In our fast-paced age it takes a lot to gain the attention of consumers, especially on one of the most cluttered mediums: television.
Loud, flashy, obnoxious are all terms that could be used to describe a large majority of the advertisements that hit television nowadays. True, that may be of my own opinion but I’d love to hear the arguments of someone who disagrees.
For me, Dodge truly gained my attention with their 2013 Superbowl Ad simply titled, “Farmer.” The commercial itself was fairly quiet. The images moved slowly, there was a relative lack of colour in comparison to most advertisements that aired that day. Over the moving images, a piece of poetry was read. It was simple, and it has gone viral: close to fifteen million views on YouTube in less than two months.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMpZ0TGjbWE
Why then, can an ad such as “Farmer” attract so much attention during an ad such as the Superbowl? Simply put, it directly follows the AIDA promotion model, which can further be reduced to three steps (CAB)
- Cognition (Awareness or learning) – within the mix of all the loud, flashy, raunchy commercials, the quiet calm of “Farmer” was sure to catch the attention of many. Additionally, for a select crowd, the explicit farming images would have likely heightened an awareness within them, if they are connected to agriculture.
- Affect (Feeling, interest or desire) – the poetry laid over the images has the direct intent of stirring up a feeling of warmth and respect towards a traditional American occupation, an embrace of religion/faith and, for any farmers watching, a sense of pride and connection.
- Behavior (Action) – although an ad such as this may not immediately compel a consumer to purchase a truck, if it was successful in winning over a consumer on the cognition and affect factors, they could link the Dodge brand to the feelings they had: warmth, respect, pride, patriotism, faith. If a consumer is in need of a truck, they may view Dodge more positively.
What are some of your favorite commercials?
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