At first I meant it as a bit of a joke.
After watching Justine and Chloe (and Maxine) Dufour-Lapointe race in the freestyle skiing event at the Sochi Olympics on Saturday and seeing Justine win gold and Chloe silver, I mentioned on Twitter that the Canadian Tourism Commission should enlist them immediately as ambassadors for travel to Canada.
The more I think about it, the more it makes sense. Lest we think these girls were only noticed north of the border, I can tell you that my Dad lives in California and read about the D-L girls and saw them on TV and loved their story. Imagine that? Americans learning about a pair of Canadian medal winners at the Olympics!
Anyway, it’s a wonderful story. And the girls are red hot right now in terms of media. Canadian red hot. So here’s what I propose: a VERY QUICK campaign that focusses on the joy and wonder the entire world saw on those girls’ faces after the race and after yesterday’s medal ceremony.
Wouldn’t it be great? Someone could put together a quick commercial (easy in these social media days) that has some fun with Canadian-American relations. Maybe it starts with “We Canadians may dress a little differently than you,” and there would be someone in a goofy hat with those flaps like duck hunters wear, and maybe even a fashion model at a show in Toronto or Montreal. Then maybe it says “We Canadians may favour different sports than you,” and there would be a curling match (good tie-in to the Games in Sochi) and perhaps a Toronto FC crazy people stadium shot. Then we could say something like “But you know what? We are family.” Then the commercial would cut to all three girls together, maybe alone or with their parents, and then show the now-famous holding hands together on the podium photo.
The finish to the commercial, in my mind, would be the shot of the girls holding hands and the words “We Are Family,” tying in how Canadians and Americans are like cousins. Then we could say something like “Come see us Sometime” as a tag line.
I don’t know. I’m no ad guy and no marketing guru. But it doesn’t take a genius to see these young women are gold. And silver.
The sisters were talking Sunday about maybe going into fashion. That’s great, but in the meantime let’s put them to work to raise our nation’s profile and to lure more Americans north of the border to help give our economy a needed boost.
The world has noticed the Dufour-Lapointe women. Maybe it’s time we capitalize….
