Top 10 biggest advertising fails
THIS week, the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland upheld a complaint about a Paddy Power ad that featured athlete Oscar Pistorius. The bookies was offering to refund bets if the Olympian was found not guilty of murder. Their slogan was ‘Money back if he walks,’ but Pistorius is a double amputee. It’s not the first misjudged marketing campaign — here are some other glorious marketing ‘fails’.
Last Monday, a Sainsbury’s branch in Oxford stunned shoppers by marketing this season’s ‘slave look’. It embellished its DVD display for ‘12 Years a Slave’ with a mannequin dressed like the main character.
The model wore a ripped, beige shirt and black cut-offs, standing next to a ‘NEW’ sign. The supermarket apologised and, hopefully, lashed the dummy out of it (the one responsible for the display, not the mannequin). The supermarket slave theme gave a whole new meaning to the words ‘chain store’.
In 2005, US soft drinks company, Snapple, marketed its product line by attempting to set a world record for the largest ice pop. They drove a 17.5-ton ‘popsicle’ into the middle of New York… on a scorching-hot summer’s day.
The ice pop melted and waves of strawberry Snapple sluiced out of the lorry. It was “like that scene in The Shining where gallons of blood floods down the corridor”.
When Panasonic went into the PC market, they chose Woody Woodpecker, as their mascot. They named their device The Woody and its touch screen exhorted children to ‘touch Woody’. Better still, they called its web browser The Internet Pecker.
In 1971, Ford introduced the Pinto car to Brazil. Sales were disastrous. Then, someone pointed out ‘Pinto’ is Brazilian slang for ‘small penis’. Ford changed it to ‘Corcel’ which means ‘horse’ and sales, ahem, rose.
‘Mist’ is German for manure, so the Germans weren’t too keen on raising a glass of Irish ‘Crap’ liqueur or driving Rolls Royce’s Silver ‘Crap’.
Pepsi entered the Chinese market with the slogan ‘Pepsi brings you back to life’. It translated as: ‘Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave’.
Eco/green charity, 10:10’s climate-change campaign in 2010 was a short film of a teacher discussing ways to reduce carbon emissions. She notices two children aren’t ‘on board’ and presses a button that … murders them. After a backlash, the video was taken offline.
In 1992, Fiat launched a junk-mail campaign to market their Cinquecento hatchbacks. They wrote 50,000 ‘love letters’ on pink paper and posted them to “independent, modern, working women” in Spain. The letters contained musings from an anonymous admirer. “We met again on the street yesterday and I noticed how you glanced interestedly in my direction… Why not join me for a little adventure?” The letters had no indication that they were from Fiat. Scores of women locked themselves indoors, terrified of a stalker.
In the 1970s, US computer company, Wang, was perplexed that UK branches were not using its new motto ‘Wang Cares’. Say it out loud and you’ll see why.
US company, Gerber, horrified Africans with a campaign for baby food. Their packaging featured a chubby white baby. What Gerber didn’t realise is that many Africans are unable to read, so pictures of ingredients are used on food labels. Gerber appeared to be selling babies as food.
Ben and Jerry’s outraged Irish-America with an ice cream to celebrate Paddy’s Day in 2006. The Guinness mixed with pale ale was named the ‘Black and Tan’.
In 2012, furniture retailer Ikea Photoshopped all the women from its catalogue to appeal to the male chauvinist Saudi Arabian market. They later apologised, realising they didn’t have a leg to stand on. Just like Paddy Power and Oscar Pistorius…
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