Annoying Ads

[meganbmoore]

I could post about stampedes at Wal-Mart where workers are trampled to death and pregnant women are knocked down and doors are broken off the hinges and shoppers refuse to leave because standing in line overnight is more important than pregnant women (but what was she doing in line anyway?) being injured and dead bodies (Now with pictures!) but that would get depressing.  (Not to mention, I suspect cliche at this point, as I've seen it about 50 times today.  Like Twilight posts.  Note that that doesn't really stop me.)  Instead, how about annoying ads?


Anyway, I don't watch TV a lot* and do most of my viewing via DVD, so I don't see that many commercials.  I do, however, hear plenty of ads on the raidio when I'm driving.  There are two in particular that annoy me.

One is for pizza delivery and is a scenario where a young couple has been incredibly busy for months and they haven't been able to hang out with their friends.  The husband** promises her a night out with their friends.  She's incredibly excited about getting out of the house and going somewhere to socialize and not being in the house.  He drives her around for a bit then takes her back to the house.  She, naturally, is all "WTF?  I thought we were going somewhere fun!"  and he says that it will be fun because *pizza delivery place* caters entire party fixings, ad their friends came over so the great night out is a great night in.  All cheer, isn't he the most considerate husband ever?

Do I need to explain the epic fail there?  The whole point was a night out of the house, where you don't have to worry about schedule and cleanup and whatnot, right?  Except it's at the house, meaning she doesn't get the change of scenery she wanted, one of them will have to clean up, and if she gets tired, she can't retire until everyone else leaves.  She has to either kick them out, or hope they notice and leave on their own.

The other is less rant inducing, but then, the ad is more straightforward.  It's for window replacements and touchups or somesuch.  The gist is that they're selling their services for cheap and emphasizing that that's ok, because as soon as the neighbors see what a great job they did on your windows, the neighbors will want the same and automatically come in flocks.  Ok, fine, nothing really annoying yet.  Except that in the ad, it says "anyone smart enough..." and "if you're smart enough...," implying that obviously, anyone who doesn't take advantage is an idiot.  Implication that my intellect is determined by whether or not I take advantage of your sale doesn't really win me over. This is just this one, but it's a trend I've noticed the last couple of years.

Anyway, those are mine.  What ads and commercials annoy you?


*Yes, the Disney Channel addiction runs strong, but aside from my recent addiction to The Wizards of Waverly Place (I actually like one!) and finding the Emperor's New Groove spinoff surprisingly watchable, I'm not sure most of that could be called "watching" so much as "boggling and wincing and suppressing rants as i wait for certain characters to show up."  Sadly (or not), even American Dragon cannot hold me.  Only the one episode I've seen has been from season 2, and it's too dull to hold my attention without the overwrought teenaged angst to mock.

**My prudishness jumps to this assumption.

Comments

[shediao.livejournal.com]

There used to be a cooking oil ad here with a tagline that said, "The right choice for housewives with common sense," or something along that line. There were protests - does that mean housewives/people not buying that brand don't have any common sense? - and the ad agency did away with the tagline.

In general, ads that annoy me are those for beauty products where it's shown that, if you use this or that product, cute guys will fall all over you. As if only the cute guys would notice that your looks have now improved and all other kinds of guys are blind to it.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

*shudder*

Yes, beauty product ones are...not my favorite thing. I try to forget they exist.

Honestly, though, why is insulting your potential customers such a popular marketting gimmick?

[shediao.livejournal.com]

Honestly, though, why is insulting your potential customers such a popular marketting gimmick?

They probably don't think of it as an insult per se, just trying to convince the customers that they lack something important in their life, and they can fix it by buying certain products. Unfortunately, neither do they remember that customers are, more often that not, intelligent enough to know that there's no single product that can work magic, let alone instant magic. (This is about beauty products and the like - I've no words for the cooking oil case)

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

That's the bad part, It hink. That they don't realize that the message insults their customers, and that the customers don't pay attention to what's actually being said.

It's like this one country song where the narrator is talking about how, now that his ex is marrying someone else, he realized why she wasn't happy with him. We're supposed to see it as her not communicating her problems and his deciding to try to do better, but it actually casts all blame on her, with his saying that he wouldn't have made her miserable anymore if he'd known, and it's her fault for never crying in front of him, and now he can see "all the signs."

[rhap-chan.livejournal.com]

I have nothing to say about ads because I hate all of them SO MUCH and I'm trying to stay in a pleasant mood.

I wanted to say that The Emperor's New School is a major guilty pleasure of mine, especially considering the plot makes NO SENSE AT ALL. I just love Kuzco and Kronk. New Groove is one of my favorite Disney movies of all time, even though it's way different than most Disney movies. I heard recently that there's a "lost soundtrack"-- since they cut 99% of the songs from the film-- and I'm obsessed with finding it. XDDD

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I don't even know what it's about aside from the fact that he is inexplicably in high school and has a crush on a girl well aware that, emperor or not, she is way out of his league. But it leaves me very entertained.

[rhap-chan.livejournal.com]

Well, the plot is in a theme song, but if a high school diploma was really a requirement for being the leader of an ancient culture, I'd be surprised. XD Melina is funny like that; half the time I think he pursues her simply because she refuses to give in.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

The theme song is how I know he's in school! Most of the episodes I've seen have been him having to learn about fanily type things. I think one episode had a jock or something wanting to beat him up for the insults, but other than that...

I think Melina worries that she'll have to marry him to prevent the downfall of the nation.

[rhap-chan.livejournal.com]

There are a lot of school episodes, which are really funny, because they'll go to class with Kronk and then later he'll be helping Yzma with her plans. Two-faced no joke...

If Melina married him, I'm pretty sure she'd be emperor. He'd be the most whipped ruler ever. And he probably wouldn't even notice.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I'm just catchingthe episodes when they air at 1 am, and they air out of order, I think.

If Melina married him, I'm pretty sure she'd be emperor. He'd be the most whipped ruler ever. And he probably wouldn't even notice.

I fail to see how this is a bad thing.

[rhap-chan.livejournal.com]

I didn't mean to imply it was a bad thing at all. Kuzco definitely needs a mistress lol.

[annwyd.livejournal.com]

The Twix ads that are all about "cool" guys tricking stupid spoilsport women. Ugh, I can't even be coherent describing them.

These are the two I've seen:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyBGRhbdfsU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQJ2SegGWyc

RAGE.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Can't access youtube at work, but I know the type. Hate.

[kakkobean.livejournal.com]

GAH, I hate those so much. *rages*

[retsuko.livejournal.com]

I really hate commercials that yell the information at you, twice. "SUNDAY SUNDAY BE THERE BE THERE!"

Since we only watch Hulu now, though, that sort of thing is greatly reduced and I just pleased as punch over that. Now my wrath is reserved for intrusive pop-ups and the pervasive "we're cynical and sarcastic so buy our crap, internet users!" attitude that seems to extend almost all on-line ad content.

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

FREEEE CREDIT REPORT DOT COM

Will save you from marrying a girl with bad credit! Because I'd "be a happy bachelor with a dog and a yard" if I hadn't made THAT horrible mistake.

FUCK YOU, BUDDY.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Oh. Oh man. I apparently managed to block those from my mind. That is no longer the case.

The trauma...

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry! The last thing I would want is to have someone relive those terrible commercials.

[kakkobean.livejournal.com]

I don't really watch much tv, either, and pretty much only see the ads that show up on late Cartoon Network during Adult Swim. The focus is pretty much on the other shows on the channel, games where you can kill yourself in 5 minutes online (which is apparently a very fun game), and sometimes--sometimes--cellphone commercials that use sex to sell (aka, the action, not necessarily a woman wearing attractive clothing).

Any ad that tries to tell me that I'm an idiot for not buying their product, though, generally will piss me off because I have no money to spend on things that I can't use.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

For that matter, it will make me want to use another brand if I can use it. The other brand doesn't assume my intellect is based on my using the product.

[kakkobean.livejournal.com]

That, too.
"Oh yeah? You say that not using Dawn marks me as stupid? Well then, I'll just have to go buy myself some BOUNTY to screw up the system!!!"

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

Ten minutes to kill yourself, or whatever it is, is indeed an enjoyable game.

[kakkobean.livejournal.com]

I haven't played it myself, but my friends love it--they found the closet with the ferrets XDDD

[livvylove.livejournal.com]

I tend to tune out ads but what really bothers me is that I will be watching a show and they will break into commercials and the commercials will be so loud they scare the crap out of you.

Man about Wal-Mart that is crazy. My mom did the early shopping once with my Grandma and Aunt and she said it wasn't like that at all. It's crazy how some people get over getting something on sale.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I think a lot of it depends on how big a place it is, what else is available, etc.

[muses-circle.livejournal.com]

Those horrible Sonic commercials. They makes me want to spork my eyes out, they're so stupid. (And of course, they're on all the time when I actually sit down and watch TV - which is rare...)

Don't get me started on the Wal-Mart thing....

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I'm terying to think of a Sonic commercial I've seen. And are we talking fast food, or blue hedgehog?

[muses-circle.livejournal.com]

The fast food, but video game ads in general are annoying.