Creative Content

“In print, you have two or three seconds to capture someone's attention. If you lose the consumer in the first second, you've lost 'em. Period.” (pg 220) However there is time for me to consider my audience’s attention through television commercial. I need to capture their attention immediately and if I don’t I usually have a window of five to seven seconds to get it back. Keep in mind every television commercial is 30 seconds long. “Carried through any campaign, there must be a distinct core idea, an underlying central concept or related ideas—one could call it a theme (a distinct recurring, unifying idea) or story.” (pg. 192) I have to stick to one theme; an artistic aesthetic that involves someone who is ordinary, someone you would normal see out on the streets. Using a celebrity in any ad can be risky, you always have to pick one that everyone is familiar with, someone who is within budget and someone who you know can deliver your message in your campaign. “A television commercial has to do several things to get people to watch and to keep them from zapping or texting or retrieving a snack or checking their e-mail or doing something else.” (PG 219) Showing an ordinary person can catch everyone’s attention (most of the time but not all the time), “Oh I like what she’s wearing” or “hey I have that same scarf” they relate to the star in the commercial, if they see a celebrity in the ad the audience knows that there is no way they can get the clothes they are wearing or any of their accessories.

“In marketing, we use storytelling about a brand or group to communicate related messages that, over a period of time, will distinguish, differentiate, reflect positively, construct or contribute to its brand personality, be memorable (stick), resonate, and influence people.” (pg 193)  Every story starts out as an idea and from there you start to build a story. My idea came from the nail brush from the nail polish bottle from there I came up with the thought of “Everyone can be an Arist”. As for a television ad I didn’t know what to think about the first few ideas of having a girl just paint with the small brush as canned. Then I thought about what if my commercial had a girl who was fashionable walk in to a museum with her friends. They’re walking having fun, having intellectual discussion among one another. Then they split up to different parts of the museum. One of the girls stands and admires a painting, she thinks about it and puts her hand to her face, trying to find out what the artist a women passes by and looks with her but she isn’t quiet admiring the same art. Across the way a man tilts his head and sees what the women sees as well. From there other people start to notice as well; but what is it? The women walks closer to the girl, she brings out her camera and then snaps a photo of her hand. Soon after spectators start to do the same and the tagline appears “Everyone can be an artist” with OPI.

The commercial setting is perfect; everyone expects to see people gaze at paintings but what’s so special about the girl who’s looking at it? And why is everyone staring at her and not what she’s looking at?  Ultimately the viewer should see that not every canvas has to be on the walls of a museum or a house. It can be anywhere!