Target Presents: The Waiting For Your Bangs to Grow Out Collection
He spun you to the mirror and your stomach dropped to the floor
Your self esteem lay in hair clumps
Shell shocked, you tip him anyway
Cry at least 20 minutes
And assemble the right stuff, at the right price
Clips, hats and mega-hold gel should mask your hair catastrophe
And at 1/2 an inch per month
You can re-enter society by spring time
Bulls-eye
I challenge every single girl that reads this post to tell me that you haven't been there yourself. Fighting back tears in the salon chair, while your stylist hands you a mirror to "see the back" - the problem is, you don't care about the damn back of the cut. All you can think about is the fact that you now look like you are 12 years old with 3 inches between your eyebrows and the end of your new bangs. The ones that you didn't ask for. Thoughts are racing through your head; "oh, I am never going to get his attention now" or "I will have to call in sick to work tomorrow" or even worse "I want to die."
It is every girl's worst nightmare that many of us, too often, can not wake from until months later when our bangs have finally grown out to the length of our reinstated confidence. When I saw the latest commercial from Target, I couldn't help but laugh and think "God, have I been there!" They nailed it. What better way to sell hair products than to remind us why we are using them in the first place? It is more often than not that women are running out to the store to get these items after a hairtastrophe such as the dreaded bang looking for everything that could possible make them look "cute" again. And trust me, it is a challenge no matter how many people tell you that they look great...
This spot works for several reasons:
1. The talent is male and he has an accent.
What woman doesn't like a man with a little regional flair to his voice? Had a woman been the one to recount this dreaded incident it would not have come off with such charm. She would have tried too hard to make it "okay" but the fact is, it is hair and it will grow back. The overreaction that women tend to have about their looks can be ridiculous and that element of insanity is balanced by the monologue without crossing an offensive line.
2. The monologue is poetic.
As I rewrote the lines for this posting, I realized that it sounds and reads much like a poem with ever intention of being as emotional. It takes the viewer on the journey through this experience in a way that allows one to visually recreate this moment (horror and all) in :30.
3. It is relatable. Maybe TOO relatable.
Women are proud of their hair. It is something that we pay a lot of money to maintain, take care of and tousle, tease and primp each morning before we start our day. Good hair makes you feel better and a "good hair day" can be magical. Really. So when hair gets compromised the situation is serious. Target realizes that while ridiculous in the grand scheme of things in life, women are fearful of bangs, especially when we get them unwillingly (which no one should ever volunteer to get).
4. It pokes fun at the situation, but offers a solution.
It would be one thing to just poke fun at women and say "by the way, we have things to help you with that." But they have found a clever way to sell these products to women who may never think about them otherwise. Morning routines may not often involve hats, clips and gel but you better believe that the number rises when unfortunate haircuts happen. If I had to guess in a poll taken of "when do you use clips the most in your hair" I am sure the number would prove that it is most often when growing out bangs. So sell them that way! If we only knew how many women today will become victim to the shears...at least Target will be there to help pick up the broken pieces of beauty off the floor.
Funny and charming, this take on a woman's perception of herself and the price that we pay for beauty really does hit a bulls eye on a fact of life that most of us never want to talk about again. For a chuckle and a haunting memory, getting bangs may really not be so bad after all... or at least when knowing there is a cute hat out there to cover them up...
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