HomeAway Launches More than Just a SuperBowl Ad..."it's a bird, it's a plane, wait no, it's a test baby."

Update 2/8/11: HomeAway issues sensitive apology AND changes their ads and social media campaign. NICE SAVE. Perhaps they should choose to support a preventing child abuse charity too. Read the HomeAway Superbowl Apology

I'll admit it, I'm a bit of a critic when it comes to $3 million dollar ad buys, but even more so when the company doing the buying is an important part of my own advertising plan. On top of that I'm a bit of a vacation rental nerd. Since 1999 I've been immersed in this world of vacation rental ownership, marketing, and management. When HomeAway placed their "Chevy Chase Vacation" ad in 2010's SuperBowl, I was unimpressed, but never the less very excited for vacation rentals to get national attention and press. After all, according to PhocusWright research, only 10% of US travelers even think of a vacation rental as a lodging option.  So when word started to leak out and the hype for SuperBowl XLV begain, I was a bit surprised, and excited to hear HomeAway would be launching their second ad for the Big Game, and that it would be interactive and have the potential to go viral in social media (since I'm a social media nerd too). Then I watched the trailer for the ad online.



Hmmm.

HomeAway didn't launch an ad campaign: they launched a "test baby."

Daring! Smushed test baby? British accents in the US? Ministry of Detourism? (I suspect they'll be running the ad across the pond). Not promising. Though I have to admit, I laughed the first time the test baby flung at the glass, even though I'm a very serious mom. I didn't laugh the next time when I watched it on the big screen during the big game.  I don't like the ad. I don't think it targets my audience. It feels like it was written by 12 year old boys (kind of like GoDaddy). My guests are a bit more sophisticated and much more family oriented to really think this is funny and want to go book a vacation rental instead of a hotel because of this kind of ad.

Showing a miserable crying baby in a hotel room, waking up the other kid in the hotel room, and the parents trying to have a glass of wine in the bathroom so they don't wake them up would make a commercial that rings true. That's of course because it really is true (Chicago Marriott c.1994). This ad reminds me of the tragic story of a mom recently shooting her two teenagers for talking back. Every mom can at first relate to a mother's frustration with teenagers, but carrying through with frustration with an act of violence? No we get disgusted.  The smushed test baby is pretty disgusting (even if we all know it's a test baby and meant to be funny). I don't see how gramps, mom, auntie, or golf buddies getting away are going to connect to that baby and remember vacation rentals supply more space when they make their next lodging choice. Plus smushed has taken on new meaning compliments of Jersey Shore and I have no patience for ad companies that don't properly vet everything.

There is a saying in publicity that no publicity is bad publicity, so at least HomeAway has some definite buzz happening. In fact "test baby" trended on Twitter for quite a while after the commercial.

What do you think? Is this ad a good thing for vacation rental owners and guests? If you are a vacation rental owner, are you excited about the message and buzz? If you are a guest, does this ad call you to take action? Will you play the games online (you can put your face in and choose the baby's fate or put your vacation rental in the ad)? Will you consider a vacation rental for your stay?

Looking forward to the buzz on this launched test baby.

Update 2/7/11

As the buzz comes in I wanted to share some more links with discussion on the HomeAway test baby ad. It looks like a cold blast is coming into Austin.

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2011/02/07/2011-02-07_super_bowl_2011_commercials_top_five_best_and_worst_ads_of_the_game.html

http://www.facebook.com/HomeAway (comments section)

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/parenting-family/babies/story/2011/02/Parents-recoil-at-Super-Bowl-test-baby-ad/43392036/1

http://www.sbnation.com/2011-super-bowl/2011/2/6/1979154/super-bowl-commercials-2011-test-baby-homeaway

http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/theticker/entries/2011/02/07/homeaways_super_bowl_ad.html?cxntfid=blogs_statesman_business_blog

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/breaking-news/will-these-super-bowl-ads-make-advertisers-money.html

http://mypostpartumvoice.com/2011/02/06/test-baby-superbowl-commercial/

@LizSzabo is tweeting about the issue and wrote the USA Today article.

http://kelloggsuperbowlreview.wordpress.com/2011/02/07/kellogg-super-bowl-advertising-review-2011-results/

http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/dispatches/post/2011/02/homeaways-smushed-baby-super-bowl-ad-creates-controversy/141996/1