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Whipped

 

We have ourselves a vodka face-off. With the appearance of so many new flavored vodkas in the market today there's bound to be stiff competition between brands. One of the most recent showdowns is between the two powerhouses Smirnoff and Pinnacle. Both brands have begun selling and promoting the innovative vodka flavor known as "Whipped". And both are fighting for loyal costumers. While the two must be almost identical in flavor, they have started campaigning their brands very differently. In Pinnacle's commercial's they proclaim that they are "the first whipped vodka", while Smirnoff uses the spokes model Amber Rose to back up their version. So which brand will prove to have longevity? The "original" or the famously supported? It's a question that only time will tell as these brands are just at the beginning of their lifespan.

Puffery or just plain crazy?

I think it's safe to say I had never cared about, remembered, or even noticed an advertisement for Direct TV before just recently. It's a satellite company; which, naturally, isn't the first company I would imagine when I think of big advertising campaigns. I've mostly been blinded by advertisements and commercials for the "perfect" jean or the new Diet Coke product, and never really paid attention to ads that promoted such boring services as satellite cable. It wasn't until this summer while watching TV did I first notice a Direct TV commercial.

The commercial was one which, in summary, suggested that if you did not have Direct TV but have cable...you would inevitably have a grandson with a dog collar. It would have completed skipped my mind if it hadn't been such an unbelievable claim. No, if you don't have Direct TV you will not actually have a grandson with a dog collar. But the sheer fact that it suggested I would made it stick in my brain because of how ridiculous it sounded.

Direct TV Commercial

This very commercial came to mind when thinking about our next lecture on unethical advertising. Was the Direct TV commercial that caught my eye unethical because of it's outlandish and untruthful scenario? After all, it could be perceived as offensive to those who choose to wear dog collars as a style (right?). I found, after our lecture, that the commercial was not so much unethical as it was a "puffery". Puffery being a type of ad that makes such wild claims that a reasonable consumer would not be lead to believe the claims are truthful.

Puffery is an interesting concept in advertising because it gives products and companies the freedom to, almost, say whatever they want...so long as its unbelievable enough. Had Direct TV toned down there commercials just slightly they could possible be facing unethical advertising. Unethical in the sense that consumers might actually believe that if they don't have Direct TV big life changes will in fact take place. There is much more attention given to unethical advertisements in today's world because of the increased connection between consumers.  For example, if there is a commercial that might be unethical because its claim is false, the consumers have an effective way to let their dissatisfaction be known via social media. In the case of Direct TV and their 2012 campaign, the commercials are really dancing the line of puffery which is true of so many commercials on television. It is a trend in advertising today that the bigger and wilder the statement the more attention you'll receive, which is that exact goal of puffery as seen through Direct TV's.

Back in Black

You may not realize it but figure skating is a sport in which what you wear is almost as important as your actual skill on the ice. Your outfit has to be just right at every moment. Whether that outfit be a poetic dress for a routine to Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto #1 or a sleek black leotard for a long day of practice. The different ensembles are endless in figure skating. Seeing as I was a competitive figure skater for my entire life, ages 8-19, I had my fair share of dresses, tights, and athletic gear and was constantly on the search to add more to my wardrobe. I can honestly say I cared more about my outfit at the rink that day than I did at school any day.

This effort to look and skate my best is what triggered my attention to a specific Gap advertisement. Although the commercial was most definitely not the first ad I had come across in my life; it is to this day one of the only ads I can remember almost perfectly. The commercial was a montage of Audrey Hepburn dancing in a slim black turtle neck and black pants to ACDC's "Back in Black". I'm not sure if it was the outfit, the dancing, the music or just Audrey Hepburn herself, but I knew after watching that commercial I needed a pair of black leggings and a tight black turtleneck to wear on the ice that very day. While the commercial in no way was advertising skate-wear, it still spoke to me. It spoke to me in a way that any great advertisement would, hitting a chord in my mind making me realize a need and then a demand. For me that chord was figure skating and the sleek look I wanted to represent on the ice. For others I'm sure that want and need was different but equally as impacted by such a distinct method of advertising. To this day I don't believe any other commercial has had quite the spell over me as Gap's in 2007 and I think it goes without saying, but, within the week I was on the ice training in my new back-in-black outfit.

"Back In Black" Gap Commercial Link

Ad2

As a senior at Virginia Tech it's time I not only stay brushed up on my studies but also on future employers and opportunities. Tomorrow will mark the first opportunity of my last year here. Monica Jones of Ad2 Roanoke will be visiting our advertising class, and while I am excited to here her story in the world of advertising I can't help but feel overwhelmed that soon I, myself, will be out in the world writing my own story.

We hear it all the time throughout college, "make connections, make connections, make connections". Every student is busy making those relationships so that life after college (is there really one?) will be as successful as we all dreamed growing up. Ad2 is a unique organization that centralizes young professionals in the marketing world with a network and guidance in the industry. It is an exciting concept. The fact that even after school there is a place where I can continue to learn and expand my horizons in marketing while simultaneously living real life.

Throughout the Ad2 Roanoke website they let it be known that they "know how to have a good time". A seemingly common theme among companies in the Advertising/Marketing/Branding world. A world that embraces creativity and differences. It will be interesting to here from an advertising agency that focuses mainly on the personal branding of marketing professionals as opposed to product branding. Seeing as that is what us seniors are all trying to do; brand ourselves to make us the top candidates for future employers.