SuperBowl Advertising Award Winners

Well, it feels like Boxing Day all over again.

So much excitement was built up about this year's SuperBowl ads, and now that it's the day after, we are left to sort through all the gifts - to spend some serious time with the best ones and to re-wrap the crappy ones and send them back.

Here is my take. Enjoy! Comment. Share. Whatever!

1) Just Plain Hilarious Award:

- Best Buy "Ozzy vs. Bieber" (I mean c'mon, they got Bieber to admit that he looks like a girl!)

1.1) Just Plain Hilarious Runners Up:

- Doritos "Best Part" (he licked the dude's pants!)

- Snickers "Logging" (the actors are dinosaurs, but if you're old like me, you get it)

2) Awesome On So Many Levels Award:

- VW "The Force" (just watch and enjoy)

3) Marketing Fundamentals Award:

- eTrade "Cat" and "Tailor" (because they realize that with advertising, frequency and consistency is key)

4) More Damage Than Good Award:

- BMW "Defying Logic" (yup, this ad defies logic - BMW is successful because they AREN'T from USA... yet they go and do this?!?)

5) What the $&%# Award:

- GoDaddy.com "New .CO Girl" (...is Joan Rivers?!?!? Some things can't be unseen)

5.1) What the $&%# Runners Up:

- GM/Chevrolet "Status" (I get FaceBook, but does anyone REALLY want FaceBook updates from OnStar?... something about that just isn't right)

- Coca-Cola "Siege" (they usually get SuperBowl ads right, but I have to admit, I scratched my head on this one)

6) Taking the 'Sex Sells' Concept WAY Too Far Award:

- GoDaddy.com "The Contract" (I'm at the point where this offends me, so no, I won't go to your site to see more)

and the winner is......

7) The Best Overall SuperBowl Ad Award:

- Chrysler "Born of Fire"

I can't believe I gave Chrysler the highest honour, but I gotta hand it to them. They get TV ads. They understand that with this medium, you have to make a compelling brand promise, make it memorable, and glue it to your brand. I see too many ads that say something funny, but not compelling. I see too many ads that are so generic and bland that I have forgotten them before their 30 seconds are up. I see too many ads that are well done, but we forget who made them.

Chrysler got it all right.

They made a very strong statement, and they made it because they know that if they are to survive, they must appeal to the audience to whom the statement was directed. They made it memorable by conjuring up a new concept - that Detroit is back - and reinforcing it with a striking closing tag line: "Imported from Detroit". Finally, they imbedded the Chrysler brand in your memory by spending a good portion of their 2 minutes on the logo, including a fairly impressive, lengthy shot of a Chrysler grill.

It may not end up saving them, but given the challenges they face and the objectives they were surely given, this is the best possible execution. And it's better than the rest.

Soooooo....? Agree? Disagree?