Dodgy advertising techniques

[dataDave]

There was an article in The Independent yesterday about this. Apparently ASDA haven't used what they call the 'pocket-tap' for about 18 months but are bringing it back. I don't know why they are bothering, I personally find it to be one of the most f*cking annoying and nauseating things on TV!

ASDA is pure dirt. Anyone who buys meat or veg from there is a clown. Three times I've been and three times I've ended up with rotten meat and three times I've had problems getting them replaced.

[eastyy]

things i hate in ads

shaving ads......when you See the guy shave even though its obvious he was clean shaven already

shampoo ads ...when you see a woman having a orgasm from washing her hair...always expect the camera to pan down and to reveal she is having sex

l case immunatas....well any other words that try to make ads sound more important then they actually are

Perfume ads/deodrant ads...always thought they were pointless would be like advertising a new song but with no sound ....anyone remember that lynx ad where the guys sprays himself and thousands of Girls rush to him....i got through 3 cans and i can tell you thats lying

[charlesr]

Hah on that vein, how about adverts for new TVs that show amazing visuals and witter on about this and that and I'm sitting there going "this looks awesome on my TV" (even back when I had a CRT) "why would I want a new one?"

They should just tell me why it's better. Perhaps they aren't aimed at me

[Daniel]

moved to usa last summer and the ads here are unbelievable - especially the ads for drugs.

They normally show some women in suburban bliss going about their busy professional lives, or some old guy on a bike riding by a lake and playing with his grand kids or labrador puppy. Then, after the wholesome blurb about this drug benefiting your life, you get a lessen in speed reading as they rattle off ugly side effects like vomiting blood, severe headaches, loss of penile function, extreme nausea, death....and on and on for about 60 seconds. Then we cut back to the smiling happy people enjoying their life thanks to popping pills.

Private healthcare is one fu**ed up system.

[abigsmurf]

Yep US drug adverts are seriously messed up.

"Ask your doctor for morhpine!"

A patient should NEVER say something like that to doctors (unless you had a reaction to a specific drug and don't want that of course). Being required to read off all the side effects is amusing too. As far as I know, it's illegal to advertise prescription drugs in the UK except to doctors.

US adverts are also much more lax when it comes to direct comparisons between products. Over here it's very difficult to say somethings better than something else without being able to conclusively proove it so you get all that "better than the leading brand stuff".

The fact that most US ads are done by local stations rather than nationally does lead to some really great, tacky ads though.

[Asholay]

I've got to say, I love the tag-line for Maybeline... "Maybe she's born with it... maybe it's Maybeline!!"

They're basically saying:

"She could have been born with natural beauty... but no, it's most likely our product that makes her look good"



Absolutely love how much of a slap to the powdered-face that tag-line is, and yet it's so successful??

[Atticus]

lol, I don't remember seeing that one during the Superbowl ad-break

[gunrock]

Ah, but's because there is psychology at work there. The tagline suggests that someone else's beauty (i.e not the viewer's) may be down to a Maybelline product.

This works on two levels, first it tunes into women's natural pack instinct to snipe at beautiful women who are outside of their 'circle', you know, the "look at that tart, she thinks she's god's gift. Did you see her hair? Her hair? What about her moustache!" type of comments that women make about other women. Just watch Loose Women on tv for hours and hours of examples of such rabid bitchiness.

The second point is that it preys on women's insecurities, by suggesting that the product is so good, that nobody will ever be able to tell. Thus, the viewer could get some of their product herself and no-one need know she's the crater-faced minger that she's always believed she is.

It's genius.

[EJG1980]

Hah on that vein, how about adverts for new TVs that show amazing visuals and witter on about this and that and I'm sitting there going "this looks awesome on my TV" (even back when I had a CRT) "why would I want a new one?"

They should just tell me why it's better. Perhaps they aren't aimed at me

Reminds me of all the adverts I see for Sky HD which keep getting shown on the non-HD channels They use still pictures with a weird juddery 3D effect on them. It just looks strange and will make people think that HDTV runs a 1fps!