It's Just Money: My Favorite Commercials are...

Oddly enough, they're both car ads. One isn't actually a commercial, it's a more of a multi media ad. And that's what I love about it. More later.

Have you seen the series of VW ads with people driving, talking, going about their lives in fairly mundane, everyday situations. Then BOOM! Glass breaks, metal bends, airbags deploy! All in under a second. Cut. Fade in. Guys standing around the crashed car, clearly unhurt. "Holy Sh" Cut. Fade to picture of the car with the words, "Safe Happens" above it.

I definitely wakes you up. Most of us have been in at least a small accident, and we all know how shocking that can be. This grabs your attention like few other ads I have seen. Some may find the ad a bit distasteful for those who have lost loved ones in car accidents. However, the ad does two things. It reminds us to pay better attention on the road, and it reminds us of the importance of safety features.

Now, are VW cars the safest around? I have no idea. This ad certainly implies that it is among the safest. Here's the ad if you want to view it:

The other ad, and the one that takes my top honors, is the Honda Element. Not the commercial so much, they're a little witty, a little odd. But the multimedia nature of it is right on the money. They put up billboards that say things like, "What do a Honda Element and a Platapus have in common?" Then it says, "to find out, tune into AM 1610."

You tune in, and it doesn't come in that great. But it's this British guy saying, "What you are about to hear is an actual conversation between a Honda Element and a platapus." It's a short range signal, with about a five mile radius. They play the commercial, then tell you to log in their website. Pretty wacky. Within a span of about 40 seconds, you are bombarded with three types of media: Billboard, radio and internet. But only the billboard is passive. You must actively tune your radio in, and visit the web site. For me, the radio was a no-brainer. I'm sitting in the car anyway. I'm listening to garbage, why not check it out? And that's what they are counting on.

Here's the actual Honda Commercial: