We help companies develop compelling selling conversations that connect with their best customers, both internal and external, offline and online. When that happens, our clients sell more stuff.
Hey, someone at Nissan reads our Atomic Ideas blog....well maybe not. Either way,they finally are advertising "marketable truths" - ie , things they can say about their products that are true and should appeal to their target markets. Take a look.
It's a far cry from their "Fantasy" of a snowbaording pickup that does things no mass produced vehicle can, or ever will, do. Or their out-and-out lie of a spot (called that becuase they purposely tried to make it look as if it were a real news event-- so much so that some people believed it) which had a jet liner with a stuck nose gear land by placing it in the bed of a Nissan pickup that zooms out onto the tarmack.
But credit where credit is due. This spot gives consumers with a couple dozen grand in their pockets some real reasons to buy a Nissan. Whereas their previous pickup spots gave these same people a reason to say "hey, look at that" but no real reason to part with their dough.
Nissan is at it again. First they had a spot where their pickup races onto the tarmac to help a jet land by letting it put it's semi-extended front landing gear in the bed of the truck. Clearly fake, what does that say about the pickup? Since it's fantasy, NOTHING! I could just as easily (with a special effects budget and matting software) have my daughter's 2001 Chrysler Neon with a bent fender and 126,000 miles on it, race out and save the jet by putting it's landing gear on the roof. Both say the same for the Nissan pickup -- Nothing! Okay, you might remember the Nissan name. But once you think about the fact that they have no real benefits to talk about (which is why they present a fake scenario that no pickup could live up to) you're not going to seriously consider buying it. And isn't the whole reason advertising exists, is to try and put your product or service on top of someone's consideration list?
AND NOW...they come up with a snowboarding pickup. At least this time they try to avoid looking like they are LYING to us or trying to FAKE US OUT by clearly disclaiming it as FANTASY. So again, why should I buy the Nissan pickup??? Just because someone at their ad agency had a wet dream about depicting the vehicle like it was a snowboard and doing impossibly fake flips and jumps over snow covered hills? Substitute a Ford F-150, a Dodge Ram, or a rickshaw as the featured vehicle and the commercial would work equally as well, ie. not at all!
While you're at it, Nissan, if you're going to live in a fantasy world, why not just give your truck lazers, afterburners, and submarine qualities in your commercials, too? No real truck has those, either.
At least when I walk away from an F-150 commerical I remember a benefit or two, like Eco-boost. Or with Dodge Ram, towing capability. But with a Nissan Pickup commercial, other than the dubious entertainment value of "gee, I'd like to see a truck do that", there is no resaon to buy one, because, "gee, NO truck bound by the laws of physics can do that."
Sure a TV spot has to be attention getting, entertaining and likeable, but once the spot is over, if you want people to buy what you're advertising, it needs to have a marketable truth. In today's economy, it's not enough to have someone remember your product or service's name, they need to have a reason to part with their hard earned money to purchase it.
Sure it's a little early, but let's face it, how many of you would actually be reading this ON Thanksgiving? So here's something for you to gobble, gobble up before the big day! Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Atomic Ideas!
I saw this new Honda Odyssey TV spot the other day. I asked my colleague Greg what it meant and what just happened there. He said they were imitating the Ozzie Osbourne song, “Crazy Train.” Really? Why? Smarter thinking?
Usually when you imitate or parody a popular song in a TV spot you hope that it’s… well… popular and recognizable. Honda struck out on this one. It’s surprising because Honda has always been very solid in their concepts and cleverness over the years.
I like Honda. I’ve owned many over the years and currently drive one. But I have to ask, whom were they targeting in this spot? The worldwide fan base of Ozzie Osbourne? No offense intended, but just how big could that be? Is this a song tune people have stuck in their heads throughout the day? Or maybe Honda just wanted to tie in the song’s title with Honda’s unique mini-van attributes – a weak tongue-in-cheek connection. The visual production value is good - it’s the audio that stumped me. I did not understand what was going on until Greg told me it was an Ozzie Osbourne tune, (Hmm... how did he know that!)
By the way, I later discovered there’s a 90 second version on the web that features a lot more of the Ozzie song performed by all of the Honda’s eight passengers. But it’s the thirty second TV spot that’s the measure for successful selling. One shouldn’t have to rely on the rarely aired :90 to substantiate or fill in the blanks of the :30 concept. However, it’s still not clear what Honda is trying to say here. The new Honda Odyssey is a crazy train?
This is one of those spots where you wonder how it was presented to the client. Was it acted out? Did they go so far as to test it as an animatic? And, who said, “Go for it” on the client side? - An Ozzie fan?
The spot wraps up with the line, “Smarter Thinking from Honda.” I’m sure there was smarter thinking for the new Odyssey vehicle, I’m not so sure there was for the commercial.
On my Steeb-O-Meter (a rating system for evaluating projects on film, video, music, television and print on a scale of 1 - 63), I’m giving this spot a 26.
You've seen the commercial, a "simulated" news story about an Airliner with half-extended nose gear, is saved when it sets the wheel down in the back of a speeding Nissan Frontier. (No I didn't remember the name from the spot, I had to look it up).
Sure it was well produced. Sure it cost gazillions to produce (Not the least of which is all that CG work). And sure it got my attention... right up to the part when I realized it was...as the youtube title says "unbelievable" (ie NOT believable).
THE FLAWED IDEA:
Now the idea was to "demonstrate" that the Frontier is tough and can haul a big payload. But a fake story about a fake event leads viewers to wonder what else is fake -- like the sales points they desperatly want to convince us are true? I was so turned off, that I tuned the spot out before they even got to the name of the truck. With advertising already being suspect for false promises, why go out of your way to purposly make a false promise (exaggeration for humor, aside). This is especialy true if you are marketing to the GEN Y crowd who eschew being "suckered" into anything.
Also, since they went to such great lengths to make it look real, and never let on that this was a joke or exaggeration, it leads one to wonder if they expect us to believe it's actually true...thus, insulting our intelligence? Now they're not just fakers, they're rude fakers!
WHAT THEY COULD HAVE DONE:
Okay, now I didn't have the benefit of seeing the creative brief (and I'm not being paid to spend a couple weeks to create a killer idea for this -- although Atomic Ideas is available, give us a call!), but IF the idea is to convince us that the Frontier can carry a big load, then show us an impressive, entertaining, REAL load that it can carry! If it can carry a half ton, have it put down the tailgate and let a mini-car drive into the bed ("Hauls everything from a mini to a full-sized load") . Or lead a half-grown elephant into the bed ("Hauls a full-size load for peanuts"). Or fill it with 100,000 gumballs ("A mid-size pickup that hauls a full size load. Chew on that a while"). And that's three, off the top of my head, that make the point without pegging the B.S. meter.
THE IDEA IS THE THING!
Without a good idea and a sound strategy, you can throw all the money you want at a commercial and still have it go down the drain. Or in this case, having it "not land."
The simple answer is: As much as you can afford. Why? Because people at home don't rationalize a crappy spot, saying "Gee, I bet they didn't have much money to produce their spot." No, they think, "Gee, what a crappy commercial." And a crappy commerical makes your product or service look crappy. And let's face it, your commercial may run after a million dollar spot produced by Nike or Budweiser. And again, the people at home don't rationalize that your company is not as big as theirs, they only know your commercial doesn't look as good as the other ones on TV.
Now that's not to say you have to spend millions. A small budget does not necessarily mean a small idea. You just need to be clear about the budget up front, so your agency can create a spot that can be produced well (and look good) with the dollars at hand. Sure, with a tiny budget, you may have to settle for a simpler execution . But that simple spot will look good, and get your message across. The biggest mistake advertisers make is wanting an ambitious million-dollar commercial like they saw on the Superbowl, but only bugeting a few thousand dollars to pull it off. A recipe for disaster.
The bigger the budget, the more options your agency has to create stopping power with a unique technique or entertainment vaule -- two important elements in getting your spot noticed and remembered. And we all know that a TV commerical that is unnoticed or quickly forgotten is wasted money.
The flip side is not agreeing up front on a specific strategy for the agency to follow. Even a slick, million dollar spot will fail to make the cash register ring, if it doesn't connect with your corel customers.
So the the bottom line is...spend what you can, but be sure to set a clear strategy before you start.
(This spot cost a bundle, not just for the number of scenes, actors, and quality of the lighting and directing, but also remember that they had to buy the rights to use "Star Wars" characters and music -- easily another $100K-$500K. Again, the bigger the budget, the more options for creating something entertaining, memorable and unique.)
Working in close collaboration with the marketing team at Belle Tire and production company Rare Medium, Well Done, and based on research and consumer feedback, Atomic Ideas created three new commercials to highlight the fact that tire shopping really isn't that much fun.
The new campaign capitalizes on Belle Tire's commitment to providing an unexpected and extraordinary customer experience for tire and automotive service customers, and introduces the new tagline "Better At Every Turn."
The spots contrast the alternate reality of a universe where people live for the day they have a flat, or their car breaks down, with the reality that those events are about the last thing a normal person looks forward to. Take a look and let us know what you think!
Atomic Ideas is an idea factory for marketers that need a boost.
We offer businesses strategically sound ideas to accomplish their business objectives, and then we execute them.
The results are compelling selling conversations that connect companies with their best customers, both internal and external, offline and online....aligned.
Check out Atomic Ideas' latest work for bd's right here. Then head to the location nearest you to try out something totally different at bd's - an awesome burger, Mongo-style!
Through October 30, 2011, bd's will bring the game-day spirit to diners with an appetizing tailgate party unlike any other. The world's number one create your own stir-fry concept is providing fans with new and exciting menu additions, including innovative burger and brat recipes and drink combinations.
"Football season is all about family, friends and fun," said Denise Head, vice president of marketing at bd's Mongolian Grill. "Adding burgers and brats to our menu creates the ideal tailgate party experience and is exactly what our guests want."
During the football season, diners can create their own tailgate experience with four new Create Your Own Mongo Burger choices. Angus, Turkey, Veggie, and Salmon burgers can all be paired with an array of mouthwatering sauce options. Brats are also available for a limited time. And Mongo lovers can top off their burgers and brats with a variety of vegetable bar offerings from customary onions, tomatoes and bacon to nontraditional items such as pineapple and jalapenos!
We love collaborating with the great team at bd's on exciting events like the Tailgate Party ... and we love the food too!
Atomic Ideas is an idea factory for marketers that need a boost.
We offer businesses strategically sound ideas to accomplish their business objectives, and then we execute them.
The results are compelling selling conversations that connect companies with their best customers, both internal and external, offline and online....aligned.
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