Insight Alone Can't Carry Execution

There's a really smart insight here, which makes its way into the script, but ultimately gets fumbled in execution.

Stoli asks "would you want to have a drink with you?"
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Great question. But, Hugh Hefner is a really bad person to answer, don't you think?

A good alternative? Someone humble. Genuine. Charismatic. Easily likable. Not polarizing. Someone others naturally just want to be around.

It's really not all that complicated -- if other people find you lame or revolting, chances are you probably would too. And unless you're a gorgeous young female model looking for a sugardaddy, Hugh probably doesn't check too many boxes.

So, casting is the first issue I have. The second is the link between likability and originality. It doesn't feel like there's anything sincere to the conclusion being drawn here; instead, it feels like a brand manager deciding beforehand that it wanted to position (Stoli) as "the most original vodka."

There are plenty of "original people" out there who most of us wouldn't want to hang out with at a bar. I could think of plenty including ax murderers and other psychopath originals.

The tagline, "Lead On", feels like more of the same - a push from Marketing folks to maintain a positioning vs. something truly born out of a consumer insight.

Bottomline -- this could have been a whole lot simplier. Stoli is a likeable brand. Unpretentious, honest, down-to-earth; in fact, if it were a person, it's probably one most of us would want to have a drink with.

The insight is sound, the brand personifies it. That's a formula for a homerun, but the execution is a near miss.

The net call is OFF STRATEGY.