German advertising is subtly different from US advertising. Well, sometimes it's not so subtle: Kaya wrote a great post about some of the ads that are run here that would probably never see airtime in north America. But there is a more subtle bias to German advertising I have noticed: german ads often stress the quality of their products much more. It is a rare comestible that does not advertise itself as "spitzenqualität" (top quality) and many even bear the grade they received in a consumer-reports-style product test.
See? both at once: "Spitzenqualitat" at the top, and a prize sticker at the bottom for being the best... cooked ham. they've got me there, that's for sure!
But these appeals seem to work: Bittburger Pils, the most popular beer in Germany, runs an ad campaign based almost exclusively on emphasizing the purity of its ingredients. Anything I don't need to tell you that German auto companies do the same.
The whole attitude reminds me of those old ads in National Geographic. You know, the ads for stuff like Rolex and Cadillac that were more text than picture. This is an extreme example, but this style of "persuasive" advertising, that attempts to sell something by giving a pitch, instead of just associating it with a good feeling, like most advertisements these days, is basically gone in the US, but lives on in Germany.
Bonus best line from the Rolex ad: "On its clasp, you'll recognize the Rolex crown. So will other people."
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