I love quirky and weird. I even like edgy. But I’m not such a fan of bad taste. Last week, there was a lot of conversation about Kenneth Cole taking advantage of the situation in Cairo to pimp his spring collection.
Today, a lot of the conversation – online and off – centers on Groupon and the Super Bowl spots created by Crispin, Porter & Bogusky using the plight of the Tibetians under Chinese occupation and rain forest preservation issues to pimp saving money by using Groupon. Didn’t see them? Judge for yourself.
Isn’t that kind of like saying to someone whose house just burned down “Hey, that stinks. But think how much you’ll save on your utility bills. And save even more by buying a Groupon for some burnt ends from your local BBQ joint.”
These are but two of the spots and you can see the rest here.
Save the Money is a hideous campaign. Even the tagline stinks:
“Money is one of our most important natural resources. Sadly, thousands of dollars are wasted every year. Until now.”
Don’t take my word for it, Brandbowl 2011 captured the online sentiment about the Super Bowl spots in real time. Groupon was in the #3 spot overall, garnering not only the lion’s share of the online conversation about spots in general, but the lone brand managing to receive negative sentiment – in overwhelming proportions. In fact, no other brand received ANY negative sentiment — only Groupon.
With a $15 billion valuation and set to go public in the not so distant future, I’m sure this won’t knock Groupon off the pedestal it has rightfully earned. However, as both a marketer recommending Groupon to my clients and a consumer using Groupon, I’ve gotta say this leaves a very bad taste in my mouth. And, as Cause Wired’s Tom Watson so eloquently opines, it’s a prime example of cause marketing gone horribly wrong.
What say you?
Image credit: Jim Barratt, Bad Taste
Shelly Kramer is a Principal Analyst and Founding Partner at Futurum Research. A serial entrepreneur with a technology centric focus, she has worked alongside some of the world’s largest brands to embrace disruption and spur innovation, understand and address the realities of the connected customer, and help navigate the process of digital transformation. She brings 20 years’ experience as a brand strategist to her work at Futurum, and has deep experience helping global companies with marketing challenges, GTM strategies, messaging develoment, and driving strategy and digital transformation for B2B brands across multiple verticals. Shelly’s coverage areas include Collaboration/CX/SaaS, platforms, ESG, and Cybersecurity, as well as topics and trends related to the Future of Work, the transformation of the workplace and how people and technology are driving that transformation. A transplanted New Yorker, she has learned to love life in the Midwest, and has firsthand experience that some of the most innovative minds and most successful companies in the world also happen to live in “flyover country.”
