20 April 2009 ~ 2 Comments

Virtuous… Advertising?

Better Examples

I saw a commercial pod this weekend (no, I dont have Tivo – - I believe in supporting the television programming via watching endless inane ads – - maybe Alec Baldwin is an alien working for hulu after all) – and there were three ads back to back with very virtuous messages.

The first was for Subaru Forester.  Dad and his scout son are off to the Pinewood Derby, and the kid has a crappy car that he made by himself.  Another kid has a tricked out Formula 1 model, that obviously his dad made.  Well, the crappy car wins – and the tag line is “isnt it nice when honest virtues win?”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_BfTr4ShMs

The second was a Mastercard ad- again father and son.  Dad and son are out shopping and the son helps dad make smarter/greener choices.  I can’t seem to find the ad online, but the bottom line is that the son helping dad buy smarter products (cfl lightbulbs, canvass reusable grocery bag etc) is ‘priceless’.  This time the son helps his dad make better choices.  Very good message.

The third ad was for Liberty Mutual and their ‘responsibility’ campaign- the spot I saw is called “Racing”.  http://www.whatsyourpolicy.com/videos/index/10 Mom is quizzing the kid about racing his car, maybe in the police station or hospital.  Something bad happened, but we dont really know what.  We’re left witht he mom saying, “tell me the truth”, and then the tag line – “Doing the right thing says a lot about a person.  And a company.”

All three of these ads ran back to back.  They all have an overtly positive message.  They all use kids and parents to make their points.  (In the Subaru ad, Dad is a spectator by choice and that’s his gift.  In the Mastercard ad, Dad is clueless, and the kid is the hero.  In the Liberty Mutual ad, mom is engaged and involved and concerned.)

Doing the right thing, making better choices, being responsible, being virtuous….

Is advertising taking up where parenting, churches and schools have left off?  Is advertising now going to teach us virtuousness?  Probably not.  But there is something going on here, and I like it!

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2 Responses to “Virtuous… Advertising?”

  1. Rev Steve Lawler 20 April 2009 at 11:23 am Permalink

    Hi Jim,
    Thanks for noting this… trend? Change? Meme?
    I would add this possibility – churches, schools and advertisers are communicating something ALL THE TIME.
    And the best of it is speaking to what is really happening in people’s lives. In fact with the wealth of ways people have to know things, inauthentic spin or speaking from the “I know and you don’t” position gets harder to sustain.
    So, thanks for tracking this and I am with you. The more these kinds of things come up around about us, the better.
    Steve

  2. jimholbrook 26 April 2009 at 5:47 pm Permalink

    the real question in my mind is this – can a company behave itself into a new level of authenticity? I mean, maybe they’re not exactly perfect, but itf they adopt a helpful approach to marketing, will that raise up the company? Or is it just taking advantage of some fad?