According to Mock the Agency, a full-service design and advertising agency based out of Atlanta, GA, the typical American watches about 15 minutes of commercials per hour. So for every 4 hours of TV that you watch, you’ve also seen about an hour of commercials.
Some of these ads are dry and boring. But commercials are the most memorable if they show creative and emotional impact. And if it’s something the viewer can relate to, it’s another effective way of connecting with audiences.
Case in point, some of the most famous commercials of all time have been ones that tugged at heartstrings, or used popular music, pop culture or nostalgia to get their point across (and their product advertised).
Another classic way to get television watchers’ attention? Make them relatable by focusing on people’s pet peeves. In 2024, two American companies did just that and, coincidentally, both focused on things airlines passengers love to hate.
Mattress Firm’s Barefoot Airplane Guy
About 7 or 8 months ago, Mattress Firm had a series of commercials that all went under the umbrella of “Get Matched. Sleep at Night.” Each one focused on how different people sleep at night, but with a twist – each person was the epitome of someone’s pet peeve.
- How this sweaty gym rat sleeps at night
- How this gross dipper sleeps at night
- Nana sleeps hot (this one is hysterical)
- How this mascot sleeps at night
And then there’s how this barefoot guy on a plane sleeps at night:
La-Z-Boy’s #BanReclining Campaign
Whether or not to recline on a plane has been a bone of contention between passengers for years. La-Z-Boy used that as its springboard for its #BanReclining campaign in November 2024.
The lounge chair company produced a tongue-in-cheek video that encouraged people to “Recline at home, not on your flight.” Here’s the video:
And to drive their point even more, La-Z-Boy even created a petition where people could pledge their support for banning reclining on airplanes (and enter a sweepstakes at the same time).
“Just because you can recline doesn’t always mean you should. Show your support and sign our pledge by visiting BanReclining.com. By signing, you’ll be entered for a chance to win a free recliner and $500 toward your next flight.”
Of course, there was the typical small print:
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS SWEEPSTAKES. The La-Z-Boy Decline to Recline Sweepstakes is open only to legal residents of the 50 U.S. and D.C. and Canada (excluding Quebec), who are the age of majority. Void in Quebec and where prohibited. Begins at 12:00:00 AM CT on 11/1/2024 and ends at11:59:59 PM CT on 11/30/2024. ENTRY/PRIZES/ODDS/FULL RULES visit BanReclining.com. SPONSOR: La-Z-Boy Inc. 1 La-Z-Boy Drive, Monroe, MI 48162
So yeah – two well-done commercials that both focused on airline passengers’ pet peeves.
Want to comment on this post? Great! Read this first to help ensure it gets approved.
Want to sponsor a post, write something for Your Mileage May Vary or put ads on our site? Click here for more info.
Like this post? Please share it! We have plenty more just like it and would love it if you decided to hang around and sign up to get emailed notifications of when we post.
Whether you’ve read our articles before or this is the first time you’re stopping by, we’re really glad you’re here and hope you come back to visit again!
This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
