Why Lincoln says it's loving Ellen and Conan MKC ad spoofs [w/videos]

Mon, 13 Oct 2014

You would think that commercial being ridiculed across the Internet would be an advertising executive's worst nightmare, but that's not necessarily the case. At least not when it comes to Lincoln and its latest campaign to promote the new MKC.

The campaign features Matthew McConaughey channeling his characters from True Detective and The Lincoln Lawyer, and was quickly spoofed by both Conan O'Brien and Ellen DeGeneres. But instead of shaking their heads in dismay at the comedy talk-show hosts' take on their ad, Lincoln and its advertising firm Hudson Rouge welcome the free publicity.

"We're flattered. Just to get out into the public mind with parodies says you've achieved a certain amount of notoriety," Hudson Rouge CCO Jon Pearce told Automotive News. "It's hard to put a dollar amount on earned media. We couldn't ask for better."

While the two original ads themselves garnered a combined 677,000 views on YouTube, Conan's spoof attracted 219,000 views, and Ellen's another 3.1 million. We've included both spoofs below for your viewing pleasure. The social-media popularity has undoubtedly garnered some buzz for Lincoln, which has fallen from #1 status among luxury auto marques in the US back in 1998 to eighth place this year.

By Noah Joseph