Effective Advertising

I've ranted about ineffective ads in the past. Twice, actually. The airwaves seem to be rank with commercials that make you want to throw a brick through your television screen.

To give credit where credit is due, I have to admit that there are a few ads out there that are actually well thought-out and do the job they're supposed to do - namely, to make me and the little money I have part company.

One such set of commercials are the "Mac vs. PC" ads. You know the ones, where a not-so-young (notice I didn't say 'older') guy in a suit introduces himself as the PC and a younger guy in casual clothes represents the Mac. Now, I'm not so sure that I've actually been won over by the arguments that Macs are better than PCs. I think I'm just afraid of turning out like the PC guy. I mean, he's been taking some pretty nasty beatings during these commercials. First, he had a really bad virus and was sneezing all over the Mac guy. Then he was split up into a bunch of pieces so that parts of him were in other boxes. In the latest commercial, poor Mr. PC has been yanked unceremoniously off the desk by someone tripping over his power cord. He's been confined to a wheelchair with at least one broken arm and a brace around his neck. Not to mention the fact that he comes across as a bit of a stiff, almost accountant-like in his demeanor. I'd much rather be like the cool, young Mac dude.

Another series of commercials that aren't effective so much as they are entertaining are the Bell Sympatico ads featuring the beavers. Talking beavers are always good for a chuckle (or maybe that's just a Canadian thing). But, does anyone else giggle at the thought of beavers living in an apartment with hardwood floors and wooden furniture? I don't know why, but this one gets me every time.

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