Finally, a commercial that doesn’t scream at you

venturing-videoDespite what car dealerships seem to believe, subtlety in advertising isn’t dead.

Case in point: the BSA’s new “We Are Venturers” promo video, a 90-second glimpse into a typical day in the life of a real group of Venturers. Watch the video after the jump.

The messaging eschews the hard-sell approach common in today’s TV commercials for a toned-down feel better suited for teens. I caught up with Ryan Hill, part of the BSA’s national marketing team that shot the video near San Francisco, to find out more.

“We already have videos of Venturers hanging off cliffs and ice climbing and traveling to New York and Paris,” he says. “So I wanted this video to highlight the more-accessible aspects of Venturing and nod to the adage that ‘it’s not what you do but who you do it with.'”

Indeed, social interaction represents one of Venturing’s core qualities. That’s why the BSA recently added an official Facebook page for Venturing. Be sure you and your crew give it a Like. It’s a natural extension of Venturing camaraderie into the digital realm.

“Venturers make the most of whatever they do together, whether it’s a river clean-up service project, a day hike, or just hanging out in the park for the afternoon,” Hill says. “With that in mind, we also focused on capturing a lot of laughter and interaction between Venturers. And we really wanted to drive home the co-ed element of Venturing that makes it so unique from other BSA offerings. Nothing flirtatious, just guys and girls — as buddies — hanging out.”

And how has the response been?

“We showed this to our Venturing youth leadership panel, and they all reacted overwhelmingly positively, making statements like, ‘I feel so proud to be a Venturer’ and ‘I can’t wait to share this with all my friends and family because THIS is what Venturing looks like for me.'”

That’s high praise. Take a look … 

Watch the video

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About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.