Third BuzzFlash Proposed Democratic Campaign Ad: "I Want It to be Morning in America Again."

This is a strong concept. With expert filmmaking, it would have been a real winner.

While we spend a fortune on political campaigns, we penny-pinch every step of the way. Some things are worth the time and money it takes to do them right; powerful image ads like this one repay the investment many times over.

Quickie, low-budget ads are a staple of successful political consultants, and they are essential too. This time of year, you can't miss them.

But what is missing is advertising that can improve public perception of the Democratic Party. Great national ads pave the way for winning local races up and down the ballot.

As it stands, this ad is a long way from being finished. But had it been given as direction to a good agency--not a political one--it would have helped every Democratic candidate this season.

The thing to do with a great ad is to run the hell out of it. Clients, especially political clients, get bored with their own ads too easily. The more times an ad is repeated, the more effective it is and the more the cost of production (not trivial in this case) is amortized.

In addition to classy "image" ads to build the Democratic brand, we obviously also need the slam-bang ads routinely produced by consultants in 24-48 hours. No Madison Avenue wizardry can replace bare-knuckled campaigning at the local level.

After all, national brand advertisers also rely on local sales activities to finish the job.

The loftiest Clio-winning automobile advertising finds its final fruition in the hands of a red-faced salesman with a recent mouthful of Scope. Belly to belly with a reluctant buyer in the closing room of an auto dealership, this guy is the front-line soldier.

Similarly a great national image ad for the Democrats is unrealized until it empowers a local phone bank run by a political consultant whose favorite saying is, “politics ain’t beanbag.”

Like the big automobile manufacturers, Pepsi has always produced great advertising. But Pepsi also uses coupons, co-op grocery ads, point of purchase displays, even advertising on the back of grocery receipts given to people who just bought Coke.

For an exciting and interesting example of political “couponing,” see Chris Bowers’ amazing Google-bomb project. This will be effective and valuable, but would have been even more so had it been the planned end-game of a national ad campaign.

Howard Dean's 50-state vision is exactly what the party needed this year. But national radio and television advertising reaches all fifty states at a lower cost per impression than all the frenzied local spending on signs, direct-mail, local broadcast and "ground game" activities.

These "retail" activities are vital, but they should be supported by national brand advertising. Then the campaigns can "pull the sale through” to the ballot box.

Entirely support the execution of this concept. One more item to add to make this complete- we MUST CLOSE OUR BORDERS to stop the INVASION OF ALIENS AND TERRORISTS.