Hugh Would Be Proud

Gold member Brent Weber submitted this ad to us. He defined this ad as Scendsational, and thought we'd like to see it:

http://www.sun.com/emrkt/rejected/Centerfold_back_ALL_Lores.pdf

Our opinions:

Travis: At first I didn't get it - which caused me not to like it. How many other people may not get it? That's my primary concern. But then it started to sink in - and I laughed. When I saw the data sheet I really began to like it. The sheet communicated clear benefits in a fun and easy to understand way. I enjoyed the ad. WARNING: Don't attempt pulling a stunt like this yourself unless you're truly funny and have a lot of money. Cute and clever are secondary to sales. Jack Maxson, of Brookstone fame, said "Your job is to sell, not to entertain." Having said that, I like funny and entertaining ads when they're done as well as this - but it is a tight rope that is easy to fall off of.

 

 

Jim: I'd say this ad is clever, would draw attention and get read. I think the tongue-and-cheek spoof on the centerfold pullout nails the "Who It's For" component. The target reader of this ad would be a techie, gear head, IT person. Usually these are  male and in the demographic that would read a "Playboy" type magazine, thus they can identity with it. Because of this, the ad would engage them to further explore a "pitch" they normally would breeze over or ignore.
 
The concept is very creative and well thought out. They used a formula that could handle the amount of copy it would take to make a good sales presentation. The segways of the centerfold's profile lend themselves exceptionally well to great sub headlines which pull the reader into the next part of the pitch. I saw lots of benefits of the product and not a lot of features - CHECK PLUS.
 
Overall, I enjoyed this ad and I think it does a good job pitching the product, although I think the cost on this piece was probably enormous and the insertion costs even bigger.

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