I don't know whether this company is worth a damn, but this :60 spot by HTC is one of the best examples I've seen of an advertisement that attacks reality through product usage. Well written and beautiful, great editing and direction – this is a talent (real talent) heavy spot. And it proves three things:
1) If you want to connect to people, show people.
2) If you want to create empathy, show sensitivity.
3) If you want to sell product, show it in action.
However, I freaking hate their tagline. "Quietly Brilliant" doesn't really make sense. There's nothing quiet about saying you're brilliant.
Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of smashcommunications You can find him on Twitter @smashadv
Michael Calienes
Nov 5, 2009
Really smart spot. Unfortunately, I had one of their phones for about 5 days — it sucked. My favorite part is “you don’t need to get a phone, you need a phone that gets you, and you, and you, and you…” That’s definitely the space where the tagline should live. Quietly brilliant? Bleh. Hope you’re well, Jim.
Niki
Nov 6, 2009
Their new tag line doesn’t sit in well with me either. I’d rather they structured it differently (even if using the same words) like so:
from “quietly brilliant” to “quiet brilliance”
The latter seems to bear more weight for me, I think.
Jim Mitchem
Nov 9, 2009
It needs something, that’s for sure.
Seth Simonds
Nov 9, 2009
“Unassuming genius”
Would be worse.
Compared to many of the other ads I’ve seen from this sector, HTC does seem quietly brilliant.
I like how they showed the functionality instead of laying it out for us like we’d never used a phone before.
Jim Mitchem
Nov 11, 2009
I try to avoid self-proclamation taglines when possible. the active voice CTA is almost always a better way to go with these things.