The Olive

This Israeli ad for feta cheese called "The Olive" uses various techniques to try to sell the product and create a "feel" for it. First, it appeals to the limbic brain is setting the mood and the feeling. You get the sense of the Mediterranain island, the Greek food, the party atmosphere. You FEEL like you are on a warm greek island in the middle of the summer. This, in turn appeals to the "warm feeling" or warm fuzzies part of advertising. The viewer feels good about the scene, and therefore feels good about the product being advertised. The white clothes, the sensuous look of the food, and the bright lighting all contribute to this feeling.

Next, the main character sees the greek woman. The reptilian brain takes over. Feelings of attraction and sensuality take over, and he no longer acts rationally. Rather, he simply wants to impress her. We switch briefly to "beautiful people." His sole goal is to impress. He tosses the olive into the air with abandon. Unfortunately, he chokes. There COULD be another reptillian response to this -- fear. But rather than either the character or the audience sensing fear, this is where humor takes over. We get both the "group think" as the others join in to what they believe is the main character's dancing, plate breaking, and back thumping, as the scene escalates.

Eventually, he dislodges the olive. The neocortex tells you that he has learned from his experience. But no. He sees the woman one more time, and of course the reptillian brain takes over once again. The olive is hoisted aloft ...

While this is an effective ad, it does not necessarily make you either remember or desire the product. What you do remember is the limbic portion of the ad - the feeling of the island, and the humor of the ad. Nothing says cheese like humor.