Truly Failed Advertising

[smearyllama]

There are some awesome ads out there.
Billy Mays, rest his soul, was a true example of a hero advertising an actually useful product.

Then there are awful ads.
Those made for Evony, a hellhole of spyware and addiction to a crappy empire-building, are a prime example (or eXXXample, in this case). You can see a complete list at this site, funny captions included: http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2009/07/14/evolution-of-evony-video-game-ads/

So, what awful ads have you seen out there?

 

[BlastedTheWorm]

This. A thousand times, this. [http://www.absolutegadget.com/201004193015/news/games/splinter-cell-viral-marketing-almost-gets-someone-shot.html]

 

[Sassafrass]

"HI, I'M BARRY SCOTT AND THIS IS CILLIT BANG!!!"
"GO COMPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARE!!!"

I will not link any videos as anyone who lives in Britain will remember how terrible Barry Scott was and how horrible the gocompare ads are.

As for online ads, uh...spell-checker adverts in a thread that had a few spelling mistakes? I've not run into many bad online ads, really.

 

[The Paradigm]

Those god-awful Slim Jim ads that used to be on the Escapist. Every time I saw one, I wanted to shove dessert forks in my eyes and ears.

 

[KissofKetchup]

The goddamn ads for WoW Cataclysm. They went on for waaay to long (A whole month if I remember correctly.) I'm not going to get into how much I don't like WoW, but even if I did, I would have still been annoyed with the fact that the campaign went on for a whole freaking month. Everybody who already played WoW I'm sure was already aware of the fact that it was coming out and may have already bought it. It just seemed like beating a dead horse to me

 

[GiantRaven]

"HI, I'M BARRY SCOTT AND THIS IS CILLIT BANG!!!"
"GO COMPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARE!!!"

I will not link any videos as anyone who lives in Britain will remember how terrible Barry Scott was and how horrible the gocompare ads are.

As for online ads, uh...spell-checker adverts in a thread that had a few spelling mistakes? I've not run into many bad online ads, really.

Spoiler: Fuck. Yes.

 

[baddude1337]

The recent UK KFC ads. They make no sense and actually deter me from wanting to eat KFC.

 

[TAGM]

"HI, I'M BARRY SCOTT AND THIS IS CILLIT BANG!!!"
"GO COMPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARE!!!"

I will not link any videos as anyone who lives in Britain will remember how terrible Barry Scott was and how horrible the gocompare ads are.

As for online ads, uh...spell-checker adverts in a thread that had a few spelling mistakes? I've not run into many bad online ads, really.

You might want to see this, then - It might help the pain. At least, for the gocompare adds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Euh9zWmASN4

I kind of hate those things to, if only because my mother used it as a running gag that got old about 100 times quicker then the time it took her to stop bloody doing it.

Er, past that, though...

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

I go to Blip.tv. I watch a lot of videos there.

So naturally, I must've seen the same 3 or 4 Glee scenes as adverts 20 times each.

It doesn't make me want to watch your fucking show, guys. Especially when the scenes you picked suck.

 

[Atmos Duality]

Back around early 2004/05, Quiznos ran a series of ads, nationally, that featured the Spung-Monkeys. Which were grotesque pieces of shit that were dressed up ala Mr. Potato Head (no really, they looked like turds. As in actual human waste.), then animated and voiced in such a way that was scientifically designed to be memorable/catchy, obnoxious, and irritating.
...and it totally killed your hunger.

Because when I see two screeching singing and dancing turds on TV, I totally want to go eat at an overpriced sandwich shop.

 

[smearyllama]

Back around early 2004/05, Quiznos ran a series of ads, nationally, that featured the Spung-Monkeys. Which were grotesque pieces of shit that were dressed up ala Mr. Potato Head (no really, they looked like turds. As in actual human waste.), then animated and voiced in such a way that was scientifically designed to be memorable/catchy, obnoxious, and irritating.
...and it totally killed your hunger.

Because when I see two screeching singing and dancing turds on TV, I totally want to go eat at an overpriced sandwich shop.

I want what the Quizno's guys were smoking.
Lots of it.

 

[imnot]

"HI, I'M BARRY SCOTT AND THIS IS CILLIT BANG!!!"
"GO COMPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARE!!!"

I will not link any videos as anyone who lives in Britain will remember how terrible Barry Scott was and how horrible the gocompare ads are.

As for online ads, uh...spell-checker adverts in a thread that had a few spelling mistakes? I've not run into many bad online ads, really.

I was woken up byt the go compare advert on my radio.
Worst day ever.

 

[Atmos Duality]

I want what the Quizno's guys were smoking.
Lots of it.

I'm pretty sure it wasn't drugs, but the results of self-lobotomy.
Of their entire marketing dept.

 

[PinkiePyro]

how about that adult swim ad that was mistook for a bomb theat by boston police
thats pretty fail

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Boston_bomb_scare

 

[blue spartan 11]

The Hunted: The demon's forge adds on this very site. Simple message to the Staff:
[HEADING=2]Don't let them be there twice on one page. You are killing my browser[/HEADING]

 

[Geekosaurus]

Spoiler: Did anybody every actually understand what they were going for here?

 

[Jazoni89]

This stupid shit.


This is not the only Dettol advert that has given me huge facepalms. All of them feed on public paranoia about hygiene, and scaring people into buy their products, it's such BS.

Also the new confused.com advert, because it ruined a good queen song.

 

[blue spartan 11]

snip

1- OH NOES! My hands touched the pump before washing them! They are now full of germs!
I seriously asked myself if they were serious when I first that. There is a company over here, Lysol, who did the exact same thing. They are probably a branch of them or something.

2- Well it worked. I am now officially confused, as to why ruin a Queen's song.