Move Over Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce
Seems there's a new hot ad agency on Madison Avenue--SmithWinterMitchell--and its landed six lucrative accounts with Dove, Breyers, Klondike, Suave, Hellman's and Vaseline.
But truthfully, the fictitious SCDP ad agency from the 1960s-set AMC drama "Mad Men" should feel more flattered than threatened.
That's because SmithWinterMitchell is a fictious, circa-1960s agency itself, created in the likeness of SCDP to star in new commercials airing during "Mad Men," where it hashes out campaign ideas for the six real products. It's an interesting advertainment strategy from the brand's parent Unilever meant to stop "Mad Men" viewers from zoning out during, or fast-forwarding through, the ads.
From my perspective, it's a cute, creative, attention-grabbing concept, and as a result, these ads are the only ones I bother watching when I catch up with "Mad Men" on my Tivo. Given how so much of the show is about the creation of advertisements, it's an interesting angle watching advertisements about the creation of advertisements. The retro style in the ads, evocative of the pristine set design and period-perfect tailoring on "Mad Men," only adds to the fun.
That said, beyond turning some heads, how effective is it really from a marketing perspective? "Mad Men," while certainly one of the most acclaimed, buzzed-about shows on television, is by no means a ratings darling. The average number of viewers per episode watching the show live or within 7 days of recording it on their DVRs is 2.9 million, according to Nielsen. With numbers like that, "Mad Men" would have been cancelled if it were on one of the big four networks long ago.
So essentially, Unilever, with partner agency Mindshare, has taken on the expense of creating ads that, on TV, can only work within the context of a show with ho-hum ratings. While that means ad buys for "Mad Men" are significantly less than hit broadcast dramas like "CSI," from my perspective, its hard to see how the concept can be justified from an expenditure point of view.
Kathy O'Brien, vice president of personal care for Unilever U.S., wouldn't discuss budget details or metrics but indicated in an e-mail interview that the campaign was worth it.
"The cultural phenomenon of 'Mad Men' provides a great forum in which to showcase our iconic brands, which are as popular today as they were in the 1960s when the show is set," she wrote. "What’s more, we know that the 'Mad Men' audience is a particularly engaged and educated one. The vignette series we have created is a creative and custom approach to advertising, something that we know this particular audience will appreciate. ... In addition, the vignettes have spurred conversation and reactions online and off. At the end of the day, that is what advertising is meant to do."
The ads have been airing one episode at a time all season long on "Mad Men," with a spot re-airing each week until season four ends next month. You can also catch all the ads at the SmithWinterMitchell YouTube page and see an example at the bottom of this post.
What do you think about the ads, from a personal perspective and from a marketing perspective? As always, feel free to post your comments.
