I’ve enjoyed the series of AT&T 3G Laptop Connect Card commercials featuring broadcast journalist Bill Kurtis. The intended message is very clear – use AT&T’s products and services and you’ll be productive with the Internet anywhere. The delivery of this message in various Kurtis commercials is clever and witty which, for me at least, has aided message retention.

The latest thirty-second spot has Kurtis challenging Olympic swimmer and mutltiple gold medal winner Michael Phelps to a race, not in the pool but on the Internet. Kurtis uses the 3G Connect Card poolside to access information with ease while Phelps, without the aid of 3G, snails along. As the commercial closes Kurtis has Phelps’ swim cap on and most recent eight gold medals around his neck. Phelps gives him a puzzled look. Fade to black.

That’s all it takes, and the message hits home with credibility, relevance, and timeliness considering it’s just a month after closing ceremonies in Beijing and Phelp’s Olympic afterglow is still warm.

As spokesperson value goes, Kurtis and Phelps provide genuine credibility. Kurtis is an accomplished newsman stretching back to his formative years in the late 60′s. His documentary work in recent years is cementing his legend – the formal narration voice, that serious look in his eye, in-depth journalism without the aid of many fabricated extras, and even his lighthearted demeanor in the AT&T spots all serve him well.

For his part, Phelps is a real American sports hero, even if his sport is boring. It’s worth appreciating all the dedication and effort that helped him accomplish his records (and his famous eat-sleep-swim regimen is impressive too). While he doesn’t have the allure that an NBA star may bring to a commercial, he’s also not an overpaid baby with tattoos all over his body who whines on and off the court. Similarly, if I have to choose between Phelps or a millionaire second-string NFL quarterback for my commercial, I’m taking Phelps.

The use of truly respected spokespeople – perhaps with lesser amounts of fame and fortune -to deliver corporate messages to the masses makes a lot of sense to me. It conveys more sincerity and has a better likelihood of attaching the spokesperson’s inherent qualities to a product, and getting that product the consumer mindshare it needs to compete.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2q9Znp8U0U]