Ad of the Day: After Skyping for 8 Years, Two Girls With a Special Bond Finally Meet

There are lots of reasons why this new Skype ad from Pereira & O'Dell shouldn't work. It's more than three minutes long. It's manipulative in the extreme. And its emotional high point has little to do with the service being advertised—in fact, it hints at everything Skype can't provide. Yet, in the end, it's irresistible. This is all because of the story, which is flat-out incredible and clearly real and heartfelt. The spot—the fourth in Skype's family-portrait series—tells the tale of Sarah from Nappanee, Ind., and Paige from Auckland, New Zealand. The girls share a unique bond—each was born without a full left arm. They initially corresponded thanks to their mothers. (Sarah's mom had gone looking for someone who was dealing with the same issue.) Eight years ago, Sarah and Paige began to Skype. They grew close—so close that they became best friends. But they had never met … until now. After telling their story, the spot then shows them meeting for the first time. It's extremely touching—so much so that you almost forget that Skype's whole value proposition is based around not meeting up in person like this. You focus instead on the bond the girls did build, remotely, over time—for which Skype can take a lot of credit. Also important to note: Sarah and Paige reached out to Skype as part of the video chat software's "Stay Together" initiative, which asked for customer stories about long-distance connections. That makes it feel more authentic and less exploitative, even though the advertising is clearly milking the story for maximum throat-lumps. (There's a full PR effort around Sarah and Paige. The spot first aired, last week, on Katie Couric's nationally syndicated daytime talk show, and Sarah and Paige were guests on the show. A 60-second version of the ad is airing, too.) It goes to show: If you have a good enough story, you almost can't mess it up. CREDITS Client - Skype Agency - Pereira & O'Dell Chief Creative Officer - PJ Pereira Executive Creative Director - Jaime Robinson Creative Director - Jonathan Woytek Senior Art Director - Tim Delger Senior Copywriter - Katie Brinkworth VP, Client Services - Gary Theut Account Director - Ivy Truong Account Supervisor - Ali Forgeron Account Executive - Michael Reardon VP, Strategy - Nick Chapman VP, Media Strategy - Joshua Brandau Strategy Director - Justin Cox Associate Strategy Director - Jasmine Summerset Media Strategist - Liz Wood VP, Production - Jeff Ferro Senior Integrated Producer - Victoria Whitlow Senior Broadcast Producer - Elisa Moore Senior Integrated Producer - Erin Davis Print Producer - James Sablan Prod. Co. - Station Film Director - Peking Managing Partner - Stephen Orent Executive Producers - Michael Di Girolamo, Caroline Gibney Line Producer - Sarah McMurray DP - Marc Greenfield Music - Future Perfect Music Executive Producer - Maxwell Gosling

Brand Marketing

Ad of the Day: After Skyping for 8 Years, Two Girls With a Special Bond Finally Meet

Sarah and Paige's story

Tim Nudd

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Tim Nudd