Between 1985 and 1991, I had the good fortune to be a staff producer at Leo Burnett in Chicago. While I produced a good number of high profile spots, including several McDonalds commercials with Michael Jordan; one simple, very inexpensive spot I produced regularly comes to mind. It was the first Straw in the Orange spot for Tropicana. It could scarcely have been more simple, just a locked down camera filming several people sitting at a light table trying - and failing - to jam a straw into an orange. Relative to the expensive, special effects filled commercials or those with famous people in it that were being churned out by this advertising giant, this one was a small budget gem. At our next company breakfast, Burnett President Ted Bell singled it out as the most effective commercial they had produced that year. I believe he was right. The straw in the orange says it all. It tells the public that drinking Tropicana is virtually the same as drinking right from an orange, and thats a powerful message. Thirty years later, that image is now found on every carton of Tropicana orange juice, on every billboard, in their print ads and on every delivery truck I see. Note in the commercial, their logo at the time didnt yet have the straw in it. Theres no doubt that spending a million dollars or more to produce a commercial can be fun, but the truth is, great ideas dont have to be expensive. Creativity is the key to advertising genius. The creative team who came up with the idea of the straw in the orange, Dave Allemeier, Cal Bruns and Allen Zeleski deserve the credit for their great idea. Next time you see a carton of Tropicana orange juice, youll know where that terrific idea came from.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 06:26:11 +0000
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