Just watched Superbowl XLVI and really enjoyed the game. Tense, surprisingly close, and a match that could have switched on that final “Hail Mary” pass. How can you not enjoy that?
In addition I also watch the Superbowl to enjoy the advertisements and really liked the Walking Dead-esque post-apocalyptic ad from Chevrolet that suggested only people with their heavy-duty Silverado trucks would survive the apocalypse, not people with Ford trucks.
Haven’t seen the ad, officially known as the Chevy 2012 Apocalypse Video? Here’s an embed:
What makes this Chevy Silverado 2012 Apocalypse Video so interesting is the back story: It appears that somehow Ford saw the advertisement and sent Chevy a Cease & Desist letter, insisting that the company not air the spot. They obviously did.
In fact, the Yahoo Autos blog Motoramic reported that: “Chevrolet says Ford sent a cease and desist letter, demanding the spot showing Silverado owners munching Twinkies and mourning the non-survival of their Ford-owning buddy. A source familiar with the dispute says Ford also called on NBC to pull the $7 million, one-minute air time.”
Of course, General Motors executives say that they simply have the best, most dependable trucks. Chief Marketing Officer Joel Ewanick has a funny quip, actually: “We can wait until the world ends, and if we need to, we will apologize,” Ewanick said in a statement. “In the meantime, people who are really worried about the Mayan calendar coming true should buy a Silverado right away.”
Generally I prefer advertisements that promote and highlight the features of their own product rather than slamming their competitors — a sentiment that’s even more true with political ads! — but in this case I’ll cut Chevy some slack. It’s a funny spot and quite effective. Ford clearly needs to one-up the company if it feels shortchanged, not bring lawyers into the mix.