12 Great Olympic Commercials from Beijing

It’s no surprise that as I watch copious amounts of Olympic coverage the commercials that stand out from the rest are from corporate giants that do some of the best advertising work in the world, Coke-Cola, General Electric, and Visa. Together they’re the coke side of ecomagination accepted everywhere in life, proud sponsors of the Olympics.

12. General Electric’s Wind Energy Discuss Throw

What’s To Like: Amusing, upbeat, and one of the few commercials that can successfully be tongue-in-cheek about the Olympics.

What’s Not: They could’ve used an athlete instead of model Anderson Davis and it paints a benign picture of those ghastly, landscape ruiners that are causing such an uproar in Upstate. If you don’t like wind power, this probably isn’t your cup of tea.

11. VISA’s Nastia Liukin

What’s to Like: As an early Nastia fan, I heart the recognition. The figurine theme is adorable, appropriately feminine, and reinforces both Nastia’s young girl becomes champion image and the family theme of commercial.

What’s Not: It awkwardly touches on America’s love-hate relationship with dynasties. It’s mitigated in part because the Liukin dynasty is multinational, but still we love the idea of children following in their family’s footsteps but tend to be pretty distrustful of other dynastic legacies.

10. 2008 Beijing Olympics Best of Us

What’s to Like: It’s theatrical, It’s international, It mythologizes (not so subtly) athletics and athletes. Underneath the over the top presentation it does remind us of the potential for amazement without using past imagery.

What’s Not: Whlie multinational, it doesn’t have any athletes from the Americas or Australia, which can’t have been unintentional. Would it have killed them to have Leisel Jones or Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.

9. VISA Come Together

What’s to Like: The commercial reminds viewers of the rare power of the Olympics to unite people across important differences. The stills used are all of athletes bridging those divides but often, fans do as well and the commercial doesn’t have to show us that for the viewer to internalize that.

What’s Not: It’s rather lengthy and given how predictable it is it could probably be a little shorter.

8. Coke’s Bird Nest

What’s to Like: It makes the moniker “Bird’s Nest” make sense, it’s positively adorable, it’s respectful of Olympic imagery, released ahead of the games, It’s international and really quite beautiful.

What’s Not: The birds look a bit like animated Ugly Dolls, which is hit or miss. I think it’s a hit but they could easily disturb small children. It shameless promotes avian theft.

7. VISA Derek Redmond

What’s to Like: The youtube description of “beautiful” and “heartbreaking” pretty much sums it up.

What’s Not: I can’t quite shake the feeling that this intensely heartbreaking moment has been exploited. The moment is meant to be demonstrative of the triumph of the human spirit, the determination and support of athletes, and the once-in-a-lifetime moments you’ll witness watching the games but this is a moment that few would celebrate as the pinnacle of the Olympic spirit or Olympianism. I’m conflicted over how it doesn’t deserve to be forgotten but perhaps not plastered over 30 million television sets either.

6. General Electric Flying Crane

What’s to Like: It’s a fun take on air travel. It’s also part of GE’s series of commercials trumpeting their work in developing eco-friendly products which I choose to see as hopeful rather than a clever dodge of a thorny issue. Lastly, GE’s thematic work on eco-technology underscores the global nature of the games.

What’s Not: Air engines that actually reduce emissions is a bit of a stretch and seeing as how I don’t purchase engines nor are there a multitude of manufacturers, I’m not sure it’s worth my time to watch. GE’s ‘Imagination at work’ and ‘eco-magination’ brand building efforts aren’t really anything new.

5. Coke Cola – Unity

What’s to Like: It’s fun, clear, and at only 33 seconds doesn’t need more than 40 to make a point. Sure one could nitpick over the graphical representations over American and Chinese culture but overall it’s fun, meant to be fun, and not terribly disrespectful. Also, I love the end with Lebron Games & Yao saying “Cheers!” “Ganbei or 干杯!”

What’s Not: I admit I did cringe at the pandas after that Sales Genie Super Bowl ad. Not a big fan of the subtext of American and Chinese cultures being so terribly divergent that they only share Coke in common.

4. VISA Kerri Strug

What’s to Like: It’s Kerri Strug’s Second Vault at the 1996 Atlanta Games, a defining moment of those games that demonstrated the triumph, adversity, and success of the Olympic Games. It’s 10 seconds of video that hasn’t lost emotional potency in the past 12 years. VISA reminds us that moments like these are why we watch the Olympics and perhaps more importantly, are the result of our support of Olympic athletes.

What’s Not: It doesn’t smack of exploitation quite like the Derek Redmond ad but still…

3. VISA Bob Beamon

What’s to Like: It’s supremely positive, upbeat, and for such an old moment it’s not etched in the popular memory of many Olympic viewers. From the 1968 Mexico City games, Visa’s first year of sponsorship, this is a spectacular story of Olympic success that would be difficult to replicate today thanks to ubiquitous over-hyping of athletes prior to and during the games. However that honest, unexpected triumph often makes for some of the best Olympic moments, sponsored of course by Visa.

What’s Not: Rise of the Valkyries? Talk about the most cliche piece of music ever used.

2. General Electric Healthcare Love Story

What’s to Like: A really close second to my favourite commercial of the games, this GE commercial has been around since earlier this year but is getting quite a bit more play, it seems, during the Beijing Olympics. It’s a sweet and endearing commercial that is easy to connect to. At only 47 seconds, it seems much longer. Moreover, it presents an easily understandable story set in rural China that doesn’t play on ‘the exotic other’ theme. With such a focus on the exotic differences between China and the West during these games, it’s a pleasant respite and reiterates the similarities that people across the world share. The song, In Summer by Cao Fang, isn’t bad either.

What’s Not: I can’t seem to find In Summer by Cao Fang, the full version, anywhere. Which makes this commercial a tease.

1. Coke Cola 80 Years Special Olympics

What’s to Like: Maybe I’m a sucker for Sia’s Breathe Me but this commercial is at the same time beautiful, humbling, fascinating, and inspiring. It reminds us of the validation and triumph of so many to merely make it to the Olympics let alone succeed there. Then they take it one step further. Many people are aware of the Paralympic Games, which are for those with disabilities, where rehabilitation and functionality are precede competition. However, Coke goes further promoting both the lesser known Special Olympics and their sponsorship of those games. The Special Olympics are for people with intellectual disabilities and this commercial succeeds in reminding us of human triumphs that are often less popularly known but just as important, if not more so. More to the point, Coke takes backseat in this commercial to the athletes, the organizations, the viewer, the customer, and even the music. It’s an excellent piece of corporate branding.

What’s Not: Nothing.

Nibbly Things that are fun but not great.

The Visa Synchronized Swimming Commercial from the 2000 Sydney Games:
The video has the short and long versions back to back.

This year’s NBC Ad which reminds viewers that they have some pretty hot casts. I find Christian Slater and Adrian Pasdar’s segments to be a bit creepy for some reason. However, Jenna Fischer, Greg Grunberg, Zachary Quinto (who has the world’s bushiest eyebrows), Sendhil Ramamurthy, John Stamos, and Angela Bassett are pretty welcome faces.

However, what kind of a tagline is “It’s time to Chime?” Really?

~ by Kyle on August 19, 2008.