Ford’s new Focus “spokesman” is Doug the condescending orange sock puppet. Simply put, this is hands-down the funniest ad campaign I’ve seen ever. The core of the content is over 40 videos, all housed in a tricked-out YouTube channel, in which Doug and his hapless human coworker/sidekick embark on a chaotic and hilarious marketing tour. It’s a classic comic setup — Doug, the prankster, and John, the straight man. 

The videos delicately interweave promotions for the Focus while building riotously entertaining storylines about the marketers’ adventures. The whole concept is very meta — it’s essentially Ford mocking the practice of automotive marketing. 

Of course, you can follow the characters on Twitter and Facebook and every platform kindly directs viewers to the Focus website. 

I respect Ford’s commitment to providing ads that function as entertainment in their own right. However, I wonder whether the Focus is even a little too peripheral to the story. I’m not even sure I could call some of these videos ads. Some almost feel like product placement. Intentional? I think so.