I yak about authenticity being the end-all, be-all in sports advertising.
But consider this possibility:
Nothing in sports advertising is truly authentic. Because my definition of authentic may differ from yours.
We once shot a Gatorade spot called “Get Up,” featuring the James Brown track of the same name. It was about athletes who return to action, more fired up than before, after getting knocked down. One of the vignettes showed a catcher getting a throw from the outfield and blocking the plate. The throw comes in high, and he runner slams into the catcher, who gets sent flying but holds onto the ball, still dripping Gatorade’s trademarked colored sweat.
The group of us who were responsible for making the ad had days-long debates on whether or not the baserunner should barrel over the catcher or try to slide around him, since the throw came in high. Serious disagreements and strong opinions. Pens were thrown. Paper was ripped. It was nuts!
Ultimately, we agreed to disagree , but the losing side was not happy and felt we had compromised the ad with action that wasn’t as authentic as it could be.
Did we get crazed letters? No. Did it make the ad any less good? No. Did it put a chink in Gatorade’s armor of authenticity? Some would say yes.
Truth is, we make stuff up when we make ads. We have to fake it. When you fake it poorly, you get busted. When you fake it well, you look like you know what you’re talking about. Which makes you even more authentic. Ironic, isn’t it?
So who’s to say what’s truly authentic?
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1 comment:
Really interesting post. I don't think any sports ad is authentic, because they all treat the athletes as something more than they are, because the product needs to be the catalyst to make the athlete something more. So the premise in and of itself is not authentic.
However, your post is authentic. A bunch of guys in a meeting room having heated arguments about how a runner would approach that situation is authentic. Colored sweat is not authentic.
It's funny, but the best ad might have been cutting between your arguments and the play. What is the runner looking like rounding third? How is the catcher getting ready? Different angles on the play from the different perspectives of the debaters. Seeing the play at the plate different ways based on those views. The product breaks the fourth wall, and ties all the participants together.
That's the authentic relationship: between the sport, its players, and the fans that no one has captured yet.
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