“Barack” vs. “Hillary”
By Todd Brashear

Even though it aired only once, during Super Bowl XVIII, the Apple commercial “1984” is widely regarded by advertising professionals as the best-ever television spot. Interestingly enough though, the new amateur mash-up version of it may influence the advertising industry even more than the original did.

On March 5, 2007, a little-known Barack Obama supporter named Phil De Vellis created a lot of buzz in political circles when he posted a partially homemade video on YouTube. Relying on original footage from the legendary Apple spot, De Vellis used video trickery to superimpose video of Hillary Clinton on the monitors in place of “Big Brother.” And superimposed onto the blank, white tanktop of the heroine – the official logo of the Barack Obama campaign. The spot ends with Barack Obama’s Web address and Apple’s old-fashioned logo, the rainbow apple, which had been transformed into an O.

At first pass, the spot looks like an official anti-Hillary ad from the Barack Obama campaign. But, allegedly, it was the completely unauthorized work of an Obama supporter.

YouTube now hosts several “response” videos from pro-Hillary activists, including one based on the classic Oscar Mayer bologna ad, but none of them rival the production or entertainment value of De Vellis’ video. And more importantly, none of them has even come close to its 3 million viewings.

While plenty of news outlets have covered this story’s ramifications on the future of politics, I haven’t seen one that addresses its impact on advertising in general. Here at our agency, we’re already using YouTube to host videos that are favorable to our clients. But, with YouTube’s anonymity, it’s only a matter of time before companies start posting nasty, all-out attack ads against their competitors. Not to mention that amateur pranksters and wannabes (like De Vellis) are out there busying themselves with spoofs and “anti-” ads of their own. In the process, all of these thoughts and messages go into the consumer’s mind, warping brand impressions beyond the marketer’s control.

So, as someone who’s responsible for marketing communications, what can you do to protect your brand from this emerging trend? For starters, it’s important to recognize that when your official advertising gets muddled with unauthorized messages, you’ll have a whole new competitor to deal with: anyone with video software and an Internet connection. You should treat that competitor like you would any other. Analyze the threat it poses to your brand. You don’t want to knee-jerk to every little blip on the radar screen, but if the threat is worth a response, it’s important to act quickly.

First off, if you haven’t already selected a crisis communications team, you should do so now. Don’t wait until after an event has occurred. You need some structure in place so that you’re prepared to respond to any negative press in a timely fashion. Most reputable PR firms can help with this.

Also, in the event that you get sabotaged on YouTube, be ready to respond like Hillary Clinton’s supporters did. Ask your ad agency to burn the midnight oil and brainstorm some creative videos, which could be posted on YouTube in response. The message can either refute the original threat head-on or function as more of a general image ad, to counter-balance the damage to your brand.

Third, ask yourself if the claim in the “anti-” ad is valid. And if so, decide whether you should change any business practices in order to show your willingness to respond to public concern. Again, you don’t want to overreact, but, in the long run, a company that is sympathetic to its stakeholders’ wishes will build credibility for its brand.

One other important lesson to take away from the “Barack” vs. “Hillary” story – those 3 million viewings of the “1984” mash-up. Because some viewers probably watched the video more than once, we can’t say with certainty how many unique viewers it reached. However, to put its viewership into context, consider NBC’s ratings. One week in March, the network averaged 3.44 million viewers during primetime in the 18-49 demographic. In comparison, YouTube’s millions of viewers are particularly impressive for advertisers, especially considering that the website charges nothing to upload or store videos, making all that exposure absolutely free.

So, is it time to load up YouTube with marketing communications for your company? Maybe, if you have a story that would be compelling to your audience in a video format. Your advertising agency can help you create a range of options for YouTube, from viral videos to more traditional commercials. You can even display YouTube-hosted videos in your online newsletter or corporate website. As is the case with all marketing communications, just remember to stay true to your brand and to your messaging. Beyond that, use your imagination or, better still, your agency’s imagination to launch your YouTube program.

At the end of the day, marketing professionals need to remember that, while YouTube opens a whole new world of marketing possibilities, in some respects, it’s no different than any other media outlet. It can be used for good or evil. It’s your job (and ours) to focus on the good while managing and mitigating the bad.

E-mail the author: Todd Brashear

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