The Yahoo! Anthem Commercial
I was looking forward to seeing what Yahoo! had devised as a way to give itself an infusion of zombie magic. This was an incredible opportunity to up the ante, to prove Yahoo! is not destined for the .comortuary.
Turns out, the new Yahoo! Anthem spot is driving me crazy. Literally. I haven’t decided if it’s triggered my latent ADD or a random grand mal seizure.
After watching this visual frankenfeast, it sort of feels like Yahoo! is making a desperate last-ditch effort to wriggle its decaying hand up through the dirt from beyond the grave. Presenting us with a handful of wilted daisies.
“I’m not dead yet!”
Let me be fair. It is a beautiful spot to behold. Sweeping cinematography, vibrant colors, lush scenes, dynamic integration of cultures and people. It’s obvious someone in the mix knew what they were doing. Unfortunately, that person was not in front of the client. Or in the strategy meetings. Or in concept refinement. Or even playing Guitar Hero in the agency break room.
The spot wants to be all about “you,” but in a desperate grab for anything in sight it misses the mark. It’s not about YOU at all. It’s about Yahoo! and what you represent to the company:
A whole mess of people doing a lot of different, pretty things.
Where is the personal connection with the viewer? Where is the emotional engagement with the product? Where’s the promise that makes me want to add Yahoo! back to my Safari bookmarks bar?
Instead of feeling any connection, it felt like I was listening to the hurried recitation of an overzealous product brochure. The sad thing is, any of the gazillion scenes in this spot could have had impact if they were presented individually, if the viewer was allowed to connect with a single, passionate experience. This was one time when the final product was not greater than the sum of its parts. Quite the opposite.
And yeah. They couldn’t even get the grammar right. (Who’s checking this stuff?) When I want to go farther, I’ll fill up my car with gas. When I want to go further, I’ll double-check the script on my next million dollar ad spot.
What’s your take on the Yahoo! Anthem spot? Love it or hate it? Awful or amazing? What worked for you, what didn’t? Was this the best approach for energizing the Yahoo! brand?
Okay, “energizing” may not be the right term. I’m still a bit dizzy.
I think you pretty much sum it up – its visually gorgeous, but it doesn't really say anything.
Hi @ebartz,
Erik Proulx (@eproulx) summed it up nicely on Twitter when he told me he wanted to smash his computer to pieces after watching the spot! He was right on by saying "Never has so much been spent on saying so little."
I'll admit, it DOES make me want to go to Vegas. Unfortunately, it doesn't make want to re-bookmark the search engine. Yahoo!'s crazy new homepage doesn't help, either.
I'm going to go recover from my virtual hangover now.
Hi Teresa, funny you mention Vegas… come to think of it, the spot actually would make a great travel commercial. Or a jeans commercial. Or a…. oh heck, take your pick. This spot has it all. Except a heart.
I have no effing clue what they want me to think/feel/believe with this.
Hi Dan, I have a sincere hope that the Anthem spot is a conglomeration of a lot of really good shorter spots that have already been edited and ready to roll out. No doubt there's plenty of footage. Still doesn't excuse Anthem.
Though I do like the new yodel. Thats something, right?!
The Yahoo! yodel with the laugh didn’t resonate with me, but the new Intel sonic brand is hot. With the big group hum. I felt something powerful I want to be a part of. Yahoo! not so much.
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