-a note by Val Haller, founder Valslist.com
I don't know who I'm happier for: the brands, the band or the brothers.
This is one of those examples where the stars align, the karma is good, the plan works; a veritable hat-trick of success. A win-win-win. And I have the comments to prove it.
definition:
hat-trick: -n any achievement of three points, victories, awards, etc. by one player in one game.
In this case the game is a TV commercial, the player is the ad agency Anomaly, and the three who really score are Dick's Sporting Goods, Wilson Sporting Goods, and a favorite new band of mine, The Lumineers.
* * * * * *
My Take:
I did exactly what they wanted me to do. I was up late cleaning the kitchen after Thanksgiving dinner. Alone with my only kitchen companion (I have all boys) - the small screen tv that hangs above my sink - I was half-listening, half-watching as I loaded the dishwasher. Then I heard it. A great song. I looked up. Grabbing the remote, I turned up the volume. And watched. The entire commercial from start to finish, spoke to me. I was touched. Tears came to my eyes, my heart was full. I wanted to tell everyone I know to watch this ad. And that's exactly what they wanted. SCORE for the ad agency, Anomaly.
It's a Dick's Sporting Goods ad about two brothers and a coveted baseball glove (a Wilson A2000 to be exact.) The perfect soundtrack is The Lumineers' song "Stubborn Love" that says, "when we were young, oh oh, we did enough" ... "when it got cold, ooh ooh, we bundled up" ... "I can't be told, ah ah, it can't be done" ... "so keep your head up, keep your love" ... It's an apple pie look at America, with baseball, family, and tradition at its core. The giving of a priceless gift - in a perfectly timed holiday ad - is poignant and relevant. It doesn't get much better than this. SCORE for the band, The Lumineers.
The prop is something familiar. A baseball glove. Wilson makes it. Dicks sells it. When we watch an ad we expect this: product + retailer = useful information = now go buy it. But this ad has a poignant twist. I won't ruin the ending for you, but it is genius. And there are very few products that could earn this type of coveted status. SCORE for the glove manufacturer, Wilson Sporting Goods.
Watch the ad once and take it all in. Then watch a second time without the soundtrack. Imagine a different product and a different ending. The ad simply wouldn't score as well.
This ad has spurred so much social chatter that I decided to read the various twitter feeds to see for myself. What exactly speaks to people in this ad? I've posted a bunch of the responses below. For so many, it was the story of brothers and a beloved glove that made the ad. For others it was Dicks, the smart store that hired the smart ad. But to my excitement, a plethora of tweets said it was the song that made the ad - and they mentioned the band and the song title by name. This spread like wildfire, confirming for me once again that TV can launch a band just like radio can. Back in the day an artist would be accused of "selling out" if he sold a song for commercial use. Today, it's one of the smartest moves ever.
Cheers ~
"The Glove"
 |
|
DICK'S Sporting Goods Commercial -
"The Glove" extended version
|
AND THE TWEETS ROLLED IN...
(From baseball fans, to Dicks and Wilson fans, to Lumineers fans... Different things in the ad spoke to different people. But together they're spreading the word. Ahhh, the magic of twitter.)
"Favorite holiday commercial! Grab a tissue." @shaina_horell
"@Dicks that commercial nailed my childhood. Gloves and brothers... sacred. Well done and thanks." @jaycrawfordespn
"The Wilson A2000 glove commercial almost makes me tear up. Giving an old glove away takes a lof of love." @Dustin_White4
"Incredibly boss song." @NickLaney
"Yessss "Stubborn Love" by The Lumineers is the background music for the Dick's Sporting Goods commercial." @lexx_bott
"My favorite holiday ad so far. Great job @Dicks, way to tie @TheLumineers "Stubborn Love" to the story of the ad." @mikehadgis
"Great Dicks commercial. Now I want a Wilson baseball glove." @21TB_Buffalo
"Dicks Christmas commercial is based off a baseball glove! #HellYeah" @Im_Ferg
"The Wilson commercial just made me cry." @ncferrara17
"OMG "Stubborn Love" by The Lumineers was on a commercial. Day Made." @duhitsdel
"Just saw a baseball glove commercial playing "Stubborn Love" by The Lumineers. Awesome." @joeshartzer
"Hell of a commercial from @Dicks about the power of a ball glove. Well done, I've been there." @VeeckAslnWreck
"Stubborn Love" is on a commercial. From now on I will be dancing every time it comes on." @caitlyntrillet
"That Dicks Sporting Goods commercial with the Wilson baseball glove #touching" @yoo_itsEddiee
"We love Dicks' new commercial. "Give a gift that matters." Great song choice." @LiveWorldly
"If you have a brother or sons this @Dicks commercial hits home!!! ... Do yourself a favor and watch it." @sugacracka
"The Dicks commercial with the kid and his glove. #priceless." @BB_for_life
"New Dicks commercial is so dope..." @TBurtzloff
"Just heard "Stubborn Love" on a commercial. Fortunately it's so good that even being featured incessantly on TV can't ruin it for me." @MillerKent
"Not very often do I tear up during a commercial but throw in a Lumineers song and ya got me." @lindsayfaulkner
