Recall this mash-up ad from Wrigley's for its Doublemint Gum:
I'm assuming you all are looking for your car keys so that you can go find a pack of this gum. Why not? There is a catchy tune, a handsome (speaking from a female's perspective of course) and popular icon, Chris Brown, winning you over with his smooth moves and voice. But what does this have to do with gum? Sure, if Wrigley's is trying to narrow its market to young, impressionable girls that drool over a good dancer with a nice smile, I'd say they hit a homerun with this ad. For me, not so much. Not to say I don't like chewing gum or don't have a few Chris Brown jams on the iPod, because I do, but seeing this commercial offers not connection between gum and the hip-hop world of today. Simply using a popular song's tune with a remixed version of its original lyrics to fit the product does not make a successful ad. The connection between the product and communication is huge, something that Wrigley's tried to take a stab at but used a dull knife.
Now view this Sprite ad:
Following the same thought process that Wrigley's so dreadfully did, Sprite used up and coming rap artist Drake in their commercial. While I agree that using Drake to promote a soft drink is not a seamless fit, I think it is a much better attempt. It shows the effect that the product has on the consumer, rather than simply having the product and pop star in the same shot. Finding a connection between the product and promotional tool is essential to a successful advertisement and this is a good example of just that.
