Sales-To-Funny Breakdown Ration for Tru Earth Laundry Strips
(for nerds)
I saw something funny on Facebook yesterday.
Don’t worry—it’s the good kind of funny.
Then I dissected it today to give myself a break from day drinking watching the news. if you could use a few minutes of fun, keep reading.
I think you’ll like this.
See, a few weeks back, I saw an ad for eco-friendly laundry detergent. It was filmed like a Harmon Brothers ad (the guys behind Squatty Potty, Purple Mattress, Poo-Pouri, and just about every great 3-minute ad that goes viral), but I’ve since found out this one’s not from them.
And here’s how I know.
The product published a behind-the-scenes video about the shoot—and I watched it.
Take a minute to let that sink in.
I just watched a 3-minute and 41-second video about the making of a 3-minute and 32-second commercial. AND I LIKED IT.
It’s a genius piece of content that acts as a discreet second commercial and makes me feel more invested in the product—even though I haven’t bought it yet.
Yet.
But I likely will.
OK, now here’s where I go all Justin and dive in too far…
The first ad is GREAT.
It has over 16,000,000 views, so you might’ve seen it. It’s funny, it’s clever, and it’s ridiculously clear.
So much so, that I wanted to see the percentage of time spent on the hook vs. the laugh.
(It’s OK. I’m also pretty. And humble.)
Now, if you’ve read, watched, or listened to anything about The Harmon Brothers, you know they structure their ads on proven direct response techniques. (And if you didn’t know that, now ya do).
The humor is there to keep you watching, but the ad is often powerful enough to work without it.
And I wanted to see if this ad did the same.
Now, for the sake of your inbox, I only broke down the original ad.
It’s for Tru Earth.
Give it a look-see:
(If the video above isn’t working, you can also see it here)
Now here’s the script. Green is funny, purple is selling, and red are “distraction elements” that pull your attention away but help the flow of the video. (Things like off-screen comments, call-backs, and spoonfuls of absurdity to give you a giggle.)
Read on:
Things you should never mix with water: mascara, home electronics, sodium metal, witches (I’m melting!)… But you know what really shouldn’t have water added to it.
Laundry detergent. Why? Laundry detergents like these contain up to 80 percent water, which is why they’re sooo heeeavy. (*bottles drop*)
And this? This is how much waste the average family creates in a lifetime just from buying laundry detergent. Look at that.
It’s more plastic than an episode of Real Housewives. (*laughs at herself*)
And While technically many of these are recyclable, studies show that only 20 percent will actually reach the recycling plant, leaving the other 80 percent filling up landfills. Or worse.
You accepted the challenge to boycott plastic straws, get a hybrid vehicle and replace your toxic deodorant with baking soda.
What’s that smell?
I should rethink that one.
Now join the revolution to say no to bulky, wasteful detergent bottles.
Introducing Tru Earth eco strips. Prepare to have your mind blown.
Step one: tear off a pre-measured strip of this concentrated liquid-less detergent. Step two: throw it in your washing machine. And step three… Girl, go reward yourself for saving the planet.
Just listen to that sound. That’s the sound of me reducing my carbon footprint.
Ahhhhhh! *CRASH*
Followed by sound, by the ceramic chicken Jim’s mom got us for Christmas, most hideous thing you’ve ever seen.
If we all made just this one simple switch, we’d eliminate over a billion of these wasteful jugs each and every year. That’s the equivalent effect on greenhouse gases as planting over nine million trees.
And since Tru Earth takes up a fraction of the space, you can use your shelves for more important things. (*Grabs a soda can. Laughs*)
Mom! I can’t find my backpack!
It’s genius. Mommy’s doing laundry, honey.Do you want to come help?
Never mind.
(*Opens soda can and smirks*)
So if you like clean clothes and a clean planet, join the movement, be part of the solution instead of the problem. Click below right now to try true earth eco strips today. Tru Earth comes with a 100 percent love it or return it guarantee. If it doesn’t clean your clothes—and I mean perfectly— send it back for a refund.
And because they’re paraben, free, phosphate free and sensitive on the skin, unlike your baking soda, it won’t give your skin that nasty rash.
*walks in on kids painting themselves* Aaah!
The choice is yours.
Keep buying those heavy, bulky, wasteful, waterlogged containers or join more than 100,000 happy customers who have switched to the simplicity, sustainability and satisfaction of Tru Earth. Click below for your risk free trial.
Now, I’m pretty sure there are two things I do now need to add water to. Get ’em, Evelyn!
(Witch: It’s bath time, my pretties, ahahaha!)
Yup, Tru Earth can even get these looking clean and smelling fresh again, don’t believe me, huh? Take the Tru Earth 30-day challenge.
Come on. Now. Do it. Use your finger. Or your mouse. Right now.
*Makes clicking sounds – laughs and breaks character – cuts away mid-laugh*
*RISK FREE TRIAL OFFER ON SCREEN*
It’s funny, right? OK, admittedly, it’s funnier when you watch it, but still…
Notice how the red elements set up the joke? You wouldn’t use them in copy, but in video they’re fantastic. But also notice how quickly they jump right back into the message.
OK, now let’s get nerdy…
There are 490 words in the script.
- 56 are jokes
- 32 are distractions
- 336 are selling
I suck at math and even I can tell that selling dominates.
The laugh is only 17%. Sales is 68%..
More than ⅔ of this video is spent convincing me to try this product—and I’ll gladly pay attention because I love the other ⅓ so much.
Not only did this ad get me thinking and remembering the product, it inspired me to upload the video, transcribe it, and break down the whole dang thing.
And I was happy to watch the second behind-the-scenes video.
I won’t break down that one because I have a life (JK), but the simple math is, it glides into the pitch at 2:06. So, 95 seconds of it (43%) is a camouflaged commercial. And I love it.
My original plan was to do a Codex Persona voice breakdown of this to show how humor is used with different voice types. Then I was gonna talk about how personality is used to boost the sale without overtaking it, which is an easy mistake to make. And if you’re curious to see that…
CLICK HERE TO SEE PART TWO: THE BRAND VOICE BREAKDOWN
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BRAND VOICE VISIONARY (formerly The Codex Academy)
