Comment by Michael B. Moore on September 11, 2010 at 10:45am

If the point of marketing is to strategically leverage consumer emotion in a way that builds brands and sells products then this Porsche ad is an example of what to do. Granted, this long form piece gives them lots of time in which to do it. More than that, fast, sexy, luxury cars are relatively easy products to brand because they exist in an uberly high emotional involvement category. Even with all of those caveats, this is a very nice ad.

I really resonated with this spot because, in fact, I did the very thing that the protagonist here did. I have very clear memories as a youngster of going to the local Porsche and Ferrari dealerships to check out the latest cars. I'm not sure I was met with the same warmth that this kid was, but since childhood I have fantasized about driving these fantastic vehicles.

And therein lies the source of Porsche's brilliance with this. I imagine that for their core consumers, many became aware of the brand in their childhood or early adolescence and even had experiences like this kid. Those who didn't no doubt remember oggling at a Porsche on the street. By recreating those early experiences, the ad cleverly taps into those memories - reminding consumers of their early lust for Porsche - and in so doing hopefully moving them to, finally, do something about it.

The spot does a number of things well. It nicely draws the viewer into the story. Particularly for those who connected with the brand in their youth, it effectively rekindles those early feelings. Beyond that, by displaying performance stats toward the end of the spot they pivot to try to appeal to consumers' adult and logical sensibilities. As well, at the end there's a nice branded logo shot with the "Porsche - there is no substitute" voice-over. This is an effective brand punctuation to end the spot.

Because the commercial is three minutes long it is not a particularly practical piece of advertising. Beyond that, some might argue that its visually too tame. It doesn't explore any of the real performance imagery that it could have: the extraordinary sounds and sights of a Porsche 'stretching its legs'! In fact, this ad seems to present a somewhat counterintuitive view of the 911 - always either rolling slowly or without any motion at all. I think in something this long this might be a missed opportunity. Porsche is, by definition, about movement; there is so much extraordinary potential in showcasing all of the things that intoxicate you about the cars its quite conspicuous that none of it is included here. At the very least, perhaps the static visual of the performance statistics could have been replaced with fast cutting clips of a 911 more aggressively 'doing its thing'. In honesty, those frames presented there do seem a bit disjointed from the rest of the spot. Finally, the pay-off of the commercial is relatively nebulous; I prefer a more demonstrative 'brand win' to conclude commercials! Nevertheless, in the end, I think the spot accomplishes its objectives and is an effective advocate for the brand.

Comment by Gunnar Branson on February 4, 2011 at 12:27am

This advertisement floored me - even though I don't currently want a Porsche, it re-awakened the desire I once had for super cars when I was the age of the young actor in the spot.  I agree with your assessment, as I was viscerally transported by the long, slow, silent movement of the car going past the school.

I might disagree with your thought that it could be improved with a showcase of speed, sound and movement.  By with holding those elements, the ad evokes even more longing.  Somehow, it managed to sustain 3 minutes of pure tension and desire.  As it is targeting those who have likely spent decades thinking about the 911, those images are already clearly printed in our collective sense memories.  Just as a horror movie that shows you little more than shadows can be far more frightening than one that shows you everything - this ad is far more seductive for what it holds back.

This ad awakens desire, but the fulfillment of that desire must occur in the show room - not during the ad. 

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