With as much hatred advertisements get, commercials and television advertisements have roots embedded deep within our culture. Classic talk-shows like the “Johnny Carson Show” often took time out of their programming to mention their sponsors.
From there, a golden age of advertising was born. Pinup girls and macho men from all across Hollywood joined the process to market new inventions and luxuries to people all across the country. Marketing firms popped up all over the place in order to help drive these products to the masses.
What many people fail to consider is the formula that can cause an ad to become an icon. Great advertisements are born of creativity and written with humor. They have ways of sticking around long after airing.
Successful Ads
Take a look at Super Bowl commercials. Some might even say that they are as American as apple pie. TV specials dedicated to the celebration of Super Bowl commercials air year-round in order to remind us of the best advertisements of the year.
The reason advertisements fail is that marketing firms fail to capture an accurate representation of their market. Oftentimes advertisers will make a half-hearted effort at humor that will come off as either cliché or just stupid.
Geico commercials stand out because they are quick, witty and to the point which makes them excellent candidates for iconic parts of this generation. They often use clever puns in order to make the viewer give thought to some ridiculous idea.
What Works?
Advertising isn’t something you can just throw together. A good commercial is something that is planned out and developed over time. The only problem is keeping up with your target audience.
Marketing firms often do extremely extensive research to try and figure out what jokes will do well with the current generation. Using jokes and subtle humor to pique the interest of viewers is by far the best way to make an advertisement.
Sources
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/182404
