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CC Resources for The University of Alabama
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10-28-2009, 11:50 AM
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#1 | | Member
Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: AL
Posts: 880
| Touching Lives
What do you think about the new advertising campaign, "Touching Lives"?
If you haven't seen all four TV spots, there are viewable at this website: Touching Lives - The University of Alabama
I think they are very nice and polished. This is a 100000% improvement over last year's version of "Alabama is..." ad campaign, which looked like it was farmed out as a senior TCF course project. (Actually, I should give our senior TCF majors more credit; they would have made something better than that.)
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10-28-2009, 12:34 PM
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#2 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 150
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Nice - have not seen the "Alabama is" campaign but these are very professional, short and great impact.
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10-28-2009, 01:34 PM
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#4 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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I agree that last year's ads were AWFUL...and looked very amateurish (fall '08). They looked like they were made with low quality recording equipment..like something my dad used in the 60s.
It was weird because the year before (Fall 07) had really nice ads (the one with Dr. Sharpe in a classroom and the Croyle family)
This year's ads are much better. I'm sure they got a ton of complaints about last year's.
However, I think one of the most moving college TV ads running right now is Notre Dame's ad which features their research of a rare disease that has killed 3 of former head coach Ara Parseghian's grandkids. That commercial makes me cry everytime I see it. The ad is about ND's Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases.
It's called "What Would You Fight For," which ties into the message of the "Fighing Irish." Fighting For The Lives Of Children // Video Channel // University of Notre Dame
Last edited by mom2collegekids; 10-28-2009 at 01:41 PM.
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10-28-2009, 01:52 PM
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#5 | | Member
Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: AL
Posts: 880
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Yeah, that (and the others in that series) sure makes filming a creek that probably isn't even in Alabama look rather generic. But let's be realistic, Notre Dame as a whole is on a whole other level of prestige that UA. For what UA is perceived to be nationally (and this is one of many cases where perception is reality), "Touching Lives" is a fantastic step up.
Last edited by feenotype; 10-28-2009 at 02:00 PM.
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10-28-2009, 01:55 PM
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#6 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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Oh, I agree...the new Touching Lives is wonderful. Last year's were an embarrassment; can't imagine who approved them. 
I just had the Notre Dame ad in my head for some reason and thought it would be interesting to share with those who hadn't seen it.
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10-28-2009, 01:58 PM
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#7 | | Member
Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: AL
Posts: 880
| Quote: |
I agree that last year's ads were AWFUL...and looked very amateurish (fall '08). It was weird because the year before (Fall 07) had really nice ads (the one with Dr. Sharpe in a classroom and the Croyle family)
| I didn't understand it all myself, until I read this article in the Tuscaloosa News: University to reveal new marketing campaign Quote:
Before “Crimson Is,” UA had “Dream a Little,” a campaign that ran from 2001 to shortly after President Robert Witt arrived in 2003. Then there was a brief lag between campaigns before “Crimson Is” was started to accompany the major fundraising campaign, “Our Students, Our Future.”
The capital campaign ended in June, collecting $613 million, which is well over its $500 million goal.
“Crimson Is” began in 2006 with high quality commercials narrated by actress and alumnus Sela Ward, but the last round of commercials in the campaign were noticeably cheaper.
“We weren’t ready to launch a new campaign because we weren’t finished with the capital campaign so we, really, didn’t want to spend a lot of money on something that was going to last a year,” Parker said.
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10-28-2009, 02:08 PM
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#8 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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^^^
Well that last sentence  ...... sometimes it's better to do nothing (or rerun an earlier ad) then to put forth something that looks cheap.
The south routinely has to overcome prejudices and ignorance about its schools, and putting forth a cheap ad just reinforces those misunderstandings.
This year's ads are great. The last one, while nice with the water and its message, isn't as effective because people need to "see" the school. They need to see the facilities.
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10-28-2009, 02:24 PM
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#10 | | Member
Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: AL
Posts: 880
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Also, the tv spots in the "Touching Lives" page are listed in reverse chronological order. The first one (at the bottom) aired during the game on Virginia Tech that aired on ABC. I see it as an opening act to the later spots.
Last edited by feenotype; 10-28-2009 at 02:39 PM.
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10-28-2009, 02:39 PM
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#11 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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Do you have the links to the '07 ads? Like the one with Dr. Sharpe in the front of a classroom, the mention of all the NMFs, and the Croyle family. That was a nice ad, too.
>>>>
One of those ads even aired during the Sugar Bowl. What a way to tell the world, "Hey, we at UA just learned how to use a camera! It's super cool!"
<<<<
I remember that....and I had a similar thought...."Hey, there's this thing made by Kodak that makes talkies...."
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10-28-2009, 02:41 PM
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#12 | | Member
Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: AL
Posts: 880
| Quote: |
Do you have the links to the '07 ads? Like the one with Dr. Sharpe in the front of a classroom, the mention of all the NMFs, and the Croyle family. That was a nice ad, too.
| Is that not it up in post #9 (the first link)?
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10-28-2009, 03:46 PM
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#13 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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^^^
Yes, thanks... I hadn't looked at those yet. I was thinking that those were from "08, too.
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10-28-2009, 04:37 PM
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#14 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 85
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Wow, I had forgot about the 2008 commercials, maybe a little more money needed to be spent with them? As for the current "Touching Lives" campaign, it seems too generic, I don't even know if half the things in the commercials had to do with UA or were just stock footage. I would like to see more focus on UA like the 2007 commercials did.
On a related note, I really liked the "You are UA" sequence in the admissions DVD, that was classy.
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10-28-2009, 05:43 PM
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#15 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,182
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^^^
I don't think we ever looked at the admissions DVD.
Obviously, the water ad wasn't done on campus, but that wasn't the suggested point (it was also the weakest of the ads in my opinion). But, I think the footage of the other ads are from UA. To me, the strongest ads show the students, the facilities, the various labs, etc.
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