I enjoyed this viral film that one of my colleagues shared with me last week. It’s a few months old now, but I thought it was worth noting, as apart from the fact that it had quite a few of us in stitches with its comic timing and nice one-liners (”it’s the best vacuum cleaner you’ll ever have, baby”, ”wow I’m married to you!”), the chatter on the blogosphere since its release is interesting – with bloggers seemingly applauding and criticising the film in equal measures.
Supporters of the viral campaign from JC Penny have praised the US-based popular discount store for its bravery in creating something that is unexpected, entertaining and relatable. Others have commented on the effective way that it dramatises a timeless universal truth about the anxieties of buying the right gift for a loved-one, and the cultural meme of being clueless about the opposite sex.
However, a few critics have slammed the ad for its gender stereotyping, condescending tone and predictability. A blogger for MSNBC wrote “We’re not sure who should be more offended by this campaign: Men, who are painted as sexist, clueless dolts, or women, who are shown as mean-spirited and materialistic, willing to mete out menial punishment but swayed by glittery things.”
There has also been some debate about the merits of the campaign’s execution among the marketing community: whilst some bloggers have praised the approach of creating a 4:44 minute viral and microsite over a traditional 30-second TV spot, others have pointed out that the film’s length, comprehension, call to action and brand integration is poor.
The microsite too has generated a bit of debate among the digital community – with some highlighting the missed opportunity to more effectively integrate Facebook Connect functionality with the JC Penny online shopping experience. The current microsite simply allows people to nominate people to be put into the virtual Doghouse (and certainly the microsite’s own hit counter suggests that this feature hasn’t been as popular as the creators might have hoped- standing at 008443 at time of writing).
On this last point, I would have to agree that an opportunity was probably missed to give the campaign some real depth, but maybe this will develop in time. Personally, I think the main success of this particular execution is its viral effect: with the film stimulating both laughter and debate on an emotive subject matter, I expect many more people have been discussing, considering and perhaps reappraising the JC Penny brand as a result (at least those who worked out that it was from JC Penny). Now the store has managed to get people’s attention, it would be good to see the brand taking steps to build an even more useful and meaningful relationship with its customers.
