Monday, December 9, 2013

Advertising... I don't get it

You know how sometimes you'll be sitting on your couch, cringing in agony, from watching one insanely stupid commercial after another, completely overlooking the fact that the program you're currently watching was recorded, and you could have been fast forwarding the whole time? Instead you sit there staring at your TV in bewilderment, watching Pitbull dance around a stage drinking a Dr. Pepper, wondering how that could possibly persuade a human being, to switch their soft drink of choice.
Nothing sells soda, like shitty music

With online streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, gaining popularity, and DVR's coming standard with most cable packages, companies are trying harder than ever, to get you to watch their often misguided ads. Best Buy recently released a commercial starring LL Cool J.  It has to make you wonder how far down the list they got, before considering LL as an option.

Oh Hi, LL? Yeah listen, it's Best Buy calling. We're looking for a new spokesman, and seeing as how Coolio and Kid from Kid n' Play aren't returning our calls, we think that person should be you.



Call me naive, but I fail to see the advantage of paying a random celebrity big money, to endorse your product.  At this point, we all know what Best Buy does, and what they sell.  I just can't imagine someone shopping around for a Blu-Ray player, and having the inclusion of the guy who sang, "Mama, said knock you out"  become the deciding factor on where they make the purchase.  A lesser known actor would've been just as effective. In fact, they would probably be more effective, as the focus of the ad would be more about the sales, and less about counting the number of times LL licks his lips.
I represent Queens, she was raised out in Brooklyn.

Big corporations like Pepsi, and Anheuser Busch spend millions of dollars on advertising each year. Millions!! Is it really necessary? Does Tostitos see a spike in their profits each year after the airing of The Fiesta Bowl? Do the crowds get bigger at Lowe's, every time Jimmy Johnson wins a race? Would people stop buying Doritos, if they didn't spend 10 million dollars on Super Bowl commercials? No, right? Doritos are delicious. They could never air another commercial again, and I'm still going to eat the shit out of them. Even if they release a new chip that doesn't quite make sense.


The Chip flavored like a taco, that was inspired by the aforementioned chip
I'm not saying that Advertising is pointless. Promoting your business is a necessity, I just don't see how paying Troy Aikman and Hulk Hogan to bicker with each other, is going to entice me to shop at Rent-a-Center, or how seeing a Sprint logo behind Tony Romo, during a post-game press conference is going to make me want to change my cell phone provider. It seems like a waste of money to me. Then again, what do I know? They say it takes money to make money, and these companies clearly know what they're doing. It just appears to me, that hiring Pitbull to try to sell your soda, is a worse choice than a carton of milk on a hot day.


            I don't know about you, but I suddenly have the urge to buy a Dodge Durango.

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