Micheal Savoie

A man decided that the best way to propose to his girlfriend would be to have a 30 second spot during the Super Bowl.  Turns out that a 30 second spot will cost $2.5 million.  He decides that it is still worth it and he goes out to try and raise the cash.

After some hard work, he manages to raise $75,000, which is nice money, but still $2.325 million shy of his goal.   A company has decided to foot the bill for him to be able to propose to his girlfriend on the Super Bowl Ad spot. What does this tell us?

First, never give up on your goals, no matter how big, because if you believe in them, you will end up achieving them.  Sure, you are not going to get bailed out by a mega corporation each time you work toward your goal, but even so, you can achieve a lot more if you keep working than you would if you gave up.

Second, companies want to get an ad into the Super Bowl at all costs. They are always looking for an angle that will get the most buzz for every dollar that they spend.  The company that is footing the bill for this proposal is already generating a LOT of buzz.  I heard about this on the radio, and the bloggers out there are filling up the blogoshpere with posts about this amazing story.  How many people do you think will be looking for this commercial on February 4th with the anticipation of finding out who this “JP” is and whether his girlfriend will accept.  In fact, the stipulation for this ad is that “JP” must video his girlfriend’s response and post it on one of the video hosting websites like YouTube or Video Google.  Don’t you think this is going to generate a lot of exposure for this mystery company?

Third, you have to hand it to this “JP” for coming up with this crazy way to propose to his girlfriend.  The guy is either crazy for this girl, or he is crazy in general, because he is opening himself to a lot of variables.

• What if his girlfriend says no?  His video of her refusal still has to go on YouTube as part of the agreement.
• What if his girlfriend is in the bathroom when the commercial comes on?  Can you imagine “JP” wheeling in a TV and video camera into the bathroom as the commercial comes on?  “Here Honey, watch this commercial, I hear the Clydesdales are going to actually drink a beer in this one!”
• How do you keep a woman in the room without telling her why?
• How do you explain the video apparatus in the living room in the middle of a Super Bowl game?  “Don’t worry, Honey, this is for the Halftime Entertainment!”

Needless to say, I will be watching, and I will go to the website to see the answer.  The whole idea is interesting, and the curiosity that this builds up will make for an interesting case study in advertising for years to come.

What’s Next?

Come up with some ideas for what other companies will use this new medium of video hosting to create a viral buzz machine like this Super Bowl Proposal?  Post your comments.  The I will choose one person with the most interesting idea to receive a one year subscription to my Resolve to Succeed Monthly Newsletter, the companion to my new ebook Resolve to Succeed in 2007! The cutoff for entering in this contest is February 1, 2007 at 12:01 AM Eastern time.  I will choose the winner and announce it on February 4, 2007 right before the Super Bowl.  So make sure you check back.