Double Rainbow—what does it meeeaaan (for marcommers with viral ambitions)?
I love Double Rainbow and any mention of the epic YouTube clip makes me super happy and walk around all day saying ‘all the waaaay’ and ‘what does it meaaaan?’ So it was with mixed and curious feelings that I sat back and watched the reaction to the new Vodafone ‘Double’ TVCs from some of my über YouTube community friends.
The Kiwi YouTubers seemed to be very much on the fence. Like me. They weren’t for or against. It’s just jumped the shark. Nobody seemed to care. The most common reaction seemed to be ‘I hope ‘Bear’ got paid heaps’.
The star of the seriously titled Yosemitebear Mountain Giant Double Rainbow 1-8-10 Guy ‘Bear’ Vasquez could only have come out of the amateur primordial ooze that is YouTube. His video is currently sitting on 24 million views. Surprisingly, it doesn’t even make the Time magazine Top 20 YouTube videos, which I constantly refer people to as an example of why you shouldn’t try to manufacture viral.
The list is a mixture of cute animals, cute kids (of which Treasures recently had a go with on the ‘Laughing Baby’ ads) and stoned unicorns. Look closely, it’s all very amateur and when you un-amateur it (yes that is a word), people can’t be bothered.
“Let’s go to Auckland Zoo and film Jin the otter holding hands with another otter. It will be awesome and go viral.” You just wouldn’t do it. But there it is, number 17 on the YouTube top 20.
So, what do you think of Vodafone’s Double Rainbow?
PS: This little site isvodafonenzfuckedforeveryoneorjustme.com created by Christchurch’s Layton Duncan from iPhone app developers Polar Bear Farm probably got more reaction on Twitter over the weekend anyway.
Jason Kemp
January 27, 2011
I have never seen the YT video so I thought it had something to do with the guy from Lost.
It seems like the ad is interesting till it get to the punchline and the seque to Vodafone 's campaign when it falls over.
What do you make of http://www.vodafail.com/ in Australia – its seems to be tapping a hige groundswell there