Secret Weapon launched a campaign for SoCal Honda Dealers that won’t appear in the Super Bowl but is based around the big game.
“Helpful Bowl” is built around a 30-second spot featuring SoCal Honda Dealers making a pledge to donate specific amounts of money to Boys & Girls Clubs of America based on how many times certain big game ad cliches show up in Super Bowl spots. So for every celebrity they’ll donate $500, every baby $1,000, a talking animal will result in a $1,000 donation and an explosion will net the Boys & Girls Club of America $10,000.Viewers can increase the donations even more by playing along at the campaign landing site. (Sittig explains the concept in a video below.)
During the big game itself, there will be an event at a local Boys & Girls Club counting out the cliches (and accompanying donation amounts), which will be livestreamed on the site. There are also a series of 15-second spots focusing on specific ad tropes, including puppies, hipsters and emoji.
“This year, we had the audacious thought that maybe little SCHD had found a way to own the entire Super Bowl broadcast without being in it—by using everyone else’s production money to our advantage. It’s like a parlor game; have a drink whenever you see a cliché,” Secret Weapon founder Rick Sittig explained to AdFreak.
Asked what the “greatest ad cliche” ad was, Sittig responded, “Faces and places. It’s a montage of faces and places set to music and a voiceover saying, “[Fill in the blank] is committed to a worldwide concept of service,” etc. It’s a default commercial when a corporation has no idea what to do.”
Credits:
Client: The Southern California Honda Dealers
Agency: Secret Weapon Marketing
Creative Director: Rick Sittig
Associate Creative Directors: Mike Alfaro, Gerardo Guillen
Art Director: Noah Meadors
Copywriter: Shaun Oppedisano
Executive Producer: Fiona Forsyth
Managing Director: Patrick Adams
Group Account Director: Brock Anderson
Management Supervisor: Saro Karagueuzian
Account Executive: Molly Keen
Account Coordinator: Megan Baer