Was the most powerful and memorable Super Bowl TV ad really a reminder about the power of radio?
Paul Harvey’s tribute commentary to the American farmer fits right into Dodge Ram’s strategy, and as has been the case in the past three years, Chrysler ads continue to be what we talk about on Monday morning. From Eminem to Clint Eastwood to Paul Harvey, these ads stopped the partying, the woofing, Beyoncé buzz, and the armchair analysis, and truly made us stare at our televisions.
In the case of “God Made A Farmer,” it was the writing and the voice acting of Paul Harvey that cut through, as the visual stills were merely supplemental. In a sea of ads for phones, gadgets, cars, and other paraphernalia of the 21st century, Dodge and Paul Harvey went old school on America with the style, look, and content of this ad.
>EMAIL RECIPIENTS: CLICK HERE TO WATCH DODGE/PAUL HARVEY VIDEO<
As Arbitron’s Jacquelyn Bullerman pointed out to me in a tweet, the irony is that the best TV spot in the game was really a radio commentary.
Of course, that speaks to the power of the medium, incredible writing, and the ability to read with purpose and emotion. Frank Sinatra wasn’t a great singer, but it was his phrasing and style that set him apart. Similarly, Paul Harvey’s ability to turn a phrase and read with sincerity is storytelling at its best.
There are a few examples of this left on the radio, but they are becoming fewer and rarer as years go by. The writing and narration of Nick Michaels has elevated the Classic Rock era and its bands, and shows like The Moth on public radio stations are riveting in their ability to tell a story – on the radio – without the use of pictures.
Later this week, we’ll take a listen to some incredible examples of great uses of radio. But in a global event last night that pitted brother against brother against the backdrop of a power outage, some of the most electrifying moments of Super Bowl XLVII came during this two minutes of amazing storytelling.
That is the rest of the story.
God Made A Farmer
And on the eighth day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, “I need a caretaker.”
So God made a farmer.
God said, “I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, milk cows, work all day in the field, milk cows again, eat supper, then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the school board.”
So God made a farmer.
God said, “I need somebody willing to sit up all night with a newborn colt and watch it die, then dry his eyes and say, ‘Maybe next year,’ I need somebody who can shape an ax handle from an ash tree, shoe a horse with hunk of car tire, who can make a harness out hay wire, feed sacks and shoe scraps. Who, during planting time and harvest season will finish his 40-hour week by Tuesday noon and then, paining from tractor back, put in another 72 hours.”
So God made a farmer.
God said, “I need somebody strong enough to clear trees and heave bales, yet gentle enough to yean lambs and wean pigs and tend the pink-comb pullets, who will stop his mower for an hour to splint the leg of a meadowlark.”
It had to be somebody who’d plow deep and straight and not cut corners. Somebody to seed, weed, feed, breed, and brake, and disk, and plow, and plant, and tie the fleece and strain the milk. Somebody who’d bale a family together with the soft, strong bonds of sharing, who would laugh, and then sigh, and then reply with smiling eyes when his son says that he wants to spend his life doing what Dad does.
So God made a farmer.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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MIXED EMOTIONS about what, IMHO, was the most effective ad in the game. As you said above: “There are a few examples of this left on the radio, but they are becoming fewer and rarer as years go by.”
Second-most-effective ad? The Go-Daddy spot. Not THAT one, with the mega-model smooching the nerd. The OTHER Go-Daddy ad, in-which a half dozen people, all-around-the-world, come up with the same great idea…all at once. The point being: He-who-registers-the-name-first wins.
Yup, effective is in the eye (or ear) of the beholder. And there are a lot of moving parts for your $3.8 M to work. I thought that the Paul Harvey angle was a reminder of the power of words and storytelling. Probably won’t see a lot of Dodge Ram trucks, but hopefully, remind some radio veterans of the value of taking the time to tell a great story. Thanks, Holland.
I’m an atheist, don’t particularly care for farmers (it’s all conglomerated aggro-business now, who are we kidding) , and hate big dumb trucks (because they’re often driven by suburban housewives with no depth perception)- but as i tweeted last night after seeing that spot – it was a show stopper. as nick might say – a whisper became a scream.
the spot wasn’t about trucks. it wasn’t even about the company that makes trucks. it was an incredibly empathetic portrayal of the kind of people who do hard thankless work. it elevated those people and gave them dignity.
then the beefy sparkling truck showed up at the end – and it felt cheap.
and that’s the problem with this kind of advertising. the last 5 seconds. the “pay off”. where we find out who the spot is REALLY about. guess what – it’s not about farmers after all. it’s about a business trying to latch on or grab some emotional transference.
it almost always feels cheap.
contrast the truck spot to the clydesdale spot. that spot’s purpose was also to glide on emotional transference – but it didn’t feel cheap – why?
my guess – bud has spent decades using the clydesdales – in ads – and in real life – in parades and county fairs across the entire country. most of us have actually seen the creatures – we know the clydesdale is real. we already have a connection.
the trainer’s story is made up – but it felt real. it could be real. when they re-united we saw something we’ve all felt or hoped to feel with our own pets. it was an amazing use of emotion that didn’t feel cheap.
had they showed a glistening bottle of bud at the end – that would’ve cheapened it.
sincerity is a tough line to walk without devolving into cheese or coming off as manipulative and fake.
it’s probably why stupid spots with hyper-exagerated product attributes (because the real product is boring) is the norm in super bowl advertising – and most radio promos. always trying to dress up average stuff to appear not so average. what a dreadful use of “creativity”.
but the sincere kind of spot DEPENDS on all the idiotic noise of the rest to stand out. and it depends on a connection that already exists.
no :30 spot ever manufactured a connection – no matter how many times it’s run.
my take away – take the time to develop connection. then your marketing has something to leverage. and leverage it carefully.
otherwise, your just shouting at people, and no one has to listen if they don’t want to.
Jeff, great wisdom from you as always, from someone who thinks a lot about this stuff. I had the same feeling when I saw that truck at the end. While Dodge made a fascinating connection with Americana that everyone ignores, tying it to this product is a leap. I hope that the message about the value of sincerity and storytelling came through, especially in a venue that is filled with hype, alleged humor, and glitz. Thanks for taking the time to give us some of your great perspective.
Fred,
I did feel, emotinally, that the Dodge spot has similar resonance to “Halftime In America”, last year’s most virally engaged spot from the Super Bowl.
I didn’t feel that it was ‘cheap’ as Jeff suggests. The payoff was a home run. Having grown up in the Rust Belt (and yes, on on small family owned farm), I could hear my kin proclaiming “Dodge UNDERSTANDS us!”
That creative application of empathy is rare, so kudos to Dodge.
Sky D
I saw it the same way, Sky. Thanks for chiming in.
Since Paul Harvey makes my skin crawl and I found it mawkish, I give my vote to their Jeep ad with the service members. It was sentimental, true, but is showed us a great diversity of people that I found much more relatable and their needs and sacrifices seem current.
A dead old white guy talking about farmers in what is actually good economic times for farmers- meh.
OK, I’ll admit it – I felt some good old (perhaps emphasis on OLD) sentimentality from the spot. After Beyonce and the power outage, any ray of hope was welcome. Thanks, Sheila.