Video Play: The Art of Auto Ads
Car makers are constantly looking for new ways to make their products more appealing to the public. While some use creative concepts and popular trends to impress viewers, other manufacturers use a more conservative approach.
It is no secret that the world of auto advertising is very diverse and cluttered. I have never been a big car buff, so I usually see through these commercials. I am not impressed by the spots with the new sports car that drives young and hip teens around town through all hours of the night. Nor do I care for the ridiculous truck demonstrations that show off the super powers of today’s new truck lines.
Yet, when I do catch a car commercial that impresses me, I am willing to give credit where credit is due. I personally believe it is one of the most difficult genres to advertise creatively. Once again for your viewing pleasure, here are my top auto commercials in no particular order:
This Toyota commercial is great. I have never seen in on TV, I actually saw this for the first time in one of my Intro to Advertising classes in college. I love the ‘human touch’ angle and the fact that they aren’t afraid to get a little cheesy. Good stuff!
This one really made me laugh. I saw it for the first time with one of my roommates. For those of you who don’t understand this reference, World of Warcraft (the game that this ad spoofs) is a very popular computer game. Hundreds of thousands of kids log on to this game daily and interact with each other. How do I know this? The very roommate who saw the commercial with me used to be one of these “WOW” addicts. There is also an episode of South Park that spoofed the video game. One of my personal favorite episodes by the way.
You have to love the art direction here. Using the car parts to create this concoction - great. Plus, who in their right mind doesn’t like concoctions? Seriously….
And finally, my favorite car commercial of all-time. There is no real reason why it’s my favorite - I’m actually not even a VW fan. It may have something to do with the peacefulness. Or possibly it’s the fact that I’m a Nick Drake fan and this song gets stuck in my head constantly. Nonetheless, this is the car commercial that has always stuck out to me.
I’m sure there are some great spots that I’ve left out. If you can think of any great auto ads, go find them and post them on the blog! I’m interested to see what’s out there that I’m missing!
