Commercials -- that is, the ones I don't skip on my DVR -- make me laugh, even when that's not their intended purpose. I particularly enjoy the informercials that show the frustrated guy who couldn't imagine living without his Snuggie or Rotato. But lately, I've been getting a kick out of local commercials that feature "paid actor testimonials."
You know, those "ambulance chaser" lawyer spots that showcase clients who scored millions after the car accidents. The happy, smiling faces of normal guys who picked up the phone and had their lawyer fight for their right to litigation.
Thing is, these are just actors. It says so in small print, which is a federal trade law. Until I saw a commercial this week for Michael Hupy, however, I never recognized one of these paid actors from somewhere else -- but I swear I saw Chris Grundy, the host of DIY Network's "Cool Tools" talking about how this Milwaukee lawyer made him millions.
Clearly, this spot was filmed before Grundy got his DIY gig, but it reminded me just how unusual it is that a local law firm would use actors to pitch their success stories. I mean, why not use real clients? Is it because they're not polished enough or telegenic enough to speak a single line in a commercial? Or is it because they refuse to disclose their identity? If some lawyer got me $25 million, the least I could do is appear as "Andy T." and talk about it in a TV commercial.
Keep in mind that Hupy is the firm that uses "Superman III" actor Robert Vaughn as their pitchman (I always assumed that Vaughn was Hupy, himself). So weird.
It just seems sort of unnecessary ... and especially disingenuous.
Now, not every local company uses paid actor testimonials. My own business partner, Jeff Sherman, appeared on a TV commercial for WTMJ-AM, back in the day. They neither paid him nor scripted him, just put some makeup on his face and let him talk about why he liked the station. He did get to meet Wayne Larrivee and received a few gift certificates, he tells me, but that seems different than using a fake actor to extol the virtues of a product or firm.
So why do companies fake it, when presumably they could just use real-life success stories? Presumably, because they work. But in the age of Wikipedia, IMDB and cable TV, you run the risk of getting busted for using an actor seen somewhere else -- and that undermines the trust factor the commercial is aiming for -- at least as far as I'm concerned.
But I guess I'm not the kind of guy who picks an attorney because of his TV commercials, anyway. Maybe the rest of the viewing public is less skeptical. Or maybe Hupy just needs to freshen up his TV spots with actors none of us have ever seen before.
Andy is the president, publisher and founder of OnMilwaukee. He returned to Milwaukee in 1996 after living on the East Coast for nine years, where he wrote for The Dallas Morning News Washington Bureau and worked in the White House Office of Communications. He was also Associate Editor of The GW Hatchet, his college newspaper at The George Washington University.
Before launching OnMilwaukee.com in 1998 at age 23, he worked in public relations for two Milwaukee firms, most of the time daydreaming about starting his own publication.
Hobbies include running when he finds the time, fixing the rust on his '75 MGB, mowing the lawn at his cottage in the Northwoods, and making an annual pilgrimage to Phoenix for Brewers Spring Training.
