Oculus Studios makes all kinds of television commercials for clients every year. We have some clients that want the focus of their spot to be on a specific item or a discount they’re offering, while others are wanting to build a brand message behind their company or a program. There is an amazingly fine line between a commercial having too much content and a commercial having too little content. Talk in too much detail, and customers are bored; they change the channel, wasting advertising dollars. Say too little, and people may love your commercial, but forget you. Finding that line is not only difficult, but it varies from project to project, client to client.
Making sure that the commercials we create have that right balance, we sit up and take notice of national commercials that succeed or fail in getting attention. We gauge our own interest in products that are marketed while thinking about why it was or wasn’t affective. Case in point, tablets. Tablets have become a staple of work and personal fields in the last few years, with each new year bringing new competitors to the table. While the iPad has been the standard for so long, others are stepping up to make compelling products that try to win market share. The problem? While the products might be making a decent argument, the commercials are not. Take one of the Apple iPad commercials as our baseline:
In this video, there are nine apps shown being used. Another favorite of ours is a commercial showing seven apps and telling who those apps work great for. What’s great about this commercial is that with only 30 seconds, the commercials tells us all kinds of things we can do with this product. Most importantly, it shows us things we can’t do on our computers which is the entire argument FOR having a tablet. Let’s contrast these commercials with one for Microsoft’s Surface.
In the course of 60 seconds, this commercial only shows one app in use…one app! As far as we’re concerned, if this tablet doesn’t make you a better dancer, it’s false advertising. What was the point of this commercial? They’re wanting to show you an idea, not a tablet; the idea is “excitement.” This is an exciting product that will…well, they don’t really show you what it does. But hey, there’s a kickstand!
If you count the apps screen on both commercial, the iPad still wins, but that was some marketing genius’ solution for “but we’re not showing it in use.” He brushes it off, “Oh, we’ll just show the apps screen so they know there are a bunch of apps.” What’s even more amazing, in the minute long version of the commercial, they show the same app three times… and it’s a spreadsheet. The commercial fails in every possible way to convince me that this is a product I should buy. Why is it better than a computer? Why is it better than an iPad? Why is it better than a case with a kickstand for my iPad?!?!
Now before you read this think we’re simply biased towards iPads, here is an great commercial for Internet Explorer that is done entirely on a tablet. It’s the most compelling argument for the Surface and Windows 8 and it’s not even for either product:
So do we love this commercial? Absolutely not! While I think this is the commercial the Surface Pro should have made, it does nothing for me about Internet Explorer. We aren’t shown any security benefits, or even actual browser features. Again, why would I use this product? That question still remains unanswered even after watching all 30 seconds. The reason this is odd is because Internet Explorer has been getting it right with their other commercials.
Why are so many companies wasting advertising dollars on spots that don’t talk about their product in any detail? It’s because they’re convinced that the emotion in these spots will be enough. We tell our clients all the time that emotion is the strongest tool they can use to attract new customers. That if a customer has an emotional connection with you, they can create a life long brand loyalist; however people aren’t completely devoid of thinking skills. Emotion is vital, so don’t miss that, but quality matters to consumers just as much. All the commercials we’ve shown have emotion in them. Ranging from sentimental to excitement, but using that emotion to deliver a message about the product is supposed to be the goal.
Let’s step away from the world of tablets as we close. Giving customers information while you send them an emotional message is the challenge with every 30 second spot. The key is to elicit the emotion you want people to feel, then capitalize on that to tell them about your product or service. Getting peoples’ mood in the right spot first and foremost can be the difference between failure and success. Volkswagen has a rule that is a part of their guidelines for commercials, which is, “At the heart of all good Volkswagen advertising, there’s always a product truth. It’s not sort of flim-flam, [it’s] always based on a truth that comes directly from the product.” While this is seemingly obvious, it’s a vital part of creating good ads. There must be a truth about the product that gives consumers a window into answer the question, “Why?” Why this product? Why this service? USA Today named this Volkswagen spot one of the top ads of 2012:
The emotion is clear. It makes us smile or laugh, and while we are happy, they let us know that many of the car’s functions can be controlled from just the key. Unlock (of course), starting the car, rolling the windows up or down, and locking the car. I now have good thoughts about the brand because of the emotion, and I’m walking out to my car wishing I could leave the key in my pocket to start it. They’ve answered the question, “Why this car?”
When Oculus Studios sits down to create a TV commercial for our clients, we think in emotions and questions. We have to answer the “Why?” that every consumer will ask. Because most advertising isn’t about products that don’t exist, they are about being better than the competition, and about winning market share by conveying why consumers should use you. We love creating commercials and other advertising that help distinguish companies from their competition and have helped companies stand out when they were falling behind. Don’t get lost in your commercial, or try to create an emotion that doesn’t help your brand. Find that balance, and focus your commercials on emotion and truth.