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The Godfather · 07:58 PM

http://mjmorningshow.com/cc-common/f...ticle_id=25727

Beware: you won't get a refund on the time you spent watching this.

[edit]Direct link replaced with indirect link

CharlesS · 09:45 PM

You are correct. Most people look at the available games and do not care about meaningless specs like "403 Forbidden." And the name of the product isn't even mentioned, except in the URL. I doubt this ad will sell many units.

edit: now that the link actually works... eesh. You're right; that's beyond awful.

ghporter · Jul 14, 2005, 09:06 PM

<sarcasm=heavy>Boy, do I want to rush out and buy a PSP now!</sarcasm>

It's a crap commercial, plain and simple. No real viewer connection with the character, no interest in how the product is connected to the character, only a brief mention of the product...it gets an F in Marketing 101.

SimpleLife · Jul 14, 2005, 09:18 PM

Originally Posted by ghporter

<sarcasm=heavy>Boy, do I want to rush out and buy a PSP now!</sarcasm>

It's a crap commercial, plain and simple. No real viewer connection with the character, no interest in how the product is connected to the character, only a brief mention of the product...it gets an F in Marketing 101.

Or maybe it was not targetted to your socio-cultural group.

Marketing can be extremely precise.

This one is in French and of course, it refers to the power of men of becoming hard, even during their sleep. Also, it refers to a dream where the sleeper is actually playing and is a winner.

That type of subtlety is not for North America, where it would have to be more action base and especially noisier, in general. Don;t get me wrong; I am not saying the French are better at getting commercials; it just refers to a very specific clientele.

Whether this ads will work or not is always a gamble; the number of unsuccessful ads is huge compared to those that are strong in hooking up their audience.

May I remind you that some cars targeted to the female social categories were also sold to men? (i.e. Plymouth Fiero)

Severed Hand of Skywalker · Jul 14, 2005, 09:30 PM

Neat trick but don't make anyone want to buy one.

Kerrigan · Jul 14, 2005, 09:40 PM

Simplelife is right, but the commercial is still lame.

KeriVit · Jul 14, 2005, 09:54 PM

no sale!

ManOfSteal · Jul 14, 2005, 10:22 PM

Hella-stupid ad indeed.

Superchicken · Jul 14, 2005, 11:28 PM

I hear the PS2 lets you shape shift your penis into a thumb! Sweet! My mom will never catch me masturbating when she walks in unexpectedly again!

Ghoser777 · Jul 14, 2005, 11:54 PM

Originally Posted by Superchicken

I hear the PS2 lets you shape shift your penis into a thumb! Sweet! My mom will never catch me masturbating when she walks in unexpectedly again!

Dude, lock your door.

Superchicken · Jul 15, 2005, 12:01 AM

Originally Posted by Ghoser777

Dude, lock your door.

Who needs to lock doors when you have the penis morphing abilities of the PS2!?

buggsuperstar · Jul 15, 2005, 12:20 AM

spatterson · Jul 15, 2005, 01:08 AM

whats the freaking point of that ad?

boardsurfer · Jul 15, 2005, 01:45 AM

hawt

ASIMO · Jul 15, 2005, 05:20 AM

I saw a thumb. Did I miss the boobies?

Diggory Laycock · 09:40 AM

Not nearly as good as the "Conquered Worlds" ad for the PS1.

Was that shown anywhere other than the UK?

http://nz.playstation.com/assets/lif...life_movie.mov

[edit] - found a free version of the movie.

The Godfather · Jul 15, 2005, 07:40 AM

Originally Posted by Ghoser777

Dude, lock your door.

Catholic homes have an open door policy.

Sherwin · Jul 15, 2005, 08:21 AM

Guys, this ad appears to be part of a campaign, rather than standalone. Successful campaigns can and do get to the point where they don't mention the product at all.

For example, ad a while back in the UK:

Donkey walking around a kitchen dressed in an orange hat and orange slippers.
Camera pans to a plate of peas on the table. Voice-over shouts "mushy peas!". End.

Everyone in the target demographic knew instantly that this was an ad for Tango, a fizzy orange-flavoured soft drink. Yet the ad didn't mention Tango once, not even on a closing screen like the PS2 is mention in this one.

Current Euro advertising is headed towards associating the thumb with the PS2. This one didn't quite get there - but another few just like it and the average punter will get to the point where he can't look at his own thumbs without thinking of the PS2. Which is good advertising.

ghporter · Jul 15, 2005, 09:49 AM

SimpleLife, I have no illusion of being in the PSP's target demographic. But I do know that the ad in the link, by itself, is NOT going to sell anything. Why? For the reasons I stated earlier; there's no connection to anything. As a stand alone, it still gets an F.

Sherwin, I think you have nailed it, and this is where I get to soften my response to the ad. By itself it's crap in terms of results. As a part of a large campaign (hopefully a mid- to late-part), it might be very effective. You say that European advertising is building a strong connection between the thumb and the PSP? That has to have been done through a LOT of advertising, building the foundation for this particular ad. Once that's known, the logic of the ad falls into place and it seems to be worthwhile.

In isolation, this ad is no more interesting than the Folgers "cliffhanger" ad of several years ago. Remember the two neighbors who were developing a relationship over sharing instant coffee? They did one ad where the guy knocks on the lady's door and a very young man answers it, with the lady behind him in a robe... That would make absolutely NO sense by itself; there's no connection between the characters, and the viewer has no information about the relationships. Having seen the whole campaign, you would know that these two people were getting "close," and the young man appears to be a competitor for the guy's affections. The resolving ad shows that the young man is the lady's son, by the way.

You NEED a connection to the characters in an ad for it to make sense. If that connection doesn't come from the ad itself, it had better come from previous ads with the same character.

The Windozer · Jul 15, 2005, 10:33 AM

Commercials with no discernible connection between product and what the commercial is about make more of an impression on me. It's still rare enough to shock me when it happens. I go "oh" and then I remember. Fresh.

The Godfather · Jul 15, 2005, 10:38 AM

I am cooler than you. No commercial has ever made an impression on me. I always go 'meh' but then I remember that several professionals have broken their back producing the ad and I just give them a mental thumbsup, but it is VERY RARE!

- - e r i k - - · Jul 15, 2005, 03:31 PM

Originally Posted by Diggory Laycock

Not nearly as good as the "Conquered Worlds" ad for the PS1.

Was that shown anywhere other than the UK?

http://nz.playstation.com/assets/lif...life_movie.mov

[edit] - found a free version of the movie.

Awesome spot.

The thumb-one was so-so, but I got the point.