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Yes, I admit it; I’m somewhat blasé about advertising. So much of it is, frankly, lame. But sometime back I saw an ad today in a Sunday circular that made me do a double take and actually giggle. I know that if lived to be 100, and racked my brain for ideas to advertise a label maker, I would never have come up with this particular image. It was fairly simple, and did not scream out, but very deftly made its point: To show how not labeling a denture jar with “his” and “hers” could wreck havoc, a couple smiled broadly for the camera-he with tiny little white pearl teeth, engulfed by huge, fleshy jowls, and she of the delicate features with the largest gums ever seen, overwhelmed even more with huge, square horse-y teeth.

It was hysterical. I loved it. Why can’t more ads, especially having to do with our appearance, be more humorous? Why must the majority take themselves so seriously?
I suppose if one is brainstorming with creative types, sooner or later somebody may hit on something this personal, but I can assure you it wouldn’t be me. I don’t know how folks think of these things, except to keep going back to the drawing board and bouncing ideas off of each other. In any event, this ad worked. Now I know that if I ever need dentures, and plan on soaking them in an identical glass next to my husband’s, I will most definitely label them so we don’t put the wrong ones in our respective mouths! A good ad should stick with you and motivate you-not just cause you to roll your eyes. The right ad should capture a mind as well as a heart.

Throughout the years, I’ve seen several ads which I thought wonderful, and they usually were of a funny bent. I am so sick of seeing beautiful, perfect people sell everything that I don’t even give those ads a second glance-and the same with cute kids. Give me something that gives me a laugh, and I may just laugh all the way to the cash register. What I won’t buy, even if I need it, is something that has an ad I consider ridiculous. For example, those ads in the newest fashion magazine pushing these “intense color” eye shadows and mascaras – three in less than ten pages- will never motivate most normal, adult women to purchase them. Yep, we always meet with clients wearing neon green, orange and purple circles around our eyes…Now, if partnered with ads for costuming at Halloween or for dance/theatrical performances in an appropriate venue, that’s another matter entirely.

When we look back at ads from the 50’s and 60’s, they seem so plastic. One thing about today’s exceptionally outstanding ads, they do seem real. Remember the “I can’t believe I ate the whole thing” ads? We all can relate to situations like that, so that is the kind of thing that Madison Avenue needs to revisit. For most women, swinging long tresses in slow motion to capture every hair’s glistening sheen and bounce is simply not doable, so I think we tend to forget them entirely. Give us a memorable catch phrase in a realistic setting (I could just see my grandmother doing that “Where’s the beef?” commercial) and it becomes part of our language.

Some ads are insulting, and some are hokey, but it seems like when one hits the jackpot, it hits big. Here’s a thank you to those ad execs that have been brilliant enough to give us a laugh, along with coercing us to buy a product. The really terrific ads are few and far between, but they are probably the difference between success and failure to many a company.

Throughout my months writing here at FashBlog, I’ve noted my disbelief with models’ poses, expressions, and scenarios on a few occasions, commenting how they’re often so off-putting we don’t even remember what they’re selling. I’m curious regarding your feelings about this matter. Go through the magazines you may have, and share with those who follow this column about any fashion advertising that strikes you as “brilliant”, and tell us why you like it. Thanks!