Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats
I'm all for little handwritten notes. They're personal and sweet. But this is just stupid marketing. Who's really going to say, wow, I *need* to buy these, so I can write my kid (or husband) a cheery message in their lunch? That's just fake, especially when, you know, you only have to take a piece of paper instead.
Surprisingly, though, the buzz about the ad and product seemed to be positive: some people applauded the company for "putting their own brand image aside" (see how small it is on the package) and "letting people get interactive and creative with their product". Mmm. Interactive and creative?
This has a "good mom" aura all over it -just look at the corner tagline: "Send a little love." It wants you to believe that you'll be such a better person if you send your kids to school with a warm and fuzzy note of encouragement. But I'm sorry, the last time I checked, love didn't exactly come in the form of no-nutrient, additive-filled, high-fructose corn syrup sweetened snacks given to kids*.
Olay Body Wash
So, what, water is the new bad guy now? I think this is the third ad I see with a similar spin lately: "don't get ripped off by buying products that contain mostly water" (the others were laundry detergent and a household cleaning product). Corollary message: "we have more product, hence you get more for your buck".
I'm a little dumbfounded, here. I mean, at first, what smart consumer wouldn't want to obtain "more ingredients" for the same type of product? More is more, right? But when you think of it for a second, it just seems like a misleading marketing claim. I think we can reasonably assume that water is probably the main ingredient is basically every kind of liquid you buy (as it is the main component in uh, everything?) And it's probably not a bad thing, I mean, undiluted cleaning supplies or even soaps would probably be way too harsh and strong if it weren't the case. What do we care if it has more or less water as long as the product does its job well and you like it, anyway? There's probably more of a gray zone for laundry detergent, but in my view, much less so for cosmetics! To me a body wash that contains a good amount of water is in fact very reassuring. Water is pure, and harmless against your skin. "More ingredients" does not exactly mean "more extract of meadow wildflowers", you know. Rather, more DMDM hydantoin, more ammonium laureth sulfate, more tocopherylacetate, and more methylchoroisothiazolinone**.
*On a regular basis, and on a day-to-day setting like school. Once in a while, sure, and even yum.
**Actual ingredients of Olay Body Washes. In their defense though, the product ranks at 5/10 on the scale of toxicity, which is not that bad compared to many others.
4 comment(s):
Can we have a series of posts called 'Let's Bitch About...'? Cause that would be amazing.
I am so with you on those Rice Krispie treats. I saw that ad on TV recently, and thought, really? I mean, my mom put notes in our lunches all the time, but, you know, on note paper. (She even on rare, rare occasion bought us Rice Krispie treats, but the two were not related). I think putting a note on a Rice Krispie treat is just silly.
So true. I have to say us marketers sometimes have to stretch a little bit to make something new and compelling to buy but this idea is a little ridiculous. It would be better if they spoke about how much of some other beneficial ingredient was in the formula.
And the rice krispie thing has annoyed me too :)
I second Marchelle's comment. :)
And, erm, this post is essentially what I used to do for a living! Well, the enjoyable part of the job, anyway. But as I am now free from that world of work, I will say simply this: what a load of bollocks!
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