It’s not often that famous animated characters are used to advertise things that aren’t specifically directed at children, but then not everybody does things as well as Homer Simpson. I mean, Homer does a lot of stuff wrong, but I think we can all agree that his Mr. Plow business was great (without that bastard Plow King involved). And Mr. Plow is so great that it was revived for a pretty genius ad for small business promotion on YouTube. Check it out below!
Guys! Don’t go off to YouTube to try and advertise your small business yet! There’s still more story to be read!
The video was put together in association with Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox, and you’ll only be able to see it online, where you would likely already be if you were thinking of ways to get your small business out there in the world. And while there’s nothing necessarily wrong with making a promo with cool graphics and generic people offering up personal testimonies (that may or may not be verifiable), getting something as universally recognizable and beloved as The Simpsons for a spokes-entity is probably the best move possible. It doesn’t matter that Mr. Plow wasn’t actually helped out by YouTube ads, it had jokes!
There aren’t a lot of ways to make business promotion seem like a fun venture, but you have to give it up to them for using “Radius Targeting” as a way to sneak in a Springfield joke. I’d be lying if I said my Radius Targeting material was anything but absolutely absent. There was a missed opportunity to work a sweet Ralph gag in there, as him using a laptop appropriately just doesn’t seem like it’s real, though it was “snow” problem in the end. Get it? Jokes!
Oddly enough, the video comes from a Google business blog, where it’s also stated that other small businesses like the baby-geared Cosatto and the boozy Ole Smoky Moonshine have also used YouTube to connect with customers. Other tips and stats for going this promotional route are listed, but without any licensed characters to make it better.
And now I’m going to have that theme song playing in my head all night. “That name again is Mr. Plow. That name again is Mr. Plow. That name again is Mr. Plow.” YouTube and beer, save me!
