Tuesday, December 31, 2013

WSJ looks back at best and worst ads of 2013.

At the risk of being predictable, I thought it would be appropriate to wrap up the year with a look at best and worst advertising executions of 2013. Suzanne Vranica's Wall Street Journal piece points out a few surprises and a few others maybe not so much.

Among the very best - the Dodge Ram spot featuring the late Paul Harvey reading from his 'So God Made a Farmer' essay.

How good was the Dodge Ram spot? Viewed online more than 22 million times, and according to a Chrysler spokesperson, the brand gained nearly a point of market share between January and October. Now that's moving the needle, and doing it in a genuine, original, heartfelt way. As much as I dislike using religious references to sell products, you have to admit this one makes you feel something, and certainly appeals to the core truck buyer. This is the kind of spot Hal Riney used to make, and seeing it brings to mind the "Morning in America" work Riney did for Ronald Reagan's re-election campaign in 1984.

Let's hope 2014 brings us a lot more advertising like this.

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