Avoidance of Sex and Violence in Programming Increases Ad Recall

Here's an interesting twist. Ads placed in programming that is not predominantly filled with sex or violence deliver a 17 to 21% higher rate of advertising recall. This is the finding of a study done by the University of Michigan's Institute for Higher Learning.

"In our labs we have never found that people remember more if the ad is embedded in a violent or sexual program," says Brad Bushman, a psychologist at the university who conducted the research. "It doesn't matter whether the viewer is male or female. It doesn't matter how old they are, and it doesn't matter whether they like violence or sexual content."

These findings are in line with past findings and show a trend. Violence and sex are just too distracting to allow advertising messaging to get through. Sex and violence in the ads, however, are another story. Recall is very high as proved by the notoriety of the Miller Lite Catfight campaign.
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Penthouse Publisher Bob Guccione Quiet on Forclosure of House

Bob Guccione, publisher of Penthouse, has not been heard from following a two week extension on the forclosure of his $37 million Manhattan mansion granted to work out a deal for his troubled magazine. Penthouse has seen tough times latley and has had to cut staffers pay checks by 75%. Perhaps sex does not always sell.
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Phones4U Launches 'Foul Feet' Viral Game Campaign

From the folks who brought us the washing machine orgasm for women, comes 'Foul Feet', an online viral contest where those with the ugliest feet are awarded a new cell phone. The company behind this game is U.K. based Phones4U, a mobile phone retailer.

The winners receive a Sony Ericsson T610 and, thoughtfully, a selection of Scholl footcare products

The online game is accompanied by a television ad that breaks August 18.

From the looks of some of the entrants, many in the U.K. are in serious need of a podiatrist. It seems bad feet can now be combined with bad teeth as a stereotypical identifier of the British.

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