Snickers

This commercial argues that Snickers is a very different candy bar. Aiming at young men who watch sports regularly, it hopes to influence their snack-buying habits. The next time this audience is faced with a snacking choice, whether at the vending machine, the grocery store check-out, or the gas station, they’ll remember the ad and choose the Snickers. A positive image of the brand will stick with them.

Patrick Ewing is a former NBA player who’s biggest claim to fame is being the recipient of a brutally famous dunk by Michael Jordan. Using Patrick gives Snickers authority with the audience, who take people more seriously if they know and understand great moments in sports history. Having Patrick dunk on a poor, unsuspecting young man shows that snickers really understands the story of their commercial’s star.

The audience, even though they respect Michael Jordan, must feel—or have felt at some point—a little empathy for Patrick Ewing. He got dunked on by Michael Jordan. There was really nothing he could do about it (he was up against the best basketball player ever). Now Patrick’s back, taking revenge on helpless Snickers eaters. It’s funny on many levels. Even if someone did’t get the history, it’s still an amusing ad. Hitting these emotions will hopefully open the audience’s hearts to the product.

This is not a “logical” commercial, but with two exceptions. One, it makes sense for Patrick Ewing to feel bitter about the Jordan dunk and possibly look for redemption. Two, the clever word play—turning Ewing into Chewing—is a pretty logical pun.

A shortfall in this commercial might be the lack of a clear call to action. What does the audience do after they’ve seen it? They will not buy a Snickers bar based solely on this commercial. However, Snickers are usually an impulse purchase and this commercial is set up perfectly for that. It is very effective at sticking in the audience’s minds. When they see Snickers on a store shelf, they will be more likely to pick it up.

With my roommates as a case study, I have seen this commercial’s long-lasting effect. Months after it played on ESPN, they still quote it around the apartment, on the basketball court, and replay it on Youtube occasionally. It keeps a clever, quirky, and unique perception of Snickers candy bars fresh in their minds.