We watched this video in one of my THON Committee meetings. When I first saw I thought it was the funniest thing ever, and I still do.
I had to check the website just to make sure this commercial for Ojai Valley Taxidermy was real, and it apparently is a legitimate Taxidermy company. I tried to think of why this commercial is funny. Is it because of the ridiculous situations these animals are put in (my favorite being the bear in the bed)? Is it because of Chuck Testa's catchphrase of "Nope?" Is it Chuck Testa himself, ultimately proving that taxidermists are the funniest profession? Or is it simply that our culture thinks stuffed animals are funny by themselves? I like to think it's a combination of all of these factors.
The next question is, while this commercial may be comical, does it accomplish its goal? That is, after watching the ad, am I more likely to pay for the services offered by Ojai Valley Taxidermy? It's said at the end of the ad that "Chuck Testa does not taxidermize pets," so that must hurt the business somewhat. I am not privy to the hunting culture and what they think of this video. My guess is that most serious hunters have a personal taxidermist, like most people have a particular barber/hair dresser, so I find it somewhat unlikely that many animals were stuffed as a result of this video. This is all depending on if the goal was to help the taxidermy aspect of the business. If the goal was to simply go viral and have more traffic on the website, I would say with over 10 million views, that was easily successful. I truly do not know much about the taxidermy business, but I would assume that isn't the best profession during this economic downturn. That could be another goal. If the Ojai Valley Taxidermy industry was hit hard by the recession, the ad could have been made in the hopes of going viral. The website sells clothing including the "Nope" that made Chuck Testa famous, so that's obviously a possibility.
To me, the video is successful if only for making millions of people laugh around the world. It's nice to be able to step out of the stress of everyday life, watch a completely ridiculous ad, and relax, even if only for a minute. Thank you Chuck Testa, men like you make this world a better place.
While I have never seen any of these commercials, and am completely unaware of what animal taxidermy involves I agree with your view 100%. I, too, found the commercial hilarious and am sure that there is no way that this video was meant for any reason other than to humor those who watched. Good analysis! "Thank you Chuck Testa, men like you make this world a better place" Haha, thats hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what both of you have said about the commercial being funny and effective for that reason. Even if he did want to get his business out there, far more people know the name now just because of the humor. What would have happened if he went with a more serious route? I think people would have changed the channel and the audience would have been way more limited. Either way, I think the world needs a good laugh!
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