In Response to Todd's post...

Todd talked about the following GM add that aired during the Super Bowl this year.

His question in regards to the commercial is whether the add goes too far, and if the statements made by GM about their trucks are false advertising.

First, I think the commercial is very well done, and quite clever. They covered just about every apocalypse theory out there.

I do think GM crossed a line though. If they had stopped the dialogue at "most dependable, longest lasting full-size truck on the market", and left out that Dave drove a Ford, there would have been no issue with the commercial. As soon as GM decided to name what truck Dave drove, they were targeting someone, clearly with the intent to place themselves above Ford.

Whether or not GM's trucks are better than Ford's also comes into debate. I don't know the statistics, but both trucks have followings, and neither has been in the news for recalls, so I can only assume they are both decent trucks. The commercial is really just a fun poke at Ford, but certainly should not be something companies should do on a regular basis.

What do you think about the ad? Have there been any other commercial-based 'scandals' like this?

Dr. Pepper 10 Commercial

When you think about diet soda and who drinks it, the first group of people that comes to mind is middle aged women. That's what soda companies have found is their main customer base too. According to the 2010 US Census, there are 122.5 million people between the ages of 35 and 65. 49% of those people are male, and 51% are female. Even though an even smaller portion of those groups drink diet soda, that still means that soft drinks like Diet Dr. Pepper are missing out on half the target population.


It makes sense to any company that missing half of the population is not a good thing. It makes sense to target that group of people to expand your market. What doesn't make sense to me is to isolate and insult the half of the market you do have with the previously mentioned new add campaign.

Personally I don't drink soda anyway, but I can't help but feel, if I did like Diet Dr. Pepper, I wouldn't after seeing this. The Vice President of marketing at Dr. Pepper says, "Women get the joke." Well, I'm a woman, and I don't get it. To me, all I see when I watch the commercial is antiquated gender roles, both male and female. I like action movies. There's men that like "romantic comedies and girlie drinks".

Looking at this commercial, there's the obvious stereotyping of women, but there's also male stereotypes. Not all guys, straight, gay or anywhere else on the spectrum, like the 'manly' things that this commercial is showing, so not only is the female demographic now turned off by this product, but a good portion of the male population as well. I think this was a terrible choice for a marketing campaign.

Some people are saying that the controversy generated is enough to cope with the backlash, but news and buzz don't equal sales. Their attempt to make their commercial go 'viral' on the internet doesn't necessarily mean they'll sell more soda. What will affect there sales is the way consumers feel about this commercial and its blatant stereotypes, both male and female.

What do you think about this commercial and the direction Dr. Pepper choose for its marketing? Is any press good press?

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In Response to Nichole's post...

Nichole talked about the phrase "People don't know what they want, they only know what they know." She asked if any other examples of where marketers have shaped consumer wants and needs.

The first thing that came to mind is infomercials. Ads for things like Sham-Wow, Oxyclean and all those other products. They go as far as to demonstrate their product to prove it's worthiness and usefulness to you and your family. After seeing the infomercial, you'll wonder how you ever lived without this glorious product in your life.

Once you get it home, it's a whole other story. You've already shelled out at least one payment of $19.95, plus shipping and handling. Maybe you even got your order doubled because you called in the next 10 minutes. So now you have not one, but two, terrible products in your possession.

The best way to prevent this scenario from happening is to check out consumer reports or reviews. Marketers have the job of making us want something and want it enough to buy it. You can't sell a product if you say that it's only effective for a few uses, or it chews through batteries or whatever other downfall it may have. That being said, it doesn't make it right to sell a shoddily made product, under the guise that it is well made. Since that's more of a moral obligation than anything else, there most likely won't be a movement in honesty and product integrity.

What are some of your experiences with products vs. the advertised product? Ever bought something that was nothing like what you were lead to believe?