Brand Bowl 47: The Millionth Recap

As if there aren't enough of these, I figured I'd recap of a handful of Super Bowl 47's commercials. I believe a handful of spots put the "Brand Bowl" on its back and made it worthy to the viewer, some below are not a part of those handful.


A-B InBev "Budweiser Black Crown" [Anomaly] - I don't mind the idea of launching a new product during the most watched sporting event in the country however the product better be good. A-B InBev should have saved the money from the spots and produced a good beer with it. On a side note, Anomaly's work on "Brotherhood" for Budweiser was outstanding.

Audi "Prom" [Venables, Bell & Partners] - Awesome. It managed to squeeze an excellent narrative into a minute piece that left you thinking what you should have done at prom back in the day. If Audi makes a limousine, there are going to be a lot of black eyes.

Even Nissan used it to build on.

Best Buy "Ask Amy" [CP+B Boulder] - The crew at CP+B used Ms. Poehler well in this spot. Light-hearted, fun and a great use of character. A good look for big box stores, which is hard to find — like the Cloud.

Blackberry - Next.

Cars.com "Wolf" [McGarryBowen] - There's always a humorous animal component to Super Bowl ads and this one definitely outdid Skechers' cheetah. Great way to bring the simple "no drama" message to life.

Coca-Cola "Security Camera" [Landia] - Completely refreshing, more so than the drink itself. Coke may not be great, but people can be. Thumbs up.

GoDaddy "Perfect Match" [Deutsch] - I was asked for my thoughts about this spot more so than any other ad in SB47. I'm not really for it or against it. It took a loosely-related "match" theme and brought it to life in a "what-the-f*ck" kind of way. I think the real winner here is Jesse Heiman.

Hyundai "Team" [Innocean USA] - More excellent work coming out of Innocean on behalf of Hyundai. The "Team" spot was memorable, well-casted and overall pretty badass for 10 year olds.

I wonder if this guy really laughed his ass off?

NFL Network "Leon Sandcastle" [Grey] - One of my favorite spots of the day. Deion Sanders played himself only as Deion could and the writing is superb. "You attracted to him? Obviously." Not sure if it will make a dent in NFL Network revenue but I'm sure the name Leon Sandcastle has already been cast on a newborn.

Oreo "Whisper Fight" [W+K Portland] - Big risk to whisper to 108 million Americans jabbering around their televisions but Oreo and W+K pulled it off. The Instagram call-to-action was fresh and executed extremely well. Outside of the spot is where Oreo really shined. Their timely content caused as much (if not more) of a stir than the whisper match — what a strong client/agency relationship.

Ram Trucks "Farmer" [Richards Group] - It shut the room up and made people pay attention. I thought it was a brilliant use of photography to support exceptional writing. "Farmer's" praise is best sung in the following tweet.

Samsung "The Big Pitch" [72andSunny] - Using celebrities might not be the most original strategy in the world but 72andSunny did it right by teaming Rudd, Rogen and Director Jon Favreau together to create this spot. The clips that didn't make it to the Super Bowl are just as solid and telling of a fun production. This is just a cherry on top of the great work produced for Samsung by 72andSunny, however I suspect most of the 72'ers still rock an iPhone.

Taco Bell "Viva Young" [Deutsch] - I won't beat a dead horse; despite the tagline, it was a home run for such an expensive ad buy. I was hoping to see some of the teaser footage of the old man ripping up a football field on his scooter would make it, but that's what YouTube is for.

Tide "Miracle Stain" [Saatchi & Saatchi] - My favorite spot of the entire Brand Bowl. The relevancy of it was crucial and production itself was damn funny. I would definitely try a "Stain-on-a-Stick!"

Volkswagen "Get Happy" [Deutsch] - Another good piece from the folks at VW and Deutsch. To all those criticizing it for the Jamaican theme, give it a rest.

And the best post-SB spot was Jell-O's "Surprise Pudding" - Take it or leave it San Fran!

Innovation Meets the Ocean: Innocean USA

Every once in a while you stumble across some information that creates an epiphany, or an "aha" moment if you will - sometimes it sticks with you and you can't let it go, like my own "aha" moment last week.

While traveling to Los Angeles last Thursday I surfed around agency sites located in Southern California to pass the time. A lot of brilliant agencies plant roots in LA including TBWA\Chiat\Day, Wong, Doody, Crandall, Wiener and 180LA, to name a few. I stumbled across a gem located just an hour south, practically on the beautiful Huntington Beach: Innocean USA.

Tell me the office morale isn't high.

Innocean USA is situated in a stunning office equipped with arguably the most beautiful view of any ad agency on the West Coast. Don't believe me? Check out their five-page office spread featured in Interior Design Magazine. Believe it or not it wasn't the sleek office that attracted me as much as it was the work produced.

Since focusing my efforts on advertising I have repeatedly looked to one company that I believe truly represents what the power of branding can achieve. Hyundai is a car company that I didn't give the time of day to in recent years, they were irrelevant to me. Over the past couple years I have watched Hyundai completely transform themselves into a relevant, consumer oriented and innovative automobile company. The cars look great, their customers are more than satisfied and the advertising transcends traditional thinking. Check out my previous post New Thinking New Possibilities: A Tribute to Hyundai for a more in-depth look at their branding efforts.

My epiphany moment came when I discovered that Innocean USA was the driving force behind this branding, which catapulted Hyundai to #1in brand loyalty. They were even behind the Equus Owner's Experience App - a new take on that traditional owner's manual that utilized the iPad found in every Equus's glove compartment. What's the best way to introduce a brand new car into the luxury market for the first time? Be progressive, think differently - Innocean USA: check and check.

After last Thursday I knew I had to make contact with them - thanks to Twitter and the Innocean team's engaging social media presence, I was able to do so. Working with that team on the Hyundai account would be a spectacular experience. Even if it was just sweeping up the creative scraps like an apprentice in a barbershop - I'd be obliged. Regardless of the outcome of my inquiry I am stoked to have found Innocean USA and cannot wait to see what is next for Hyundai.