Birth Control Pill Promoted With Trashcan Babies
We've all heard the horror stories of young girls or women, overwhelmed by the thought of giving birth, who've chosen, instead, to dump their baby in the nearest bathroom stall or trashcan. Drug company Schering has co-opted the horror and turned it into an ad campaign for its birth control pill. The ad is an outdoor installation in the form of trashcans - placed near universities in Bankok - with motion sensors that, upon sensing the motion of a passerby, deliver the sound of a baby crying. Once the top of the trashcan is opened, the passerby is presented with Schering's message. OgilvyOne did the work. Hmm. We're not sure whether to say, "Damn, that's great advertising" or "That's disgusting. What the hell were you thinking?" See additional images here.
Comments
Let me help you decide. It's disgusting. One of the more awful examples of advertising I've ever seen. For way too many reasons to ever list here. Shove who ever did it in the trash cans and be done with it.
I know it's slightly offensive to use this comment, so my apologies in advance, but: that's just retarded.
Because you have to have a serious mental deficiency to run an ad like that and think it's good.
I know it's slightly offensive to use this comment, so my apologies in advance, but: that's just retarded.
Because you have to have a serious mental deficiency to run an ad like that and think it's good.
That's the 2nd disgusting thing I've seen on Adrants today (the White Castle caserole). Going for some sort of record?
Apart from the fact that Schering wouldn't have the balls to run such a stunt in Germany, or anywhere else in the West... Dumped babies are a real problem here in BKK. So now, people will hear the cry of a baby, think "it's just that tacky ad" and walk on by.
Nice one, Schering. Dead babies. Cool.
Apart from the fact that Schering wouldn't have the balls to run such a stunt in Germany, or anywhere else in the West... Dumped babies are a real problem here in BKK. So now, people will hear the cry of a baby, think "it's just that tacky ad" and walk on by.
Nice one, Schering. Dead babies. Cool.
Apart from the fact that Schering wouldn't have the balls to run such a stunt in Germany, or anywhere else in the West... Dumped babies are a real problem here in BKK. So now, people will hear the cry of a baby, think "it's just that tacky ad" and walk on by.
Nice one, Schering. Dead babies. Cool.
In Ernie Schenck's "No Fly Zone," this would be targeted by nuclear tipped missiles, shot down, burned, and buried in a ditch that was sown with salt. Then that ditch would be bombed.
Utter and absolute crap.
While this will probably backfire and is in truly poor taste, take a step back and look at it from a marketing perspective. You'll realize that this took some incredible creativity and off-the-wall thinking which, for any other product, would be touted as award-winning, genius and most of us would be sitting back going "why can't i think of something like that?!" For this particular product, however, it is a really bad idea! Could you imagine the uproar if this was in the States?
A few days ago, my local TV station featured a story about discovering a dead fetus in a trash dumpster:
http://www.tian.cc/2006/04/dead-fetus-discovered.html
The ad regardless of what your emotional reaction is does communicate and makes its point. An effective ad I might add.
OK, if we're judging the campaign on raw 'effectiveness', by what percentage do brand awareness and/or unit sales have to rise before the sheer, squalid vileness of the idea becomes irrelevant.
And if a baby dies, what 'point' does it 'communicate'?
I vote for: "That's disgusting. What the hell were you thinking?"
I don't care if it's "effective" or not, it's immoral and disgusting. (I also wondered about the "couldn't there possibly be a situation of a real baby being dumped in a trashcan and people disregarding it because 'it's just another damn birth control ad.').
Absolutely horrific. I think it would be unlikely for this ad to have enough of an effect for it to actually result in real babies being ignored, an all too common occurrence in BKK you're right, but any such risk is too much.
I would vote for anyone coming across such a bin to tear out the offending device or whatever it is that's making the noise and smashing it into bits.
I certainly will if I come across one, and I'd like to hear an explanation to stop me.
This campaign should have been aborted.
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