they provide video embed code, along with ways to promote a video on Twitter, Facebook, and other social bookmark and networking sites.
When will companies wake up and do the same on their corporate and ecommerce websites?
Pepsi "Kung Fu Ad"
New World Order commercial starring Helen Thomas, George Bush Jr. & Sr., etc. (no embed code available).
1 comment:
I do agree with you. TV Commercials are really one of the most effective forms of advertising, given that they are visually stimulating, yet short enough not to be too dragging. With the advent of internet and social media, making them easy to embed into sites is indeed an effective marketing tool.
Timothy Eng
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