Friday, October 15, 2010

How do you advertise a commodity?


While creating difference among razors is becoming difficult as manufacturers go from three to four to five blades and beyond, when it comes to commidities like milk, eggs, and veggies the process of creating difference seems unlikely. The "Got Milk" campaign doesn't brand milk, but rather encourages consumption of the category. There are brands of eggs, like Eggland's Best, but what about veggies? Is there a carrot with a difference? The creative folks at Crispen, Porter and Bogusky have come up with a campaign for Baby Carrots that is off the wall, attempting to align carrots with junk food. Novel idea. But I wonder if, beynd the commercial itself, there is anything in a carrot that will make someone turn away from their favorite chip or other snack food. Nevertheless, this is an interesting case study. I always think it's fun to develop creative ideas around products with no discernable differences. Take two quarters, for example. Do you think you could come up with a campaign that makes one 25 cent piece seem better than the other?

3 comments:

Kerry Johnson said...

First off, if carrots were being shot at me, I'd be scared not excited. Maybe trying to suggest carrots as convenient and healthy might have been a little more realistic than suggesting that they're extreme. The ad is definitely weird which I guess attracts attention, however, I can't imagine a mom being more likely to buy carrots because of this commercial. If I were a parent, I'd be concerned that purchasing carrots would result in carrots being used as something to throw rather than eat. At least what this commercial seems to suggest. Not to mention, when the guy finally eats a carrot, I was very nervous that it was just going to go straight down his throat and he was going to choke- not the best feeling for a commercial to be creating for its viewers. I can understand the advertiser's goal with the commercial but I think that it was less effective than they planned. When it comes to discerning one product from another, it's definitely challenging but I don't think this is the way to do it.

kamicheli said...

I think this advertisements is very comical, considering its a commercial for carrots. This is a topic I have always wondered about but never really gave much thought to- how to advertise a commodity. My thoughts are that advertisers don't really need to "sell" things like fruits or vegetables, milk or eggs, because I think their reputation and knowledge of being "good foods" sell themselves. However, I do enjoy the "Got Milk?" advertisements as well as the "Incredible Egg" ones, and i think these commercials don't specifically target a certain brand but just advertise the general product. There is no product differentiation here. I like this commercial for the carrots because it takes carrots out of a typical stereotype and makes them "extreme" which is funny. I really enjoyed this commercial, because of its unique-ness.

Unknown said...

I really enjoyed watching this commercial. It is definitely very comical and entertaining. Although it is irrelevant to baby carrots, I think that it was thought out very well. By making the commercial similar to an action scene of a movie, and including an explosion, it appeals to a younger audience. After watching it, boys, especially, might associate baby carrots with something “cool” and exciting, rather than something healthy and boring. The aim is to make baby carrots more stimulating and hip than the plain vegetable that it is, by adding action. Also, by writing “Eat ‘em like junk food,” at the end, a connection is made between the types of food kids love, and baby carrots. Advertising that carrots are healthy would be a waste of money, because everybody already knows that carrots are healthy. It is common knowledge. Rather, they went a step beyond, and appealed to the desires of children. If children want a product enough, parents will purchase it. I think that this will make the sale of the commodity much more successful.