It’s been talked about all over the internet through memes, GIFs, articles and forums. It has Super Bowl fans and ad critics alike starting discussions. It may even be burned into your memory. It’s the Mountain Dew Puppy Monkey Baby” commercial.
For those of you who haven’t seen it, (if so, please take a moment and watch for yourself) the commercial features a strange, morphed creature that combines, you guessed it, a puppy, a monkey and a baby. The combination of these three beings is supposed to represent the combination of the three elements in Mountain Dew’s new drink, Kickstart.
This commercial elicited a number of responses. Some viewers found it to be hilarious while others found it to be disturbing. AdWeek calls it “odd and addictive,” The Huffington Post says it’s “freaking viewers out” and Business Insider hits the nail on the head with describing the commercial as simply “different.”
Although I personally would put this commercial in the disturbing category, I cannot deny it is a good ad for one simple reason — it got people talking.
Most advertisements, for any product or cause, have one goal, for viewers to remember it. It’s safe to assume that anyone who saw this commercial remembers the image. The question is, will they remember this ad is for Mountain Dew?
“I agree that ‘puppy baby monkey’ combination is catching as a slogan and something memorable,” said Communication Studies professor, Megan Hill. “But I think there’s going to be a much harder time for the audience to remember what that tagline is actually associated with because there is a lack of congruence between the visual and Mountain Dew.”
It will be very interesting to see how consumers react to this ad. Will the “Puppy Monkey Baby” produce an increase in sales for Mountain Dew’s new product? Or will those who found the ad disturbing turn away from the brand completely?
It is also interesting to note that the only thing we remember about this commercial is the strange animal creature. I personally can not even remember what the actors looked like. What other commercials stood out to me? Easy, this year’s “Honda Singing Goats” and last year’s “Budweiser Puppy.” In other words, we favor the Super Bowl ads with animals.
According to CBS News, Super Bowl commercials are leaning more towards using cute, fluffy animals to sell their products rather than a sexy, shiny celebrity. Not only is this because advertisers have become more sensitive to the large family audience the big game draws in, but also because cute animals are more likely to evoke a positive emotional response from the viewers.
I’m not sure if the “Puppy Monkey Baby” commercial produced the positive response Mountain Dew was hoping for, but there’s no denying the internet is buzzing about it. Only time will tell if the company experiences a solid return on investment from this strange, bizarre ad.
To check out the rest of this year’s Super Bowl ads, click here.
Photo by Mountain Dew website
Its raciest. A monkey (negro)that servs you drinks through a servents door. He is clearly a negro slave,