I am not a big fan of Professional Football, it just doesn't seem to have the same passion as the game at the collegiate level.  I am, however, a huge fan of the Super Bowl and watch it each year because of the elaborate commercials that air during the game.

Down Year

It seemed to be a down year for copy writers as most of the ads seem to have fallen flat with the audiences and I noted a lack of "commercial" analysis as I arrived at work.  I did want to point out a shining example of great advertising that happened last night: The Google Ad.

Why So Good?

1. It did not talk about the product.
2. It had a very simple concept
3. It had a very simple execution
4. It told a story
5. It painted a picture of that story in the viewers head
6. It connected the warm feelings in the story to the product.

Perfection

Good ads tell great stories that stick with viewers.  This was a case study in effective storytelling.  It had a plot (boy meets girl), it had tension (long distance relationship), and it had resolution (move to Paris).  It did all this with out using video or pictures.  It allowed each person to create the visual story in their heads and celebrate when the story produced a happy marriage and a baby.

It was equally appealing to men and women by touching a different set of emotions in each and the best part was that the entire story was told using the product being advertised.  The story came to life and the product was used as a tool without gratuitous name dropping.  It was simple and it was effective.

Kudos to Google on a very well done ad!

What was your favorite ad last night?