I think my favorite ad is the “Jake from State Farm” advertisement. Advertising campaigns have always been something I have been interested in; I find it fascinating how 30-second commercials can create lasting impressions about companies for years. In a positive context, advertisements can create lasting branding strategies or prompt a change in social behaviors in society. This State Farm commercial does not attempt to be serious by any means; it has a simple satirical premise that appeals to all types of demographics while highlighting a simple component of the company’s dependency for their customers. The commercial is nearly a decade old, yet guys still dress up as Jake for a last-minute Halloween costume when they don’t want to spend money on a costume (myself included). On the other hand, commercials can gain infamy for all the wrong reasons. In a negative context, controversial campaigns can spark a negative backlash that can be difficult for the brand and the people involved to recover from (the Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad comes to mind in particular).
One thing I find particularly interesting when reading is that the Kendall Jenner Pepsi commercial attempted to do many more of the things on the ‘Advertising Checklist’ in the Teays reading than the State Farm commercial did, yet their legacies could not be more different. The Pepsi commercial attempted a laundry list of these features to try to appeal to a mass audience: it tried telling a story, it exaggerated the product’s power, tried to promote diversity, made assumptions about power and class, attempted a political agenda and used sexuality/celebrity to promote the product. On the other hand, State Farm mainly told a story to appeal to its viewer. Looking at this checklist and the responses from society, I think a key takeaway is that trying to appeal to everyone realistically appeals to no one; the more companies attempt to make a statement to various groups in one cohesive message, the more likely it is to receive scrutiny from the groups they attempt to appeal to. Simplified models that focus on doing one thing really well are much more effective.
You make a very good point about the importance of a targeted audience and having one main goal. I vividly remember all the backlash the Kendal Jenner commercial got and I think it articulated your point strongly. I think with Jake from State Farm highlights that one important feature of being dedicated to customers and making insurance.. relatable? While the Pepsi commercial attempts to connect a soda with a celebrity solving the issues of a march happening, it is definitely overcomplicated and doesn’t frame the product at all.
I think your analysis of audience targeting is really interesting because I think about how marketing relates to story telling. In school, writers are always reminded to choose a specific audience they want to appeal to; however, your analysis suggests otherwise. I think you bring in a good point, as that is the center of Coca-Cola’s campaign. They want to ensure that their product is for everyone. It makes me wonder if it is more beneficial to make your commercials generally funny, specific to a particular group, or if it is dependent on the product/service itself.
You bring up a really good point about advertisements targeting specific audiences. I think it is so interesting how when you look at it the Pepsi ad got so much backlash, yet they were trying so hard to meet all of the requirements. When you look at State Farm, a commercial that my family and I still laugh about, they took a much more simple approach and it put them in a positive light.