Comments on: MONDAY RADIO COMMERCIAL SMACKDOWN: Award Winning Losers

By: Rod

Rod — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:25:02 +0000

I wonder whether and how FedEx actually measures the effectiveness of the ad in question. It's conceivable (if barely) that they saw an increase in business tied to running that spot.

Let's say, for the sake of argument, that their marketing people determined that the ad did "work." The issue would then be good vs. better, not simply good or bad, right?

Many award-winning ads fail to ring the cash register.

Many ads that win at the register will never receive an advertising award.

But sometimes - hopefully more often, as a result of learning from folks like Dan - a radio commercial can be both entertaining and effective.

By: Jonathan Lumley

Jonathan Lumley — Tue, 26 May 2009 09:54:36 +0000

How true. And there are so many examples. There's a radio advert that won a Cannes ad award last year, and a Golden Pencil from an agency here in South Africa. Everyone was so impressed. And it was awful. First off it was a minute and 13 seconds in length, and I don't know anyone who books that type of airtime here, and secondly the client was just a tag at the end. As for frequency, it was just so annoying you would turn it off if you heard it again. The adverts that win awards are rarely the ones that are sales effective for the client, and are usually flighted at midnight, once off, when the airtime is cheap and so they can fulfill the criteria on their admission form to say: "It was flighted"
Was it effective?
No.
Would I still like to win an award….(shamefully)yeah.
But maybe from Dan O Day.
Idea maybe? Let us regularly submit our best work that we do anyway, and the one that catches your attention Dan wins a pat on the back from you?

By: John

John — Tue, 26 May 2009 03:50:12 +0000

Totally on the mark Dan!

You can always tell which agencies will win the big awards each year based on who from their staff is on the judging panel.

I always have to laugh at the local addy winners in my market. I know for a fact each year that the ads that win have never done anything to increase or even maintain the client's bottom line. And more often than not the agencies responsible for those award winning ads lose the account at the end of the year.