This commercial created by Wal-Mart uses a cat to help promote Wal-Mart's new online shopping application. It is designed to help seasonal shoppers find gifts for friends and family through Facebook. While this seems like a great idea to promote Wal-Mart, this particular Shopycat commercial is confusing to the viewers due to no real call to action. Although Wal-Mart is a top competitor in the market, this commercial does not seem to be very effective in promoting the Shopycat application. With only a cat yodeling for 50 seconds, there is no explanation to the Shopycat app adressed in the commercial.
One way to improve the commercial could be to add in a section where the Shopycat app is explained. The cat in this commercial did not look very friendly because it is unusual to see a cat with a human mouth. Wal-Mart was strategic in using a Christmas carol during the season, but they might have bit off more then they could chew with regards to making the commercial humerous.
This is an example of how not to make an effective advertisement. If there is no call to action and the spokes person for the ad is not attractive with regards to gaining the veiwers attention, then you will have wasted money on that particular ad.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAvLlPCbyQQ
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At least they were smart enough not to put it on TV.
ReplyDeleteThis video is weird and pointless; I agree with you 100 percent. I assume they wanted to make a viral video with a christmas theme, but this is far from going viral in my opinion. If the video goes viral, however, people could take it as a nice and funny Christmas video since the ad doesn't try to sell anything or (directly) promote a service; this could give Walmart a better image as a caring brand for its customers just wishing them a merry christmas.
It's the magic of marketing, you don't know how people might respond to it. After all, if they put it online, I suppose people who saw the video as part of a test-group provided positive feedback.
I think they were trying to copy a Quiznos Subs commercial from a few years back, here it is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG042nkReBA. The use of humor was trying to be conveyed in that Ad and I believe it was very effective. I found myself yelling that song in my brothers ear. Whenever I go to eat at Quiznos that song automatically plays in my head.
ReplyDeleteI do not think this Wal-mart cat does this. The concept in itself is mildly funny, but the song is odd and annoying more than anything. I couldn't tell you what the cat was signing about and if I barely noticed that it was a Wal-mart advertisement. I do not think that people will send this to their friends through email for the simply fact that it isn't funny. This was a flop on the part of Wal-mart.
I agree with Alejandro and Tyler, this is a worthless commercial. There's nothing about it that tells me why to shop Wal-mart, or use an app or anything about buying gifts... Yes, it might make a sort of funny Christmas video, but I think Wal-mart went about it all wrong. And there's no way this video would have gone viral. It's more annoying than funny.
ReplyDeleteIf they would have put it on TV there needs to be an explanation as to why the cat, why the yodeling and why should I care.
The only thing it has going for it, is that's it's rememberable. And sometimes that's all it takes for a video/commercial to become a success. However in this case, it fell flat for me.