I know there have been previous BR threads on this topic, but why do the ad agencies who advertise cars and car-related products continue to treat us as simple-minded morons?
Recent offenders:
The Vauxhall Corsas running around and playing silly games. I get the feeling that Vauxhall ads over the last few years are in the hands of agencies who are being paid back-handers by other manufacturers. (TIC comment).
The Mitsubishi Colts playing football.
The Citroen C4 that turns into a dancing robot.
The Volvo ad with people having inane conversations about space suits, life on Mars etc.
The people acting like cretins who ring up and ask ?Quote me Happy?
I know people will say that at least they?ve made an impact and I remember the brands advertised, but all that?s happened is that the ads have portrayed a totally negative image of their product. There is no way that I would even consider buying any of the above products.
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I think you'll find that they are trying to connect with the "simple-minded morons" out there!
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I like the Corsas playing hide and seek. I enjoy the C4 dancing robot and, whilst I think the Volvo ads are weird, I quite like them. Of the three I might buy a volvo but I wouldn't buy the other two anyway.
However, the "Quote me happy" advert is appalling and drives me nuts.
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The insurance ones are definitely the worst.
I hate the 'quote me happy' advert with a passion almost equal to the Michael Winner Esure 'calm down dear'.Thats Lucky drives me up the wall and the Laguna 'come fly with me'makes me switch off.
The current one I do like is the Mazda getting its own back on the dog peeing on its wheel by squirting it in the eye with its headlamp washer...
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Yeh i have to agree with you about the "quote me happy!" advert because it is pretty daft isnt it? I mean do you anyone who does that when they ring round for an insurance quote???
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Its not what you drive, its how you drive it! :-)
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Seemingly unlike everyone else, I can't stand any of the Honda adverts in the past couple of years *especially* that annoying diesel one. The Jazz advert a while back (But hang on.... aren't we all just trying to get somewhere?) was pretty annoying too...
The C4 advert is clearly designed to appeal to the Transformer generation and I actually thought it was pretty clever!
~J
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advertising is a strange thing, the fact that people talk about an advert means it is working it's weird but it works ok you may not buy a corsa but you talk about the advert meaning i who may not have seen it now want to see it and so on some of these people think oh i like that car on that silly advert and so on...cheers...keo.
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I think some car adverts should have those silly warnings you see on film adverts nowadays - e.g. 'contains moderate peril'.
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the worst one had to be Griff Rhys Jones in his underpants for the Vauxhall VX220.
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Friend cancelled his NU insurance on the strength of the "Quote me happy" adverts. Call centre operative confirmed he wasn't the first... Still it must be working for them, as they are persisting with them!
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RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
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I complete a number of online surveys and was recently asked my opinion of the "Quote me happy" advert. There was a large space for free text at the ned after all the obligatory questions and I wrote this or summat like it:
" I try to ignore adverts on TV. I find the memory of them does not stay apart from a few exceptional ones: like the Hamlet ads with Russ Abbott (age!) , the Jack Dee beer ads etc and now these "quote me happy ads".
Unfortunately the Quote Me Happy ads stay with me because they protray a simpleton and a moron in a moronic way which is highly condescending to the viewer.And the voice! Apalling . As a result I shall remember Norwich Union for years and NEVER buy any of their products"
Takes something to make me remember an advertiser connected with any advert. They have succeeded : in totally the wrong way..
Maybe it's highly successful..
madf
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What amazes me is how some manufacturers allow their goods to be portrayed.
In the example of the Mazda ad the headlight washer pours water over anything but the headlight.
The Citroen falls apart and the electrics do bizarre things (although having owned a Citroen this is probably not false advertising).
The one that really makes me laugh is the new Freelander ad. Is it trying to say the car will make you appear more rugged- or that the authorities will try and feed you to tigers.
Am probably being far too literal- but that is what the ads make me think.
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There?s one ad which I find really sickening. It?s the Toyota Avensis ad with the four or five suits bragging about what they earn. You know the one? I can?t remember the dialogue but it?s kinda "I doubled my sales target this year" "Oh yeah, well the M.D. says I?ll be on the board by April" "Well I got a fifty percent raise last month" Then they all sit in the Avensis and turn to the driver as if he?s driving a Maybach "What did you say you did again?" and he says (very smuggly) "I didn't"
If I anybody ever dared speak that cheesy kind of jargon to me, I?d hit him in the face with a shovel. Do Toyota?s admen really think we soooo want to be like them, that we?d buy the car?
Another thing I hate is a motoring advert that tries to make a tune out of car noises like doors slamming, wipers wiping and engines revving, a truly overused, bottom of the barrel idea that has currently been scraped up by the AA ad team. Vroom vroom, clunk click, swish swish. Wow! You got me boys! Where do I sign?
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There was always the New Vauxhall Cavalier advert with Ed Harris.
Made everyone else's adverts look intelligent and European as opposed to imported straight from the US advertising studio. (JC was right!:-)
madf
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I think the C4 ad is very clever, along with the Honda "rolling parts" (since copied for another product), the Golf GTI and Puma Gene Kelly and Steve McQeeen recreations and several others.
However ads in which people shout, such as the man in the mayonnaise ad and those for a certain double-glazing company, make me vow never to buy their product or use their services....:-)
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Agree with BigBadDave re the suits in the Advensis - but their ad with the picky Mother-in-Law is brilliant. Still would n't entice me to buy an Advensis though.
Some ads can be very effective. Remember the Audi ad where the flash young upstart (aspirational BMW diver?) thrashes the Audi on a test drive and then rejects it?
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I love the Honda Adverts! I want the new 'change something' tune as my ringtone. :)
I also love the way they've had to change the end of the Corsa advert so that the black one doesn't crash into the lamp post and bend it into the shape of the car any more - we all know the bean can car would come off worse and I suspect the ASA agreed and made them change it!
On a kind of related topic, HJ, I can't believe you have sold your soul to the devil and accepted an ad from 'Yes-you can get yourself into massive debt and still be paying for your car in ten years time-car credit'. Shame on you!
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"I can't believe you have sold your soul to the devil"
Unlike the dyslexic devil-worshipper who sold his soul to Santa.
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Kev?
Bev?
Bev?
Kev?
AA --- Arrgggggghhhhhhhhhh.
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Bottom line is that whilst certain adverts do bomb (John Clees for Sainsbury's, etc) in general they do increase revenue.
Given the cost of advertising is a significant factor for a new product, you can certain that the 'suits' will have made damn sure
it going to pay off.
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Given the cost of advertising is a significant factor for a new product, you can certain that the 'suits' will have made damn sure it going to pay off.
Dunno about that Malcolm. Many years ago a big company CEO made the observation:
"Half the money we spend on advertising is wasted. Trouble is, we don't know which half!"
Seriously though, does anyone have any views about why these adverts are so silly and make their targets look stupid?
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If you think about it, we are here with lots of people reading this and the names of Norwich Union, Mazda et al are all being discussed. Effectively just writing their nmes down here is subliminally advertising them. When people come to get quotes for their cars you can bet in 90% of cases people will include a quote from the company they have heard of most often. (Other inteligent people who have also contributed to this discussion will quite rightly avoid them on principle but the majority rule.
Think about it. With Washing powder for example people will talk at work about how DIRE the latest advert is but they will be mentioning the brand time and time and time again.
That is my theory anyway!
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It's funny, I know. And I know that what I am going to say isn't strictly in a car thread. But, I feel the same about Sky TV adverts which all seem to be aimed at lumpen masses who have CC judgements and are looking for a loan, or those whose credit rating is so bad....they need lawyers to sue someone (with no up front fees) to get money. Maybe they are desperate to buy one of the cars they have seen in the silly ads?
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What about the Renault (?) one where the thing scampers about on the driveway wagging it's rear wiper?
Are they really trying to say "This car is a totally uncontrollable dog"?
Kevin...
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At the other end of the spectrum, the Audi ads are sublime. A real joy to watch - the DNA for the A8 and the flying letters for the A4 that spell out the shoutline. Absolutely spot on. An advert for the ad agency as much as the car.
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Best car-ad I've seen was an ad for Nissan shown during Superbowl a few years ago.
A guy is driving his new Nissan home from the carwash when he's spotted by a flock of pigeons (flying in formation complete with flying helmets and goggles.) Lead Pigeon despatches successive crews to dive bomb the Nissan. The driver takes evasive action and all of them fail until there's only the Lead Pigeon left. He goes into a stuka dive and there's absolutely no way he's gonna miss until the guy makes a sharp turn into his garage and the door closes behind him leaving Lead pigeon embedded in the door.
Most US TV ads are complete carp but the Superbowl stuff is pure genious.
Has anyone seen the Budweiser dalmations?
Kevin...
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Just pray that Laurence Llewellyn Bowen and Lynda Barker don't start advertising cars!
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One reason why the superbowl isn't so popular in other countries is the loss of advertising. I miss it, that sunday just isn't the same without it.
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Don't mind any ad as long as it is fair to the sexes. The women as superbeings and men as knuckle dragging neaderthals adverts drive me crazy and I have taken part in boycotts of the products of the worst offenders.
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Car insurance ads in general annoy me - the most irritating being the one with the couple in the VW Beetle "so how much did you say you saved on car insurance" grrr
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I think the new Mazda one with the dog getting sprayed in the eye is hilrious - for all the wrong reasons. Dog walks round car, considers it very carefully then thinks 'yep, rubbish' and pees on it! An almost identical ad a few years ago for the Volvo S40 at east had the dog think twice and pee o something else......
The ad for the NHS looks quite good with the guy falling down the steps. The service sounds so good that I will plan a fall a little later to see if the service is as good as it promises!!!
Off for a lie down.............
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