April Online Video Watching

Here are the numbers from Comscore  for the month of April, 2008.  The data is normally a few months behind (particularly when we are getting the data for free -- you pay you get it quicker), so nothing strange about this.  The numbers keep telling a strong story about web delivery of video.  It's not just coming, it's here. 

• 11 Billion videos watched in April 2008 (down from previous months)
  
• 71% the total U.S. Internet audience viewed online video
• The average online viewer watched 228 minutes of video
• 18-34 year olds were the heaviest viewers watching 287 minutes each
• 82.1 million viewers watched 4.1 billion videos on YouTube (49.8 videos per viewer)
• The average online video duration was 2.8 minutes

While there's a lot of junk being watched out there...  there's also a LOT of opportunity in that audience.

Microsoft Gates Seinfeld Ad

The much balyhooed, new  Microsoft/Seinfeld/Gates ad  is 'out'... lots of buzz on this little puppy today in cyberspace.   Some strange stuff here fromt the shower shot with the boots, to Gates as a longtime member of the circus clown club, to computers being "moist and chewy like cake," to the butt wiggle? 

It's a mystery to me where all this is heading, but perhaps it will make itself clear as the campaign unfolds in the weeks ahead.  Perhaps it's just a commercial that's all about nothing which was what Seinfeld was all about?  The ad is created by Crispin, Porter Bogusky, the agency that created the Burger King subservient chicken campaign - fun but extremely odd.  The 90 second spot looks like a hook to the get you sucked into future ads, the weirdness and humor meant to make you buy into an evolving story... but like much branded entertainment, there's barely a product mention save the chewy computer of the future, whatever that means.  I am not convinced that Microsoft can truly get away with saying it's cool when Gates has the super nerd rep. No doubt he's a great guy, but his rep is his rep.

Maybe it will all make sense down the road -- part of some kind of some Twin Peaks-like cathartic convergence, or maybe not.  Could it be that Microsoft is just trying to position itself as being cool and hip too?  Microsoft is e a little behind the times if they are trying to use Jerry Seinfeld to say "I'm cool too".... as great as Jerry is, he's not particularly au courant.   We'll be watching the follow-on ads to see where this takes us.

From the Heart Communication

Here's a nifty little film that exudes many of our classic notions of what being American is all about - Baxter Black on Being an American.  Perhaps it's the old school view, coopting the Amercian West pioneer image, so much so that you can almost smell the viddles on the frying pan, but it's pure and simple and it's from the heart.  The strong simple music with strings that touch the heart only serve to strenghten the simple message about being thankful for the simple things in life like freedom and independence.  This one works.

Presidential Advertising - Shock and Awe

With Presidential elections come presidential election ads -- tough ones, brutal ones. Shock and awe is the name of the game to get voters' attention, even if the facts don't support the story.  Topping the all-time list are a few classics -- and the presidential advisors have already returned to the playbook to see if the concept still works. 

Remember the Dukakis Wille Horton ad?   Strong, somewhat terrifying visuals of a prison with a cold, matter of fact voice over.  Well it's back.  Check out this Obama 'Willie Horton' ad sponsored by ExposeObama.com.  

Expect a version of the classic Michael Dukakis Tank commercial.  It made Dukakis look ridiculous and you can bet there are political operatives looking for snaps of Obama in similar situations.  In fact some of the military elements of this piece were injected into the following ad (3 am McCain)

Hillary Clinton's effective 3 am call ad has already been copied and updated by the McCain campaign new version...  3 am McCain.

Another top ten political ad still sends chills down the spine almost 50 years later.  It's an ad that ran only once, created by the Johnson campaign, yet it's still much balyhooed today....  the Daisy ad.

Now here's something racy that was posted on rapper P Diddy's blog.  Very interesting stuff, done with a home video camera by the well known rapper.  WARNING -- It has foul language, but it's highly viral....  Dont' blame the messenger if you don't like it; P Diddy Blog Rant on McCain.

Let's end with something completely different.... an uplifting political ad... my favorite all time politcal ad voiced by ad guru Hal Riney (rip)... morning in america.  It's beautiful, it's hopeful and positive and it's inspirational.  All the things the other ads above are negative and cruel.   Big problem here though about taking the high ground.. it doesn't always get you the attention and headlines that going negative does. 

Targeted Advertising - Buying One Ad at a Time Using Saysme.tv

Used to be you needed to make major ad buys to get your message out across the country in various TV ad markets, but a new company, Saysme.tv is a first mover that could offer a game changing opportunity to small players with big aspirations. The web site bills itself as offering little guys a big chance to be heard. How? By giving advertisers with some kind of message (in a video/commercial format) a chance to buy ads, as little as one ad at a time, wherever you want to place that ad for as little as $6 an ad! The downside is that your ad may not appear on highly desirable programming (read CNN Headline News), but it is a chance to give the little guys a voice in a market that until now, was hard to crack without a big pile of cash. Thinking about running for President in 2016? Get cracking with your ads now! (more on running for President in the next blog entry).