Kirshenbaum Bond

This is work for AdoptUsKids.org. This is a great piece of creative work because it uses truth to encourage, and somewhat commemorate, adoptive parents but does so in a realistic and endearing way. The end of this spot has a real pay off for viewers because it gives reassurance to people who may be considering adoption, with added elements of humor, honesty, and realism. Nobody wants to adopt a kid that's not going to like them, so the narrative in this spot depicts a very realistic fear many potential parents may be having. However, instead of giving us a sweet, cliche spot about how perfectly adoption works out, or a calculated, depressing spot about the numbers of children in foster care (circa pet adoption/animal cruelty advertisements) Kirshenbaum Bond delivered a spot with humor and truth. The lasting impression leaves people with a good feeling and positive attitude about adoption; it ends on a high note, which is good, and is much more believable because of its realism.

The message to prospective parents that "it's okay not to be perfect," and furthermore, kids don't expect perfection, is a message that you sometimes have to hunt for in media and advertisements. It is easy to point to genres like beauty ads and say these industry ads send messages encouraging unrealistic or idealistic views of beauty; however, in about the past decade, there has been an emergence of ads that have taken the opposite angle and embraced the idea of not being perfect, but trying to be the best version of you that you can be. This ad for adoption has a similar tone in that it says to people that just being yourself is enough for kids living in foster care and waiting to be adopted; they don't mind if you give them a bedazzled Christmas sweater, they just want parents...the sweater is pretty great though. The humorous tone of the spot certainly helps to keep the mood light, which sets it apart from the expected, highly-emotional ads that address tough or difficult issues. This spot is all around well-crafted; it has such a touching, yet general, message, and telling it from an honest perspective makes it all the more poignant.