I have written about the increasing ability of consumers to screen out messages that they don’t want to receive. I observe my kids as they effortlessly avoid anything they aren't interested in, embrace technologies like iPod and TiVo that help them skip or avoid commercial intrusion, but at the same time stop a fast forwarding TiVo to watch a commercial they find amusing. This led me to propose that businesses were going to have to find a way to be funny or entertaining in order to reach customers.
But recently I have seen another phenomenon at work that presents an alternative to being funny and engaging. You can create a commercial that is so bad it is remarkable.
And not just in the sense that it is so bad it is good, but one that is so bad that people talk about it. That kind of remarkable.
In the past several weeks,I have seen multiple people stop and comment on this one particular commercial currently playing in the Chicago area and talk about how much they don't like it. My kids even re-wound TiVo to play the commercial for me and tell me how much they hated it.
A couple days later we were having a party at our house and the TV was on in the background with the sound turned down and this particular commercial came on. Someone noticed it and immediately began a commentary on how terrible the commercial is. Another guest who had missed the beginning of the diatribe walked over and said, "what are you talking about?" At which point the speaker grabbed a remote and rewound the commercial so they could share the whole story.
This falls into the uncomfortable zone of, "Yikes, this smells terrible! Here you smell it..."
But then I started thinking about the real goal of a commercial. Isn't it to be memorable? Does it really matter what causes it to be memorable? OK, it shouldn't offend your target audience, but does it have to be good?
I'll bet that you can think of a few advertising jingles. You know the ones that get into your head in the morning and stick with you all day. Do you remember any of them because you really like them? Probably you hate the jingle, but do you hold it against the company?
So here are a couple questions for you: Do you think that any company really sets out to make a commercial that is so bad it's remarkable or is this a fortunate accident? If this was an accidental strategy, would they be happy that people are talking about them even if they knew it was for this reason?
Can you guess what the commercial is that I am describing in this post? Hint, it has a jingle at the end.
But recently I have seen another phenomenon at work that presents an alternative to being funny and engaging. You can create a commercial that is so bad it is remarkable.
And not just in the sense that it is so bad it is good, but one that is so bad that people talk about it. That kind of remarkable.
In the past several weeks,I have seen multiple people stop and comment on this one particular commercial currently playing in the Chicago area and talk about how much they don't like it. My kids even re-wound TiVo to play the commercial for me and tell me how much they hated it.
A couple days later we were having a party at our house and the TV was on in the background with the sound turned down and this particular commercial came on. Someone noticed it and immediately began a commentary on how terrible the commercial is. Another guest who had missed the beginning of the diatribe walked over and said, "what are you talking about?" At which point the speaker grabbed a remote and rewound the commercial so they could share the whole story.
This falls into the uncomfortable zone of, "Yikes, this smells terrible! Here you smell it..."
But then I started thinking about the real goal of a commercial. Isn't it to be memorable? Does it really matter what causes it to be memorable? OK, it shouldn't offend your target audience, but does it have to be good?
I'll bet that you can think of a few advertising jingles. You know the ones that get into your head in the morning and stick with you all day. Do you remember any of them because you really like them? Probably you hate the jingle, but do you hold it against the company?
So here are a couple questions for you: Do you think that any company really sets out to make a commercial that is so bad it's remarkable or is this a fortunate accident? If this was an accidental strategy, would they be happy that people are talking about them even if they knew it was for this reason?
Can you guess what the commercial is that I am describing in this post? Hint, it has a jingle at the end.
So which ad is it? I can think of quite a few. One that comes to mind is the one where the little kid is on the front lawn with his Dad. American middle-class suburbia. His Dad is watering flowers and the kid is involved in something that is getting him really messy. Mom comes out of the house and yells to the kid that if he cleans up they can get Ben & Jerry's ice cream. When she goes back in, Dad (yes the Dad!) turns the hose full blast on the kid! Why? The idea is to get him clean fast enough so that they can get Ben & Jerry's ice cream. The water is so forceful it almost knocks the kid flat! But it's so important to get the great tasting ice-cream, he'll do anything even if it means child abuse! This ad is just not cute nor funny. Makes you wonder how many messages are being sent here?
But I never remember ads. I may remember what takes place but I can't tell you the product. Hasn't the ad achieved what it set out to do? It makes me wonder what's so great about the product that a Dad would do bodily harm to his child to have it. Maybe I should try it too. On the other hand, is that the right product?
Posted by: Stanhope | June 30, 2008 at 11:56 AM