I have a strong dislike of political advertising, and the 2008 presidential campaign advertising is a great example of why. In general, when candidates aren’t slinging mud and performing character assassinations, they’re making promises they know they’ll never be able to keep. And that’s bad enough. Lying is lying, no matter the degree.
When it goes a step further, to name calling and out-and-out false accusations, it sends my head spinning! Imagine if this were the norm in business-to-business advertising. Any advertising, for that matter. What would anyone in their right mind hope to gain by making false claims and accusations about themselves and competitors to the people whom they hope to gain their trust and business? A one-time sale at best is all I can imagine. And a mistrust of the company, or industry as a whole, is likely to follow.
Advertising has an unfortunate reputation, and other than the mostly non-effective but cute Super Bowl ads once a year, most people don’t like or trust it or the people that produce it. And that’s unfortunate, because many agencies and their people do it right. And, they know a negative approach will only result in more negative feelings and negative results.
As for the “sticks and stones” advertising folks, Sominex® might help you sleep at night—at least that’s their promise.
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