Google says “Search On…”
An American man studies abroad in Paris, and falls in love with a French girl. They have a relationship for the duration of his stay in France, but soon he has to return back home. Destined to be with the woman he loves, he moves to across the world to be with her. Eventually, the couple weds in Paris. At the end of the story, the couple is expecting a child.
Sounds like a classic romantic comedy, right?
But it’s a…Super Bowl ad? For…Google?
Yes, during Super Bowl XLIV Google aired “Parisian Love,” from it’s YouTube channel “Search Stories” – the company’s first ever broadcast advertisement (CEO Eric Schmidt said hell froze over…). Some loved it, some hated it, but one thing is for certain, it made a heck of a lot of women go “awwww.” Certainly, “Parisian Love” stood out among a crop of testosterone-injected Super Bowl commercials.
The sweetness-factor was not the only reason why “Parisian Love” was successful, in my opinion. It was simple and illustrated the effect that online search has on the course of our lives. I don’t know what those who disliked the ad were expecting from Google, but an ad which boasted “We’re the best! We’re a better search engine than Bing!” would not have been as successful. After all, we all know the capabilities of Google search and most people use a Google product on a daily basis. I don’t need Google to tout this.
Instead, by telling us to “search on,” Google emphasizes the impact that search technology has on our lives, and forges a connection between the user and the search engine. Without a doubt, “Parisian Love” was one of my favorite ads this Super Bowl Sunday.
Search on –
