Instant Girlfriend

                Because anything instant has become so prominent now, it’s surprising that even people’s love lives can be achieved instantly! There’s the internet, text messaging, and…Bingo. Yes, you read that right B-I-N-G-O. The advertisement that we’re going to review this week is an ad from Monde Nissin entitled, “Now and Then #KiligSaSweet.” Go ahead and watch it here!

                “Pa’no na kaya, di sinasadya. Ba’t nahihiya ang puso ko? Bakit sa dinami-rami ng kaibigan ko, ikaw pa?” versus, “Lucky I’m inlove with my best friend..”  

Behind the Scenes! (grabbed from Google)
Some people would say that feelings between best friends can destroy their friendship, but Bingo says, “No! Friendship is a good foundation of any relationship.” Of course, we are not going to talk about love and friendship in this entry. Haha! But what I’m saying is, that’s the story that Bingo was trying to show in this commercial. It’s a short story of how a girl and a guy’s relationship progressed into something beyond being “just friends.” When love is the one being talked about, people are always all ears; in a TVC’s case, all eyes, too. It could be an effective yet safe and crucial topic when making concepts so you really have to make your twist interesting so that it won’t come out looking cliché.


                In terms of colors, the TVC made use of vivid and youthful ones since the concept is love. The skater theme is also a nice touch because it made the story more concrete. I also like how they made use of the letterings on the couple’s hands, so artsy! And how they used bokeh (Japanese term for "blur") lights to make the scenes look more romantic. 


                At the end of the commercial, a website called “Bingo Kilig Meter” was being promoted. I tried opening it and found a site wherein you can put yours and your crush’s name to see if you’re compatible with each other. It’s just like doing FLAMES in grade school hahaha! Apparently, Zac Efron and I are 99% compatible with each other HAHAHA! Of course, this thing isn’t real but it’s meant to catch the attention and  interest of the target audience. I think the propaganda technique used in this commercial is the emotional or transfer appeal because it makes the audience associate the product with a certain kind of feeling/emotion. So now you know..to get a girl, get her a Bingo Cookie Sandwich and show her the compatibility test as proof. Lol.

Here's the link to the Bingo Kilig Meter. Be careful, though, for you might find yourself spending too much time on this thing like I did. Kidding, I didn't.  =)))

Instant Palusot

                Are you feeling awkward? On a hot seat? Worry not, for Nestea has already provided us with an excuse. Watch here!

                The idea of most of Nestea’s commercials is to provide a way out of awkward situations a.k.a. “hot seats.” Although, in real life, no one would actually get out of a situation by way of iced tea, this TVC is just a fun way (yes, the humor appeal!) of continuing to re-introduce and remind people about one of Nestle’s products, Nestea. Now, this particular TVC made use of a newly popularized song entitled “Rude,” by Magic, which fits perfectly to the concept that they wanted to show. During those times, that song has become very very popular, and for me, it was a genius move to incorporate it with a commercial that has the same story as the one being told in the song (it’s about a guy asking the hand of a girl from her father). Another thing I noticed is the careful choice of colors. See how the clothes of all the actors and actresses were limited only to gray, black, white, and blue. It’s probably to let the color of the iced tea stand out in the office scenes. However, when it came to the summer-vibed scenes, the colors became more vivid and strong which justified the feeling of “refreshment” that the TVC wanted to make the audience feel.

                In one version, Nestle created an amazing interactive video which allows the audience to pick a character from the TVC that they’d like to put on a hot seat. It’s either the boyfriend, the assuming, the texter, the stalker, or the boss himself. Try it out for yourself! Nestea Say Yes Interactive Video  At the end of each segment, there is a voice that asks, “Hot seat? What would you do?” and some info about how the audience can let them know about their personal answers through Facebook and Twitter by using #hotseat and #nesteaplunge. It's like a customizable TVC experience! Now that’s interactive!

                If this TVC has a flaw, I guess it would be that its story is not very realistic or convincing, unlike other TVCs. As I said before, I don’t think anyone would be fooled by an excuse involving a liter of iced tea but anyway, I understand that sometimes you have to exaggerate reality in commercials to make things more interesting. All in all, it was a very creative way of promoting the product and Nestle did a great job with involving the audience's opinion in this TVC! I say, “YES” to this advertisement!
photos grabbed from Google

Instant Iwas-Trouble

                Even though EO’s products have a limited target market, their advertisements have made marks in the minds of a lot of people, including those who do not have eyesight problems. This brand is known for creating billboards and TVCs that are witty and funny and are able to effectively make the people believe that they can get to the needs of those who have poor eyesight. People are fond of advertisements that are catchy and humorous so I guess that’s what made their ads “patok.”

                In terms of the ads’ stories: If you haven’t noticed, EO has made up some kind of a single concept in some of their advertisements. Even though they don’t actually tell the whole story, it can be observed that that each commercial or print ad has a connection with each other. Just try starting the story by looking at this particular print ad which features two guys and a girl. One guy gives the lady cauliflower while the other one gave a pretty bouquet of yellow flowers. Obviously, the guy with flowers won the girl’s heart. The next ad’s concept is a wedding wherein the lady kisses the priest instead of her groom, followed by another ad that has the story leveled up by featuring a family (see, now they have a baby!) wherein the mom puts the baby bottle into the dad’s mouth instead of their child’s. I personally think the ad concept that Executive Optical did was awesome because it showed progress and more importantly, consistence. (The layout is also consistent!)


Last Tuesday, we just learned about the different types of advertising and the techniques used in them so, now, I’d like to try applying those lessons by showing some of EO’s print ads and analyzing the approach done in each. Please bear with me, haha!

“Rudy or Ruby?” You wouldn’t want to make mistakes in names, especially not in tattoos! If you don’t want to get beat up by this muscle man, “Better have your eyes checked!” This advertisement implies that poor eyesight leads to poor performance. It makes use of (1) the humorous appeal, because the tattoo artist mistook the letter “b” for “d,” which was a total blunder. The second technique used is the (2) hidden fear technique. It implies that if you don’t want to make mistakes of the same sort, you better get your eyes checked at EO. Lastly, the ad made use of (3) the logical appeal, by implying that because you don’t want to mess up, you should do what’s right and smart by, again, getting your eyes checked. The target audience of this ad is everyone who have eye problems, duh. But I guess you could specifically say, artists, right?
That print ad was supplemented by a TV Commercial, too. The story went on with the tattoo artist getting an eye check-up and eyeglasses at Executive Optical. Then, he immediately corrected his mistake after by making the letter “d” to a capital “b”. Instant iwas trouble!



“Don’t be a loser.” “More women have eye damage than men.” The first print ad probably belongs to those that use facts and figures even though it didn’t have numbers and such. Some would say that both of these also made use of the humorous appeal but then, some would contradict, saying, “It’s not funny. It’s racism.” Let me quote a blogger’s words from fliquemedia.wordpress.com:

The first ad I cited in the link tells the consumers that fairly skinned guys or mestizos should be preferred over dark skinned guys. It even referred to the girl as being a loser. Does the preference of not so good looking guy to a guys who has the looks of a matinee idol constitute to being a loser? Isn´t basing a person´s worth on one´s looks more of a loser´s attitude?

The second ad is quite the same except that there was no mestizo guy involved. In the TV ad, after the getting her eyes checked, the girl left the poor guy.  The premise of that ad is that more women have more eye damage than men, but what their ads proclaim seem to be that women are more damaged not with their sight but with their outlook  and with the value in their hearts.

Executive Optical has their values crisscrossed. They proclaim that poor eyesight leads to poor performance but what they have shown is that poor value system, leads to poor choices. They did not exercise good discernment in coming out with these ads. They have been branded as racists but I believe it’s not just about racism but poor value judgment which is prevalent in the media and advertising world today.

I would rather have a poor eyesight than have a poor heart. And we all have to get our hearts not just our eyes checked.  Let us remember what the fox said to the Little Prince, “It is with the heart that one sees rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.” (Antoine de Saint Exupery.)


Well, he/she has a very strong point. This is just a reminder that we, as advertisers, have to be very careful when developing advertising concepts. Remember that one reason why we do pre-tests as part of the marketing process is to find out if the material is acceptable, if it has no offensive contents. This also shows that not all advertisements are “good.” That’s why, as early as today, we are being taught about what should and should not be placed in advertisements, which is also some kind of iwas trouble. ‘Di nga lang instant kasi kailangan ng years of study and practice para ma-master. :)

I hope you learned something today. Next entry will be about Instant Palusot!


Photos grabbed from Google

Check this link out for more EO ads ---> http://www.eo-executiveoptical.com/advertisements

Instant Pampagising

                If there would be a worldwide survey saying that this world is a busy one, I think most people would definitely agree. People are very busy trying to make the most of their lives – studying more or less 8 hours a day, working overtime, etc. Some of us sacrifice things just to make time for what we think is more important. There are those who have no time for talking to friends or family, getting a haircut, cooking, and some don’t even have time for meals at all. I myself will testify about this, haha. We all want things that are fast and convenient. This, my friend, is the main reason why everything that’s “instant” have become so popular. Let’s begin reviewing an advertisement by one of the most popular “instant” products in the Philippines – INSTANT NOODLES!
               
“Ke mahirap o mayaman nauusuhan din ng instant noodles.”-Anonymous

                I have two favorite TV commercials about noodles which were both made by Lucky Me and here is the first one.

                It's entitled "Warm Up" and was released last January. I find its concept so amusing. This TVC’s featured actors/actresses who were mostly children which makes it very appealing, specifically to kids and moms. What’s very catchy about this commercial are the moving beds. Genius. Moving. Beds. It also showed that it was not just one kid who still felt sleepy and zoned out, but more like all the kids in town.
                

                If the concept is put into one thought, I imagine it being something like this: “Just because it’s already morning and people have gone out to school or work, it doesn’t mean that they’re already awake and active, so our point is, only Lucky Me instant noodles can totally wake them up. ” It might sound funny but it’s actually very witty ;)



                My second favorite is entitled "Sarap At Home." It was released last February. Watch it here :)



                It’s true that when you eat cup noodles, whether you’re in the office or at school, you really feel like you are at home. Aminin! :>

                The place used was a convenience store and the actors were portrayed as students. That was a realistic approach because (1) in convenience stores, cup noodles are probably one of the best sellers. (Again, I am a witness to this because when we were in our freshmen year, we used to have cup noodles in 7/11 like twice or thrice a week. Haha!), and (2) most of their consumers are people who work in offices. These are very busy people and sometimes they don’t have time to go home or eat at home anymore. For a TVC, that was a nice pick of setting and characters.

Also, the reaction of the people is very realistic and adds flavor to the story. When you see someone at a convenience store doing the same things the guy in the TVC did (putting out slippers, taking shoes,socks, and clothes off, wearing a towel), you would probably react the same way the extras did. Sometimes, in making TVC concepts, the way to the viewers’ hearts is humor :)

                There you have it, folks. Instant noodles!


P.S.
Imagine someone giving a speech like this on his/her graduation day, “At maraming salamat po sa instant noodles na itinawid ako sa napakaraming exam weeks sa loob ng apat na taon..”  LOL. See you next entry!


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