I RATE ADS

jtherkal: So today I received these notices that videos had been removed from our YouTube channel due to copyright violations. I had to read them a few times to understand what they were saying, because certainly no company would ever ask you NOT to watch or show their commercial.

In the case of the Viagra Ad, it seems to be the music company that had a problem with us sharing their song without paying for or obtaining the rights. But in the other case it was Toyota, the actual car company, that asked to have THEIR AD taken down. Now, is it just me, or does asking people NOT to show your ad seem like the most ridiculous thing in the history of marketing? It’s FREE ADVERTISING! The whole reason you make an ad is to have people watch it and hopefully notice or remember it. The ultimate win (well, aside from making a sale) is when someone passes on information about your ad, or even better, passes on the actual Ad for others to see. I’m absolutely amazed and confused by this.

jtherkal: Blah blah blah. Cute, but why? It does an alright job of getting your attention, but then they payoff is sort of weak. I would certainly think Lexus could do a better job of explaining why “the power of h” is important and desirable. It’s a pretty good line, but nothing about missing h’s speaks to that power. I mean, you’ve done more the Lexus than just add an h to the model number, right? Part of me wants to like this, I just don’t. C-.

sjbooher: I like it, even with a bit of a weak ending. Despite not showing the product early on, they draw you in by making you want to see why the h’s are not appearing anywhere. I also like that they took a different approach to selling their Hybrid models than the other companies who just beat you over the head with “miles per gallon”. It allows them to stand out, perhaps. B-.