Federici Gelato Poses Fresh Temptation to the Pious
Antonio Federici Gelato just busted out with a print ad campaign where nuns and priests get a little more intimate than the Holy Spirit is comfortable with. Short but sizzling taglines include "submit to temptation" and "kiss temptation" (see variant).
But the UK's Advertising Standards Authority -- which has shafted campaigns for lesser blasphemies -- has apparently never indulged in the sensual magic that defines gelato. The watchdog is investigating the ads now, but that's pretty much a formality: according to the Committee of Advertising Practice, "linking sex or sexualised images with religion may cause particular offence" and "portraying nuns in a sexual manner is inappropriate."
That settles that. The ads'll likely be pulled, considering Mother at left is wearing thigh-high stockings, and what kind of Padre has a torso like that? You just want to tear part of it off with your teeth.
Still, Federici's clearly learned something valuable from United Colors of Benetton: no publicity is bad publicity, particularly where nun-on-priest action is concerned. (The aforementioned parked this bad-boy on a billboard outside the Vatican just a handful of years ago. Needless to say, there was some gnashing and grinding of teeth.)
(V.)
Comments
Some ads are created for the shock value and bring little in terms of increased sales, in this of ice cream. Temptation may draw attention, lets see if it draws more people to eat ice cream.
As far as pulling the original ad off, I completely agree with it since it would disturb many sensibilities.
With such a controversial ad, you would think that the offense it causes would hurt not help the sale of gelato (remember the strike against Abercrombie & Fitch and Victoria's Secrets posters and catalogs in the U.S.?). Yet, when you stop to think about it, do offensive advertising images ever hurt the sales of companies? Both Abercrombie and Victoria's are still going strong, although their poster ads have toned down somewhat. With shocking images such as this, the idea is to stand out enough to create a lasting impression on consumers, and gelato has certainly acheived this, even though the impression may be negative to many viewers. Probably a middle-ground approach for poster advertisements is best for creating both lasting impressions and positive feedback.
With such a controversial ad, you would think that the offense it causes would hurt not help the sale of gelato (remember the strike against Abercrombie & Fitch and Victoria's Secrets posters and catalogs in the U.S.?). Yet, when you stop to think about it, do offensive advertising images ever hurt the sales of companies? Both Abercrombie and Victoria's are still going strong, although their poster ads have toned down somewhat. With shocking images such as this, the idea is to stand out enough to create a lasting impression on consumers, and gelato has certainly acheived this, even though the impression may be negative to many viewers. Probably a middle-ground approach for poster advertisements is best for creating both lasting impressions and positive feedback.
In banning the ad, the ASA has given Federici more free publicity than anything they could have dreamed of getting for what they paid to place these ads.
The ads originally appeared in just two magazines. Even, only 10 people complained about them. Now, hundreds, if not thousands, of publications are running the story about the ad getting banned.
The ASA is encouraging the type of ads it's trying to curtail.