When I think of "Corporate America," the first thing that comes to mind is not rock and roll. Of course, I understand pretty much everyone loves music, so the idea of a corporate battle of the bands is kind of cool. However, I found the connection between a Chrysler automobile and said musical battle a bit tenuous. The tagline "Inspiration Comes Standard" tries to be the link between the two, but perhaps a simple copy line up front would make it more concrete and believable.
From a functional standpoint I found this ad entertaining. I enjoyed listening to songs (the sound was pretty good quality, too) from so many different bands in a banner, then casting a vote for my favorite. The band photos and biography snapshots add to the experience as well.
I have to admit I wasn't crazy about the design. It seemed all over the place, with so many fonts, colors and graphics. And the guy with the old fashioned megaphone reminded me of the movie "Grease" more than anything else.
Still, I imagine lots of folks spent some time with the ad, and the visual of the Chrysler Aspen remains present the whole time. If exposure equals some sort of awareness, one could argue the ad did its job.
--Chris Gatewood, creative director, Freestyle Interactive
Here's an absolutely delightful ad with the gift of nine very credible corporate bands embedded inside. Chrysler strikes the right chord (pun intended) by highlighting the necktie in the ad graphic-- the classic symbol of corporate servitude.
Several elements make this very rich media unit work beautifully. There's the battle of the bands angle which, as American Idol has proven, will always attract a large rooting audience. Then there's the music itself, generally up-tempo rock 'n' roll that's a blast to listen to at your desk. The spot provides instant streaming music without even having to visit a music download site.
And finally, there's knowing the audience. The fact is that so many visitors to the CNNMoney.com site would be smart, creative people in their own right, whether they have a band or not. After a long hard week of earning a living, they like to let loose at the local watering hole on a Friday night, or maybe even get up on the karaoke stage themselves. So this ad appeals directly to this demographic, uplifting rather than straightjacketing them with some traditionally targeted car sell.
I'm not sure what k size limitations the creators were dealing with, or how they managed it all, but my only suggestion would be, if possible, to have music play early on-- maybe just a brief sound cue like an electric guitar riff; something to introduce the idea of sound/music in the ad even before it opens up.
Cars and guitars...what two devices go together better than that?
-- Mark Netter, director of business development, Deadline Advertising
