HP Serena Williams: ad:tech People's Choice Awards Finalist
By Ryan Barrett, Boston Blogger, Writer, Author.
Sure, staring at Serena Williams' chest for hours on end might feel a little voyeuristic. But you've got to admit, those bis and tris and pecs are pretty freakin' impressive. And so is the amount of awesome original content that HP's The Computer is Personal Again Serena microsite provides.
The experience begins with a souped-up version of the celebrated HP Serena television spot--you know, the total 2.0 commercial with that crazy floating photo gallery. I'll admit, it did irk me a little that the intro took so long to load, but when I saw why it took so long I couldn't complain: this intro is actually a video outlining all the cool online goodies you're about to enjoy. And there are so many.
Here's a quick rundown of all the content:
1. 3-part video of Serena schooling Wee Man on the tennis court
2. Blaxploitation parody video depicting Serena "Surgarfly" Williams battling evil
3. HP Behind the Scenes video showing the making of the microsite, including some neat motion-capture discussion
4. Documentary video of Serena taking some time off from the court
5. Up close and personal gossip videos from Serena's friends and family
6. Downloadable ringtones
And if you thought peeking at Serena's midsection wasn't voyeuristic enough, the microsite also provides a digitized underwear-clad Serena paper doll, which you can dress up in some of her most memorable outfits. Once you dress her up, you can watch video of real-life Serena sported these hot numbers.
For me, the best thing about this microsite is its use of original video content. I haven't seen many sites really leverage all the opportunities for video that the web provides. The site offers many ways to share the content, from sending to a friend to embedding the content on a blog to sharing/tagging the content on another social media site. And, of course, these video clips aren't limited to a set time like television spots are; they're fun and free-spirited and unique. They also tie into the overarching theme of the HP "Computer is Personal" campaign by presenting a little more of Serena's true personality.
So now we know everything there is to know about the fabulous Serena Williams. Feel like a stalker yet? I do, and I'm loving it.
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