I Hate Great Marketing

Great marketing isn’t about connecting with YOU, it’s about a connection with the target audience.  Some of the best ads may be something that you hate and that’s okay…  maybe even a good thing.

I remember in my introductory marketing class in college we were asked to keep an advertising journal and keep track of the good and bad out there.  Almost universally, students, who often were from out of the area, cited the horrendous ads of Bob’s Discount Furniture (here’s a sample):

Bob’s homemade videos and squawky, “Come on down!” at the end of every TV and radio commercial was like nails on a chalkboard (the younger folks can google that analogy).  When I moved to Maryland, I thought I was done hearing those crazy ads, but Bob followed me from Massachusetts to Maryland.  Of course, those ads are crazy like a fox and the fact that his business followed me hundreds of miles is proof.

When I tell folks that I think that his ads are great, I get some funny looks.  In the crowds I hang out with, they are universally hated and personally, I don’t like them either.  But guess what?  The ads aren’t meant for me.  I also ask the follow-up question, if forgetting the ads, they would want to shop there.  The answer is almost always “no” and that’s okay.  These ads are incredibly appealing to a certain segment.  It turns out that we don’t have to like the ads we consume, or for that matter, the ads that we as marketers produce, because they aren’t meant for us.  A truly gifted marketer can adapt and replace their own prejudices and generalizations with somebody else’s prejudices and generalizations.  Once a marketer can identify and then empathize with the target audience, he or she will know exactly what will resonate.  To do that, often times they must forget themselves, set ego aside and push forward with a love for the target and what the product can do for the target.

What great marketing do you hate?  I’d love to see and hear some great marketing that drives you bananas too.