By now I’m sure you’ve seen the Levi’s jeans ads set in Braddock, Pa, a depressed section of Pittsburgh. To say the ad is risky is an understatement. It’s comparing a rusted out, poverty stricken area of modern America to the one you’d find circa 1890. But it uses this comparison to make a strong point: that even in harsh economic times and in areas dominated by blight, there is still signs of an American spirit that years to work, grow and endure.

At face value, the ads don’t sell jeans. But they sell a pride and commitment to our national spirit. The same pride and commitment to hard work that is at the core of the Levi’s brand.

Excellent work. And a prime example of how you can use sentiment to sell.

Also, it doesn’t hurt that Levi’s is backing a downtrodden area and donating monies towards its revitalization.