I Love Advertising: My Once A Year Self Indulgence

October 2, 2010 <br/> NEW YORK -- Some people use Thanksgiving as a once a year excuse to over eat and watch too much football. Then there are those who only go to church on Easter or synagogue on Yom Kippur. I've even read that tens of thousands start a diet on New Year's Day. So, if you'll allow me, I will use my once a year indulgence opportunity to write about ads I love. This week, the advertising industry converges on New York to celebrate Advertising Week, the nation's largest gathering of advertising professionals. There will be seminars and workshops all over midtown as top-level industry executives discuss the state of the industry and best industry practices. I thought it would be a great time to celebrate the thing I love most about the business: the advertising.

I want an IPad. Not because I need one, even though the commercials have convinced me I do. The spots are so good; I have to hide my shoes to keep from running out and buying one. The interface for the Apple IPad is cool and there are a lot of Apps (all of which run on other devices); but the commercials make you want one. Everything just looks so easy. You get the feeling that if you buy one your life will change instead of the more likely scenario which is that it will be under you bed in 18 months. But for now, those beautiful spots make me want to go to an Apple store and propose to the IPad.

A confession: I take financial advice from babies. Another campaign I love, is the one for Etrade, featuring the talking, smart aleck baby. The spot where he gave his middle-aged golf buddy a "beat down" and called him a shankopotamus or the one with his buddy, the African American baby singing Mr. Mister's Take These Broken Wings make me laugh out loud. For the record, I do use Etrade and the points they make, taking control, value and research tools resonate with me but mostly, it's the entertainment value.

Snickers has a very simple proposition: Snickers is a perfect between mea snack which will curb your hunger. This insight has been the foundation for many great ads for Snickers over the years. You're not you when you're hungry with Betty White—love it.