NHL ad scores. No acting necessary.

Of all of the reasons my children make me feel blessed, one of the best is the fact that none of them play hockey. I like to watch the game, but I haven’t played since 5th grade, when Phil Humbert nailed me with a slapshot above my right eye in his frozen backyard (six stitches). So nobody in our family is much of a skater.

Hockey is smelly, injury-prone, and expensive, and if your child is on a travel team, you TRAVEL. For basketball or baseball, the farthest you go is maybe the next county. For hockey, you cross time zones.

For all of those reasons, Honda loves hockey. Hockey families need lots of equipment and log lots of miles so they need big roomy cars…like, say, Honda Passports and Pilots. So it’s a natural for them to sponsor the NHL. But it doesn’t mean they have to do such smart ads, like this.



I really like this spot. I may not be a hockey parent, but I’m a sports parent who can relate to the rituals involved in kids’ sports. The packing and unpacking, the early morning games and practices, the special moments watching them play. And the fact that our kids rely on us to make it all happen.

Honda takes this insight and connects it to their products: “As reliable as the people who drive them.” Smart. What’s even smarter is how they tie in their NHL sponsorship, without showing a single NHL player or highlight:

“Official vehicle of the NHL. And hockey parents everywhere.”

Knowing that hockey players are better at checking than acting, another wise move.

Is any press better than none at all?

If so, then so far, so good for G. The reviews are pouring in, the chatter's at full force, and the reception is most definitely mixed.

In these times of fragmented media and distracted eyeballs, there's a very valid argument to be made for the value of making a splash, regardless of how favorable the reactions are.

The media buzz has been mostly negative, which is to be expected from branding experts. Much of the online reaction has been positive and intrigued. Then again, the initial splash from the TV spots isn't translating into youtube success, according to the above article.

So we still need to wait and see. The current spots are just teasers; the proof will be when the campaign rolls out in earnest. I've heard rumors about some wackiness to come on the upcoming Big Game.

I'm sure the work will be fun to watch. I'm not sure the brand will survive it.

Unpredictable service, good ads

I’m a big fan of Verizon Wireless. My loyalty to them (and my contempt for AT&T) is why I got a Storm vs iphone. So I know very little about T-Mobile, other than the fact that their ads with current and former pro basketball players crack me up.

I’ve been paying attention to their ads for a while, mainly because I think Catherine Zeta-Jones is, how you say, shmokin’ hot. CZJ, you were rooked by Zellweger for the Oscar nod. I’d do a number with you any day. But I can’t do it alone…

Since Catherine’s been gone, D-Wade and Charles Barkley have picked up the torch, and they’ve done a great job. The spots are funny and strategic, crafted around T-Mobile’s selling idea of their Fave Five calling plan. They even ran a Super Bowl ad last year, which ranked in the middle of the USA Today Ad Meter, but as high as any ad in the online user poll.



Getting celebrity athletes to act well is so hard. Most of them would rather be on the court than on a set (or on the golf course). And in a spot with a lot of dialogue, the desired nuances in performance that dictate the need to do take after take…it’s just not what athletes want to be doing (Michael Jordan used to start saying “That was perfect. What was wrong with the one?!” after the second take).

There are so many factors involved; obviously, having an athlete with a scoche of acting ability is nice, but it’s rare. So sometimes you have to write around it, and sometimes you can take advantage of it, like in the ending of this commercial:



All challenges considered, the new T-Mobile commercial is wonderfully pleasing. Nice performances, good writing, surprising appearances from Magic Johnson and Dr. J. I’m surprised they didn’t hold this one for the Super Bowl. Seems to have all the ingredients.

If you want to laugh out loud, watch the Heineken spot in my blog from a couple of days ago (you must), but if you want a nice chuckle, and a great example of how to use athletes well, you could do a lot worse than the work from T-Mobile.

Shouldn't they shower first?

Sports Marketing guru Terry Lefton reports in Sports Business Journal that the winning players in Super Bowl XLIII will be able to drape themselves in the first ever official Super Bowl Bath Towel on the field after the game. It’s a high-quality, nine-pound towel (I’m assuming that means dry).

In Lefton’s article, McArthur Towel and Sports President Gregg McArthur says, “[The towel] has always been a great vehicle in sports...anyone at Gatorade could tell you that. We’re taking the next step by turning them into an authentic championship item.”

Except that the Gatorade towel had a reason for being. Athletes sweat, towels soak up.

That said, I’m all for finding new revenue streams; the exposure at the Super Bowl is just about priceless, and I applaud all parties involved for being innovative and forward thinking.

In fact, more marketers should embrace the potential for getting their brands out there on the biggest and brightest stage in the world.

I’d like to see Burger King sponsor Championship paper crowns instead of the same old baseball hats. They

SPAM could be the official post game snack.

And just once, I’d like to see the game’s MVP, when asked where he’s going now that he’s won the Biggest Game on Earth, say: “Vegas, baby!”

Got any other ideas for official post game celebratory items?

Time out for some joy

Enough about the Gatorade ads already. Nobody knows who they're for, but they’re cool. Gatorade is gone. It’s now G. It was a sad day for me when they changed Sugar Smacks to Honey Smacks but I got over it and they still taste pretty good. In a couple of years Lil Wayne will be shilling George Foreman grills. We move on.

For now, let’s just be entertained. Here’s a commercial that, kind of like “G,” has nothing to do with sports; it barely has any words, isn’t even in English, but is so clear and to the point and does such a wonderful job of selling the product that it just makes me smile and I want to watch it over and over.



Let’s hear it for pure, unadulterated joy.

Plus, Dutch just sounds cool.

Here it is

The new Gatorade TV ad.



A lot of the usual Gatorade athletes: D. Wade, Kerri and Misty, Jeter, Candace Parker.

Some interesting, surprising new athletes: Serena, skater Chaz Ortiz, softball player Jessica Mendoza (Usain Bolt is in another of the ads).

Some aging athletes who stand for something significant: the great Muhammed Ali, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, Bill Russell.

And current pop culture icons, like dance troupe Jabbawockeez and Lil Wayne, who narrates the spot. PS, I love his voice.

This ad will appeal to a lot of new people. It already has. Especially among hip hop culture, where it's generating buzz and discussion. If Gatorade wants to branch out to young urban influencers, this is a good thing.

It looks different than most tv spots and does an excellent job of making you sit up and take notice. And it’s clear that Gatorade is happy to turn away from hard core athletes and athletic influencers and turn their attention to cultural trendsetters.

For more proof, check out the youtube channel they’ve created (thank you, commenter Carol). There’s sports in there, but you have to listen for it.

A couple of things seem clear:

Gatorade was a functional beverage. G is a cultural beverage.

Gatorade was about function. G is about funktion.

Stay tuned.

The new Gatorade ads Think Different, but...

There’s so much to talk about on the Gatorade front. New packaging, new positioning for the products. Go to their website to see how it all breaks out, and I’ll follow up with some thoughts soon. But their new TV advertising is fresh in my head, having seen it on the BCS games today.

When I saw the ads, I thought of this Apple commercial. It’s one of my favorite ads of all time.



First of all, it’s beautifully written. A wonderful manipulation of language within a scant sixty seconds. Excellence and moderation.

The message glows equally bright. A forward thinking company connecting itself to some of the most forward thinking people who ever lived. A creative company trying to appeal to millions of creative thinkers, encouraging them to join other originals who weren’t afraid to think differently. Or Think Different, as Apple’s somewhat grammatically incorrect tagline exhorted us to do.

Talk about building a relationship and cultivating loyalty.

Like Apple, Gatorade is a great American brand that constantly needs to stay current to maintain its iconic status with young cultural trendsetters and influencers in the world of sports. So after years of colored sweat, Gatorade is headed in another direction.

And it is most definitely different.

I can’t find the ads online yet but I’ll post them as soon as I do. If you see them, please pass them along. The ads on today’s games were teasers for a big reveal that’s reportedly airing on the Super Bowl in a month.

I give PepsiCo credit for “Thinking different.“ They’re not afraid to change. They’ve already demonstrated this with their Pepsi marketing, and they’re turning their lust for change to Gatorade.

To quote the Apple ad, “They have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.”

I think these ads are hard to ignore. And along with the new packaging, I do think they’ll change things for Gatorade. My early observation is, it won’t be change for the better. So far, it all seems messy and random. Bold, yes, but confusing.

But I'm a big fan of change when it's change for the better. So let’s see what they show us on February 1.

The packaging? Well, that's a different story...