7 Thoughts After Watching That Amazing Super Bowl Law Commercial
Wow. Just wow.
Yes folks, as my fellow writer Gabriella noted yesterday, I am the bad law advertisement guy. If someone creates a nonsensical, racist, or otherwise terrible ad, I will be there to mock them. Or to congratulate them, if their "XOXO, [Shameless Attorney]" letters get them on Piers Morgan. Or perhaps give you tips on how to market your firm while avoiding these pitfalls.
But nothing, not a single law advertisement, could have prepared me for the majesty of Jamie Casino's Super Bowl Halftime commercial, which was shown in Georgia, then went viral on the Internet.
Seriously, Watch the Ad
Seven Instant Reactions
1. Holy crap, this is good production for a lawyer advertisement.
Seriously. Do they give out Clios to local attorney ads? He'd get our vote.
2. What does the sledgehammer and destroyed tombstone have to do with Personal Injury practice?
Is it a metaphor for striking back against criminals? Does he only sue criminals, or does he do your basic slip-and-fall work? Or does the tombstone represent the career of the former police chief?
3. What's the story behind his brother's death?
According to the Savannah Morning News, Casino's younger brother, Michael Biancosino, 30, and Emily Pickels, 21, were shot and killed over Labor Day weekend in 2012. The police chief, after earlier stating that "there were no innocent victims," backtracked and stated that neither victim was involved in wrongdoing.
One man has been indicted in the case, while another suspect was shot in killed in an unrelated incident.
4. Nice dig at the police chief's sex scandal.
Per the Morning News, it seems that Chief Willie Lovett resigned in the wake of a sexual harassment accusation, and since has come under fire for withholding information from Internal Affairs about two officers under investigation for a drug trafficking scheme.
5. Not since Lowell "The Hammer" Stanley has the world witnessed such over-the-top, memorable, and effective legal advertising.
We'd give Casino the nod on this ad, though The Hammer gets the lifetime achievement award. He sustained his excellence over a period of time, while Casino's other ads are a bit too cheesy.
6. "No longer representing villains."
That's certainly understandable, given his personal situation, though we'd caution viewers not to disparage the fine criminal defense attorneys out there -- our adversarial system is dependent on prosecutors and defense attorneys checking each others' antics.
7. 24 Hours. 755, 243 Views.
Love it or hate it, awesome or tasteless, when was the last time you saw any commercial, let alone, a lawyer commercial, rack up views that quickly? A two-minute Super Bowl Halftime ad probably cost him an incomprehensible amount of money, but he's gone viral. Assuming he banked some of the cash from his days representing "villains," he should come out on top.
Verdict: Win
There are many things about this ad that don't make sense, such as the grave desecration. (The hammer is a running gag of his, by the way.) And many Twitter-ers have criticized the ad for trying to profit off of his brother's death. (In his defense, he's explaining his passion for his practice area, and the reason why he switched after so much success in criminal defense.)
And, hate or love, you can see this guy is willing to go the extra mile. Clients might assume he would do the same for them.
Either way, Rolling Stone. Deadspin. Music Video-esque view counts within 24 hours. Storyline aside, this is what every lawyer with a self-written, self-directed TV spot dreams of.
Related Resources:
- Jamie Casino, Lawyer From Super Bowl Personal Injury Ad, Speaks Out On HuffPost Live (The Huffington Post)
- Two Family Law Ads: One Brilliant, One Miserable Failure (FindLaw's Strategist Blog)
- Maniacal Marketing: More Bad Lawyer Commercials (FindLaw's Strategist Blog)
- Racist Law Ad Update: Firm Denies Involvement, Producer Threatens (FindLaw's Strategist Blog)