REPORT: Advertisers Are Obsessed With Boston Terriers Right Now
Although Buzzfeed listicles might imply that corgis or French bulldogs are the "it breeds" of the moment, Michael Ventre reports, "today definitely belongs to the Boston terrier."
“On a macro level, it’s just like anything in advertising—there tends to be trends in dogs,” TBWA/Chiat/Day ECD Patrick O'Neill explained to Adweek. “People just like certain breeds of dogs in certain cultural moments. Irish setters in the 1970s were everywhere. Now you never see them.”
Although the evidence used to support the Boston terrier claim comes in the form of a Mastercard commercial (that is very "Homeward Bound"-esque) from 2009 and a 2010 Doritos Super Bowl commercial.
In 2011, a pug was the star of one of Doritos' Super Bowl spot. A moonwalking Frenchie named Mr. Quiggly stole the spotlight in a Skechers 2012 spot. And a mutt helped VW follow-up its famous mini-Darth Vader ad.
In reality, it might not even be the year of the dog anymore, but rather the year of the goat. Doritos made it work in this hilarious 2013 Super Bowl ad. And Mountain Dew found itself in the center of major controversy surrounding the violent and racially stereotyping Felicia the Goat, a creation of Tyler the Creator. (But hey, all press is good press, right?)
Whether or not it is, indeed, the year of the Boston terrier, we can all agree that the dog's Mastercard ad is pretty adorable.