WTF?
May 2, 2009
I really liked the ad with the transformer citroen car performing a dance. The slogan was catchy too, “alive with technology”. However recently I’ve come across this dancing breakfast advert for Danish sauce and pretty much both ads are identical including the idea, the soundtrack and the slogan. I don’t know what to say, I’m pretty disappointed cause I liked the citroen dance. 
Citroen version
Danish version
Marketing: Cause We Are Living In A Material World
March 16, 2009
As long as I can remember, I’ve always been fascinated by ads; pulling into a trance and ignoring everything else whenever an ad came up. It’s not like I’m a big consumer or anything but I enjoy their attempt to persuade me or even brainwash me into buying their product. I lay down my defenses and take in every pixel of the images, convincing slogans and luring jingles; just to see what it’ll do to me, the after effect of a short term -and voluntary- trance.
However, as time has moved on and the market place has expanded, the purpose “to convince” has gotten out of hand. Every trick which promises you victory is considered to be licit; the very reason of the emergence of nasty ads we’ve been coming across lately. Companies and brands can no longer settle with subtle ads and wait for the message to get caught. It has to be fast to keep up with the technological improvements and rapid expansion of the market. It has to be fast, it has to be simple; it other words it has to be bold. Make it bold. Make it big. Print it in red. Shout it out loud. Bad mouth your rivals. Do anything. To sell sell sell. Cause we are living in a material world.
I find this strategy very aggressive and repelling. Who knows, maybe there IS a difference between a good ad – a bad ad after all.
