Bad Idea Central: Toyota Sued After Viral Marketing Attempt Convinced Woman She Was Being Stalked
from the who-comes-up-with-these-things? dept
Lots of companies are aiming to create all kinds of "viral advertising," and certainly automated "prank calls" that are really ads (often for movies) have become common in the last few years. But that doesn't do much to excuse Toyota's behavior. Apparently, the company put together a promotional campaign that allowed friends to freak out their friends, by convincing them they were being stalked. Here's how Toyota described it:YourOtherYou is a unique interactive experience enabling consumers to play extravagant pranks. Simply input a little info about a friend (phone, address, etc.) and we'll then use it, without their knowledge, to freak them out through a series of dynamically personalized phone calls, texts, emails and videos. First, one of five virtual lunatics will contact your friend. They will seem to know them intimately, and tell them that they are driving cross-country to visit. It all goes downhill from there. The Matrix integrates seamlessly into the experience and you can follow the progress of your prank in real-time online. Each piece of the campaign assures that the experience is as Google-proof as possible.Sound like fun? Not really. Especially not for Amber Duick, who "had difficulty eating, sleeping and going to work" after receiving a bunch of phone calls from this prank, believing that some "lunatic" stranger was on his way from England to see her. At one point, she even received a bill from a hotel that this stranger supposedly "trashed." Har har. Buy a Toyota.
How does Toyota defend the campaign? By claiming that Duick agreed to it. How, you ask? Well, Toyota sneakily inserts "permission" into a personality test it sends the "victim" of the prank, from the "friend" who initiated it. It's difficult to see how that kind of agreement stands up in court. Hiding an agreement for something entirely different (and pretty damn creepy) inside the agreement for a personality test from a friend? How is that informed consent?
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Filed Under: stalking, viral advertising
Companies: toyota
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What in the name of ANYTHING does this have to do with convincing the customer to BUY A TOYOTA?
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I hope this chick gets lots of money out of this. Bloody morons at Toyota, who could think this was a good idea?
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Well, if you've ever watched a Japanese Game-Show, or their version of "Candid Camera", you'd know exactly who could think this was a good idea: The Japanese.
My God, they are downright cruel.
...but hilarious.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5rzYr8GnE8
CBMHB
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What in the name of ANYTHING does this have to do with convincing the customer to BUY A TOYOTA?
Does anyone have a clue as to how they think this will help them sell cars?
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No I dont know how this would sell cars .... but if a I see a woman screaming by the side of the road everytime a toyota drives by, I will ask if her name is Amber Duick ....
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What the agreement probably said was that Duick was willing to accept marketing from Toyota. But that certainly didn't happen here. As you point out, how can this BS sell more Toyotas?
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Twits
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Re: Twits
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High-larious
Now excuse me while I go use this prank on someone.
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Re: High-larious
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Being sneaky was necessary
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Toyota marketing
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You got to be kidding. I blame Hollywood. Think of the children, as well as the easily scared when you write your screenplays!
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It was an asshole move by Toyota
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hilarious
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I think they teach getting the client to say yes to some irrelevant and nonthreatening topic (because saying yes once makes it easier for them to say yes to the purchase) in the same course where they teach that you should instill fear then offer your product to ease the fear. I wonder how buying a Toyota is protection from stalkers.
Alas, just like the 80/20 rule that forgets that the long tail is often what gets the customer in the store in the first place, a lot of marketing is based on unsupported myths.
The preponderance of marketing today seems very much like it came from Darren Stevens trying to cover up something that went horribly wrong for Samantha rather than trying to win customers and keep them.
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Great prank, though, and I'm sure a lot of less paranoid people got laughs out of it before the bad press.
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how 'bout this?
How about trying not to by a pussy about it?
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Re: how 'bout this?
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Mike Moon is a Pussy
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Re: Mike Moon is a Pussy
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It's worked for scientology!
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where can i sign up?
Having said that, if there is any liability, shouldn't there be some on the friend who signed her up in the first place, and not just Toyota? After all, it was her friend who gave them the link/info.
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RE: It was an asshole move by Toyota
What's your wife's phone number, email and home address? C'mon, it'll be hilarious, won't it? Wrong. Get a grip dude, this goes way beyond the line of 'practical joke', just like all those shows where they 'simulate' people breaking into your house in murdering you (I think the show's called 'scare tactics'). They are just exploiting human fear for entertainment, and its extremely shameful.
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Where's the criminal prosecution?
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They stole the idea...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119174/
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