Real Big Ads; Real People

Overhype was the leading culprit in this year’s disappointing Super Bowl ads. Each year, we expect the companies to create the most epic commercials, only to be let down when they don’t top last year's. Letdowns aside, there was an encouraging theme to be found throughout some of the ads: real people. While a few companies tried to capture the essence of the average American like Coca Cola’s “America the Beautiful” ad and the return of Cheerios heartwarming family, this is a look on the ads that actually featured real people.

Budweiser ad execs really knew what they were doing when they planned two very different commercials both featuring non-actors. Their two-part special starred Ian, a regular guy who doesn't know he's about to have the night of his life. Sure, the rest of the commercial was packed with big stars including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Don Cheadle and his alpaca, and One Republic, but it was a real experience for one guy. And since Ian was just a regular Joe, what’s stopping anyone else from being the next star of a Bud Light commercial? I guess anything can happen when you drink Bud Light.

In another one of their commercials, Budweiser took a very different route using non-actors. One of the most emotional ads of the night, Budweiser showed the celebration of the town of Winter Park welcoming home their hero. In a reminder to give thanks to those who have served and are serving, the homecoming of Lt. Chuck Nadd was filmed in honor of soldiers everywhere. The entire town, with the support of Budweiser, came together with cheers, posters, and a whole lot of gratitude for a proper welcome home for this hero. Check out the full version of the ad below which not only shows the preparations for the celebration, but also features interviews with veterans from Winter Park explaining why this homecoming was so important.

Another empowering ad from last night came from GoDaddy. In their usual fashion to be a little shocking, they showed a woman surrounded by puppets who promptly quit her job in front of millions of viewers to pursue her real passion: puppetry. This woman has guts when it comes to taking her career into her own hands. If any of you are interested in booking Gwen for your next big party, feel free to check out her site PuppetsByGwen.com (conveniently hosted on GoDaddy.com of course).

While many companies chose to recruit big names like Tim Tebow or Scarlett Johansson to catch the audience’s attention, it was refreshing to see normal people in those coveted time slots. Don’t get me wrong, I love Tom Felton in a helicopter as much as the next girl, but as a normal person myself, it’s a welcome change. If you missed any of the Super Bowl commercials from last night, check out Huffington Post’s collection of all the ads. Let me know in the comments or on Twitter @SimplyEricaR which were your favorites!