So Heinz pulled their "men kissing" TV ad in the UK for their New York Deli Mayo range after the ASA got a stream of complaints.
Again controversy meant that Heinz was all over the papers, and this little known product in their range and the brand was being talked about in all the media. It also became the most watched video clip on the Guardian newspaper website and on YouTube with have zillions of hits.
The thing with controversy is that it does help you stand out in a world of mediocre and bland ads. And I suspect often does not affect brand image if done cleverly.
The easy way for marketers to go is this route. But (of course) this is also a somewhat risky approach. But the learning is key: You need to be brave enough to create copy that will really stand out and be noticed and be remembered without resorting to just controversy.
Of course no-one can probably remember what the Heinz ad was communicating as the men kissing swamped the message. So all it did is increase awareness - and maybe that was the brief. This was a bit like the strange Cadbury Gorilla and even stranger Cadbury racing airport trucks. But don't get me started on those!
Your thoughts? Email them by clicking here or on the blog posting now!
If you have not seen the ad, watch it: click here or on the blog posting
No comments:
Post a Comment