Zain TV Ads
Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 2:21 pmI have to admit, I'm a Zain ad fanatic.
I wish most advertisements in the Middle East were made with this much thought and effort. I've always watched those Western TV shows that highlight the best advertisements of the year and I always wondered when the Arab world would come close to such high standards. With the Zain ads, I think the Arab world has gotten there.
I think all of the advertisements are VERY cleverly made, and in my opinion, Q, I think it's more than acceptable to use these particular religious, social, and current issues to advertise and promote Zain. When it comes to the viewer, who you are trying to sell your product to, it is crucial to to build a one-on-one relationship with him or her: to make the consumer feel that the company knows what's going on in his or her life and thus has his or her best interests at stake. I guess this is one of today's key aims: to develop something like a new super-culture which links everyone together and which everyone can identify to.
Nevertheless, even though I praise Zain for their ideas, I think Nabz brought up an important point concerning the character of the old lady in the newest Zain ads. The thing is, I never really noticed it until now because I've gotten used to the sexist nature of ads in the Middle East. Maggi ads, Ariel ads, and the like are marketed directly to women and sometimes in very sexist ways: like the Maggi (or was it Knorr?) ad where the woman says: "Leave it to the chef, me!" As in, I'm the woman and in this society food is marketed straight to me because I should always be in the kitchen. We tackled this topic thoroughly in one of my sociology classes - I completely forgot the rest of the ads which highlight sexism in the Arab world - but I grew completely oblivious to the fact that sexism is apparent in these ads because well I guess I've unfortunately gotten used to the fact that the Arab world will probably always be sexist.
Anyway - back to the Zain ads. This ad gives me the goosebumps whenever I see it. It means so much to me. Excellent choice of Lebanese actor to do the voice overs by the way - I know what he looks like but I don't know his name. His voice sends chills down my spine. More significantly, since a member of my immediate family is blind I can really identify with this ad. The play on words [kanat wa ma zalat ajmal imra'atin ra'aytouha fi hayati] and the unexpected twist in the end of the ad make it one of the best advertisements I've ever seen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYwBnyrzOBI
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