Comment by Michael B. Moore on September 16, 2011 at 11:38pm

The past few reviews have been examples of sub par advertising.  Unfortunately, the ads  had strategic shortcomings of one kind or another; something fundamental about it that rendered it less effective than it should have been.  This new Gatorade G Series ad, on the other hand, is really good work!  In my opinion, its a fresh example of a very strong ad, doing a lot of both strategic and creative things very nicely!  Among other things, it balances functional features and benefits with strong, emotional hooks.  It leverages the prodigious equity of the brand by showing some of the great athletes who have used it over the years.  It strongly reinforces the technical/scientific cred of the brand.  It also shows both traditional and non-traditional athletes using Gatorade, no doubt accomplishing the important business objective of continuing to reach out to a growing demographic. 

 

One of the things that the ad excels at best is presenting Gatorade as the tool to deliver optimal athletic performance at the highest levels.  Imagery of iconic athletes reinforces the point that Gatorade is not just a great sports drink, but also an integral part of American popular culture.  Now, of course, we intellectually know that sports drink endorsements these days are more about dollars than electrolytes, but the emotional power of seeing these great athletes performing grabs you nevertheless.  It achieves its intended effect of linking the stature of those athletes with the brand.  

 

The ad closes in a powerful and strategic way.  It delivers a hard hitting, memorable, and emotive pay-off.  It shows some of the greatest of the great athletes who use Gatorade, including Michael Jordan, performing at the top of their game.  If I have to offer just a bit of criticism though, the MJ clip sets the bar SO high that some of the other vignettes in the "pay-off" seem weak in comparison.  I sense that the Jordan moment is the climax.  It coincides with the voice over talking about how Gatorade lets you perform your best at the precise moment that you need it most.  It works great for the Jordan clip, but I just wish that they could have infused footage of Serena and Usain that was more comparable to Michael's moment.  Without showing Serena smashing an ace at Wimbledon or Usain crossing the finish line to another world record, Michael's basket just unnecessarily overwhelms the other clips.

 

Finally, and to its credit, the spot ends with a classic product shot - the before, during, and after performance hydration "system".  It then flashes a brief but bold logo shot as the final, and appropriate, bookend to the commercial.  

 

It seems that Gatorade was attempting to speak to a broad swath of consumers in the ad, both active sports fans and others.  It wanted to reinforce its place as an integral part of elite sports and deliver the (powerful if not formulaic) message that if Gatorade is good for the best, it's also good for you.  Personally, as a sports fan, a sometime consumer, and a fan of great advertising, I was definitely left wanting to see more of this ad.  

 

All in all, this is very strong work.  Five stars for great strategy and great creative.  

 

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