GoDaddy 2006
Followup.
As my very long time readers know, this blog has spent some amount of time discussing Candice Michelle Beckman (a/k/a Nikki Cappelli), the 2005 GoDaddy Super Bowl ad, and the fallout. So the question is naturally raised - what is GoDaddy doing in 2006? I haven't looked at this issue in a while, and since the Super Bowl (a/k/a the Big Game) is less than two weeks away, it's time to revisit it.
Here's what Bob Parsons said, in part, on December 21:
We still don’t know if we are going to advertise in next year’s Super Bowl. We’ve been busy working to get an ad approved by the censors at ABC and really haven’t had any luck....
The challenge isn’t to simply get an advertisement approved. The challenge is to get an appropriate "GoDaddy-esque" ad approved.
The Go Daddy commercial aired during this year’s Super Bowl caused a new term to be coined. That term is "GoDaddy-esque." It was used to describe the hot Paris Hilton car wash commercial produced by Carl’s Jr. It’s also been used to describe commercials that seem to be just a bit too edgy, and as a result, inappropriate.
I personally hope the term “GoDaddy-esque” never goes away....
Last week, the following paragraph appeared in an article in Media Week that dealt with who will (and who will not) be advertising on next year’s Super Bowl:
"Just how seriously clients take their Super Bowl advertising can be seen in the controversy generated during last year’s telecast on Fox, when GoDaddy.com ran an ad that drew viewer complaints for being too risqué; Fox pulled that same spot later in the telecast. Fox insiders said Pepsi, which was in the same commercial pod as the first Go Daddy spot, also complained to the network about the ad, contending that it ruined the environment for its own spots."...
I found it more than a little interesting that a firm with a checkered history like Pepsi would hold Go Daddy accountable for its advertising.
First, there was Ludacris.
Pepsi drew sharp criticism for signing a deal with the rapper “Ludacris” as a spokesman in their commercials. Here are some of the charming lyrics from Mr. Ludacris that caused Pepsi to think he’s the kind of guy who should represent their image:
"I'm DUI, hardly ever caught sober, and you about to get ran the fuck over. Grab the peels, cuz we robbin' tonight. Beat the shit outta security. We startin' a fight."
Charming, don’t you think? The advertising execs at Pepsi obviously thought, after a foul-mouthed drunk robbing spree, that it’s time to kick back and say, “Pepsi please.” Of course, after Bill O'Reilly complained about the deal on his show, Pepsi immediately stopped airing their Ludacris commercials.
I don’t have a problem with whomever Pepsi decides to use as their spokesperson. I do, however, raise an eyebrow when Pepsi has the gall to point a finger at Go Daddy when they themselves don't hesitate to be as edgy as possible....
After all, it was Pepsi who produced Britney Spears' commercials a few years back where she was doing a very hot and suggestive dance. And of course, in the Pepsi commercials Ms. Spears exposed quite a bit of skin, including close-ups of her pierced naval [sic]. Toward the end of the commercial, a huge bottle in the background explodes, suggesting a sexual finale to Ms. Spears' dance. Again, I don’t have a personal problem with any of this. I mention it only to put Pepsi's complaint about our Super Bowl ad into perspective....
So what was the Pepsi commercial that the GoDaddy-esque commercial leveled? According to commercialsihate.com, it was the one where Carson Kressley from “Queer Eye For The Straight Guy” ogles the Diet Pepsi man then takes a 180 degree turn and starts following him. I personally liked the commercial. However, given its contents, I find it amazing that these guys are complaining that the Go Daddy ad was inappropriate.
Parsons added more on January 4:
We are busy finishing production on two new ads. Both feature Candice Michelle, our Go Daddy Girl. In my opinion, the ads are both hot, well done and "GoDaddy-esque." One of the ads – one we call “window washer” — will show during all of the upcoming NFC playoff games which are being broadcast by Fox.
This update on the Super Bowl itself was posted on January 17:
We learned Friday that ABC has rejected our 10th submission for a commercial during this year’s Super Bowl....
We also received an indication Friday that the NFL will review any commercial Go Daddy submits that ABC approves. To the best of my knowledge the NFL has never participated in the commercial approval process. So this could be another FIRST for Go Daddy....
I should emphasize that Go Daddy does not view ABC or the NFL as adversaries. Both ABC and the NFL are as caught up in all this censorship nonsense as Go Daddy is.
ABC, which produces such adult shows as “Desperate Housewives” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” which will air after the Super Bowl — is only doing what it is directed to do by the NFL.
The NFL, which has always allowed the sidelines to be lined by cheerleaders who expose more and move about more salaciously than any actress in any commercial, is only doing what it thinks Congress and the FCC are directing it to do. The last thing the NFL – or any organization for that matter – needs is more involvement or regulation from the government....
Driving Congress and the FCC is the little, but well funded, complaint mill known as the Parents Television Council. This little organization generates more than 98% of the indecency complaints received by Congress and the FCC.
I’ve extended an invitation to the Parents Television Council to provide a spokesperson as a guest on my weekly radio talk show, www.RadioGoDaddy.com. They have refused each and every invitation. Obviously they are more comfortable sitting behind their complaint generating computers.
More here:
Well, in a bit of irony, GoDaddy is having problems getting ABC to clear this years commercial...
Bit of irony? How about a bit of intention? Look at the worst case, in which GoDaddy doesn't get a commercial on the Super Bowl (whoops, the Big Game) and ends up putting the commercial on its website. Sure, they won't get the Super Bowl audience, but they will get an audience of those people who are most likely to use GoDaddy's domain name registration services. And they don't have to pay $2 million or $5 million or whatever to ABC. And they get founts of all knowledge like me to publicize the situation for them. Pretty good marketing move.
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