Posted less than a month ago, this animated video went viral, gathering over 30 million views on the website we all know, YouTube. Making death look cute in a catchy song with bubbly cartoons has definitely proven to win over consumers' attention, including mine.
The thumbnail drew me to the video - a snapshot of adorable cartoon characters. Seeing that this video already had over 1 million views, I realized that others were emotionally affected and pulled in by the visual appeal as well. Upon clicking it then reading the title, "Dumb Ways to Die," my impression went to "This is going to be something stupid." It turned out it was stupid as characters acted out and literally sang of dumb ways to die, like "dress[ing] up like a moose in hunting season." However, this combination of cuteness mixed with stupidity and the dark concept of death created irony, making everything the more funnier and enjoyable.
As the video ended, just when I thought this was all there was too it, the slide changed and an Australian accent spoke , "Be safe around trains. A message from Metro." Say what..? I was instantly confused.This was to promote public safety around trains? Selling kidneys and pushing red buttons? Most of what was said in the video didn't even have anything to do with trains! However, it was entertaining.
This was exactly what the advertiser went for. The Australian rail company discreetly disguised their advertisement as a form of simple and silly entertainment which is always popular for people.Then they sharply twisted it to the initial art of advertising, ending off with their message of safety. What made their video so appealing and trend-worthy was what every advertiser tries to accomplish - creating something original and unexpected. Instead of making an animation demonstrating safety, this company made an animation demonstrating danger with a vibe of innocence. This approach included cartoons and a catchy tune, appealing to two human senses instead of one. If done right, playing on consumers' senses creates a lasting and defined memory which relays on to others, and therefore spreads the advertiser's message. Maybe you'll also spread the message as you find yourself humming about dumb ways to die.
Hahaha, I just watched this video like the other night and had so many questions about why it was made! Except...I kinda skipped that Australian accent part because I thought it was over. But, other than that, I really liked how you analyzed this disguised ad. It got creepy though when they showed blood spewing out of one of those cartoon victims...O__O the other cartoons were adorable though. Awesome job Megan! :)
ReplyDeleteOmigosh I absolutely loved this! All the little characters were still so happy in death, maybe because they knew that their death testimonies would be used to give awareness about public safety to others? I don't know! I was a little bit confused at the end, just like you said. All those ways to die didn't really relate to what the ad was for, and so the message wasn't really clear when they suddenly introduced it at the very end. But overall I liked what it was trying to say because I got it eventually and you did a great job on the analysis of what was going on and what the creators were trying to accomplish. Nice Meghan! (:
ReplyDeleteI have watched this video many times before and I love the song. They even sell it on itunes for $0.99 I didn't get the point of the video at first until the very end. I found this song to be hilarious and it got very popular. They have a bunch of parody's now for it as well. This advertisement/music video really caught my attention. I agree on how they were sneaky to do this. Good job on the blog. =)
ReplyDeletegrrrrrr *attempt to spell the perry sound
bahahahahah!! i loved this! the ad was so cute with all the little characters! they all looked so happy to die? the song was catchy and it got stuck in my head after a while. good job seeing the strategies used to convince people of this ad! i loved it!
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