Who Cares - What Matters
DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE
DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR
DO YOU FEEL WHAT I FEEL
DO YOU TASTE WHAT I TASTE
DO YOU SMELL WHAT I SMELL
ALL GOOD QUESTIONS
with even better answers
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
S E R I O U S L Y
you better watch out
because what we
s e e
isn’t always really what is ever seen. . .
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
IT USED TO BE
that Beer Commercials were the best
b u t
INSURANCE COMMERCIALS
now offer
way more than
I N S U R A N C E
There’s a lot of things that can go wrong in life. . .
Unfortunate things and difficult experiences
are happening every day
all across the world. . .
That’s just part of
L i F e
And it never has to
stop us
from living
The Good Life. . .
The courage to live —
not in spite of those difficulties,
but rather regardless of them–
is what makes the good life possible.
(perhaps even because of them?)
So. . .
Tell me about YOU
SHOW US
Your ASSURANCE POLICY
. . .It’s so much more than
A Commercial
. . .and it never has to be Purchased
or has an expiration date
This year’s SUPER BOWL
is literally just hours of being OVER
and out of all of the Commercials
THAT WERE
maybe the one that got the biggest news was the
ONE THAT WASN’T. . .
Wait. . .WHAT. . .NOT seeing a Budweiser commercial during the Super Bowl — here’s why
Story at a glanceAnheuser-Busch actually didn’t release a dedicated Budweiser Super Bowl ad for the first time in 37 years.
The company instead focused on promoting vaccine awareness and distribution efforts, as well as the ideas of togetherness and connection.
Anheuser-Busch recently announced a $1 billion dollar investment to support jobs and ramp up sustainability efforts.
For the first time since 1983, Anheuser-Busch has made the tough decision to forgo airing a Budweiser commercial during the Super Bowl. Instead, the company has decided to focus its efforts on coronavirus vaccination awareness efforts, dedicating $1 million to educational work being done by the Ad Council.
Anheuser-Busch didn’t completely pull out of the big game, though. Cesar Vargas, their U.S. Chief External Affairs Officer, tells Changing America that the company aired its first-ever corporate ad during the game that was more about the connections that form when you crack a cold one, not just about the beer itself. Vargas also told us that the company has a pretty big announcement to share with the world.
“We, like everybody else, have been managing through a very challenging year,” said Vargas. “The pandemic has had a huge impact on everybody personally, professionally. But we’re kind of getting to that stage now where there’s reason to be optimistic, and as we have managed our business throughout this crisis we’ve focused on three clear priority areas.
“The first is our people, meaning our employees, making sure that they always had the resources they needed to stay safe and healthy, then our partners and our supply chain, and then the third area is stepping up to bring in our unique capabilities, assets, relationships and reach to help our communities, where we live and work, get through this crisis as well. So, as we look forward, the next stage for us is to help play a leading role in this country’s recovery.”
The first stage in their plan is giving up their coveted Super Bowl spot, donating a percentage of its advertising airtime to the Ad Council and Covid Collaborative’s Vaccine Education Initiative, to which it will also provide additional campaigns throughout the upcoming year. Instead, the brand had released a digital spot focused on the resilient people and their connections in the United States, as well as a group of health care professionals receiving some of the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. The spot is narrated by actress Rashida Jones.
Our country is in a historic fight against the Coronavirus.
Airing during the Super Bowl was tbe Anheuser-Busch’s first-ever corporate sponsored ad, not focused on promoting a single product line or brand but really just celebrating the idea of togetherness. Produced by Academy Award nominee David Fincher, the spot attempts to capture the feeling of uniting over a simple beer — whether for the happy moments, the sad, or those in between.
“Beer is always there, but it’s really the moments and the people that matter. I think this television commercial will kind of bring that to life a little bit, and I think that that message has never been more important than it is today, given where we are as a country, and then as we think about getting kind of to a better place following a very difficult year,” said Vargas.
Next in their grand plan is the significant investment of more than $1 billion over the next two years.
“The purpose of that investment is to drive economic prosperity in our communities, enable more sustainable innovations and have the effect of protecting the more than 2 million people that rely on the beer industry for their livelihoods,” he said.
“We’re an important industry,” he said. “We have the kind of reach, the kind of impact and the kind of footprint that allows us to make a big impact when you think about job creation and driving economic growth, which is going to be a fundamental element as we recover as a country. That’s why we’re gonna step up and do just that with this new $1 billion planned investment.”
Vargas told Changing America that Anheuser-Busch is “actively exploring if there’s any way we can be helpful” regarding vaccine distribution, and that of the $1 billion that’s to be invested over the next two years nearly $100 million will go towards sustainability projects such as solar panel installments and water treatment technology.
“I think the neat thing about this investment plan is the breadth. So it’s not just one facility where we’re going to go build something — we’re going to try to have an impact in as many communities as possible. We operate more than 120 facilities across the United States, and a good number of those facilities are going to be receiving some of this investment support so that we can have as broad of an impact as possible.”
BIG DEAL, huh?
. . .well not really unless
it made you go all
SELF-REFLECTIVE
a n d
realize
A Good Beginning
maybe isn’t by going all
BUDWEISER
on someone
but truly
G I V I N G
in a way that far exceeds
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
(no this might cost you much more than a yearly paycheck)
by
E X A M P L E
(YOUR’S)
Pssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst:
THIS BUD’S NOT FOR YOU
. . .It’s for EVERYONE
we just don’t always do our part
to make that possible
. . .and as Budweiser
not so subtly suggested
IT AIN’T ABOUT THE BEER!
C H E E R S
Some Coffee Commercial, huh. . . ?
When I saw it this past week
somehow the first thought that came to my mind wasn’t,
“WOW, DO I WANT A CUP OF HOT COFFEE AT THIS VERY MOMENT!”
and then I researched it a little bit
AND THEN I RESEARCHED IT A LITTLE BIT MORE
and saw that it was Charlie Chaplin that actually made the speech
AND SAW THAT IT WAS CHARLIE CHAPLIN THAT ACTUALLY MADE THE SPEECH AS A CHARACTER THAT RESEMBLED HITLER
AND THEN I SAW THAT
“In “The Great Dictator”, Chaplin plays two identical characters – the Jewish Barber and Adenoid Hynkel. Hynkel is a stand-in for Hitler. At the end of the movie, the Barber has replaced Hynkel and delivers the speech we hear in the commercial. Therefore, it’s not Hynkel/Hitler delivering the speech, it’s the Barber. Of course, the speech is really Chaplin’s plea for understanding.”
Sometimes
IT IS WAY MORE THAN JUST
PERSPECTIVE
Sometimes
IT IS WAY MORE THAN JUST
HOW YOU SEE THINGS
Sometimes
IT IS JUST THE WAY
IT IS
(and that may be the toughest way of all to see things)
Without a doubt
. . .our life doesn’t come
with instructions
(BUT IT DOES HAVE INSTRUCTORS)
or subtitles. . .
at best
the seemingly non-existent subtitles
are ones you can’t read
or are in a foreign language
or much like life
feels like
. . .comes at you upside down
When all we really want to do is read
as we are read
We all want to help one another, human beings are like that. We all want to live by each other’s happiness, not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone and the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. You have the love of humanity in your hearts. You the people have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure. Let us fight for a new world, a decent world that will give men a chance to work, that will give you the future and old age and security. Let us fight to free the world, to do away with national barriers, to do away with greed, with hate and intolerance. Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness. Let us all unite!
KNOW
as we are
KNOWN
. . .but that just might be too much to ask for
BUT NEVER
TOO MUCH TO
KEEP ATTEMPTING
. . .rub your eyes again
b l i n k
LOOK
SEE
JOIN ME
(no subtitles necessary)
Are you in need of a Commercial Break. . .
We all seem to be scrambling for
THAT
Remote Control
(not of our TV’s)
of our lives
that’ll not fast forward us through the Commercial
to get back to our regular program
but actually
S T O P
The Regular Scheduled Program
to literally give us a much needed
b r e a k
and show us
give us
not what we need to buy
b u t
WHAT WE NEED TO HAVE
(and no, it’s not a Dodge Ram Truck)
After all of the
C L O C K S
have Ticked their
T O C K S
what we need is more than a program
or a commercial can promise or give
but just the same
the seeds to our fertile fields
can be found there
in the middle of both
on our
EIGHTH DAY. . .
. . .so before your HOUR GLASS
goes Sandless
c o n s i d e r
maybe not so much how you’d spend your
E I G H T H DAY
as how you’d
INVEST IT
Just don’t put that in
Your Field
and Plant it
. . .Harvest it
and take it to
MARKET
for the Farmer in all of us
. . .it just could be
The Commercial Break
needed from this
not-so-great-regular-program
FACT: There’s lots of things that can and do go wrong in Life
FACT: Unfortunate things and difficult experiences are happening every day all over the world and that’s just a part of Living.
FACT: Not so great good things or the FEAR OF THEM doesn’t have to stop us from living a good life
FACT: The guts to live–not in spite of difficulties, but regardless of them–is what makes the good life possible (maybe even because of the tough times)
As the TIMELESS 2013 Commercial from ALLSTATE illustrates:
PEOPLE LIVE FOR GOOD
SO DO WE
So. . .
what are you waiting for. . . ?
T I C K E T S ?
Well,
buy one and then make sure of two things:
YOU SHOW UP
DON’T LEAVE EARLY
L I V E G O O D
C O M M E R C I A L S
. . .DO YOU LIKE THEM?
Q U I C K:
What’s your Favorite Commerical?
What’s the Commercial you dislike the most?
It’s hard watching your favorite TV Show
It’s hard watching a Sporting Event
It’s hard flipping through television at any time and not getting caught by one;
But hold on there
Caring Catalysts
the Stats are out:
Though marketers probably don’t want to think about it, Americans really don’t like advertising very much. A 2012 survey by Mancx found that advertising is a big complaint about the internet (54 percent of those surveyed think there are too many ads), and a Gallup survey found that 37 percent of people have a negative view of the advertising industry overall. A Harris poll conducted last summer found that millennials—that darling group that every advertiser is courting—are especially ad-averse: seventy-four percent object to being singled out by brands in their social media feeds, and a whopping 56 percent have quit a social media site just to get away from the ads.
So it’s worth pointing out a finding by a just-released study from the Burson-Marsteller Fan Experience (BMFE): fifty-three percent of Americans say they’d be disappointed if the Super Bowl went commercial free—and that number is actually up 5 percent from last year.
Setting aside that a commercial-free Super Bowl is probably never going to happen, think about what that means: Could the Big Game possibly be the only time of year that people actually want to stare at advertising?
“Yes, without a doubt,” said BMFE chair Jason Teitler—and there’s a reason, he adds. “People want to see what the brands are doing because it constitutes entertainment.”
Another way of putting this: Most ads that Americans encounter these days—from pop-ups to pre-rolls to sponsored tweets—are usually not fun. But Super Bowl ads usually are, so watching them doesn’t feel like the poke in the shoulder that ads so often are.
BMFE’s findings (drawn from a sample group of 1,000 Super Bowl fans) mirror some of those revealed last summer by HubSpot Research. HubSpot polled 1,055 consumers and learned that 85 percent of them believed “not all ads are bad,” yet many people found advertising to be intrusive, unprofessional, or even insulting to their intelligence.
Another key finding of BMFE’s survey: Not only do Americans generally enjoy watching Super Bowl spots, they wish brands would quit releasing them days or even weeks before the game.
“We found a lot of people who’d prefer to see the ads for the first time during the game,” Teitler said. “They want the surprise factor.” If a brand is going to drop $5 million for a “big punch,” he said, “why not do it in the biggest way possible?”
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. . .
Still not a big fan, you?
But in many ways,
though we might not like them a whole
Our day to day
L I F E
is in full-out-right-in-search
of a Commercial Break. . .
Hence,
we go to dinner
we go to the movies
we go to concerts
we got to play
we go on vacations
we go to museums
we go to galleries
we go shopping
WE GO. . .
Maybe the
U L T I M A T E C O M M E R C I A L
is the one advertising
what it BEGS us to buy
Maybe the Utmost Commercial of all
is the one that touts
is the one that urges
is the one that illustrates
is the one that inspires
is the one that motivates
us to
G I V E
(for free with no motive to receive or benefit)
S T O P
D o n ‘ t t o u c h
T H A T
c h a n n e l