2020 Super Bowl Commercial Breakdown
12m
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DIY Narrator: For Instructional Designers Who Narrate eLearning
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With apologies to Eli Manning... Listen to this one before the Cease and Desist letter hits my mailbox. Last night was Super-Duper Football Game night. As usual, the commercials were the true highlight. Though, when you can see them all online the week before the surprise of a really good Super Bowl commercial is shot. As is usually the case, my ears were focused on the commercials that feature voiceover. I'm listening to hear if there is a voice I recognize, how it was performed, what the big trends are. Super Bowl commercial VO is a great place to get a feel for the current expectations of a high-caliber VO performance. Then I heard the spot from Verizon and the NFL titled "One More Sunday". This one was voiced by Eli Manning, which was an inspired choice given his recent retirement and the idea of the end of the season not necessarily meaning the end. If Tom Brady were retiring, he would have had this paycheck locked down. The idea behind the spot was great: The NFL season is ending, use the time you're getting back next Sunday to volunteer and make a difference. Excellent idea for a campaign. The thing is, Eli's performance just didn't do it for me. He just wasn't connected to the intent and meaning of the spot. Because of that, he fell a bit flat at key moments. I think it turned what could have been an excellent and highly effective spot, into one that did the job but wasn't amazing. You can hear the spot if you listen to the episode, but feel free to check it out on iSpot.tv. Listen to this episode to hear my breakdown of Eli's performance and how this relates to your DIY eLearning Narration. I'm not doing this to pick on Eli, I just thought some of you may be interested in hearing the stuff that is going through my head when I hear spots like this and when I breakdown copy. Head over to Verizon's site for the "One More Sunday" campaign to check it out and sign up if you are so inclined. And to prove that I'm not an Eli hater here is one commercial he did that I specifically remember laughing way too hard at: Photo by karatara from Pexels
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