DailyDirt: Ads Gone Wrong

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Mon, May 6th 2013 5:00pm — Michael Ho

Commercials are always trying to get people's attention -- sometimes by being controversial and sometimes by being shocking. But even when a company tries to broadcast only sensitive and feel-good messages, there will always be some folks pointing out that companies don't really care about people as much as profits. Here are just a few advertisements that might have just missed getting their message across.

Why is it that car companies seem to have a hard time NOT making offensive ads? Ford India recently apologized for some terrible ads depicting bound and gagged women in the spacious hatchback trunk of a Ford Figo. But Ford wasn't the only example, Hyundai and GM also had some horrible commercials to retract recently. [url]
Dr Pepper posted an ad on Facebook with a common geeky joke, showing the evolution of humans -- starting with a chimp-like ancestor and ending with a modern upright person holding a can of his favorite beverage. Poking the beehive of anti-evolution religious folks might be a fairly safe way of creating some controversy, but it probably doesn't sell that much more sugar water. [url]
The Economist once ran an ad for itself, asking "Why should women read The Economist?" Maybe publications written by -- and read by -- mostly men should be a bit more careful when trying to step away from being a "Maxim for nerds"..? [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: ads, advertising, commercials, economist, failures, jokes, publicity
Companies: dove, dr pepper, ford, gm, hyundai

10 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 6 May 2013 @ 5:18pm

Maxim for Nerds...?
Isn't that Wired magazine?
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- RyanNerd (profile), 7 May 2013 @ 9:30am
  
  Re: Maxim for Nerds...?
  What are you talking about? I have a Nerdgasm every time I read The Economist.
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Anonymous Coward, 6 May 2013 @ 6:43pm

showing the evolution of humans -- starting with a chimp-like ancestor and ending with a modern upright person

oh, that's a 'geeky joke' !!!!

and the Grand Canyon was carved out by the great flood of Noah.
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zem, 6 May 2013 @ 7:35pm

And why do you expect more?
An add exists to try an make you buy something. While it may use art, science and morality in the sales pitch it is NOT ART, SCIENCE OR MORALITY.

When you view advertising with the respect it deserves (ie not much) there is no suprise when they get it wrong.
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- Rikuo (profile), 7 May 2013 @ 1:38am
  
  Re: And why do you expect more?
  Au contraire, some ads do elevate to the level of pure art.
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owGykVbfgUE
  
  They've done a whole series of ads based on that one, and they are AWESOME. Still haven't bought Old Spice, but I love watching the ads.
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Pixelation, 6 May 2013 @ 8:42pm

My favorite is the "Bad Terrorist" VW commercial.
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- Michael Ho (profile), 6 May 2013 @ 10:47pm
  
  Re: Bad terrorist
  That was not a real ad -- it was a viral video made without VW's consent.
  
  http://www.snopes.com/photos/advertisements/vwpolo.asp
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  - Anonymous Coward, 7 May 2013 @ 4:56am
    
    Re: Re: Bad terrorist
    Before it was cool ....
    
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexdroog70/2701038371/
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Anonymous Coward, 6 May 2013 @ 11:23pm

In what backwater nation would the idea of evolution possibly be considered controversial? Oh..
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Anonymous Coward, 7 May 2013 @ 9:23am

I think the Evolution one looks funny.. And it's a joke sort of. I don't see how it bothers me, unless they do that as forcing the belief to people who don't believe Evolution.
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