Wondering which are the worst marketing campaigns ever produced? It has come to be evident that a marketing campaign can pretty much determine a product’s future. Ever since the Mad Men of Fifth Avenue started producing advertisements and campaigns for different brands, this industry has grown immensely. And of course, along with the growth of this industry, costs have also risen, making this business one of the best paid around. But although some large advisement companies can charge quite incredible fees, they sure have produced some of the most amazing campaigns around and are well worth the money.
On the other hand, small businesses lack access to good marketing advisors, and tend to develop rather lousy campaigns. Yet, over the past years, some major brands have also produced incredibly awful commercials and marketing campaigns, taking “badvertising” to a whole new level. Indeed, everyone can make mistakes, but some should definitely be avoided. In the business world, entrepreneurs should be careful about certain slip-ups, which can really jeopardize their business. If you are curious about some of the worst mistakes for entrepreneurs to make, check our list on The 10 Worst Mistakes an Entrepreneur Can Make and find out how to keep your business safe!
In the advertising world, some unimaginable flaws have been seen over the past decades. In some cases, small brands have had bad campaigns and made lots of marketing mistakes. Yet over the past years some pretty amazing badvertising has been seen in large companies as well, with strong brand recognition and good images. Let’s take a look now at some of the worst marketing campaigns ever produced.
No. 10 McDonald’s
The McDonalds campaign for their double cheeseburger was pretty weird. In fact, it showed they didn’t actually understand urban slang at all. The ad said “Double Cheeseburger? I’d hit it.” Naturally, a company encouraging their customers to have sex with their sandwiches might need to rethink their marketing direction.
It does actually get even worse from here, as we continue to count down the worst marketing campaigns ever produced.
No. 9 Reebok
The advertisement said: “Cheat on your girlfriend, not on your workout”. This slogan was roundly criticized as sexist and discriminatory. The commercial didn’t last more than a week until a spokesperson from Reebok announced the ad and all posters would be removed.
No. 8 Snickers
The 2007 Snickers campaign with Mr. T went like this: “Get Some Nuts”. In the spot, Mr. T hinders speed walkers, shooting Snickers bars at them through a Gatling gun. He criticizes them for doing exercise, saying they weren’t manly enough. It wasn’t long until the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans associations said the ad was discriminatory and sexist.
No. 7 Ayds Diet Candy
Appetite suppressants Ayds candy were pretty popular during the 70’s. Yet, when they tried to re-launch the product right after the AIDS epidemic was shocking people worldwide, their campaign was regarded as poor and tasteless. Victims said that the fact that the product encouraged weight loss was even worse.
No. 6 Calvin Klein
Calvin Klein had several Sex Sells campaigns that rubbed viewers the wrong way. The first one was launched in 1995, when the company featured teenage boys and girls in recreational rooms with suggestive poses. The second was during 1999, when Calvin Klein did another production with a younger group, with wet t-shirts and underwear. This advertisement was strongly criticized, and all boards pulled down overnight.
No. 5 National Youth Anti-Drug Association
The “Above the Influence” campaign launched in 2010 used the “puppet on a string” ad to show awful things happening at parties. The result was that the campaign was irrelevant, and the puppet sequence only decreased the importance of fighting drug abuse.
No. 4 Breast Cancer PSA
A Chilean agency developed a marketing campaign for breast cancer prevention completely focused on boobs. The name of the campaign was “Por Amor A Las Tetas” (“For The Love Of Boobs”), and encouraged men to get involved in raising awareness about breast cancer, saying “if we like them so much, we should take care of them”. The video focused mainly on breasts, showing different head-less women doing different things. The campaign was criticized because it was thought to be more worried about the aesthetic of breasts rather than the actual condition.
No. 3 Axe
The Axe toiletry brand for men produced several campaigns tagged as sexist. Yet the “annoying girlfriends” one was quite disturbing. The company made a series of five videos featuring the different ways for a man to keep up with his girlfriend, depending on her stereotype, which could be flirty, brainy, sporty or high maintenance.
No. 2 Tom Ford
Tom Ford’s fragrance line campaign, launched in 2007, created quite a stir. The commercial featured a woman with her legs spread wide, and a bottle of the Tom Ford scent. The first thing that everyone was saying right after the ad went out was that it was a new vaginal fragrance, by Tom Ford. Needless to say, that was not the intended takeaway of the ad.
No. 1 Microsoft
Microsoft decided to announce the arrival of Internet Explorer 8 in 2009, with a commercial starring Dean Cain, who said “oh my God, I’m gonna puke” (O.M.G.I.G.P.). The campaign was indeed very funny, but unfortunately, they didn’t quite get the result they wanted. People never like a vomiting frenzy.
