Pepsi Suicide Ads

[shugah]

Is Pepsi commiting brand suicide with suicide-themed ads?
What were the marketing execs thinking at Pepsi when they approved the new Pepsi ads? These suicide-themed ads are sure to be a very controversial subject.
http://www.examiner.com/x-462-Marketing-Examiner~y2008m12d11-Is-Pepsi-commiting-brand-suicide-with-suicidethemed-ads

:wtf:

what the hell are the pepsi advertisers thinking?

[ogneopasno]

1. I have never, ever seen a decent Pepsi or Diet Pepsi ad. Ever.

[BunkerHill24]

8. I thought Ray Charles' 90's diet Pepsi ad was kool

check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D_srHpH6jg

[mucifer]

2. got your attention didnt it?

[shugah]

5. well, yes, but not in an "I HAVE GOT TO BUY SOME PEPSI" way

more in a "i've been thinking advertising really sucks, but this is beyond the pale" kind way...

edit: typo

[seabeyond]

16. i hear so many in corp world say, got your attention, as if that settles it. now a days

with some of the offensive and bad ads that come out get my attention so much i STOP buying the product and bad mouth it to all i know

so no

it is NOT just about getting my attention...

[mucifer]

21. Of course. But, you are a human being not a corporation. I didn't mean it was ok.

I think internet posts don't always convey the sarcasm when I intend it. Sorry. My mistake.

[seabeyond]

32. i gotcha... one of my few issues

the companies are going so beyond the line. too many. i am pissed about it.

i hear people on here say that.... got your attention as if that puts money in the companies pockets. i want the companies to start recognizing responsibilities.... the only way is to lose business.

thanks for the clarification.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

3. Yeah...well..

That's helpful.

[shugah]

6. a link to this was sent to me by someone too familiar with suicide

a person not shocked by much, but they found this ad campaign bizarre, uncomfortable, and disturbing.

edit: can't type at all today

[jwirr]

4. Especially in a time when many might be thinking just that.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

7. Well I *was* a Pepsi drinker.

That's not happening any more.

[DoctorMyEyes]

9. It beats their rape ads

The suicide ads only feature a cartoon "calorie".

[shugah]

10. i missed those

and i'm sure i'm glad of that.

[DoctorMyEyes]

12. Link to it

Here's a link to where I originally saw/read about the Pepsi campaign that included the "rape" ad. Turns out that there's an update and Pepsi is disavowing the ad, saying they'd never intended to run it.
http://feministlawprofs.law.sc.edu/?p=4209

[jonmiller74]

15. I remember that,

Once I followed the link and saw the picture. It cause them quite a bit of bad press. If I recall correctly they tried to justify by saying he was going to give her mouth to mouth. Which begs the question, how seriously was she supposed to be hurt.

[Liberal_in_LA]

29. awful

[anigbrowl]

11. I was mildly amused. A lot depends on where it's published. nt

[shugah]

17. really?

i know it's difficult to explain perception of "amusing" or "funny", but can you sort of explain what is amusing? cuz i for sure don't get it.

[anigbrowl]

31. In short, absurdity through excess

In all of these pictures the sad calorie is trying to do himself in via three different methods at once. It's so cartoonish and over the top that it becomes morbidly amusing - sorta like an 'Itchy and Scratchy' cartoon on The Simpsons, though not in the same league of funny.

It is rather lame as a commercial message, but then again it's a soda commercial - I don't find it any more tasteless than trying to link a crap product with images of health and exercise or sexual attraction or whatever. I'm not especially offended by the suicide aspect - even though it's a serious subject, it's dealt with in an absurd manner.

I have first-hand experience of the seriousness of this, so I can easily see why people would find it offensive. But it just didn't outrage me any. My sense of humor has been a lot more useful than my sense of outrage when it comes to dealing with depression, I suppose.

[undeterred]

30. I think its totally inappropriate no matter where its published.

[anigbrowl]

33. Well, I don't see it doing their brand any favors

Since they'll probably get so much backlash over it. And my amusement isn't going to help them much since I never drink soda. But hey, what can I tell ya. I'm in the class of people that 'should' get deeply offended about this, and instead I was slightly amused. I wonder who the artist is...it reminded me slightly of Ren & Stimpy.

[chrisa]

13. No. Nothing's funnier than suicide!

:sarcasm:

[jonmiller74]

14. Very disturbing

Granted, I know that from the time I was very young, I had a tenancy for anthropomorphizing. Still, the way it is drawn with those sad eyes, and the caption, of "...one sad lonely calorie", does not make me want to buy a can of soda. maybe they'll do a two part ad where it makes friends and turns it life around.

[ContinentalOp]

18. Ha! Those are pretty interesting. I seriously doubt they're going to see any wide use.

It was probably just some weird concept or some niche thing targeted toward Emo kids. But I saw this billboard on the 10 freeway in L.A. today that I found pretty damn disturbing:

[shugah]

25. there is so much to be disturbed about on that billboard

what the hell is going on in advertising? and who in the world are they marketing to?

[ContinentalOp]

35. Yeah, as I said, this was a large billboard on a major L.A. Freeway.

It has a really unsettling undertone of lynching. The Pepsi ad is weird and potentially offensive, but it's really just a very ineffective ad IMO. Apparently it ran once in some German magazine. It looks like it too. It's not the kind of thing that I'd expect to see prominently used in the U.S. at all. But man, that POM ad. :wtf:

[Feron]

19. Those ads are awful.

I get the gist of what they are trying to say, but the idea doesn't execute well.

A comedic take on a sad, lonely calorie would be fine. However I think that the suicide ads are in poor taste.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

20. Oh dear lord. nt

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

22. Drinking Surge has made me consider suicide (n/m)

[Jamastiene]

23. I'll stick with Dr pepper.

kthxbai.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

24. Indeed.

I hear he has his doctorate in tastiness.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

26. Contact Info

I for one am pretty pissed off over this. If anyone else wants to share their thoughts with PepsiCo, here's their contact form: http://cr.pepsi.com/usen/pepsiusen.cfm?or=

[seabeyond]

34. thanks. you made it simple. n/.t

[alfredo]

27. That's worse than the singing lumps of "clean coal."

[Swamp Rat]

28. What's "Pepsi?"

:shrug:

[spoony]

36. I believe it's some sort of stomach medicine

Can't remember if it's meant to soothe or cause vomiting.

[originalpckelly]

37. Well, Coke tastes like shit, so I'm going to keep drinking Pepsi.

[BreweryYardRat]

38. My, that's tasteless.

I'd say "much like Pepsi itself," but I can't stand any carbonated drinks.