Ad campaigns you hate/hated

[Zeuhl34]

What are some of your least favorite current and past advertising campaigns? As anyone who has ever watched TV with me can tell you, most of what I do is bitch about commercials. Some of mine:

• Those Progressive ads with the way-too-happy girl Flo.
• Those Mac/PC Apple Computer ads.
• Almost every car commercial ever made.
• The most recent Geicko commercials with the gecko.
• Olive Garden's commercials.
• Every radio commercial I've ever heard.

 

[Pendlum]

Bing.com commercials. Especially the back pain one, IT'S FUCKING BACH, THEY AREN'T EVEN SPELLED THE SAME YOU CUNT. >:O I agree with your list, especially the Mac vs PC ones because A.) PC doesn't mean Windows, and B.) You have to be a tool to really think Macs run like the Roman aqueducts or something and never fail.

 

[MichiganRico]

What are some of your least favorite current and past advertising campaigns? As anyone who has ever watched TV with me can tell you, most of what I do is bitch about commercials. Some of mine:

• Those Progressive ads with the way-too-happy girl Flo.
• Those Mac/PC Apple Computer ads.
• Almost every car commercial ever made.
• The most recent Geicko commercials with the gecko.
• Olive Garden's commercials.
• Every radio commercial I've ever heard.

I have to disagree about Apple's PC/Mac ads. IMHO, they're some of the smartest on television. My bf and I were laughing our asses off last night during DH when the new Windows 7, "Trust me," ad aired. Art does mimic life with every new version of MS Windows tauted as the solution for all of the problems with the previous incarnations of the OS. (Still hasn't made me buy a Mac, though I'm thinking about it.)

For a dislike, the Travelocity gnome--I'm thoroughly over it.

 

[Pendlum]

I have to disagree about Apple's PC/Mac ads. IMHO, they're some of the smartest on television. My bf and I were laughing our asses off last night during DH when the new Windows 7, "Trust me," ad aired. Art does mimic life with every new version of MS Windows tauted as the solution for all of the problems with the previous incarnations of the OS. (Still hasn't made me buy a Mac, though I'm thinking about it.)

For a dislike, the Travelocity gnome--I'm thoroughly over it.

I don't consider them smart because they pander to those who are generally stupid with computers. Of course I think the "I'm a PC" rebuttal by Microsoft is dumb too.

Man I can't wait until I can build a new computer so I can put Linux on it.

 

[Zeuhl34]

I also forgot to mention the ads for that kgb texting service. The idea is so stupid I hate the commercials (particularly when it takes place at a house or classroom or if the person texted from an internet-enabled phone).

And those Mac/PC commercials, I hate them because they're not about features. They're about the Mac IMAGE and the old myth that Macs can't get viruses. The whole point of the commercials are "I'm trendy. Fuck you, you un-hip loser!" That's why I hate them.

 

[invisibleman]

What are some of your least favorite current and past advertising campaigns? As anyone who has ever watched TV with me can tell you, most of what I do is bitch about commercials. Some of mine:

• Those Progressive ads with the way-too-happy girl Flo.
• Those Mac/PC Apple Computer ads.
• Almost every car commercial ever made.
• The most recent Geicko commercials with the gecko.
• Olive Garden's commercials.
• Every radio commercial I've ever heard.

I hate the "Put it in me, Scott! Quizno Subs Toasty Torpedo campaign" commercials.
I don't like the EXTENZE commercials.
I don't like the CREDIT REPORT DOT COM commercials with those fuckers singing songs. Especially the one where they are singing while on a rollercoaster.

 

[Pendlum]

I always think of Russia when I see the KGB commercials, which quickly becomes Metal Gear Solid related.

Pretty much any beer or hard alcohol commercial, they are just generally terrible. But especially those Coors ones with the coach's after game talk edits.

 

[2322]

Local car dealer ads. Why are they all universally awful?? Do these people ever hire an ad agency?

MADD ads trying to keep the drinking age at 21. Selfish unthinking social engineering bitches.

Hoverround, Plavix, and just about every other infirmity/drug ad. They're all awful... except for, "Help! I've fallen!" which is unintentionally hilarious.

This ad is HORRIBLE. It's over 20 years old and I STILL remember it for being the worst fucking ad.

30 seconds of memorable vapidity that became an icon. God help us.

And now for an ad I love.

 

[whatireallywant]

Hoverround, Plavix, and just about every other infirmity/drug ad. They're all awful... except for, "Help! I've fallen!" which is unintentionally hilarious.

I have to change the channel when the Plavix ad comes on, but not just that I hate the commercial. Side effects from Plavix are what KILLED MY MOM!!!! :frown1:

The other "worst" commercials for me are anything involving gender stereotyping (as anyone who knows me would guess!) - like that one for Centrum Men's vitamins that say stuff about "Things made just for men" and show a picture of a power drill. Sorry, folks but power tools are gender-neutral!!! If they want to actually show a picture of things really made just for men, they should show pictures of condoms and jock straps. :biggrin1:

 

[Zeuhl34]

The other "worst" commercials for me are anything involving gender stereotyping (as anyone who knows me would guess!) - like that one for Centrum Men's vitamins that say stuff about "Things made just for men" and show a picture of a power drill. Sorry, folks but power tools are gender-neutral!!! If they want to actually show a picture of things really made just for men, they should show pictures of condoms and jock straps. :biggrin1:

But power drills are awfully phallic. A piece of hard steel plunging into a piece of wood, making sawdust erupt from the hole. You can practically hear the 2x4 climaxing.:biggrin1:

 

[D_Andreas Sukov]

the ant and dec Wii ads. they try and make it look like they are not getting paid or something. "what i love about the Wii......" ......is the 500k your getting? please.....

 

[HazelGod]

Verizon's "can you hear me now?" campaign from several years back.

The Dodge Neon campaign that ran when the model was launched that all ended with the car zipping up to the camera followed by "Hi!" being superimposed on the image.

I wanted to punch both the Verizon guy and the Neon every time I saw them.

With the advent of Tivo, commercials no longer register on my radar.

 

[Empathizer]

The Etrade ads with the sexualized baby boy, and the Quiznos ads that preceded them.

It is NOT FUCKING CUTE AND FUNNY THAT A GROWN WOMAN IS SUPPOSEDLY FUCKING A BABY, YOU MADISON AVENUE DICKHEAD!!! I have to change the channel when I see those and I feel like, if America's empire falls all the way, one of the major things that fucks it over will be the idea that it's cute to have sex with babies. WHOSE IDEA WAS THAT?!?! Is Mary Kay LeTourneau on your payroll?! Are you the same dickheads who think it's cute to keep writing "lol Can't wait till that new Nickelodeon/Disney Channel star/starlet is legal so it will be okay to show everyone my bad photoshops of him/her naked as the character he/she plays" jokes for late-night talk show hosts? is it the same freaks who thought it was okay to cast a little kid as Esther in Orphan?

 

[HazelGod]

The Etrade ads with the sexualized baby boy

It is NOT FUCKING CUTE AND FUNNY THAT A GROWN WOMAN IS SUPPOSEDLY FUCKING A BABY, YOU MADISON AVENUE DICKHEAD!!!

I've seen several annoying spots from that "talking baby" campaign, but never that one...fucking creepy. Perhaps they don't air it in "conservative" markets like Texas.

 

[2322]

The talking baby ads are creepy but the latest one I saw was really rude. Supposedly baby and this other guy went to play golf and the other guy can't pay his bet because his investments tanked. I understand it's a point of honor to pay gentlemanly bets but baby is such a complete dick about it that the ad makes E*Trade look like a bunch of assholes and baby growing-up to be a complete douche nozzle.

 

[BiItalianBro]

Using Walt Whitman to sell jeans. I dont know if its the 'old tyme' phonograph voice over or what, but i find it creepy.

YouTube - Levi's - OPioneers! (Go Forth) Commercial

 

[SilverTrain]

Totally agree about the local auto dealer ads. So, so lame. WTF?

Totally agree about the ETrade ads. Might possibly have been cute the first time. Eh, NOPE. And they are getting worse and worse.

Any ad pitching erectile dysfunction medication. When one's small child absent-mindedly sings "Viva Viagra" while on a walk, things are bad. Real bad. How about we stop showing these ads in the afternoon, for heaven's sake?

Any "infomercial". EVER.

 

[B_Nick8]

I don't think I've see any ads since I got dvr. I don't begin watching any tv show for 15 or 20 minutes and then I fast forward through all of them. :biggrin1:

 

[2322]

Using Walt Whitman to sell jeans. I dont know if its the 'old tyme' phonograph voice over or what, but i find it creepy.

YouTube - Levi's - OPioneers! (Go Forth) Commercial

Very interesting...

I actually like this ad to a degree. The reading of Whitman is exceptional. That's first class by any measure and it's pleasant to hear. I also like the two gay guys making out. I think that's fun.

I think they could have created some better images that better tap into Levi's heritage. Not a whole lot of companies can claim to be true icons of the old west but Levi's can and it's a smart move to capitalize on that. I wish they'd stuck closer to that theme.

 

[MercyfulFate]

Pretty much the majority of them right now. There's this pervasive theme in advertising that "Everything will be alright, so buy buy buy!" as if nothing has changed.

As someone who got laid off, when I see all these commercials of people with jobs...I would not want to buy it. Although many of the proles probably see it, want to be like them, and buy it anyway.