Why Are Google’s Ads So Compelling?

The latest two ads for Chrome feature a Dad using Chrome to easily chronicle the life of his daughter (so cute) as well as an ad for a campaign against the bullying of gay students called “It Gets Better.” The ads do not feature a deep voiced  narrator extolling the many features Google has to offer, nor do they showcase how much better Google products are against its competitors. Instead, they focus on three very important things:

1) They Capture the Essence of Humanity– The ads focus on universal truths such as love, integrity, and respect.

2) They Show the Value of Time- The ads show cause and effect relationships and the passage of time. For example, you use Google search to quickly find a plane ticket to France, then you can Google French phrases for wooing a Frenchwoman. Later, you Google the best cribs out there for your new baby.

3) They Make You Feel Something- You’d have to be a robot to not be somehow touched by these ads. In capturing the essence of humanity, they tap into situations that everyone can relate to. As a result, you feel a personal connection to the ad and can visualize yourself using the product in your own life. Mission accomplished for Google.

Essentially, Google is tapping into the greater “feel good” effect its products can have, stripping away other seemingly non important elements such as how high tech their products are or the fact that they are the market leaders in search.  At the end of the day, Google understands that these things don’t matter to the consumer: what matters is how Google makes their lives easier and augments the things they consider the most important.

Their commercials underscore how easy it is to make an ad where the product sells itself. Instead of spending millions on a high tech ad, or hiring celebrities to embarrass the company, Google captures how their products make life better. Simple and highly effective.