The new TV ad for Logitech, starring Kevin Bacon as a fan obsessed with Kevin Bacon, is brilliantly creative advertising. But is it good marketing? When I first saw the new TV spot, I laughed out loud. Each time the spot appears on TV, I watch it because it's funny. But what I don't think about when I see this ad is the product.
Bacon is advertising the Logitech Revue, a device that works with Google TV. But I can't tell you exactly what the product does because the product demo is brief. The product is mentioned only twice in the ad. Most importantly, it gets lost in the creative focus on Kevin Bacon.
The first rule of effective advertising is to get attention. The Bacon ad succeeds brilliantly there. But marketing experts also know the second rule of effective advertising is never to let the vehicle overpower the message.
Lessons for a smart marketing strategy
The Kevin Bacon campaign gets my attention. But it fails to deliver a message about the product that makes me understand it and want to buy it.
