0 comments by Liam McGuire on 12/6/2017
In a year chalked-full of terrible, ill-conceived and poorly executed ads, one takes the cake: Kendall Jenner solving complicated protest issues with Pepsi. Pepsi thought the Kardashian-lite would be perfect for a woke ad on protests. Shocker, she wasn’t. Instead, Jenner and Pepsi glamorized protest and police brutality. It got yanked off-air immediately. I wrote […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 10/13/2017
Dove is apologizing for a small ad which many describe as racist. The ad, for Dove body wash, shows a white model take off her shirt and become a black model. Then, the black model takes off her shirt and becomes a middle eastern model. Some saw the white woman becoming a black woman as […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 9/5/2017
Back in April, Pepsi made the disastrous decision to air a tone-deaf advertisement featuring social media star Kendall Jenner, where she basically solves all the worlds problems with a can of Pepsi. Immediate criticism was thwarted towards the ad, and less than 24 hours after it initially aired, it was pulled. The ad did immediate damage […]
0 comments by Awful Advertisements on 8/30/2017
Advertising is the soul of commerce, a wise man once said. In our society, where constant consumption is needed to keep companies alive, advertising has become a presence that we can hardly escape. Ads come at us in the streets, in the magazines, on the radio, on TV, on public transportation, online… pretty much everywhere […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 8/1/2017
KFC’s latest ad is cute, fun, and features some perfect music. So what’s the problem? It makes me care about the chicken it’s advertising should be eaten. Plus, it’s messed up beyond that. In the fast-food joints latest spot, DMX’s “X Gon’ Give It To You” plays while a cute chicken bobs his head to […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 7/20/2017
In honor of Throwback Thursday, we here at Awful Advertising thought it would be fun to look bad at some of the most terrible ads and ad campaigns ever – ads so bad, so shocking or so stupid, that it’s perplexing they ever went to print. Without further adieu: There’s no reason you can’t be […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 7/11/2017
In honor of Throwback Thursday, we here at Awful Advertising thought it would be fun to look bad at some of the most terrible ads and ad campaigns ever – ads so bad, so shocking or so stupid, that it’s perplexing they ever went to print. Without further adieu: Where do I begin with this […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 6/21/2017
In honor of Throwback Thursday, we here at Awful Advertising thought it would be fun to look bad at some of the most terrible ads and ad campaigns ever – ads so bad, so shocking or so stupid, that it’s perplexing they ever went to print. Without further adieu: Back in 2005, blogger Andrew Teman […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 6/19/2017
Vodka titans Smirnoff is taking shots at the President of the United States and his alleged ties to Russia. Smirnoff, which originated in Russia during the 1860’s, decided to poke fun at its Russian ancestry, buying signs with the phrase “Made in America. But we’d be happy to talk about our ties to Russia under […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 6/2/2017
If Burger King wants to land a successful launch in Belgium, it might be wise to suspend their first ad campaign which bizarrely pokes fun at the Belgian royal family. Somehow, Burger King managed to piss off King Phillippe of Belgium by running an ad campaign website that forces users to pick “who is the king?” […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 5/21/2017
Good intentions went awry this week, as McDonald’s pulled a recent a commercial in the U.K. following well-placed criticism that it was exploitative. The ad in question tackles a sensitive topic. In the spot, a son talks to his mom about what his now deceased dad was like. He tries on his glasses and asks questions […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 5/1/2017
Sometimes, high-fashion imitates regular, boring old’ everyday items. In this case, we’re not talking about Andy Warhol painting Campbell’s Soup cans, but instead, Balenciaga’s $2,145 carrying bag, inspired by Ikea’s 99-cent, iconic blue tote. Balenciaga’s Ikea inspiration is obvious. But, the bag is leather and much more accessible as a luxury item. Although, Ikea’s 99 cent bag […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 4/18/2017
Genius marketing or invasive marketing ploy? That’s the big question surrounding Burger King’s controversial new ‘Connected Whopper’ Ad. Burger King’s latest campaign has drawn both criticism and praise for its blatant attempt to take over Google voice-controlled devices. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_O54le4__I In the spot, an employee says he can’t explain what the Whopper was in the parameters […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 4/5/2017
Less than 24 hours after posting a tone-deaf, widely-criticized advertisement featuring model Kendall Jenner, Pepsi has pulled the plug on the entire campaign. The spot received immediate criticism for making light of serious situations around the world, glamorizing and failing to take protest and potential police brutality seriously, and completely missing the mark by featuring […]
0 comments by Liam McGuire on 4/4/2017
Update: File this Kendall Jenner ad under the “how the hell did the pitch get accepted?” category. Pepsi teamed up with the second-most popular Kardashian to create one terrible fucking ad. Here’s a synopsis. A staged protest is happening during a Kendall Jenner photoshoot. The shoot is juxtaposed against artists and millennials engaging in perhaps the most upbeat […]
