When good ideas go bad
by Alastair Ray

It is every advertiser’s bad dream. Your latest piece of marketing has died a cold, painful death and is damaging the brand beyond all recognition. With a glint of Schadenfreude in his eye, Alastair Ray picks his top 10 advertising nightmares of all time

When ads go bad they go bad big time. If a marketer and his agency get it wrong, the nature of the communication business ensures that everyone knows.

News of a bodge-up goes to rivals, consumers and probably their mums as well. As you can’t fail to have noticed, the latest brand to feel the cold hand of public humiliation is Dasani, Coca-Cola’s wonder water from Sidcup.

Having already been slated for the profit margins achieved by reselling purified tap water, the new brand then failed a basic safety test. Millions were lost and a pan-European launch is now, perhaps permanently on hold.

In many cases, spectacular marketing failure is often symptomatic of a business that is struggling or lacks vision. A confused marketing message can merely reflect inner turmoil in the executive suite.

Artículo completo en Media Week